Chris Hodge Is Relevant
Relevant: A Military Thriller Inspired By True Events is available for purchase on Amazon.
The New Cold War: Defending Democracy from Russia's Secret Tech Weapon, the second book in the Relevant thriller book series, is now available for purchase on Amazon.
Will Democracy Prevail?
Can Chris Hodge Stop Russia’s Technical Onslaught?
When the Soviet Union fell in 1991, it appeared that a new world order had emerged, one where democracy prevailed and autocratic communism was rendered obsolete. Some claimed it was the end of history. Except the Russians had other plans. They weren’t ready to abandon their power on the world stage without a fight.
After over a decade of development, Russia is only months away from finalizing an advanced quantum computer that can break all known encryption in less than a microsecond. When the CIA unearths intel on Russia’s progress, they turn to agent Chris Hodge, the man judged by the Agency as best equipped to lead the team tasked with sabotaging Moscow’s advanced quantum computer.
If Chris Hodge and his team succeed, democracy will continue to prevail.
If Chris Hodge and his team fail, Russia’s victory on the technological front will lead to Moscow’s unbridled power.
Will Chris Hodge remain relevant after the most difficult mission of his career?
Read The New Cold War, the second book in author Peter Zaccagnino’s Relevant military fiction series, to find out...
Inspired By True Events: The First Book In A Thriller Book Series
Chris Hodge is a modern-day Renaissance man who has just graduated from MIT. His plan to make an impact in the world is to address the challenges posed by Islamic extremism from academia’s ivory tower. Hodge’s career trajectory takes a complete 180 when Abbott Mazuski, the intelligence officer who has clandestinely guided key events in Hodge’s life from a young age, reveals himself.
Intrigued by the challenge, convinced in the solution, and with the promise of information on his deceased Marine father who died in shadowy circumstances in the 1983 Beirut barracks bombings, Hodge agrees to work under Mazuski as a private military contractor in some of the most dangerous locations in the Middle East and North Africa. During an assignment in Somalia, the normally guarded Hodge befriends a local asset codenamed Blackbeard. When Mazuski orders a drone strike that incorrectly targets Blackbeard’s home and kills his wife and son, Blackbeard turns rogue.
With his father’s truth still a mystery, several of his teammates in peril, and his Somali asset now radicalized, Chris Hodge must struggle to remain relevant amidst the constant chaos of terrorism, war, and ever-changing intel.
How To Be Relevant
Rule #1: “To operate based upon anything other than the facts as they are, not as one would wish them to be, was a fool’s errand.”
Rule #2: “The emotional appeal to peace and equality, while at its core a just one, was not tenable. It lacked universality.”
Rule #3: “Know better than to sink to the level of your opponents. Know that reason will always win.”
Rule #4: “Do not confuse hope with logic and evidence.”
Rule #5: “Understand that skill isn’t divvied up equally at birth. Work ethic isn’t divvied up equally at birth. Outcomes can’t be equalized. It’s foolhardy to even attempt it and history shows how dangerous that can be.”
Rule #6: “We’re looking for a Ph.D. that can win a barfight. You’re smart, you’re capable, and this runs in your blood. I need an answer.”
Rule #7: “Spend five days a week in the gym and run a few miles almost every morning.”
Rule #8: “There was no life in it. Nothing and no one could survive in such a toxic atmosphere. Find a way to survive.”
Rule #9: “Be fluent in Italian, Spanish, French, and Russian, with professional working capacity in Arabic and Japanese, and at least limited working proficiency in Mandarin Chinese.”
Rule #10: “I had to drop to the grass, crawl, climb the fence, and take the long way home. I got away that time. Adapt and overcome.”
Rule #11: “You’ve been tracking me. You’ve been steering the course of my life since I was young. Why?”
Rule #12: “We have guided you by our hidden hand. We have been preparing you for this role your entire life. You won’t say no.”
Rule #13: “All of the personality assessments, IQ tests, polygraph examinations, medical checks, and extensive interviewing that he had undergone over the prior months felt like a surreal dream.”
Rule #14: “Scout Sniper school at 1400. Tactical exercises at 0500. Range at 2200. Piece of cake.”
Rule #15: “Failure was part of the process; what mattered was how a recruit dealt with falling short. Those who could power through were the survivors.”
Rule #16: “Hodge was deliriously tired from a one hour per night sleeping schedule, physically broken down from sporadic assaults for which no defense was expected, and on the verge of starvation from a diet of water.”
Rule #17: “If your mind is not on your mission, you are a dead asset. A dead asset cannot lead a team. A dead asset is irrelevant.”
Rule #18: “The risks were exceptional, but without risk there was little value in a reward. Without risk, growth was impossible. Without risk, there could only be stagnation.”
Rule #19: “Hodge once aimed for the life of an elite, if not iconoclastic, academic. That goal was no longer relevant. His priorities had shifted.”
Rule #20: “Be careful how you go. Mind the company you keep. Your questions might be putting those close to you at risk.”
Rule #21: “No one knows what we do, who we are, and there’s no retirement plan. You don’t get to come back as heroes. We do bad things to bad people, but we only do it for a few years. Leave it where we did it.”
Rule #22: "Friendship is forged over years, over strife, over common earned experiences. Friendship is not forged over a brother forgetting his shoe in a masjid or sharing a samovar. Friendship is not forged with an enemy.”
Rule #23: “Know that you can’t save the world writing policy papers from an ivory tower.”
About the Author
Born in New Brunswick, New Jersey, Pete Zaccagnino has pursued all things aviation since the beginning. Earning his undergraduate degree in Aeronautical Engineering, and restoring five airplanes and building three others (including a Lancair Super Legacy), Pete has flown over 24,000 hours in more than 280 aircraft types and flight tested over 685 aircraft. Pete’s company manages several corporate jets, and he spends 3-4 months each year on custom-tailored world tours for his customers.
Pete is a former professor of Aerodynamics, Meteorology, and History. He has given over 100 training seminars on a variety of topics, and has been a guest speaker at aviation peer groups and universities worldwide, including Air Venture.
His fifteen years of racing at Reno have included four championships, including the 2019 Jet Gold Champion, 2015 Jet Gold Champion, 2013 Jet Gold Champion at 509 mph and the fastest qualifying lap at 529 mph, and 2007 Gold Champion in the Sport Class. In 2005, he won his first race in his first year of professional competition.
Pete is also the owner of High Performance Aircraft Group, which performs flight test services for several manufacturers, including the U.S. and foreign militaries. Pete holds several licenses and a variety of type ratings in several jets and former military aircraft. In 2019, Pete was inducted into The Aviation Hall of Fame of NJ.
Pete’s latest endeavors include writing, film production, and aviation filming. The first title in his military fiction series, Relevant: A Military Thriller Inspired By True Events, was released in March 2020. The newest entry in his thriller book series, The New Cold War: Defending Democracy From Russia’s Secret Tech Weapon (the second in the Relevant series of historical thriller books) was released in October 2021. He has produced and been involved with multiple Discovery Channel pieces, the Smithsonian Channel, various documentaries, and several shorts and race productions. When not flying or at work on his creative projects, Pete is an avid skier and loves most outdoor activities.
Pete’s philanthropy includes Wounded Warriors, the National Ability Center, various orphanages in Central and South America, and Christian Service projects for children in remote locations worldwide.
Press
Listen to Peter’s interview on Win Make Give with Ben Kinney by clicking here.
Listen to Peter’s interview on Chuck Woolery and Mark Young’s Blunt Force Truth podcast by clicking here.
Listen to Peter’s interview on Cool Science Radio by clicking here.
Read coverage of Relevant: A Military Thriller Inspired By True Events on Sport Class Air Racing by clicking here.
Disclaimer
Relevant: A Military Thriller Inspired By True Events and The New Cold War: Defending Democracy from Russia’s Secret Tech Weapon are works of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
The stories depicted and opinions expressed in Relevant: A Military Thriller Inspired By True Events and The New Cold War: Defending Democracy from Russia’s Secret Tech Weapon are solely those of the author and do not represent those of any agency of the United States Government, expressly including, but not limited to, the Department of Defense, the Central Intelligence Agency, the United States Department of State, the United States Army, the United States Navy, the United States Marine Corps, the United States Coast Guard, or the United States Air Force. These books are not written, authorized, sanctioned, or affiliated, by or with, any agency of the United States Government, expressly including, but not limited to, the Department of Defense, the Central Intelligence Agency, the United States Department of State, the United States Army, the United States Navy, the United States Marine Corps, the United States Coast Guard, or the United States Air Force. The opinions of the author are his and his alone. The views of the author remain the intellectual property of the author.
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