Surrounded by Enemies

“I have some experience with shattered timelines and altered realities but this one kept me guessing every page.”
— Damon Lindelof, writer/producer, The Leftovers, Lost, World War Z, Prometheus, Star Trek Into Darkness

"Surrounded by Enemies is an exhilarating ride, full of twists and turns that never were, but surely could have been."
Melissa Rosenberg, screenwriter, Twilight films; executive producer, Dexter

“Plausible development, building from what we know about what really did go on, and a whacking good story. You’re in for quite a ride.”
Harry Turtledove, Sidewise Award winning alternative history author

“A remarkable concept, superbly researched and validated, written by a man who knows the ins and outs of a newsroom. Once started you will not put it down.”
— Christopher Knopf, president, Writers Guild of America

“The book is compelling, entertaining, and wonderfully clever in the way it reverse-engineers an entirely new reality from one of the most over-analyzed events in American history. Well done!”
— Josh Kaplan, executive producer, Good Day LA for Fox Los Angeles

“A fascinating book that reads more like an extended piece in Newsweek than a fictitious history book. And like a good Newsweek article, it keeps you wanting more.”
— Paul Chitlik, TV writer/producer, Twilight Zone, Poltergeist

The book was originally released to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the Kennedy assassination. That current version has just been nominated for the Sidewise Award for Alternate History to be given out in London in August 2014. Previous winners include Philip Roth and Michael Chabon.

A special Sidewise Award edition of Surrounded by Enemies: What if Kennedy Survived Dallas? will be published in eBook and paperback editions on October 1, 2014. It will include new graphic materials, a revised introduction, and minor clarifications and expansions. The audiobook (narrated by the Tonight Show’s Edd Hall) will remain unchanged.

The author is an experienced journalist and dramatist with deep social media connections in Facebook, Twitter and YouTube and will mount a vigorous outreach to web, radio, television and print reviewers.

During the crush of anniversary books in 2013, Surrounded by Enemies became the David to Jeff Greenfield’s If Kennedy Lived Goliath, a book that was supported by a massive promotional effort. In the aftermath, however, Zabel’s work received a Sidewise nomination and Greenfield’s novel did not. Similarly, the Amazon reviews for Zabel’s book are stronger (4.5 vs. 4.1).

The book is the first in a series of alternate history novels under the alt.Worlds imprint from Stellar Productions. Next up: Across the (Other) Universe: What if the Beatles Stayed Together? in 2015