Milford, CT, Washington,
D.C., New York, NY and Edinburgh, Scotland, October 21, 2009
Events kicking off the new thriller “Deep
Driller” ( Xlibris ) by Henry F. Merritt were launched in the New York-city hinterland of Connecticut in recent days.
www.amazon.com/Deep-Driller-Henry-F-Merritt/dp/143638656X On Saturday, October 17, 2009, Henry F. Merritt spoke at a special book signing event and party in the Milford
area of Connecticut attended by a seemingly endless number of enthusiasts and interested people.
Guests, colleagues
and friends of the author from New England and across the United States enjoyed readings from “Deep Driller”
as well as reflections by Mr. Merritt on his new suspense novel and 40 years experience in world-wide petroleum exploration.
A gifted and insightful writer, “Deep Driller” is Merritt’s first novel.
search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/results.asp?WRD=deep+drille .. Henry F. Merritt has spent the better part of a lifetime in petroleum exploration in the U.S., Canada, Asia,
Africa, South America and the North Sea, where he worked on a drilling rig off Scotland.
“ ‘Deep
Driller’ is a page- turner thriller about political plotting and terrorist violence on a North Sea oil rig. Henry Merritt,
50 years in the business, shows that he knows what he writes about in his detailed description of the rig and its equipment,
life on board and the diverse mix of men involved in this specialized and sometimes dangerous work. The political intrigue
is realistically based on the sentiments of many in Scotland today. The suspense keeps building up in Merritt's story to
a smashing climax. ‘Deep Driller’ is a very good read, and you'll learn a lot about a fascinating business.
You will wish there was a sequel, as I do,” stated Camille Lamont and Ted Lamont, from Oyster Bay, NY, in a recent
review of the book.
B. Jenkins Middleton, of the Washington, D.C.-area explained: “Deep Driller rhymes
with ‘thriller,’ which is what this fast-paced tale is, in spades. But it's much more than that: A detailed
education in the culture and intricacies of the oil exploration business in general and offshore drilling platforms in particular
- in this case, a 250-foot tall behemoth in the midst of a raging storm in the North Sea. The author, who spent his career
in financing exploration for oil and gas around the globe, obviously knows whereof he writes, weaving a story of industrial
spying and potential terrorist sabotage linked to the Scottish nationalism of the 1970's. His characters come alive through
well-crafted dialogue, whether straight Yankee English or tinged with the Scottish, Norwegian or Cajun accents of the polyglot
crew of the rig. You won't be tempted to read this one to put you to sleep!”
According to Howard E. Douglas,
of Austin, Texas, in a recent review: “Once upon a time in the history of Western Civilization, there were men and
women who pursued their professions or calling yet still found time to keep diaries or create literature and art for the
sheer joy of the undertaking and as affirmation of the human genius. Alas, that element of our culture would seem in decline.
Henry (Buzz) Merritt's new book, ‘Deep Driller’, gives us hope that modern pop culture has not leveled everyone
into a homogeneous blob of inarticulate matter.
Howard Douglas further observed: “Mr. Merritt has created
a whopping good story infused with his love of the sea, a practitioner's grasp of the oil industry and a natural storyteller's
eye for the richness of human nature. Despite the very contemporary setting, there is a kind of 19th century flair for wild
places, for character and suspense. He knows his subject and geography and describes places and events with the sureness
of having ‘been there and done that’. At the last page, the reader can feel that he has been told a compelling
story by a character in the book itself. And perhaps that is so. Who knows?”
“ ‘Deep Driller’
is a penetrating and captivating novel about the pioneering, wild-West days of North Sea oil exploration, corporate and
international espionage and the rise of Scottish Nationalism,” said Philip Smith, Executive Director of the Center
for Public Policy Analysis (CPPA) in Washington, D.C. “Contemporary issues of national identity, security, counter-terrorism
operations and the struggle for energy resources come to vivid life in the book’s colorful international cast of characters
who engage in a timeless struggle against the rugged sea and conflicting personal, corporate and national interests.”
www.centerforpublicpolicyanalysis.org Mr. Smith attended the opening kick-off event in Connecticut, along with other invited participants from across
the United States and internationally. He was delighted to receive an autographed and personalized copy of the book from
the author along with many of the guests.
The book signing event and reception with Mr. Merritt was attended
by a diverse and eclectic crowd of community leaders, businessmen, professionals, writers, artists, veterans, policy analysts
as well as colleagues and friends of the author, and others.
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Contact: Ms. Maria Lopez
2020 Pennsylvania
Ave., N.W.
Suite No. #212
Washington, D.C. 20006 USA
