Lords of Corruption

Kyle Mills has taken on one of the most difficult topics to address - the real face of Africa, as opposed to the politically-correct version - and done so with style and panache. Protagonist Josh Haggarty is a young man with a blemished past who has made huge strides in redeeming himself through education, but that same past keeps him from finding gainful and appropriate employment. In desperation, he accepts a position with a charitable organization at their showplace mission in an African country ruled by a despot. But soon, the veils of naiveté fall from Josh's eyes as he sees the depth of the corruption surrounding him and the organization for which he works, and his life - as well as the lives of those near and dear to him - is endangered by powerful and evil men intent on preserving the spoils of their debased conspiracy. Full of tense action and surprising twists, the characterizations are also fully realized, with sympathetic good guys, really evil bad guys, and some people caught in the moral purgatory in between. The real face of Africa is starting to become more prevalent in modern literature as it becomes more apparent that it's a continent with many countries that simply can't seem to conform to modern ethical norms (to say the least), and the depth and rampant nature of the problem becomes more apparent. As the saying goes, "it's only Africa". And Mills takes us on a journey that makes it clear why that saying is so ubiquitous. Another five star review. Kudos.

Although Josh Hagarty graduated near the top of his class with an MBA and an engineering degree, he is unable to find a job due to a checkered background. When charitable organization New Africa actively recruits him to oversee a large farming project in Africa, Josh shows interest but hesitates working overseas due to family obligations. Then Stephen Trent, the head of New Africa, offers to pay the college expenses of Josh's sister, Laura, and he finally agrees to the terms. As Josh lands in Africa, he realizes the situation is far from what he anticipated. As soon as he steps off the airplane, he questions his decision when he immediately encounters a violent situation. When Gideon, the local liaison of the project, whisks him away to a remote village in the undeveloped country, Josh understands he is in for more than he first realized. When he arrives at the project, he finds that something is terribly wrong. The much-needed farming equipment is disabled and the villagers are lethargic and uncooperative. Gideon is an abrasive murderer who uproots the very people Josh is trying to help, and he finds New Africa is a front for a much more sinister plan. Not to mention Gideon is also a relative of President Umboto Mtiti who rules his country with an iron fist. When Josh starts asking questions, he finds his predecessor was murdered for seeking the same answers. In spite of the challenges, he tries to do what he can to help the locals. In the process, he meets JB Flannery, a road-weary ex-patriot journalist prone to drinking, and Annika Gritdal, a beautiful Scandinavian aid worker who believes she can really make a difference. As he grows to realize the depth of the fraud that New Africa is running, and increasingly fears for his life, Josh swings into action. He recruits JB and Annika to help him set into motion a plan to uncover the truth and bring to justice those who are raping the country of its resources. Lords of Corruption, written by Kyle Mills, is a powerful novel revealing the horrible effect violence and political corruption has on a nation. Vivid description sets the tone and atmosphere for a story that causes the reader to see, feel, and smell the ravaged, yet beautiful, war-torn country. Kyle Mills is a master of description and dialogue as he deftly builds tension and moves the story forward to a stunning conclusion. This book is not for the faint of heart, but is a strong and satisfying read for those who enjoy a thriller whose topic could very well come from current news sources.

You can't make this stuff up, for sure, if you bother to read the back page articles about small African states ruled by dictators, states very often grown powerful from American and international aid. These are states whose rulers claim to be motivated by wanting economic prosperity and democracy. The truth lies far from the stated ideals and Kyle Mills has captured the essence of the disappearance of governmental and private donor funds into nefarious schemes and dictator hands in this genuinely thrilling novel! Josh Hogarty is having a tough time finding a job after completing graduate school in engineering. He's got a checkered past that merits an instant rejection from all who check their sources. But after being again refused a coveted interview, he's about to drown his sorrows in a local bar when he is approached by someone actually seeking an interview. The bells of alarm should be clanging but the opportunity to get a job and earn enough to pay for his sister's college degree and pay off his own debt loom larger than concerns for something awry in such a supposedly generous offer. Invited to New York City for a second interview with the New Africa firm, Josh realizes he is being courted in a way that indicates the job is his for the taking. New Africa is an NGO, an organization dedicated to creating agricultural self-sustaining farms for the poor. It's a charity, to put it quite simply. Since he has nothing but a very troubled family situation, Josh figures this is even better than sitting behind a desk in an un-adventurous job anyway. Soon enough after Josh lands in hot, steamy Africa and begins to meet the people with whom he will work, he realizes something is wrong and he is expected to quietly accept it all. But the same qualities that got him employed have a surprising twist for his new employers; Josh does have a very active conscience which is about to be sorely tested and severely threatened. First he meets Gideon, the brother-in-law of Mtiti, the dictatorial President of this African state trying desperately to keep foreign support and keep control over civil warfare between the tribes. Gideon's not very helpful; in fact he's downright hostile. Then there's an older, drunken reporter named Flannary who comes to trust Josh and helps him discover some very unsavory political and financial realities. There's a Norwegian nun-like lady whose altruistic work is refreshingly honest, albeit naive. If the mounting violence and sabotage aren't enough, Josh's sister Laura is facing danger from a scheming step-sister and her boyfriend back in America, a situation being watched by Josh's employers as well. Behind the scenes are other shady characters and gruesome events that help make these pages turn faster than a spinning top! Kyle Mills is a master of the thriller, who knows how to create a credible, solid story surrounding a tightly plotted adventure. Lords of Corruption is a terrific read you won't want to miss!!! Reviewed b

Author: Kyle Mills Publisher: Vanguard Press ISBN: 978-1-59315-499-8 When Josh Hagarty interviewed for employment with New Africa, a U.S. charitable organization purporting to manage various foreign aid projects, little did he know that in reality this so-called focused charity was in fact connected to some very nasty accomplices including an American con man, a Russian Mafia thug and the country's brutal dictator Umbito Mtitsi. Kyle Mills' protagonist in his latest novel, Lords of Corruption may have been very qualified with his engineering and master of business administration degrees; however, he still had great difficulty in securing employment owing to his armed robbery conviction when he was a young lad. And even though he was fully rehabilitated, prospective employers were not too keen on giving him a break, until Stephen Trent of the non-profit organization New Africa discovered him through an Internet search. Trent was well aware of Hagarty's criminal background, however, this made him all the more attractive in view of the kind of business the company was involved in. Initially, Hagarty was reticent in accepting forty thousand dollars a year to work in Africa, which, as his research indicated, was quite a dangerous neighborhood. However, when Trent agreed to pay for Hagarty's sister's college education, (Hagarty was very close to his young sister and felt responsible for her), the deal was sealed. Trent explained to Hagarty that the African country he would be sent to was basically split into three sections. In the North there was the Xhisa tribe that had a strong majority and it was here where there was some very profitable mining. The South had the Yvimbo tribe with a weak majority and where there was a fair amount of tribal violence and rebel activity. The middle section, where Hagarty would be working is where you have many refugees escaping the fighting from the South. According to Trent, New Africa was involved in getting the people out of the refugee camps and back to productive lives. Unfortunately, as Hagarty was to learn, nothing could have been further than the truth and in essence New Africa turns out to be a huge scam whose principal function was to line the pockets of some of the most atrocious characters that think nothing of plundering foreign aid and murdering anyone who gets in their way. Much of Hagarty's unearthing is derived with the help of an American journalist, JB Flannery whose brother is a New York Times editor. Hagarty also befriends a beautiful Scandinavian aid worker, Annika Gritdal and the two involve themselves in some very dangerous escapades in their attempt to expose the hidden secrets and the billion dollar conspiracy of New Africa. The result of all of this is a rivet-you-to-your-seat narrative with captivating characters that will win your attention and hold it. In addition, Lords of Corruption will also probably awaken your curiosity questioning the manner in which foreign aid is distributed i

I am a big fan of Kyle Mills and I am very happy to report that Lord of Corruptions is another winner!!! for this great author. There seems to be a trend, among some of the thriller writers, to set their storylines in countries that, in my case anyway, I know very little about. This novel is almost entirely based in Africa. Indeed, we meet our main character Josh Hagarty as he applies for a position with NewAfrica. Josh is quite bright and even has an MBA, but he also has an unsavory past that makes his difficult to "employ". Yet, NewAfrica has definitely shown an interest in Josh and while this may not be the ideal job for him (he does not really want to travel and work in Africa) he does take the position because, basically, it pays extremely well and with this money, he will be able to ensure that his sister gets out of her current situation and there might even be some leftover to send her to a good school. Armed with these thoughts and the best of intentions, Josh decides that he will do the best he can while he is in Africa and will try to help the people there become self-sufficient. Almost immediately upon Josh's arrival, he realizes that NewAfrica is but a front - there is no working equipment, the villagers are basically clueless and uninterested in the project and more importantly NewAfrica does not care about its own projects. What Josh does find is a corrupt, but all powerful leader of the country, a homicidal "right away man", a journalist who has seen it all and loves to drink and a aid worker who believes she can make a difference. As Josh becomes acquainted with some of the villagers, he becomes frustrated at the whole sham and in the process of trying to do something for them he starts to uncover a huge cover up - that could end up getting him killed. Surprisingly help comes from the weary journalist, JB Flannery, who finally decides that he has seen enough and its take to grow a conscience. Together, Josh, JB and Annika set a plan in motion that is both daring and extremely, extremely dangerous. Not all of them will come out of it alive. I have not really been able to do justice to the description of the plotline. This book is just one action packed moment after the next. There is something happening at every turn and you can feel the tension throughout the entire storyline. I feared for all of their lives and at the same time, I could not believe that this type of thing could actually still be going on in the 21st century - yet I am certain that it is. Mills is wonderful at describing the desolate, yet scary African environment - he made me feel as though I was standing right there, in the thick of the action. In Josh, he created a strong character that is deeply flawed and I thought that this just added to the overall comlexity of the book. I also thought the addition of the JB character was a great touch - his complete lack of compassion in the earlier part of the book was a great lead into the type of ch