"For the first time in his ten-year association with the military, Street felt overcome with emotion. He had failed as a leader by heading into enemy fire without due caution."

A tale of terrorism, singular heroism, and intrigue set on the high seas, Deceptive Times by Matthew Liburdi tells the story of Captain Red Street, owner and operator of a small diving expedition craft. Running his mouth and chasing money, Captain Red quickly gets involved with some seriously shady characters and has his hand forced into sneaking some strangers through Bahamian immigration. As more and more is revealed about his two new passengers, Captain Red and his first mate Ed realize that they have been made into pawns in the scheme of a mysterious organization with dangerous plans for the fate of the free world. The only person that they can turn to for help in the middle of the ocean is Red's brother, former Navy SEAL Harry Street.

Deceptive Times follows a cast of roughly a half dozen, coordinating, cooperating, and counteracting each other plans to change the fate of the world. Filled with salty language, high action, and even a taste of the supernatural, the story plays out on the page like a Hollywood blockbuster. Intended as the first in a series following the missions of Harry Street, Deceptive Times provides all the backstory necessary to get a feel for the characters, from the loudmouthed Captain Red to the intense behaviors of the terrorists aboard the Seafever. For fans of action movies, this book has all of the sharpshooting, explosions, and heroism you could ask for in a book. As each page and chapter ends, the truth is closer to being revealed, keeping the reader moving forward at a consistent pace.

Word Count– Deceptive Times Manuscript: 114,518

Best friends Al and Marlon, home for summer-break from their first year of college depart on a road trip to a remote camping and hiking location in the backwoods of Tennessee. Little do they know, after gassing up a few miles before the Tennessee state line, they drift out of their reality (the third dimension) and find themselves living inside a nightmare? To escape, they must retrace their steps and find the old man, (the guardian of the curse) who has tattooed on his body the secret to kill the Mind-Reaper. A creature that exists within the nightmare that will suck their souls from their bodies, which will leave them breathless (dead) back in the third dimension––if it catches them.

Around every corner is another turn and another twist that will captivate the reader.