Fast Track The most cataclysmic two weeks of Lark Chadwick's life begin when she discovers the dead body of her aunt, a victim of carbon monoxide poisoning. This was the aunt who raised Lark from infancy after the tragic deaths of her parents in an auto accident. Yet what unfolds for Lark in the coming days is a dark and twisting mystery into the sinister circumstances of that awful day so long ago. Lark's desperate search for the truth reveals secrets that are about to put her life in great peril.
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Author and CNN Senior Copy Editor John DeDakis is an editor and writer for the Emmy and Peabody-Award winning "The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer" (Mon.-Fri. 5-7pm ET and Saturday at 6pm ET).
DeDakis (pronounced deh-DAY-kiss) is the author of the mystery/suspense novel "Fast Track" published by ArcheBooks. It's the story of a young woman's search for purpose as she solves the mystery surrounding the car-train collision which orphaned her as an infant. The novel deals redemptively with issues of suicide, journalistic integrity, anonymous sources, and mentoring relationships.
"Fast Track" grew out of two events in the author's life: a fatal car/train crash he witnessed as a youngster in 1959 and the suicide of his sister in 1980.
His second novel, "Bluff," a sequel to "Fast Track," is based on his four-day, 25-mile hike along the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu in Peru.
Both "Fast Track" and "Bluff" are available as Kindle eBooks on Amazon.com and in hardcover by ArcheBooks. "Fast Track" is also available in paperback as an innovative "bookzine" -- a format developed by ArcheBooks publisher Robert Gelinas to make books less bulky to carry when traveling.
DeDakis, a native of La Crosse, Wisconsin, began his journalism career in 1969 at a campus radio station at the University of Wisconsin-Madison where he was tear gassed while covering an anti-Vietnam War riot in 1970. He earned a B.A. in Journalism from that university in 1977 following a stint in the U.S. Army where he worked from 1972-74 as a Special Events Reporter at The American Forces Network - Europe, based in Frankfurt, Germany.
DeDakis is a former White House Correspondent. During his career, he has interviewed such luminaries as Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, and Alfred Hitchcock.
DeDakis has been with CNN since July 1988. From 2001 to 2005, he supervised the writing on CNN's "Daybreak," anchored by Carol Costello.
From 1976 to 1983, DeDakis was a reporter at WMTV (NBC) in Madison, Wisconsin. From 1983 to 1988, he was a correspondent with CBN News in Virginia Beach, Virginia and Washington, DC.
In addition to book signings and readings, DeDakis frequently speaks around the country on the topic "From Journalist to Novelist: (Or How I Learned to Start Making it Up)." He is also available to lead one-day workshops for aspiring and/or struggling writers.
He is a lecturer at American University, Washington, D.C. where he taught a journalism and writing class for student interns during the summers of 2007/08. He is also an adjunct professor at Regent University, where he taught newswriting to grad students online in 2008.
In June 2009, he led an online seminar through Regent University on how to write a novel.
In April 2010, DeDakis led writing workshops at The Writers' Institute at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and was the keynote speaker in May 2010 at the Scribblers' Retreat writers conference on St. Simons Island, Georgia.
DeDakis is currently working with an agent to bring his screenplay adaptation of "Fast Track" to the attention of Hollywood and has begun writing book three in the Lark Chadwick mystery-suspense series (working title: "Troubled Water").
DeDakis is a member of Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime.
He is also a freelance manuscript editor.
His wife, Cynthia, a choral conductor, is the director of music at St. Thomas' Episcopal Church Whitemarsh near Philadelphia and the former national President of The Royal School of Church Music (RSCM) in America.
John and Cindy divide their time between Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.
They have three grown children: Emily has just earned her PhD in Creative Writing at Queen's University, Belfast, Northern Ireland; James is the drummer for the nationally-known band "Arizona"; and Stephen is a musician and cook in the Washington, D.C. area.
You're invited to send John DeDakis a friend request on Facebook or follow him on Twitter @johndedakis. His website is: www.johndedakis.com
DeDakis' debut novel is a page-turner, full of interesting sub-plots, suspense, and energy. One can easily imagine this as movie material, because it is very visual and action-filled. The protagonist and narrator is a young woman, and DeDakis easily makes the transition to a woman's voice. He clearly understands her motivation and her character. She, Lark, is a likable and appealing figure, and she, foibles and strengths combined, makes the entire novel attractive and interesting. The 300 pages of this mystery go by fast, and mystery lovers will find it compelling. This reader hopes for more novels to come from this author, whose profession is editing the early morning news for CNN.
Lark Chadwick is a likeable, naive young woman who gets a rude awakening into real life. There were times when I wanted to smack her for the stubbornness she displays, but I had to keep reading just to find out what was really going on. Thanks, John, for creating such a wonderful page-turner. I lost sleep but it was worth every wink....even reading it for the second time! The characters and scenery are very real, and the surprise near the end makes sense of the entire story. Can't wait for the sequel!
I love to read and have always enjoy a good suspense novel! All of the suspense novels that I have read over the past couple of years have been disappointing because I was able to figure out the ending. NOT Fast Track! This novel kept me guessing until the end. Every time I thought I figured it out, I was proven wrong. The greatest point was realizing that what really happened was not even close to what I ever guessed! A true suspense novel that kept me wanting to turn the pages until the end!
I am very much looking forward to reading "Bluff"!
