Come join us at the store where Brittany Butler will be presenting and signing her new book, The Syndicate Spy!
Imagine a world where the earth’s oil reserves are depleted. Nations race against terrorists for control over alternative energy sources, and the Syndicate—a conglomerate of allied intelligence agencies—must put an end to the global energy war.
Syndicate spy Juliet Arroway and her best friend, Mariam, a progressive Saudi princess, are tasked with hunting down terrorists and putting an end to the global energy war, the same mission that cost Juliet’s father his life. But when multiple terrorist attacks result in devastating losses, including the death of Juliet’s long-time boyfriend, Jean-Marc, the Syndicate begins to suspect that Mariam’s family is somehow involved, and Juliet is even more determined to stop the war.
In her quest, Juliet is paired with Graham—a dashing yet arrogant FBI agent—and embarks on a dangerous journey toward love and survival as they race to obtain the formula that could solve the energy crisis. But when peace demands a stunning betrayal, Juliet must decide how much she is willing to pay for the success of her mission. Brilliantly weaving fact and fiction, Butler tells a story seldom told—how female heroics can change the course of war.
Brittany Butler was born in the 1980s in Cocoa Beach, Florida. Transfixed by the fearless astronauts who launched into space seemingly from her backyard, dreaming has always been a way of life for her. And after spending the majority of her childhood regaling her cousins with tales of lost worlds and brave heroines, it was not a surprise that she aspired to be a fiction writer. But after 9/11, her career goals were shaped by the fear that followed. Determined to do her part, she joined the US intelligence community straight out of college and worked on counterterrorism operations in the Middle East. But what she quickly learned was that as soon as one cadre of extremist leaders was taken out, a more lethal one waited to take its place. And over the years, as she witnessed the tremendous personal sacrifice and lives lost, she started to question whether this was a war we could win, and even if we could, at what cost? Becoming a mother further humbled that perspective. And after ten years of working on counterterrorism operations in the Middle East, she decided that the greatest impact she could have would be at home with her three sons. While cleaning up destroyed LEGO ships and breaking up light saber battles came with its own unique set of challenges, she kept coming back to the war that had been part of her life for so long. In 2016, she volunteered for a human rights organization that promoted women’s rights in the Middle East, and finally obtained the answer she had sought for so many years. There, she met courageous Arab women who put their lives on the line to promote peace, inclusion, and modernization. They taught her that she could have the greatest impact by empowering those resilient women whose voices had been silenced by the extremist narrative. Through their marginalized perspective, she came to understand that this was not a war that could be simply won with more drones or bombs, it was a war of ideas. Today, Brittany volunteers within her local community to help Afghan refugees resettle and thrive.