Featured Interview With Andres Mann
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I was born and lived in East Africa until I was 17. My parents were Italian. Eventually, we came to the U. S. I went to college and the university, and received degrees in Political Science and International Relations. I spent most of my military career in Germany. My business career was mostly in New York, although I traveled internationally as well. I was planning to retire in Italy and actually went there, but had to return due to my wife’s severe health issues. So I now hang out in Florida, wishing I was somewhere else.
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I have been a voracious reader since I was four years old. As a child, I made deals with local booksellers in Africa to rent books, mostly history and adventure. I was then that I resolved that one day I would write books as well. During my professional career, I wrote three business books. I now find it more fulfilling to write novels that deal with professional women issues and contemporary political issues, both in the U. S. and Internationally.
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I love the classics: Shakespeare, Tolstoy, Dickens, and Melville. Contemporary authors that influenced me are Stephen King; Kurt Vonnegut; Joseph Heller, the latter masterfully depicting the struggle of soldiers to maintain the sanity while trying to fulfill their duties. I read most of Tom Clancy’s books and Clive Cussler before he started to outsource writing. I like Dean Koontz, David Baldacci and Daniel Silva. I am a fan of historical books, having read most of Churchill’s works and many other works of history ranging from Roman, Medieval, Renaissance, and the world wars. I remain amazed how humanity keeps making the same mistakes.
Tell us a little about your latest book?
My latest book is ‘Tess – Valkyrie Awakening.’ This combines the previous two books into a complete story.
I have been told that Tess is one of the strongest female characters in fiction today. She starts as a military helicopter pilot, driven and relentless, who fights in Iraq believing she is on the right side of history. Gradually, she is influenced by the views of her partner Jake, a brilliant CIA agent, who experienced first-hand the effects of misguided policy and corruption. Both of the characters are distressed at how the war in Iraq and its aftermath was handled by the U. S.
As an author, perhaps I am too bold, but I sincerely believe that the U. S. was directly responsible for generating the current chaos in the Middle East. Our own military casualties are tragic enough, but the loss of life among the Iraqis has been nothing less than appalling. Furthermore, we have created conditions that spawned the emergence of radical Islamists such as ISIS. We will be paying for our missteps for years, and have generated hatred against us that will last for generations.
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