Celebrating James Bond Day with Pastor Stephen Grant and Ray Keating, Part I

 Originally appeared at KeatingFiles.com – October 3, 2022

 

James Bond Day is October 5. One way to celebrate is with Ray Keating and his creation, Pastor Stephen Grant. From the “Author Introduction to the Second Edition" of Warrior Monk: A Pastor Stephen Grant Novel, here’s what Ray writes about the influence James Bond and his creator, Ian Fleming, had on the creation of Pastor Stephen Grant…

 

        As for deciding to write Warrior Monk, my work as an economist did come into play. Many years ago now, a colleague mentioned that a new priest at her parish formerly worked for the Central Intelligence Agency. That caught my attention, and I filed it away just in case I ever did delve into the fiction realm. 

        A few years later, in 2007, I received word that Hofstra University on Long Island would be hosting a conference titled “Bond, James Bond: The World of 007.” My editor at Newsday agreed that I should cover the event for my column. At that gathering of Bond experts and fans from around the world, I learned that Ian Fleming was 44 years old when his first Bond novel, Casino Royale, was published. That happened to be how old I was at the time of the conference. So, I took that as some kind of sign. I filed my Newsday column on the conference, and then started working on my first novel, featuring a Lutheran pastor who had been a Navy SEAL and a CIA operative. Stephen Grant was born. 

 

Get all of the Pastor Stephen Grant thrillers and mysteries!

 

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Ray Keating is a columnist, novelist, economist, podcaster and entrepreneur. The views expressed here are his own – after all, no one else should be held responsible for this stuff, right?

 

Two great ways to order Cathedral: An Alliance of Saint Michael Novel, which is Ray’s sixteenth work of fiction, and the first in the Alliance of Saint Michael series. Signed paperbacks here and the Kindle edition here.

 

Two great ways to order Ray Keating’s new nonfiction book – The Weekly Economist: 52 Quick Reads to Help You Think Like an Economist. Signed paperbacks here, and paperbacks, hardcovers and Kindle editions here.  

 

Get all of Ray Keating Pastor Stephen Grant thrillers and mysteries in paperback and for the Kindle at Amazon.com and signed books at www.RayKeatingOnline.com.

 

Some of Keating’s best columns and essays are available in Behind Enemy Lines: Conservative Communiques from Left-Wing New York. And his other recent nonfiction book is Free Trade Rocks! 10 Points on International Trade Everyone Should Know. Again, signed books at www.RayKeatingOnline.com.

 

Also, listen to Ray’s podcasts – the Daily Dose of Disney, Free Enterprise in Three Minutes, and the PRESS CLUB C Podcast.

 

Check out Ray Keating’s Disney news and entertainment site at www.DisneyBizJournal.com.

Spy Stuff: Bond 25 Starts Filming

If you missed it, the announcement that the 25^thJames Bond movie was beginning principal photography came recently. 

I not only immensely enjoy the James Bond films, but Ian Fleming and Bond played a role in terms of getting me started writing the Pastor Stephen Grant novels. As I noted in the new Introduction to the second edition of Warrior Monk:

     As for deciding to write Warrior Monk, my work as an economist did come into play. Many years ago now, a colleague mentioned that a new priest at her parish formerly worked for the Central Intelligence Agency. That caught my attention, and I filed it away just in case I ever did delve into the fiction realm. 

     A few years later, in 2007, I received word that Hofstra University on Long Island would be hosting a conference titled “Bond, James Bond: The World of 007.” My editor at Newsday agreed that I should cover the event for my column. At that gathering of Bond experts and fans from around the world, I learned that Ian Fleming was 44 years old when his first Bond novel, Casino Royale, was published. That happened to be how old I was at the time of the conference. So, I took that as some kind of sign. I filed my Newsday column on the conference, and then started working on my first novel, featuring a Lutheran pastor who had been a Navy SEAL and a CIA operative. Stephen Grant was born. 

I truly have gotten excited and humbled when a reviewer here and there has compared the Grant novels to Fleming’s Bond. How freaking cool is that?

Bond 25 – the movie has no title as yet – will be released on April 8, 2020. What do we know about it? Here’s the summary from the Bond people:

Bond has left active service and is enjoying a tranquil life in Jamaica.  His peace is short-lived when his old friend Felix Leiter from the CIA turns up asking for help. The mission to rescue a kidnapped scientist turns out to be far more treacherous than expected, leading Bond onto the trail of a mysterious villain armed with dangerous new technology. 

The return of Felix Leiter is most welcome.

I’m definitely ready for Bond 25. How about you?

- Ray Keating

Ray Keating Compared to Vince Flynn, G.K. Chesterton, Ian Fleming and Tom Clancy

Award-winning novelist Ray Keating’s Pastor Stephen Grant thrillers – MURDERER’S ROW, THE RIVER, AN ADVENT FOR RELIGIOUS LIBERTY, ROOT OF ALL EVIL? and WARRIOR MONK – focus on a onetime Navy SEAL and former CIA operative who becomes a Lutheran pastor.

Not only was MURDERER’S ROW: A PASTOR STEPHEN GRANT NOVEL named “Book of the Year 2015” by KFUO’s “BookTalk,” but Kirkus Reviews says, “Action fans will find plenty to love here, from gunfights and murder sprees to moral dilemmas.”  For good measure, Kirkus Reviews gives a big thumbs up to THE RIVER: “A gritty, action-stuffed, well-considered thriller with a gun-toting clergyman.”

On WARRIOR MONK: A PASTOR STEPHEN GRANT NOVEL, a reviewer, who also happens to be a pastor and author, points out: “The first of Ray Keating’s Pastor Stephen Grant novels, WARRIOR MONK, catches your attention from page one. It reads like one of Vince Flynn’s Mitch Rapp adventures, dishing out details and action at a fast pace… It’s a spectacular ride steeped in theological intrigue! As a fan of G.K. Chesterton I delighted in the similarities between Keating’s Pastor Stephen Grant and Chesterton’s Father Brown. In the 20th century, Chesterton, a journalist (among other things), gave the world a detective priest. In the 21st, another journalist (among other things), Keating, gave the world a spy-turned-pastor. Grant is not without his Flambeau either. Both characters are the perfect mouthpiece for the authors to speak to the ills of the world in their day and age… The fun never stops. Truly from cover to cover you’re in for a treat.”

Finally, from a Washington Times review of THE RIVER written by a pastor and former CIA officer: “What Ian Fleming's 007 series has probably done for ex-MI-6 agents and Tom Clancy has done for retired CIA officers, Mr. Keating has done for the minority of former CIA agents who have served their country by working in the intelligence community, but now wish to serve God.”

MURDERER’S ROW: A PASTOR STEPHEN GRANT NOVEL has received an average reviewer rating of 4.6 out of 5 stars.

http://www.amazon.com/Murderers-Row-Pastor-Stephen-Grant-ebook/dp/B00ZK0J4SY/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1446562670&sr=8-1

THE RIVER: A PASTOR STEPHEN GRANT NOVEL has earned an average Amazon.com reviewer rating of 4.4 stars out of 5. THE RIVER was named a 2014 finalist for KFUO radio's BookTalk “Book of the Year.”

http://www.amazon.com/The-River-Pastor-Stephen-Grant-ebook/dp/B00KBXSGR0/ref=pd_sim_351_1?ie=UTF8&dpID=41oTOjNY0UL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR110%2C160_&refRID=09EJR7BWWEM9RN8P0CS7

AN ADVENT FOR RELIGIOUS LIBERTY: A PASTOR STEPHEN GRANT NOVEL has earned an average Amazon.com reviewer rating of 4.2 stars out of 5.

http://www.amazon.com/An-Advent-Religious-Liberty-Stephen-ebook/dp/B009XDS8NG/ref=pd_sim_351_2?ie=UTF8&dpID=51ooz3EqAJL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR160%2C160_&refRID=1V16TRTD7EEVB91NB4SH

ROOT OF ALL EVIL? A PASTOR STEPHEN GRANT NOVEL has earned an average Amazon.com reviewer rating of 4.5 stars out of 5.

http://www.amazon.com/Root-Pastor-Stephen-Grant-Novel-ebook/dp/B008Z7E39Y/ref=pd_sim_351_1?ie=UTF8&dpID=4101A-yFjaL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR104%2C160_&refRID=107MPNPG23WAQ7F13CGG

WARRIOR MONK: A PASTOR STEPHEN GRANT NOVEL has earned an average Amazon.com reviewer rating of 4.3 stars out of 5, and was ranked as a Top 10 book on a WORLD magazine June 2013 list.

http://www.amazon.com/Warrior-Monk-Pastor-Stephen-Grant-ebook/dp/B0043M4NRC/ref=pd_sim_351_3?ie=UTF8&dpID=51D3G6NYP1L&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR160%2C160_&refRID=02X1N6FCQN0K3W55H268

Amazon.com reviewers have compared his thrillers to the works of Clancy, Ludlum, Grisham, Cussler, Griffin and Morrell.

Signed Copies: You can order signed copies of the Pastor Stephen Grant novels at a website set up just for that purpose – at www.raykeatingonline.com.

Website: Check out our website at www.pastorstephengrant.com.

Facebook: Please “Like” the Pastor Stephen Grant Novels Facebook page at:

http://www.facebook.com/PastorStephenGrantNovels

Twitter: Follow Ray Keating, the creator of Pastor Stephen Grant, on Twitter @RevGrantNovel

Ian Fleming and Ray Keating?

From a Washington Times review of THE RIVER: A PASTOR STEPHEN GRANT NOVEL written by a pastor and former CIA officer:

“What Ian Fleming's 007 series has probably done for ex-MI-6 agents and Tom Clancy has done for retired CIA officers, Mr. Keating has done for the minority of former CIA agents who have served their country by working in the intelligence community, but now wish to serve God.”

Keating and the Thriller Masters!

The New Thriller Master! Love Clancy, Ludlum, Grisham, Cussler, Griffin, Morrell, not to mention Ian Fleming’s James Bond? Then you’ll love Ray Keating’s PASTOR STEPHEN GRANT NOVELS, as they have been compared to the works of these mystery/thriller masters.

And there’s more…

About MURDERER’S ROW, Kirkus Review says, “Action fans will find plenty to love here, from gunfights and murder sprees to moral dilemmas.”

THE RIVER was a 2014 finalist for KFUO’s BookTalk “Book of the Year,” with the show’s host calling Ray Keating “a great novelist.”

From a Washington Times review of THE RIVER: “Ray Keating's latest novel, ‘The River,’ takes you on an intriguing summer ride… What Ian Fleming's 007 series has probably done for ex-MI-6 agents and Tom Clancy has done for retired CIA officers, Mr. Keating has done for the minority of former CIA agents who have served their country by working in the intelligence community, but now wish to serve God.”

Get all five Pastor Stephen Grant novels – MURDERER’S ROW, THE RIVER, AN ADVENT FOR RELIGIOUS LIBERTY, ROOT OF ALL EVIL? and WARRIOR MONK – at Amazon in paperback or for the Kindle.

Reader/Reviewer Quote of the Day

Reader/Reviewer Quote of the Day:

What Ian Fleming's 007 series has probably done for ex-MI-6 agents and Tom Clancy has done for retired CIA officers, Mr. Keating has done for the minority of former CIA agents who have served their country by working in the intelligence community, but now wish to serve God.

                                                                 - Washington Times review of The River