Low Flyer

It's crossed my mind more than once to wonder about the coincidence. Julia just happens to introduce Trevor to someone who's involved with drug running, who has absolutely no scruples whatsoever and who is also closely tied to the boat on which Trev's mother was sailing when she disappeared. I suppose that Bridget's public face has had to be impeccable so maybe there really is nothing more than coincidence to it.

I did stop by at Raffles, but not for a Singapore Sling. I'm not that big a drinker and it kinda slipped my mind. I had afternoon tea there, though, which was just about perfect. It probably hadn't changed since my grandparents were there before the war. It's ridiculously anachronistic but I hope it never changes. I saw the building with the pool on top, but didn't visit it. I only had 3 days (plus bits of two more) so the agenda was limited. Kata Tjuta and Ulura were pretty amazing even if it was cloudy most of the time I was there. It was tipping down with rain while I was in Alice Springs. I went half-way round the world to the middle of a desert, and it was raining... I fell completely in love with NZ and the Kiwis I met. I was on the South Island for almost my entire time - driving around in a camper van which was (as they'd say there) awesome! It also allowed me to do my own catering and avoid any danger of cross-contamination with vegemite. It would be hard to pick the best experience but the glow worms at Charleston and Doubtful Sound would probably be tying for top spot. It would be a close-run thing.

So, your country allows the import of vegemite and marmite, but not haggis? Well, that says something. I offer budgie smugglers as rebuttal, m'lud.

Is that legal? In this country, they have a special section in the dump for noxious chemicals like battery acid or lead-based paint. I think you'd have to take marmite/vegemite there. It would probably also be a good idea to hide it in a vat of CFCs or something benign like that so that they didn't see it immediately and make you take it away again. LF

Oh, no arguments there - Aussies (and Kiwis for that matter) are amongst the nicest folk you could hope to meet. They just have a blind spot when it comes to vegemite which is, as Red_A so subtly pointed out, one of the most evil substances ever inflicted on the breakfast table. I found little packets of the stuff on tables all over both Australia and New Zealand - the only stain on an otherwise fabulous holiday... We only have Shane's word for it that he was writing an article which he's torn up, I suppose. I'm inclined to believe him, but his track record is still short and decidedly mixed. That he was writing a resume (which, as an Aussie he'd surely call a CV - no?) is probably more certain - he's definitely all dressed up and is, after all, touting the thing around town with Trevor. Only time (and the goat) will tell.

There were a series of programmes on BBC Radio a few weeks ago to mark the 400th anniversary of the King James Bible. For what it's worth, Circumnavigation, as it was then, was already more than half as long as the bible. Nothing as exciting as Trevor. I flew via Singapore to Perth then by train to Sydney and then on to Melbourne. From there I visited Alice Springs and Uluru. From Australia it was on to New Zealand before heading up to California then over to New England and a little detour to Quebec. It took about three months altogether and was an amazing experience. I'm sure you can get therapy for that, but I'm glad you don't!

Oh, by the way, Vegemite - like its close cousin Marmite - is possibly the most revolting substance ever produced and claimed to be edible...

Well, I'm prepared to give Shane the benefit of the doubt. Maybe he's not going to be the love of Trev's life (unless he doth protest too much) but I think he's going to be a good friend and a potentially valuable ally against Sanchez's thugs.

Crickey, CJ, I didn't mean to imply that the story was too long - far from it. I'm loving it and you can keep going as long as you want as far as I'm concerned (though I can't imagine that that would concern you all that much...) The travelogue aspect was great and I did catch a fair number of the "background" aspects that turned up later. I'm jealous of your trip round the Med - I wondered if they were your own photos, and guessed they probably were. I hope the one of the Atlantis with its plywood jury rig was photo-shopped... If not, what on earth happened to you? Last summer I did a round-the-world trip of my own, though in the comfort of several aircraft, so I recognised some of the symptoms that Trev felt when Joel flew home. I only got really lonely once, but it was a big downer for a few hours, and I wasn't ever really alone. Interestingly (or not) one of the things I did in New Zealand was visit an observatory where they told us about the Southern Cross and how to find south. They also mentioned the false cross, so I was ahead of Trev there. The only time, mind you... It seemed to me at the time that the actual Southern Cross was no more a distinct constellation than the false one, though - both looked like a fairly random collection of stars that just happened to be cross shaped. Probably, if I'd grown up in Australia or New Zealand, I'd be better at spotting it. As for the chapters - the longer the better, as far as I'm concerned but I can't imagine how long it must take you to write this stuff. Your every waking moment, I'd have thought assuming you have some kind of employment occupying several hours a day. As others have commented on the poll thread, you must write the story the way you want to - it's your story, after all.

I couldn't agree more. There are many books in print that aren't half as well written as CJ's stuff. And, yes, they'd probably require some editing - the art of writing a novel is different to that of writing a serialised story - but I don't think that'd be a problem. I'm glad he doesn't publish them in a way because, as it is, we get to enjoy the fruits of his labour absolutely free!

OK, I guess that makes sense. I suppose the lurking stranger in Chapter 62 and the typed letter in Chapter 63 are more noticeable because they're sitting there on their own at the end of a chapter. It's still frustrating but it's your tale, and I'm going to read it anyway. I am beginning to wonder how long it's going to be - 60-odd chapters just to get half-way round the world. Assuming he's actually going to finish the journey then we must be talking well over 100 chapters by the time he gets home. I've got to hope that (after Australia, where he's just got to deal with refitting his boat and the small matter of an assassin with wounded pride) the rest of his trip is a little less exciting than the outward half.

Shane did mentioned that in any pub in town, Trevor would have the chicks after [him] in droves but that could just be the sort of thing that people say and needn't mean anything. It does look like it could be Shane's head that gets delivered to Bridget (and won't that be a pleasant experience for her?). They're both young, swimmer types on board Lagoon catamarans... Then again, CJ's a bit of a softy as I recall and Shane could also be the ideal person to accompany Trevor back to Florida. Perhaps he'll be the one to help fight off Sanchez's hired thug. But, if Sanchez screws up the contract again, why would he give up? Unless, by then, Gonzalez has got Bridget and George in custody and Sanchez decides to get as far away from them as possible. That's assuming that Trevor and Shane go back to Florida. Trevor has (or can get) an Australian passport so maybe they'll stay there chartering Atlantis. If only it weren't for that last paragraph...

Glad I wasn't missing something obvious...

Sorry, coming late to this party, but can someone (CJ, perhaps) clear up a question for me? At the end of the previous chapter, when Trevor, Joel and Lisa are coming back into port, is this line: "It was seven o’clock when Trevor docked the Atlantis and the trip came to an end." At the beginning of this chapter, Trevor is found coming out of Joel and Lisa's cabin when he "glanced at the clock, seeing that it was almost five." What happened to those two hours? How did he get to do them twice? LF

Doesn't help. I only just discovered the story and spent several days last week doing little other than reading it. The tension was almost unbearable at times. I almost found myself wishing that there wasn't another chapter so that I could get a break. Of course, now that I've caught up, I can't wait for the next chapter. Which makes me wonder why CJ feels the need for the cliffhangers (or call them what you will). I realise that they provide a great joke on this forum, but they seem all but needless as a literary device. I can't begin to imagine that anyone wouldn't be eagerly awaiting the next chapter whether or not the previous one finished at a natural break in the story or in the middle of a tense moment. The cliffhanger does serve to reduce the tension and probably reduces the collective blood pressure of readers but, again, I wonder what literary function it serves and this is, after all, a piece of literature. CJ's stories are amongst the best on the net and this one is amongst the best I've read anywhere. The level of research is worthy of Tom Clancy. The character and story development are up there with the best of them. So why the need for the, to my way of thinking, highly artificial device of the cliffhanger?

Wow, it's finally over! I can't believe I've been reading this tale for over a year now, and how long was Changing Lanes before that? It doesn't seem like any time at all. It really was excellent - brilliant, believable characters; brilliant, well researched stories; varied locations - what more could you want? So, thanks, CJ. Perhaps Jon's story will be the the next installment... ?

No need for this at all - of course I believe CJ. Why wouldn't I? Sorry - that sounds a bit short, which absolutely isn't my intention but my ability to rephrase it seems to have abandoned me for now. I don't want to get into politics - as a European, I probably have a very different view of who's best in the White House than an American. Suffice it to say that there was near-universal rejoicing over here after the election. Back at the story, meantime, is there any proof that it wasn't Instinct that set off the nuclear bomb that started the eruption? It was set off by remote control, and they've gone to some lengths to convince the US government that they have several bombs in their possession - the only ones on the island as far as anyone knows. The only proof that the Scar was ever there is now at the bottom of the Atlantic. Isn't it as least as likely that those in the government who have been trying to dump the guys in it will simply hold that line and just add to the list of charges? OK, Instinct have their money back, but is that sufficient recompense for never being able to go home? Israel is, I'm sure, a beautiful country, but it'll never be home.

Hmm - is a nuclear attack (which may well lead to a wider, nuclear conflict) better because it was started by Israel than Iran? I'm pretty sure that CJ won't let that happen, but that's what we seem to be being told here. I'm also slightly disappointed at the caricature of the Obama administration's attempts to establish some kind of links to Iran. I realise I'm just a wishy-washy liberal, but sooner or later there has to be an alternative found to the military being used as the principle negotiating technique. They have their place, of course, but it is surely a matter of regret that their existence is necessary. I still think it's a great story, though, and I'm looking forward to the conclusion. I know it'll be OK, but I want to read it, just to be sure.

Yes, it would be unrealistic to expect Brandon to have come up with a totally different plan, and yes he didn't go as far as Jim wanted, but he went much further than was really necessary. He's already got the guy on the ground and had, for all practical purposes won his fight and thereby humiliated the biker. He could just have walked away - he could have walked back into the cabin and announced the victory. Unrealistic? Possibly in the circumstances, with the adrenalin flowing, but Brandon has already demonstrated that he's not your average person. We already know that he doesn't just react to things. So, unrealistic maybe, but not impossible. Either way, though, it's your story, CJ, and it's not my place to write it for you (as if I could). It's still an excellent tale, and I still want to know how it works out. LF

OK, I get the "respect" thing, but I think differently about Brandon after seeing him act like this. I would have liked to see him find some more civilised way of dealing with the bikers - I thought he was better than that. Mind you, I'm slightly more concerned with what he thinks he's playing at with Eric right now. Perhaps incipient concussion is partly to blame, but he's going to have his work cut out convincing Chase. And, what's with Tequila anyway? I take it there's something in it other than alcohol since Eric doesn't act like this after drinking beer, or even other spirits. LF

It's been a long haul, but it was worth every minute of it. Fabulous character development, edge of the seat tension, and a good, happy ending. What more could you want? CJ is one seriously talented writer. How on earth does he find the time? LF

Any landing you can walk away from is a good one... (Probably just as well I never got that airline job! ) LF

My aim in flying has always been to have the number of take-offs and the number of landings exactly equal... LF

I was OK as long as I was flying, but I had an instructor demonstrating things, and just had to sit there while he showed me what to do. It wasn't terribly serious, as aerobatics goes, just some loops, spins and stall turns, but it was kinda fun in its own way. We were in a bubble cockpit - which is much better for visibility whilst still giving the illusion of being inside something. It was also the only aircraft I flew with a stick control, rather than a control column. LF

Funnily enough, ...no. I have done some aerobatics, and it was kinda fun, but I was happy to get back on the ground again, and happier to still have my breakfast on the inside. LF