Tony April in The Professor's Diary

On Sunday evening, February 15th, 1898, in Havana Harbor the 6,789-ton second class battleship USS Maine floated peacefully at anchor. One moment later a double explosion ripped her apart, sending her to the bottom along with 260 of her 355 men crew. Only 16 sailors escaped uninjured. Was it an act of war by Spain? Or a calculated “false flag” attack by the United States to provoke a war?

Fast forward to 1972. Private Investigator Tony April gets an enigmatic midnight call from wealthy and beautiful Barbara Anderson. Her explorer grandfather kept a diary that may hold the answer. Problem is, he’s buried along with his diary, on a remote jungle mountain in Ecuador. Now everyone wants in. The Rickover Investigation wants to publicize it. Barbara just wants to get her grandfather’s remains home. Sydney Street wants the Incan treasure map. And Tony suddenly wants to have a son. Can everyone get what they wish for?

A native of Lawrence, MA, Jay Barrett attended the US Naval Academy as well as Tri-State College where he received a degree in mechanical engineering. He worked for General Dynamics as a flight test engineer on jet fighter intercept guidance systems in the US and Europe. Subsequent to this, he worked with AVCO missile division as a project engineer prior to transitioning to the investment world. Jay also worked as a character model, golf instructor and was a championship squash player. His love of the sea led him to SCUBA diving, searching for shipwrecks in New England and the Great Lakes. The father of five, Jay now lives in Central Florida.