About       Acting       Plays       Novels       Articles

Novels

I try to write with the high drama and humor of the old black-and-whites in mind. It's a romantic language. It doesn't shy from being sentimental. There are a number of classic movie blogs I enjoy. One of which, www.classicfilmboy.com, has interviewed me a few times. I've cut and pasted bits from each and put them together here if you're interested.

Paul Shipper did the covers for both Jack and the Jungle Lion and The Elephants of Shanghai. From Manchester, England, Paul became an artist thanks to the inspiration of Drew Struzan. Along with the covers, Paul created a 'making of' video for each. They can be found here - http://vimeo.com/16753411 and here - http://vimeo.com/42721110 His website is: www.paulshipper.com.

Atula Siriwardane created the Ten-A-Week Steale cover. He's Sri Lankan, has eclectic tastes and inspirations. His website is: atula.50webs.com.

Jonny Ruzzo is from Rhode Island but lives in New York. He finds a lot of inspiration in fashion photography. He painted the cover for The Brutal Illusion. His website is: www.jonnyruzzo.com.

Gilles Verschuere created the cover for Need More Road. He is a graphic designer from Ghent, Belgium, with a passion for literature and cinema. You can find him online via his website www.wildstripe.com.

Elizabeth Yoo is a freelance illustrator from New York inspired by French cinema and film noir. She is also manager, writer and editor at >Rune Works Productions, an entertainment agency for artists, run by artists. She painted the cover for The Chameleon Thief of Cairo. Her website is www.elizabethyoo.com. You can follow her on Twitter at https://twitter.com/lejazznik, Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/lejazznik/ and Tumblr at http://lejazznik.tumblr.com.

Jack and the Jungle Lion review excerpts


"... Jared clearly is a lover of classic films, because he gets the setting, characters and breezy atmosphere right. I'm not sure how many people could recreate this era with this much joy and devotion." - CLASSIC FILM BOY

"Jack and the Jungle Lion may be an affectionate tribute to adventure serials and screwball comedies of the 1930s, but it stands on its own as a great fun read. Featuring an unapologetic coward of a movie star, a beautiful and tough-as-nails animal trainer, a genuinely frightening Peruvian devil, a wise butler, and a fellow who just happens to own a Staggerwing, the story is as entertaining as it is refreshingly free of cynicism. I loved Stephen Jared's first novel, and sincerely hope it's not his last." - RYDER WINDHAM

"... a fun read, reminded me of Indiana Jones and Tales of the Gold Monkey, both which I loved so much. I couldn't help but smile." - BOOK LOVERS HIDEAWAY


Ten-A-Week Steale review excerpts


"Author Stephen Jared is an accomplished film actor with a vast knowledge of early Hollywood history, which he deftly employs here by creating a truly authentic background for his wonderfully crafted mystery. Refusing to mimic classical noir settings, Jared presents a straightforward and original narrative that moves at its own leisurely pace. Then when the reader least expects it, he delivers scenes of gut wrenching violence in such a cold, calculating style, this reviewer was reminded of the late Mickey Spillane's work." - PULP FICTION REVIEWS

"Ten-A-Week Steale has been lauded as being a fantastic work in the tradition of the old pulp/noir masters and it is indeed that, but it is something else entirely. Jared infuses every single word of this book not only with the past, but with the anxiety, the falsity, the need for truth today. Steale isn't just a lost soul of the Great War, he's an everyman pulled by no fault of his own into situations that are far beyond him. And, unlike many such types today, Steale doesn't blend in, fade away, or go with the flow. He comes out fighting, shooting, and punching to maintain something that many today feel they've lost. Being his own man. If you enjoy great noir, this is the book for you. If you thirst for a novel that balances past and present, go get Ten-A-Week Steale." - ALL PULP

"Though Ten-A-Week Steale is sexier and more violent than your typical golden age flick, it has the zest of a 1920s flapper pic, dialogue with a 1930s snap and an aura of 1940s noir doom. Somehow, all of that fits together. The betrayed man on the run plot is familiar, but Jared gives it a boost with juicy characters and sharp wit. There are also a few novel touches. I certainly see brandy in a different light after reading a particular fight scene. And holy cow, those action scenes! The brutal detail and twisty pacing really hit you in the gut. Ten-A-Week-Steale is a fast-paced, engrossing story." - A CLASSIC MOVIE BLOG

"Ten-A-Week Steale is a full-throated nostalgia piece. Stephen Jared brings his setting to life with aplomb. Classic Hollywood personalities like Adolphe Menjou wander across the pages. If EL Doctorow wrote pulpy mysteries, they would probably look like this one. But more than that, the novel's dialogue reads like a screenplay from Classic Hollywood. Ten-a-Week Steale is clearly a labor of love, and will no doubt prove entrancing to readers who miss Hollywood's Golden Age." - CRIME FICTION LOVER


The Elephants of Shanghai review excerpts


"With his newest tale, Jared delivers a fond hat tip to obvious influences like the Indiana Jones flicks and dime-novel adventure stories; indeed, the cover art for the book, created by Paul Shipper, comes across as a red-bathed mix of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) and the 1939 piloting drama Only Angels Have Wings. The story moves along at a crisp pace, juggling dramatic sequences and sharp comedic bits marked by clever dialogue, before building to two rather gripping climactic scenes in which Jack and co. find themselves in mortal peril. Jared has a gift for crafting an entertaining plot, with detailed settings that serve to immerse the reader in the time period." - TRUE CLASSICS

"Again, as he did in Jack and the Jungle Lion, Jared delivers a fast-paced, old fashioned adventure yarn peppered with just the perfect blend of hair-raising action and laugh aloud comedic bits to help lighten the tension. Jack and Max are truly likeable characters and it is a treat to see them again as their continued romantic relationship shows no signs of ever getting dull." - PULP FICTION REVIEWS

"Along with an exciting tale faithful to the Adventure Pulp Fiction Genre, this time taking place during World War II, Jared gets downright inspiring. I can honestly say that Jack and the Jungle Lion and The Elephants of Shanghai are better than many Pulitzer Prize winning fiction books, and as good as Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan series." - THE BUTTER RUM CARTOON

"The Elephants of Shanghai is every bit as entertaining as its predecessor, and then some. Stephen Jared is a fine writer; his prose crackles with witty dialogue, the action remains on full-throttle, and lovers of thrills and spills in fiction will savor every page of this immensely enjoyable book." - DISPATCHES FROM THE LAST OUTLAW


The Brutal Illusion review excerpts


"It is almost uncanny how he manages to capture the mood, the landscape, and the culture of a by-gone era with the knowledge of someone who had lived it. The Brutal Illusion is the third novel by Jared that I've read-and I believe it's his best."
WRITER/FILMMAKER, BERNIE VAN DE YACHT

"After beginning his writing presence with several action adventures, Stephen Jared focuses his considerable talent on his own back yard. It is this intimate knowledge of the players in this industry of illusion that lifts his tale to a level of poignant reality that is difficult to ignore. It is by far his most personal work and thus his best." - PULP FICTION REVIEWS

"The heroine's sweet relationship with a screenwriter and the small triumphs and glamour she encounters keep things from becoming unbearably bleak, but it is the dark moments that are the most gripping in this addictive little book." - CLASSIC FILM BLOG


Need More Road review excerpts


"NEED MORE ROAD is a strong, punchy, dark tale. The drama is wonderfully evocative of Hitchcock's plots, 1950s noir, and even of Jim Jarmusch's 1984 cult classic Stranger Than Paradise." - CRIME FICTION LOVER

"Every time I read one of Stephen Jared's books I come away from the experience impressed by his insight into human nature. I enjoyed Need More Road, as I have enjoyed all of his stories." - ERROL FLYNN BIOGRAPHER, THOMAS MCNULTY.

"Jared's prose is lyrical. Mary Rose walks with 'no bones, pure softness.' There is a visual aspect to the entire piece and while Jared does call upon our familiarity with the era, he doesn't use it as a crutch but builds a wholly independent work. Need More Road is a flawlessly interesting read. Told in the third person, the flow of the piece is engaging and the author either has an ability to self-edit or employed a really good editor as there are few things out of place. Some readers may want the fireworks but, I assure you, the path the story takes is a benefit to both tone and pacing. A character 'trapped in a cloud of loneliness' suddenly finds himself in a less than ideal situation that he might consider better than where we met him. Need More Road is an exercise in literary fiction and just really good storytelling." - RABID READER REVIEWS


The Chameleon Thief of Cairo


Fans of action tales will enjoy this book. Those who have followed Jack, as have I, from his pulpish pre-War beginnings will enjoy the way Jared develops his character, layering him with complexities, motivations and nuances. A very satisfying addition to the Jack Hunter saga. - Author, RALPH E. VAUGHAN

And now, instead of writing the novel I promised my publisher I'd deliver by the first week of August, here I am with The Chameleon Thief of Cairo, and Jack is on the road again, this time in post-war Egypt, somehow caught in an international plot of espionage and derring-do. And it's a blast! - Author, DAVIDE MANA






"Jared gets downright inspiring."