So, I make no secret of the fact that Mark Arbour's writing is what brought me here to GA. I started by reading the (as yet unfinished) "On the Mark" which as a matter of fact I still rate as one of Mark's better works. But then I moved on to Mark's "Nessun Dorma"... the series "Chronicles of an Academic Predator". It is by far the highest quality of writing that I have read on this site. When you consider how many other awesome authors we have here - you realise that being the creme de la creme is no average achievement.

Mark is the sites most prolific author, with over 4.5 million words to his name. And its obviously not just me who is a fan, because of the 10 most reviewed stories at GA, 3 belong either to CAP, or to the Bridgemont Saga - Mark's other work.

Now, I'm not just writing this to blow smoke up his ass (you never know, he might be into it...). I'm noting this now because his most recent entry into the CAP series has blown me away. It is particularly poignant because it coincides with an anniversary that is marked around the world, but has particular significance in the US. I am of course talking about the terrorist atrocity of September 11th 2001.

The latest book - 9.11 - hit me like a sledgehammer. Not only was the writing particularly excellent, but the way it was written brought the event home to me in a way that nothing else has. As a Brit living in a northern backwater in 2001, the events of 9.11 were something I watched and experienced from a distance. While I had a basic human sympathy for those who were killed or injured, if I am entirely honest I have never felt an emotional connection to the event in the way I did for the 7/7 London Bombings.

When I first read the events unfolding in CAP, the first inkling of "something different" was on reading that certain characters would be at the World Trade Centre.... my heart literally skipped a beat. 5 years ago, my dad had a heart attack and I was called at my office to tell me to come to the hospital. It was, I swear - a very similar feeling.

I'm not going to give away plot details here, but the next chapters had me in tears. I do not show emotion easily - Paya is one of the few who has seen me at my weakest. But the quality of the writing was such that i had grown to care for some characters more than I would have ever expected.

I suppose this should be in a review, but reviews tend to be read largely by those who have an interest in the story already. My purpose for writing here is to encourage everyone else - read the stories. Start at the beginning. Learn to love the characters.

There is no more fitting tribute on this site than the culmination of the story (so far) in September 2001.

Honestly, you wont regret it....

Anyway - I'm ending my sycophantic ramble here because I don't want anyone's ego to explode However, its rare that we read something and think that it's a privilege to have been part of it. And that, I think, is something that should be celebrated.

West