About
S. L. Mauldin is a native of Metro Atlanta where he served in a management capacity for numerous years. After discovering some personal musings from the past in an old trunk, he recounted his affinity for storytelling. Since then, he has penned a few novels and several screenplays, one of which was optioned to become a major motion picture. Currently, in between sleeping and dodging traffic, S. L. Mauldin is editing his recent work while maintaining the hopes of rekindling an appeal to the stories like John Hughes once scribed. Real Issues. Real Life. Real Emotions.
Description
<p><strong>KURDISH SCAVENGERS UNCOVER A CACHE OF NERVE GAS IN IRAQ AND OFFER THEM TO KURDISH FIGHTERS IN TURKEY. THE SPECIAL OPERATIONS BEDLAM ALPHA TEAM MUST SECURE THE WEAPONS BEFORE THEY CAN BE USED.</strong></p><p>"<strong>You must swear by Allah never to say a word of what I'm going to tell you. </strong><strong>This is the most important secret. Ever!"</strong></p><p><em>In their daily struggle for survival, Iraqi Kurdish scavengers uncover a cache of chemical weapons. They offer the weapons to fellow Kurdish rebels in Turkey and Syria to assist in their quest to free an imprisoned leader and create a unified homeland. After receiving a tip from an unlikely source, the newly formed Special Operations Bedlam team is called to arms! </em></p><p><em>Travel with Craig Cameron and his international team on their covert operation as they weave their way through war-torn regions seeking to locate and recover the weapons before they can be used to cause irreparable harm and instigate a world crisis. </em></p><p><em>The odds are stacked against them. Can they manage to keep their operation hidden and prevent further clashes before it's too late?</em></p><p>"The Kurdish Connection--a compelling read. A story of friendship, danger and intrigue."--<em>Ann Everett, Amazon Best Selling Author.</em></p><p>..". Randall's authentic voice adds a powerful push to keep a reader turning the pages." --<em>Janet Taylor-Perry, author of The</em><em> Raiford</em><em> Chronicles, The Legend of</em><em> Draconis</em><em> Saga, and April Chastain Intrigues.</em></p><p>"Topical - Engaging - Intriguing - Powerful ... A real page turner."--<em>Rikon Gaites</em><em>, author of Mummy's Little Soldier and Darius</em><em> Odenkirk</em><em>.</em></p><p>..". Randall Krzak brings his wealth of experience living in this troubled part of the world and his military knowledge to bear in this exciting story..."--<em>John L.</em><em> DeBoer</em><em>, author of When the Reaper Comes.</em></p><p>..". a journey full of history, suspense, intrigue, and action...a MUST READ for all!"--<em>Les Stahl, Retired</em> NSA Executive.</p><p>..". Readers need to fasten their seatbelts for a fast-paced tale made believable by a writer who knows what he's writing about."--<em>Preston</em><em> Holtry</em><em>, author of the Morgan</em><em> Westphal</em><em> mystery series and the</em><em> Arrius</em><em> trilogy (forthcoming).</em></p><p>"A behind the scenes story, ripped from today's headlines deepening the reader's understanding of an ancient strife ... filled with the sights and smells of the market place and secret meetings, the reader is admitted to the secret heart, the desperate longings of those that must fight and win, or see continued subjugation by their masters..."<em>--Oliver F. Chase, author of Camelot Games, </em>Levant Mirage, Blind Marsh, and Marsh Island.</p>
Reviews
<p>Reviewed by <span>Jack Magnus</span> for Readers' Favorite</p>
<p>Life Sliding is a young adult coming of age novel written by S.L. Mauldin. Though he had indeed handcrafted the persona that made him the kid everyone wanted to emulate, even Gavin Bailey found the yearbook title, “The Most Looked Up To,” somewhat tedious and a little bit absurd. Still, he accepted his role as a king at his high school and pondered what it would be like reigning in his senior year. Taylor, his long-term friend/girlfriend, had invited him to come with her family to Cabo for the summer, but his father, who had gotten increasingly strict and controlling, had nixed that idea. He had made other plans for Gavin, plans that would put the kibosh on any entertainment for his last high school summer, and his dad had made it clear that there was no point in arguing about it. After the last day of school, Gavin was woken up early on Sunday morning and driven off to the parking lot where a herd of yellow school buses were waiting for the campers to arrive. To make matters even worse, his father had pulled the plug on his cellphone coverage, effectively cutting off any communication with the real world as Gavin knew it. Camp Lift Me Up was created to let kids with special needs just be kids for a summer, and Gavin’s father had volunteered him to be one of the Counselors-in-Training. Gavin viewed it as a wasted summer at first, but he soon discovered it was a life-changing experience.<br /><br />
S.L. Mauldin’s young adult coming of age novel, Life Sliding, is a grand and glorious read about the pressures to conform that shackle children and young adults in school, and one popular kid’s realization that there was much more to life than being the most looked up to. Following Gavin’s metamorphosis from an arrogant and entitled kid to a compassionate and independently minded young adult is a mesmerizing and moving experience. Life Sliding is one of those all-too-rare books that get it. Mauldin seems to have the inside scoop on the angst, self-doubt and insecurity of the young whose issues are often dismissed with condescending platitudes such as “youth is wasted on the young.” His plot is original and compelling, and Camp Lift Me Up is marvelous. I have to admit that I’ve always harbored a wistful envy of those fortunate kids who got sent to camp and became counselors when they were teens. So I automatically looked forward to vicariously experiencing Gavin’s camping summer, even if he didn’t, but, like Gavin, I found it far surpassed my anticipation. Mauldin’s characters are authentic and intriguing, especially Gavin’s lifelong friend, Jacob, and their friendship is a big part of what makes this book work as well as it does. I had a grand time reading Life Sliding; it’s easily one of the best books I’ve read this year. Life Sliding is most highly recommended.</p>
