Hemry, John G.

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HEMRY, John G.

PERSONAL:

Son of Jack M. Hemry (a naval officer); married; children: three. Education: Graduated from U.S. Naval Academy, 1978.

ADDRESSES:

Home—MD. Agent—c/o Author Mail, Penguin Group (USA), 374 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10014. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Writer, retired naval officer. Military service: On active duty, was assigned as a navigator and gunnery officer, USS Spruance; a production control officer, Defense Intelligence Agency; a watch officer and operations officer, Navy Anti-Terrorism Alert Center; a staff intelligence officer/NC, Amphibious Squadron Five; a readiness division officer, Navy Operation Intelligence Center; and the Chief of Naval Operations Staff NC/N5, assigned to plans, policy, and operations.

WRITINGS:

SCIENCE FICTION NOVELS; "STARK'S WAR" SERIES

Stark's War, Ace Books (New York, NY), 2000.

Stark's Command, Ace Books (New York, NY), 2001.

Stark's Crusade, Ace Books (New York, NY), 2002.

OTHER

A Just Determination (science fiction novel; "Paul Sinclair" series), Berkley Publishing (New York, NY), 2003.

Burden of Proof (science fiction novel; "Paul Sinclair" series), Ace Books (New York, NY), 2004.

Also author of Rule of Evidence, another novel in the "Paul Sinclair" series, 2005. Contributor of short stories to publications such as Analog and Amazing Stories. Contributor of nonfiction articles to Analog and Artemis.

SIDELIGHTS:

John G. Hemry is a retired naval officer who has parlayed his military experience into several successful science fiction novels with a military flavor. His first book, Stark's War, is set on the Moon, where the United States Lunar Colony is engaged in removing all the foreign bases. Don D'Ammassa, writing in Science Fiction Chronicle, said that Hemry's protagonist, Sergeant Ethan Stark, is "an intriguing character" and noted that he was "impressed and pleased" with the story.

Hemry followed this initial effort with two sequels, Stark's Command and Stark's Crusade. These works follow Stark as the Lunar Colony rebels against an America that has essentially been bought by corporations. In Stark's Crusade, mercenaries have been hired to attack Stark's people, and Stark is forced to lead defenders of the colony against several enemies, including a group of robot soldiers. Stark learns to work with the civilians in the Lunar Colony, fighting off threats from within and without. Rich Horton, writing on the Web site SF Site, criticized the book for its "cliché characters, stilted dialogue, and generally unconvincing working out of the plot" but noted that "the book is at its best during the battle scenes." Kelley Rae Cooper, writing in Romantic Times, praised the book's "strong characterization and well executed action" and called it "a gripping patriotic space opera."

With A Just Determination, Hemry began a new series, this time about Ensign Paul Sinclair, who is serving on a military spaceship. After making a decision that mistakenly causes the destruction of a civilian ship belonging to another country, the captain is faced with a court-martial, and Sinclair gives important testimony. According to a review by D'Ammassa in Science Fiction Chronicle, Hemry provides "a nice, absorbing story." Writing on the SFreviews.net Web site, T. M. Wagner called the book "one of the more worthwhile and provocative novels to come my way." Peter Tillman, a contributor on the Web site Talkaboutabook, dubbed Hemry's writing style "serviceable" and "workmanlike," calling the book a "nicely done" naval procedural with a gripping court-martial drama.

In the next novel, Burden of Proof, Sinclair is now a lieutenant junior grade. Writing in Booklist, Roland Green called this story "another absorbing and credible novel of space navies and justice." The plot develops around a petty officer accused of causing an explosion that led to his own death and destroyed a section of the ship. Many in the crew, however, insist that a cover-up is in progress to protect Lieutenant Scott Silver, the son of an influential admiral, who actually gave the orders that led to the accident. Sinclair uncovers evidence that implicates Silver, and a court-martial ensues. In a review in the Science Fiction Chronicle, D'Ammassa called this book "very interesting indeed," and Harriet Klausner on the Allscifi Web site said that the legal aspects are "brilliantly intertwined" within the drama. She also wrote that Hemry "has pioneered a new subgenre" she called "space ship military legal thrillers." Wagner, again writing on SFreviews.net, called the series "one of the most relevant and intelligent adult drama series being published" in science fiction.

Hemry told CA: "I've been interested in writing all of my life. Most people are, I think. I made a few stabs at writing through the years but never got anywhere because I thought my stories lacked something. About the time I retired from the navy, I decided it was time to buckle down and see if I could tell the stories I had within me. I collected the usual raft of rejection letters but eventually learned enough to start selling.

"A major influence on my work is my life experience. I try to tell stories that convey things I've experienced or learned or just found fascinating. I've read a great many writers, and they all influenced me in one way or the other because I learned how to (and sometimes how not to) tell stories from them. In many ways I feel a connection to Robert Heinlein, with whom I share some major experiences (Naval Academy graduate, surface warfare officer in the navy).

"One of the most surprising things is what a great community exists among science fiction and fantasy writers. It's not utopia, but from the first I was impressed by the camaraderie and helpfulness of more experienced writers. My favorite of my own books is probably always the one I just wrote. At that point it's new and full of unlimited promise. From that point on, though, reality intrudes with qualms about cover designs, editorial decisions, sales figures, and critical reviews. Before then, when the book is freshly done, I can just enjoy having completed it and figuring it's not half bad.

"The primary purpose of my books is to entertain readers. To tell stories. Beyond that, I want to convey things I've experienced. In the 'Sinclair' series, for example, I tell what life is like for a junior officer on a warship so people who've never gone near such an experience will get a feeling for it. And if anyone learns anything along the way, things like how people in the military think and act or how the military justice system works or what mysteries exist in history or what possibilities exist in the future, that's a nice bonus."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, April 15, 2003, Roland Green, review of A Just Determination, p. 1456; March 1, 2004, Roland Green, review of Burden of Proof, p. 1146.

Romantic Times, May, 2002, Kelley Rae Cooper, review of Stark's Crusade.

Science Fiction Chronicle, June-July, 2000, Don D'Ammassa, review of Stark's War, p. 57; May, 2003, Don D'Ammassa, review of A Just Determination, p. 47; April, 2004, Don D'Ammassa, review of Burden of Proof, p.37.