Fictional tough guys abound, but few are based on actual people like Adelaide author JAMES HOUSTON TURNER'S signature hero, the "dark and sexy" Aleksandr Talanov, who returns in Greco's Game, sequel to his "Ludlumesque" bestseller, Department Thirteen. And while the story is fiction, Turner framed it against the real world of black market human trafficking operating beneath the glitz and glamor of Hollywood, where he once worked as a journalist interviewing victims at an inner city rescue mission. "I've met people like Larisa," he explains. "But it wasn't until my research for Greco's Game that I knew this was something [...]

The Champagne was flowing freely on June 4th when James joined other distinguished authors at New York City's legendary Plaza Hotel for the 2012 Indie Book Awards ceremony. Holding the distinction as the largest not-for-profit book awards program in the world, The Indie Book Awards boasts 240 awards for thousands of entries. Cash prizes total over $12,000, with judges that include "seasoned book editors (including many who have worked with major publishing houses such as Simon & Schuster, Harper Collins, Penguin Books, Bantam Books, Dell Publishing and Avon Books) as well as designers, book buyers, agents, book reviewers, publishing executives, [...]

Coming on the heels of being voted the USA Book News "Best Thriller of 2011," James Houston Turner's bestselling thriller, Department Thirteen, has just scored another award with a prestigious GOLD MEDAL in the thriller/suspense category of the 2012 "IPPY" Independent Publisher Book Awards. Said Turner from his home in Adelaide, South Australia, "I thought I needed caffeine to start my day, but this was a power breakfast all on its own." UK film and book critic Daniel Cann, who has read both Department Thirteen and an advance review copy of its upcoming sequel, Greco's Game, calls Turner's signature hero, [...]

Surprises come as no surprise for fans of bestselling American/Australian author, JAMES HOUSTON TURNER, who is proud to announce the finalists and winners in his "Team Talanov" creative writing project for teens. "The Team," as Turner calls the three teenage characters he is writing into his latest Talanov thriller, will take his signature hero, former KGB informant Aleksandr Talanov, in yet another unexpected direction after the shattering turn his life takes in Greco's Game. Turner credits LL Cool J with some of the inspiration for this project. "We had dinner together in Los Angeles at the end of my 2011 [...]

During my studies at Baker University, I remember getting beat up by my karate master, Jim Harrison, a man Bruce Lee called one of the most dangerous men in America. We were taking our yellow belt test and Harrison invited us to throw everything we had learned at him. He toyed with us for a while before turning on us with a fury I had never seen, much less experienced. Pow! – down I would go. “Get up or I’ll kill you!” he would shout. Up I would scramble and – pow! – down I would go again. I don’t [...]

[clearboth] "This tour was one huge mountaintop experience," says James. "For one thing, 2011 was my landmark 20th anniversary of beating cancer! Few people thought I would live eighteen months, so reaching twenty years was fantastic! My celebration year started with Qantas Airways hosting me at the prestigious G'day USA black tie gala in Hollywood. From there it just got better. Next up: The Identity Factor (Comfort Publishing) came out in eBook format in March to some pretty stunning reviews. This was followed by several exhilarating months of writing to finish a new thriller (due out later this year), which [...]

USA Book News is the premier online magazine and review website for publishing houses like Simon & Schuster, Random House, St. Martin's Press, Penguin, Harper Collins, McGraw-Hill, and hundreds of independent houses. News of the award reached Turner in Philadelphia, where he was promoting both Department Thirteen and his acclaimed international thriller, The Identity Factor. "If I could have done cartwheels without landing myself in the hospital, I would have," he says. "The award is a sweet victory for the many years of writing it's taken me to get to this point." James has a series of novels planned for [...]