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Coastal Adventure Series #1
Shadow Claw: A Brock Finlander Novel
There is more in the water than you know.
When ex-astronaut Brock Finlander tries to reconnect with his long-lost daughter, a marine biologist, they discover strange things happening to marine life on Claw Island.
In a rush to identify why the crabs are growing out of control, they find more than they bargained for.
Now, they have only 72 hours before the cover-up becomes dangerous and unstoppable. But danger never expects to run into a man like Brock Finlander. A man who will not just respond, but will attack it with everything he has: his intellect, his military training, and his family.
But when the animals you’re trying to save become the enemy, how do you fight back?
Together, father and daughter must learn that family comes first before time runs out and they lose each other, and the island, forever.
What they thought they knew about the water was wrong… so very, very, wrong.
If you like thrilling action and heartwarming, endearing characters, you’ll love this coastal action-adventure set in the very center of Maryland’s blue crab population, the Chesapeake Bay, surrounded by NASA, NOAA, the Coast Guard, and the Annapolis Naval Academy.
When ex-astronaut Brock Finlander tries to reconnect with his long-lost daughter, a marine biologist, they discover strange things happening to marine life on Claw Island.
In a rush to identify why the crabs are growing out of control, they find more than they bargained for.
Now, they have only 72 hours before the cover-up becomes dangerous and unstoppable. But danger never expects to run into a man like Brock Finlander. A man who will not just respond, but will attack it with everything he has: his intellect, his military training, and his family.
But when the animals you’re trying to save become the enemy, how do you fight back?
Together, father and daughter must learn that family comes first before time runs out and they lose each other, and the island, forever.
What they thought they knew about the water was wrong… so very, very, wrong.
If you like thrilling action and heartwarming, endearing characters, you’ll love this coastal action-adventure set in the very center of Maryland’s blue crab population, the Chesapeake Bay, surrounded by NASA, NOAA, the Coast Guard, and the Annapolis Naval Academy.
324 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 22, 2020
86 people are currently reading
38 people want to read
About the author
E.J. Foster
3 books4 followersTo subscribe to E. J. Foster's newsletter for updates, specials, and reading recommendations from the author, visit www.ejfosterbooks.com.
In 2011, Foster began work on a TV comedy series, writing four complete scripts and outlining an entire 13-episode series. Although Amazon Studios ultimately decided not to produce the show, Foster continued telling stories.
In 2014, Foster began writing satirical news stories for a national satire web site. He eventually partnered with Paul Horner to create a news website and publish some of the most popular viral fake-news hoaxes to garner national attention. They continued writing fake-news comedy until Horner's untimely death in September of 2017.
Foster spent over a decade working at NASA on the team that designed, built, tested and installed new upgraded hardware for the Hubble Space Telescope. His team was responsible for training astronauts on the use of custom tools and instruments to be installed on the telescope during on-orbit servicing missions. Foster helped develop a system to catalog and organize over 250,000 photos and video of space flight hardware, tools, training methods and spacewalk choreography for use during Hubble servicing missions.
He also worked on many other smaller NASA missions before being recruited by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) as the ground systems engineer and satellite analyst for the US National Search and Rescue Program, known as SARSAT, and collaborating with NASA, the US Coast Guard, and US Air Force. For over a decade, Foster has continued to serve as an analyst for the US Search and Rescue Satellite-Aided Tracking program.
Today, Foster lives on an island in Maryland's Chesapeake Bay just across from Annapolis and the US Naval Academy and writes a Chesapeake Bay Coastal Adventure series of novels featuring ex-astronaut Brock Finlander where he dreams up fantastical action-adventure stories that lean heavily on plausible science fiction.
In 2011, Foster began work on a TV comedy series, writing four complete scripts and outlining an entire 13-episode series. Although Amazon Studios ultimately decided not to produce the show, Foster continued telling stories.
In 2014, Foster began writing satirical news stories for a national satire web site. He eventually partnered with Paul Horner to create a news website and publish some of the most popular viral fake-news hoaxes to garner national attention. They continued writing fake-news comedy until Horner's untimely death in September of 2017.
Foster spent over a decade working at NASA on the team that designed, built, tested and installed new upgraded hardware for the Hubble Space Telescope. His team was responsible for training astronauts on the use of custom tools and instruments to be installed on the telescope during on-orbit servicing missions. Foster helped develop a system to catalog and organize over 250,000 photos and video of space flight hardware, tools, training methods and spacewalk choreography for use during Hubble servicing missions.
He also worked on many other smaller NASA missions before being recruited by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) as the ground systems engineer and satellite analyst for the US National Search and Rescue Program, known as SARSAT, and collaborating with NASA, the US Coast Guard, and US Air Force. For over a decade, Foster has continued to serve as an analyst for the US Search and Rescue Satellite-Aided Tracking program.
Today, Foster lives on an island in Maryland's Chesapeake Bay just across from Annapolis and the US Naval Academy and writes a Chesapeake Bay Coastal Adventure series of novels featuring ex-astronaut Brock Finlander where he dreams up fantastical action-adventure stories that lean heavily on plausible science fiction.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
September 5, 2020
A Sci-Fi, Monster, Mystery Mashup
3.75 out of 5 stars
Shadow Claw was an interesting book for me. I want to chalk this one up as science fiction (I mean it is, but I mean that in a weird way). The book lends itself to be very similar to books that I’ve read before. It has the coastal vibe along with the main male character who wants to seek some sort of rekindling with someone he wronged in the past. But the main thing that they’re fighting (other than greed) is borderline not believable. I was able to suspend my disbelief since I’ve played the Fallout games and honestly – the main bad guys they were fighting (the non-human ones at least) reminded me of Mirelurk (google it, but understand it’s likely a spoiler).
The writing in this was pretty good. Not the best I’ve heard but, the things that I had an issue with were more how it translated to audio other than how it was actually written. Thankfully the narration by veteran narrator Nick Sullivan really helps solidify this one for me. His performance added a lot to the story and the characters and likely bumped up my enjoyment of the story a bit as well.
Overall, Shadow Claw was an interesting book that I still don’t know how I feel about it. It wasn’t a 1 or 2 star by any means. And honestly the characters were written in a way that I definitely want to read more stories with them. I thought that Foster did a good job setting this up to be a series without leaving us hanging. It could be a one-off and I’d be okay with that. But I know there’s more stories with Brock Finlander at the helm.
3.75 out of 5 stars
Shadow Claw was an interesting book for me. I want to chalk this one up as science fiction (I mean it is, but I mean that in a weird way). The book lends itself to be very similar to books that I’ve read before. It has the coastal vibe along with the main male character who wants to seek some sort of rekindling with someone he wronged in the past. But the main thing that they’re fighting (other than greed) is borderline not believable. I was able to suspend my disbelief since I’ve played the Fallout games and honestly – the main bad guys they were fighting (the non-human ones at least) reminded me of Mirelurk (google it, but understand it’s likely a spoiler).
The writing in this was pretty good. Not the best I’ve heard but, the things that I had an issue with were more how it translated to audio other than how it was actually written. Thankfully the narration by veteran narrator Nick Sullivan really helps solidify this one for me. His performance added a lot to the story and the characters and likely bumped up my enjoyment of the story a bit as well.
Overall, Shadow Claw was an interesting book that I still don’t know how I feel about it. It wasn’t a 1 or 2 star by any means. And honestly the characters were written in a way that I definitely want to read more stories with them. I thought that Foster did a good job setting this up to be a series without leaving us hanging. It could be a one-off and I’d be okay with that. But I know there’s more stories with Brock Finlander at the helm.
September 1, 2021
Brock Finlander was anxious about being rejected by his remaining family. His military career kept him from home. Now he wanted to reunite with his estranged daughter and grandson. They live on Claw Island whose largest employer is Rook Sugar owned by Kent Rook. This semi-horror eco-terrorist story has the main ingredients, but is a bit lack-luster. Industrial waste causes the crabs to become giant monster crabs. Twists and turns are in the plot. An adolescent love affair and grandpa to the rescue.
The quality of the writing is fair, and the editing seems good. The book is for adolescents 11-17. It isn’t written to challenge one’s brain. It needs more suspense.
The characters are developed well. Kent comes across as the nasty villain. Ken is a greedy self-centered eco-terrorist, destroying the ecology. Jessa is the brainy girl and Brock the out-of-sorts grandpa trying to put his life together again. Personally, I would advise a rewrite. The story has potential. Modern society loves to see the destroyers of the ecosystem be defeated.
So of the best suspense is accomplished by not writing everything and leaving it up to the imagination of the reader.
Writing is like every profession, practice makes perfect.
The quality of the writing is fair, and the editing seems good. The book is for adolescents 11-17. It isn’t written to challenge one’s brain. It needs more suspense.
The characters are developed well. Kent comes across as the nasty villain. Ken is a greedy self-centered eco-terrorist, destroying the ecology. Jessa is the brainy girl and Brock the out-of-sorts grandpa trying to put his life together again. Personally, I would advise a rewrite. The story has potential. Modern society loves to see the destroyers of the ecosystem be defeated.
So of the best suspense is accomplished by not writing everything and leaving it up to the imagination of the reader.
Writing is like every profession, practice makes perfect.
September 8, 2021
Crab eaters will love this story...
The author spins a fantastic tale, using accurate description of the environs around the Chesapeake Bay. Blue crabs are a local delicacy but something strange has changed everything. Foster has woven the story with believable characters to heighten reader interest, especially the family dog, Chum, who steals the show, IMO, with his smarts and instincts about catching crabs and other dead stuff. Read it to find out what I mean. I highly recommend this book.
The author spins a fantastic tale, using accurate description of the environs around the Chesapeake Bay. Blue crabs are a local delicacy but something strange has changed everything. Foster has woven the story with believable characters to heighten reader interest, especially the family dog, Chum, who steals the show, IMO, with his smarts and instincts about catching crabs and other dead stuff. Read it to find out what I mean. I highly recommend this book.
October 3, 2020
The story pulled me in. Had a hard time putting the book down. It was set in the Chesapeake Bay. A father comes to the Island to see his daughter and grandson. One crazy guy thinking he is better anyone else.
Can't wait to read the next book.
Can't wait to read the next book.
August 7, 2021
Surprisingly readable
I will admit I was surprised by the story line. It was a bit young adult focused, but still a good read. Fun action and some chemistry education.
I will admit I was surprised by the story line. It was a bit young adult focused, but still a good read. Fun action and some chemistry education.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews