Manchester war veteran’s book on infamous weapon
Added: (Mon Jun 07 2021)
Pressbox (Press Release) -
Manchester war veteran Phil Tomkins has reloaded for another assault on the book charts.
The 86-year-old former Paratrooper has become a highly regarded author since graduating in creative writing more than two decades ago.
His previous army-influenced books, Once A Soldier, Broken Sword, and Twice a Hero, have all been awarded almost entirely five-star reviews.
And now the great-grandfather has returned with another explosive and historically accurate novel based around some of the bloodiest conflicts of the late 20th century.
The Gun is a gripping page-turner which follows the fortunes of the successive owners of an RPK light-machine gun through the Russian invasion of Afghanistan, the Chechnya conflict, and the civil war in Sierra Leone.
Phil admits the original inspiration for his latest powerful epic came from being presented with the Russian weapon for British Army exercises.
The former Army instructor explained: “I got the idea for The Gun when I was issued with a Ruchnoy Pulemet Kalashnikova 74 - serial number A2855800-026 - to act as enemy in a British Army stimulated excise.
“The story revolves around the life and death of the gun and the gunners who died and lived in actions while using it.
“The gun is used in combat in the 10 years' war involving the Soviet Army in Afghanistan, then the Russian Army’s invasion of Chechnya, and finally the civil war in Serria Leone.”
After moving to England from his native Dublin as a teenager Phil made it through the tough selection process to become a P Company Paratrooper.
His action-packed time with elite forces around the world, along with an extensive knowledge of military history, is reflected in the frightfully authentic combat passages of Phil’s four books.
He added: “The gun becomes a killing machine in three different arenas of conflict as it passes from gunner to gunner - it plays its part in the invasion of Afghanistan and the subjugation of people upholding the age-old aspect of war as being rape, pillage, and burn – it changes hands to take part in the invasion of Chechnya in death-dealing that adds to the total destruction of the people and the country - before finally falling into the hands of gunrunners.
“It journeys to Sierra Leone, where it becomes involved in the most unimaginable scenes of human depravity.”
As with his previous factual and fictional publications, the attention to detail in The Gun is highly impressive.
Historian Greg Francis said: “For anyone who likes the thorough detail of events - and you get this in absolute abundance with Phil Tomkins' books - I would recommend these books without hesitation.”
Following his military career, Phil became the managing director of his own company.
He returned to education in his 60s, gaining an Honours Degree in Creative Writing at the University of Bolton.
For more information visit Amazon and search for Phil Tomkins, where the paperback and kindle versions of The Gun are both available.
Notes to the Editor
PublishNation was formed in London in 2011 to provide high quality services to writers at affordable prices.
Since its launch, the company has assisted in the publication of around 2,500 books in a variety of genres for clients throughout the world.
For more details on PublishNation, visit their website at www.publishnation.co.uk