Dan Mayland Books In Order

Publication Order of Mark Sava Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Writing mainly within the spy thriller genre, the American novelist Dan Mayland is an exemplary author of the genre, with a clear penchant for creating both action and excitement for the reader, always knowing how to keep them hooked throughout, whilst also creating engaging characters who are witty, engaging and compelling. Largely focused on the ‘Mark Sava’ series of books that he’s created, he’s well known for this particular protagonist, a personality which he has built up over the course of the books. With a large audience of readers worldwide, they’ve also built a relationship of sorts with the character, allowing them to feel as if they really know him. Known for his high-action, no holds barred take on the thriller genre, he makes sure to never let the reader off of the hook, with his edge-of-the-seat style and gripping narratives. The characters themselves are also finely drawn, coming to life off the page, bringing a sense of realism, as he allows their personalities to resonate with that of the readers. Whilst many writers within this genre tend to write more two-dimensional characters, he’s well regarded for building characters that seem entirely real and fully three-dimensional. Developing his style over the course of the books it’s clear that he has a definite sense of affection for the characters that he’s writing about, as it’s this sense of infectious passion that’s brought readers in, allowing them to essentially feel a part of the stories themselves.

Knowing how to build a twist, he manages to make his stories entirely unpredictable too, something which ensures that they keep guessing throughout constantly, as he has mastered the surprise ending, a skill which is only growing as his books become more and more adventurous. This is also largely due to the extent of his imagination too, as he definitely has a sense of scale when placing all his principal players within his richly intertwined stories. Weaving them seemingly with the greatest of ease, he manages to draw all of the pieces together in one satisfying conclusion for the reader, ultimately giving them what they came for with the novels. Knowing and understanding the format too, he manages to make it work for him allowing it to become a tool almost, as he plays with it in each new installment of his series. With a lot more to come in the near future, he doesn’t seem to be stopping any time soon either, as his career will continue for many years to come yet.

Early and Personal Life

Born in America, the author to be Dan Maryland would come to hold a love of both reading and writing that would be nurtured throughout the years. Graduating from Dartmouth College he would then go on to found ‘Maryland Real Estate’, all of which he would do after gaining experience throughout the world whilst traveling, including living in France and sleeping on the streets of Europe even, as well as hiking through Nepal and Bhutan. All of this now leads to the present day whereby he continues to write from his home in Pennsylvania, living with his wife and two children, as carries on into the foreseeable future.

Writing Career

Writing his first book in 2012, he published his debut novel after leaving college, as he went on to release the book ‘The Colonel’s Mistake’ which was well received. This would also go on to become the first novel in his long-running ‘Mark Sava’ series of novels, a franchise featuring a cynical ex-CIA agent, as it really understands its genre well. With an in-depth understanding of politics too, he also manages to bring contemporary issues to light through his work, which is also largely due to his own background in forecasting for the US intelligence agencies, all of which will help see his writing career grow from strength-to-strength.

Spy for Hire

Brought out through the ‘Thomas and Mercer’ publishing label, this was released to much eagerness and anticipation in 2014 on the 18th of February. Setting up the third title in the ongoing ‘Mark Sava’ series of novels, this continues on directly from the last, with another case for the intrepid ex-CIA agent to solve. Following the eponymous Mark Sava of the title, it charts his various exploits around the world, proving plenty of twists and turns, whilst also giving the readers more of what they’ve now come to expect from the series overall.

After an orphan is kidnapped an intelligence war is abruptly triggered in the Middle East, into which Mark Sava steps, leading to him becoming embroiled in a series of international affairs. With both Kzrgyzstan and Azerbaijan not wanting or being able to handle Sava, it appears that he’s settled in nicely to his current agency doing missions for hire, which is when his girlfriend realizes that the agency may actually be implicated in a plot involving the kidnapped orphan. That then leads both Sava and his girlfriend Daria towards finding the child a good home and digging him out of the international affairs that he’s unfortunately been pulled into. Will he ever be able to get out? Can they find the truth? What will become of the spy for hire?

Death of a Spy

This time released through the ‘Richard Curtis Associates, Inc.’ publishing outlet, it manages to develop the previous three titles in the ‘Mark Sava’ series, this being the fourth. Carrying on with a further adventure, it works at stepping the action up, whilst continuing to develop the characters themselves, as well as allowing their backstories to deepen. Along with this it also broadens the scale and world of the novel, this time being relevant to its November the 11th release in 2014, not that long after the previous title.

Now married with a newborn daughter, the ex CIA station chief Mark Sava seems to have it all, especially since the foundation of his spies-for-hire business in Central Asia. That is until he gets a call telling him that one of his employees, the seventy-two-year-old Larry Bowlan has passed away apparently from a heart attack. Going to retrieve the body, though, he comes across an oil painting that depicts a woman that’s known only to well to him, thus leading him on a series of four violent days that could see the end of his happiness as he’s come to know it. Will he be able to come through unscathed? Who is the woman and what does she want? Can he deal with the death of a spy?