Synopsis

During the turbulent late 1950s (Eisenhower Era), the New Sentinels are called upon to reveal a hidden plot (Operation Ajax) to topple Iran’s Parliamentary Government, reinstate the exiled Shah, and take over Iran’s oil industry, the fourth-largest in the world.

When British and American oil interests secretly orchestrate a coup to seize control of Iran’s oil fields in 1953, a small group of humanitarian visionaries and conscientious allies must conduct a high-stakes underground operation to protect a utopian community of farmers and foil the world powers’ greedy ambitions.

WHAT IS ONE’S DUTY TO THE GREATER GOOD?

If you’re born into the power, resources, and ability to fight evil in the world, is it your responsibility to do so?

The easy answer seems to be, yes… but what if you knew it would cost you your family? If you knew you would always live in fear? If it would more likely cost you your life?

This is the central thematic question at the heart of Sentinels interwoven into the subtext throughout the series.

Our heroes will struggle with their call to duty, have their resolve galvanized, and face uncertainty in their choices, ultimately finding an answer to this question in the end.

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Excerpt

Prologue

It’s the spring of 1952, and nine years have passed since Claudine Demaureux, in the spring of 1943, called on the members of her University of California doctoral study group, “The Six Sentinels,” for assistance. She had become concerned that the same German industrialists who had supported Hitler and his National Social Workers Party (Nazi) to power were planning to smuggle their two-billion-dollar fortunes of war out of Germany before an Allied invasion of France. It was rumored that the founders of the Third Reich were anxious to protect their wealth so that it could be used to fund a Fourth Reich in furtherance of their goal of imposing Aryan supremacy over Europe and possibly beyond.

Over the next nine years, the original Six Sentinels had developed an enviable track record of opposing abusive agendas of concentrated power. Recently, they had prevented a coalition of military contractors from manipulating the congressional appropriations process for their self-interests.

The time had arrived for them to step back and analyze what they had learned and to discuss what needed to be done to perpetuate what they had accomplished.

It had become apparent to all involved that irresponsible agendas of self-interest were emerging at a faster pace. At the same time, the demands of their personal lives were making it necessary for them to engage in a longer-range planning discussion if they wished to continue their opposition to the major-power pursuit of self-serving agendas.

The weekly meeting of the Senior Loan Committee of New York’s Stone City Bank was breaking up. Mike Stone, the bank’s executive vice president, was still seated. He was talking to two of the most senior members when his secretary entered the executive conference room and made her way to where he was sitting. Handing him a handwritten note, she respectfully waited for his reply.

The message, penned on Jacques Roth’s personal stationery, read as follows: “I’d like to discuss something. Could you join me for lunch at Frank’s at 12:30?”

Jacques was already standing at Frank’s hot dog stand, across the street from the entrance to the Stone City Bank Building. Engaged in an animated conversation with his old friend, Frank, he was aware of Mike’s arrival at their long-time favorite lunch locale. After standing aside to allow Mike to say hello and order his usual, a footlong hot dog with sauerkraut, hot mustard, relish, and a Coke, Jacques suggested they take their lunches into the park, sit on a bench, and talk.

Mike, sensing Jacques’ serious mood, was wondering, ‘What could be so important that he needs to talk on such short notice outside the confines of the bank? Has some Sentinel event occurred that requires our immediate attention?’

Wasting no time, Jacques asked, “Did you receive Tony and Natalie’s invitation to attend a retreat at the Sentinel Vineyards next month?”

“I saw the envelope in my pile of unopened mail. What’s so important about our holding another retreat? Don’t we regularly schedule an all-hands retreat following the conclusion of our most recent Sentinel endeavor?”

Reaching into his inside coat pocket, Jacques withdrew his invitation and handed it to Mike. “I could not help but notice the invitation included both Tony’s and Natalie’s names. I didn’t know they were seeing each other, much less that they had taken up residence in Tony’s home at the Sentinel Vineyard. Having dated Marcus and you unsuccessfully, why would she be attracted to yet another Sentinel with the same driven personality? How can a successful star of London’s and New York’s musical stages find happiness with a man who has spent the last ten years of his life committed to birthing a national vintner of premium wines?”

“But that’s not all,” Mike said. “Look at the bottom of the page. Cecelia has announced she is going to present her report on the founding of the Sentinel Institute. I can assure you she has spent a lot of time thinking about where all our Sentinel efforts may be leading. She is convinced that, if we hope to attract, train, and motivate qualified people to perpetuate what we have started, we need to become serious.

To accentuate what she is preaching, she has a habit of saying, ‘It will take a minimum of ten years before the institute will be able to graduate students capable of continuing our work, and another five years of our coaching. Fifteen years is a long time before we can hope to withdraw.'”

After nodding in agreement, Jacques said, “In protecting the congressional appropriations process, it’s important that we appreciate that this was the first time we encountered a coalition of connected military prime contractors. By combining their resources and their influence, they have learned that they can leverage their efforts into a more formidable force, capable of managing congressional approval for their own self-interest. In thinking about our future effectiveness, don’t we need to pay particular attention to this coalition of corporations?”

About the Author

Gordon Zuckerman is the author of the acclaimed historical fiction series, The Sentinels. The Sentinels, features “The Six Sentinels,” a group of high-minded, high-energy problem solvers who battle against questionable intentions. The books in The Sentinels series are set in climates of military turmoil where government and greed collide in high-stakes drama with entire nations hanging in the balance. By connecting the dots of history, Zuckerman brings to life the intricate stories of people navigating the complex interplay of power and morality. His books offer readers not just a journey through history, but an exploration of the forces that shape our world.

Author Gordon Zuckerman has traveled extensively and is a life-long history buff. Having been made aware of the potential corrupting influence of concentrated wealth and power, he devoted the last 10years of his life to studying some of history’s most important events. He’s developed an understanding of how concentrated industrial and financial influence, given the support of government, can pursue agendas of self-interest that can conflict with the public’s best interests.

He resides with his wife, Anne, on their ranch in Northern Nevada. They have two children and four grandchildren. He enjoys his two dogs and three horses.

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