ORMOND BEACH, Fla., Sept. 17, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- December 7, 1941 was a day proclaimed to live in infamy. The Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor and, in a burst of bombs and hail of gunfire, forced America into World War II. What if it could all happen again? In the new novel, The Second Day of Infamy (now available through 1stBooks), by Eric J. Phillips Jr., the Japanese plan to hold America hostage for its oil.
Phillips introduces a scary alternate political reality that could have been part of newspaper headlines. In his novel, Saddam Hussein acquires a nuclear arsenal in January 2000. With this power, the despot blackmails the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) into drastically reducing its output of oil. The U.S., although hurt by the move, is able to subsist on other supplies. Japan, whose economy is quickly failing, wants to purchase oil from Alaskan reserves, but the U.S. refuses. The Japanese decide if America will not give it up willingly, it must simply be forced. Japan secretly readies plans to hold the U.S. hostage until an agreement is signed.
In December 2000, Britt Candlee, a Gulf War veteran, notices something strange in the Sumati motor plant where he works as a metallurgist. Cylinder tubes, supposedly rear axle shafts, are being unloaded at the plant. Upon closer inspection, Britt discovers they are machine gun barrels. When Tashima, a colonel in the Japanese Army discovers the employee's snooping, Britt is fired.
Troubled by the discovery, Britt is quickly hired at Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and begins dating Kim Walker, a recent new hire to Sumati Motor. They ice skate at the NY-Center, a rink owned by the Japanese. Britt is horrified to think that the Japanese could be building an atomic device below the ice. When further investigation and another discovery proves the real possibility of the Japanese using their car factories and real estate holdings in the nation to wage war, Britt and Kim realize they must alert the government before the worst happens.
An exciting story of political stability and espionage, The Second Day of Infamy is a great read for lovers of conspiracies and spy novels alike.
Phillips spent four years with the U.S. Coast Guard, including two at sea during World War II. A graduate of Temple University, he was a metallurgist in the automotive industry for 30 years. Now retired, he lives in Ormond Beach, Fla. with his wife, Shirley. The Second Day of Infamy is his first book.
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