Storm Surge
“Never quit. There is a light at the end of the tunnel, and if you quit you seal your fate or the fate of a loved one,” says author John Banas. In his new novel Storm Surge, this rings particularly true, as finding a way to persevere is the name of the game if any of the characters want to make it out alive.
Brenda Meyers is having a bad day. Her daughter is trapped somewhere in New Orleans right before Hurricane Katrina strikes. Her increasingly estranged husband may be on the verge of losing another job. And her cheating former fiancé claims to have evidence that his wife and Brenda’s husband are having an affair. But nothing matters more than finding and rescuing her daughter. Brenda feels a rescue mission can be made before the storm hits. So, when her former fiancé offers his boat and his help, Brenda reluctantly accepts, unaware of the fiendish plot lying behind it all.
As Banas himself puts it, this is a book about “Ordinary people doing extraordinary things.” Find out more about the book and the man behind it in our interview below:
Q: Where did the idea for this book come from?
A: From me wanting to help in the search and rescue efforts for Hurricane Katrina. I had a small boat at the time, and was going to go down and help, but the fire department who did deploy some of their staff down there told me stories of folks being robbed of their boats. It got me thinking about what happens in a disaster area and that eventually led to Storm Surge.
Q: You have said you are drawn to stories about average, everyday people thrust into impossible situations who must reach above their typical comfort levels to survive. Tell us about the “average” people you have introduced in Storm Surge.
A: Of course, poor Brenda Meyers, who’s having an awful day; affairs, finances and now her daughter stuck in NOLA before the hurricane hits. It pushes her over the edge, but she reacts in a positive way like most mothers would — save the child and prioritize everything else lower. But now she must save her daughter and stop a professional hit on her well insured and increasingly distant husband, without painting a target on her own back.
Q: This is your debut novel, what was the writing process like compared to your previous writing experience?
A: There are a lot of things going on in this story. To keep it straight, I couldn’t possibly just sit in front of a blank screen and paint a story; I had to plan it out like anyone would to build a house, a plane, or a building. So, I wrote the story at least twice; once in a synopsis with a paragraph per chapter, and then I wrote the chapters after several drafts of the synopsis.
Q: Where and when did you develop your love of thrillers?
A: I read my first Novel when I was eight years old. It was The Andromeda Strain, and I was hooked. I think every thriller describes ordinary people having to become extraordinary to make it out of the situation they are thrust into. It’s a compelling human story.
Q: What do you hope readers take away from the story?
A: Never quit. There is a light at the end of the tunnel, and if you quit you seal your fate or the fate of a loved one. Statistically, if you keep at it, you will eventually achieve your goals.
Q: What is your next project?
A: I’m currently working on my next novel, a paranormal thriller based in Chicago. This city tends to inspire an avalanche of story ideas, and I’ve got quite a long list of book ideas.
About J.F. Banas:
Storm Surge is the debut thriller by John F. Banas. John read his first novel, Andromeda Strain, when he was just eight years old and has been hooked on thriller novels ever since. He is drawn to stories about average, everyday people who are thrust into impossible situations and called upon to reach above their skill and comfort level to succeed, or even survive. John’s first published work was a short story for an anthology entitled Down the Block, a collection of tales about life in the big city. John lives with his family in a suburb of Chicago, a city that provides endless inspiration for books.
