Crime Thriller Highlights Tireless Work of Real-Life Humanitarians

The Hunger Crime by Trudy Bower and John B. Crisci

What’s it About?

In their new crime-thriller, The Hunger Crime, John B. Crisci and Trudy E. Bower introduce a plot full of crime, action, adventure, betrayal, and romance all while highlighting the tireless work of real-life humanitarians who dedicate their lives to helping others.  

In their new crime-thriller, The Hunger Crime, John B. Crisci and Trudy E. Bower introduce a plot full of crime, action, adventure, betrayal, and romance all while highlighting the tireless work of real-life humanitarians who dedicate their lives to helping others.  

The book begins with an introduction to protagonist and humanitarian, Ben Tano, mission leader of Food for Livelihood (FFL). His job is to travel around the globe, feeding those who do not have the resources to feed themselves. 

His whole life, Tano has been following in the footsteps of his father, chasing his approval all the way from Harvard Business School to the corporate world. But while his father enjoyed “making the rich richer,” Tano felt that “Humanitarian aid gave him the means to save lives of people he truly cared about–and a career with a deeply meaningful purpose.”

But while his work is fulfilling, it also presents many dangers, and he often finds this question lurking in the shadows of his mind: “Was this mission worth his life and the lives of his team?”

While on a mission in southern Somalia, Tano comes into contact with the YFL, a political organization that has been terrorizing the area for quite some time. After losing his friends and colleagues as well as almost losing his own life, Tano retreats from the field work for a while. 

A New Mission for Tano and FFL

Back in Rome, at the FFL headquarters, Tano is recovering from the post-traumatic stress of his encounter with the YFL, learning to live separated from his wife, and getting used to working a desk job rather than doing the fieldwork. As he is adjusting to this new lifestyle, the head of FFL, Sammy, recruits him as the leader of a new initiative. 

This initiative is called FLITE: Food for Livelihood Innovative Technologies for Emergencies, which will introduce blockchain technology to FFL. With the help of Melissa Trask, from Albatross, Sammy explains that with FLITE, “Everyone involved in the distribution of food will have the same financial and operational information delivered to them within seconds.” It will enable refugees to have access to bank accounts and debit cards that can be used at local stores for food, with all the transactions accounted for through the technology.

But Tano asks the question: “Why me?” He counters that FFL is not a tech company and he is no expert in technology. He has always done the fieldwork. Though this seems like a flaw to Tano, Sammy explains that with his experience and knowledge of the field operations, he is the perfect fit to help implement these new systems effectively. As Tano takes on the job and begins to work closely with Melissa, they develop a friendship that sparks some confusing and intense emotions. But little does Ben know, Melissa is keeping a secret that could cost her family and his work with the FFL everything. 

A Plot Full of Crime and Action

While FLITE begins to take shape, a crime is brewing beneath the surface. When two strangers appear at General Trasjic’s (Melissa’s father) door, threatening to make a case against him for his war crimes, his daughter’s initiative, FLITE, is at risk. They claim that if he does not do exactly as they say, and earn them 25 million dollars, his children will pay the price.

Crisci and Bower create a story full of intrigue, romance, terror, money, power, and crime that will keep readers wanting more. We follow Tano and the FFL as they fight against the terror of the YFL as they close borders, take hostages, and prevent access to food for refugees. We watch as this mysterious crime plays out with General Trasjic and his daughter’s involvement in FLITE. We follow Tano as he embarks on a journey to prove his innocence in the midst of chaos and crime as well as rediscover the confidence he lost in Somalia. The Hunger Crime is a true page turner that will have readers hooked from the start. 

A Tribute to the Brave Humanitarians

Though The Hunger Crime is a fictional crime thriller, it is based on real humanitarian crises that plague the world today (the famine in the Horn of Africa and the Haiti earthquake). 

In Catherine Bertini’s forward, she writes that although they have written a fictional story full of plot twists, betrayal, action, and crime, “the subtext of the story of hunger is hope.”  And through characters like Ben Tano, Sammy, the rest of the team from FFL, Crisci and Bower pay tribute to the brave humanitarians that risk their lives to feed and aid those who do not have the resources. This book demonstrates where the lives of humanitarians and the hungry intersect. 

Crisci and Bower brilliantly craft a story that is both entertaining and educational. Readers are hooked with the gripping crime and action-filled plot, while also introduced to the hard and tireless work that humanitarians continue to do today. 

About the Authors:

A native of Princeton, N.J., Trudy E. Bower studied French literature at Smith College and international affairs at Columbia University. Inspired by the writings of Victor Hugo and an internship at the United Nations in New York, she embarked on an overseas career with CARE (Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere) and the UN spanning thirty years where her interests in social justice, languages, and travel intersected. She managed food assistance programs in India, Bangladesh, Mozambique, Burundi, Madagascar, Cote d’Ivoire, and Ghana—the latter two as country director. Her most challenging assignments were working in countries where political instability and violence coexisted with managing food emergencies and raising her two daughters. In 2011, Trudy began co-authoring this book. In 2015, she joined a writing group in Rome, Italy, and started her memoirs. She has contributed articles to two published works of nonfiction. This is her first work of fiction. Trudy currently resides in Florida.

John B. Crisci recently served as the acting director of a UN humanitarian agency’s Supply Chain Division, keeping operations running smoothly in the face of the multiple global challenges posed by COVID-19, thereby enabling the UN to assist more than a 100 million people with food. He also ensured that the division used its global supply chain infrastructure, expertise, and experience to support the humanitarian community’s efforts to deal with the pandemic.

Publish Date: 1/24/2023

Author: Trudy Bower and John B. Crisci

Page Count: 228 pages

Publisher: Food4Livelihood

ISBN: 9798987059210

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