Stinger

Diana R. Chambers Thriller writer

Author Biography

Diana R. Chambers has written for television, film, theater and new media, but primarily considers herself a novelist. As a child she was a bookworm, wandering the musty aisles of libraries, drawn by the promise of discovery, distant lives and distant lands.
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Influences

The roads I've traveled and the people I've met along the way, including my husband Everett and daughter Lili.

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Diana R. Chambers

Synopsis:

A "rogue" CIA operative, a daring San Francisco journalist and an elusive mujahideen leader become entangled in an unusual triangle that plays out in the last battlefield of the Cold War: Afghanistan.

Book Excerpt:

    The dusk began to close upon them. Robin lapsed into a preoccupied silence as they headed back to camp, picking their way amid the debris of war—stones, glass, metal bomb fragments, smashed fruit and shattered tree stumps. He reached for her arm and she shrugged him away.
    Fine, let her stumble, he thought. Let her go through her changes alone. You never get used to it, though.
    It was awesome and terrible and surreal. They passed a neat row of fresh craters. An uprooted, reeking outhouse. A padlocked door connected to nothing. A headless chicken covered with flies, frantically running—nowhere. A dying goat leaking intestines. Overhead, vultures were cruising.
    Nick scowled. "Maybe it's a good thing you can't breathe."
    "Yeah." She nodded briefly.
    He paused to survey the scene. The valley was ripped apart, as if by simultaneous hurricane, earthquake and fire. "War." He turned to her.
    Robin read his dark eyes and realized he wasn't as insensitive as he seemed. Tough, maybe—callous, no. She looked down and whispered, "I was scared."
    Nick shrugged. "Who wasn't?"
    They studied each other. Time for a cease-fire?
    "Thanks, Nick. I know I've made it rough on you."
    He shrugged again. "Well, you're here now. I only hope you get what you want."
    Her smile was quiet, her eyes thoughtful. "I hope we both do. If that's possible."

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Author Comment:

During a covert operation based in Pakistan, the CIA helped smuggle the Stinger anti-aircraft missiles over secret mountain trails into Afghanistan. This assistance helped the Afghan resistance defeat the mighty Red Army, which led to the fall of the Soviet Union--and the end of the Cold War.