KCR: Memorial Day (novel, terrorism)

Image via WikipediaMemorial Day is another Mitch Rapp novel by Vince Flynn, and its premise is chilling enough to make you wish that Mitch Rapp is real. With enough twists and turns, Memorial Day is a tout thriller if a bit formulaic.

Premise: Mitch Rapp is hunting Al-Qaeda with US troops in Afghanistan, and their raid turned up something very serious... evidence that a nuke is being smuggled into the US by bad guys. With a bit of help from Rapp, a team successfully intercepted the nuke, and everyone relaxed... Except Rapp, as he knew that the bad guy must have a backup plan, and indeed, they do. A second nuke is being smuggled through Mexican border. When a truck driver was found dead due to radiation poisoning, Rapp is relentless in chasing down the leads. The obvious target is the Memorial Day Parade...

Vince Flynn have a knack in portraying the power plays in Washington as politicians maneuver without regard to their consequences, and how real "heroes" such as Rapp are there to save the politicians when they screw up. This book is no exception. The hunt is intense and even though it is somewhat formulaic it is still a great read.

Related articles

• KCR: Shooter (autobiography, sniper, non-fiction, war) (crankyreviews.blogspot.com)
• KCR: Extreme Measures, a Mitch Rapp novel (terrorism) (crankyreviews.blogspot.com)
• KCR: Transfer of Power, a Mitch Rapp novel (terrorism) (crankyreviews.blogspot.com)

KCR: Rambo III (movie)

Image via WikipediaRambo III is logical extension of Rambo 2... what war is there to fight besides Vietnam? In that time, the obvious answer is Afghanistan. Rather ironic isn't it that decades later, the American army is fighting in Afghanistan?

Premise: Colonel Trautman and a team was trying to sneak in some supplies for the mujahadeen (Afghani freedom fighters) when their convoy was intercepted by Soviet forces and taken prisoner. Rambo felt responsible because he had turned down Trautman earlier, so he is going in alone. On the way, Rambo befriends Afghani fighters, infiltrate the fortress held by the sadistic commander, steals and chopper, rescues a bunch of prisoners, plays hide and seek with Spetnatz commandos, rescues Trautman, fight their way out, and have a big fight at the end against the camp commander.

What's REALLY hilarious is the movie's actually filmed in Israel. However, it's not important. The idea is the action is better than ever. Rambo will of course, get wounded a bit, kill lots and lots of bad guys, get bombed almost by napalm (just like the previous movie!) do some arrow hunting, and so on and so forth. It's formulaic, but it works.

You may as well complete the collection. Available in combo packs.

Related articles

• KCR: Rambo, First Blood Part II (movie, war, Vietnam) (crankyreviews.blogspot.com)
• KCR: First Blood (movie) (crankyreviews.blogspot.com)

KCR: The Ghost War (spy, novel, terrorism)

Image via WikipediaCIA Agent John Wells is back... back on US soil, but restless. When news of Taliban fighters getting mercenary trainers reached the CIA, John Well is going back to Afghanistan... and what he finds there is shocking... Iran about to go nuclear, a mission rescuing a defector going horribly wrong, a mole in the CIA about to destroy spy ops in China, and a general in China making a power play for world dominance...

This book is very reminiscent of Tom Clancy, albeit less techno-wiz, and bit more about the nitty-gritty world of human spies. It's a bit more reminiscent of Larry Bond's books, though not quite as globe-spanning. It's a good yarn. I wouldn't quite compare him to some of the existing masters, but he's pretty good.

KCR: Hellfire by Ed Macy (non-fiction, novel, war, Afghanistan, helicopter)

Image via Wikipedia
Hellfire is an autobiographical novel about a guy in the British Army Air Corp (i.e. attack helicopters) who basically got invalidated out of the Paras (paratroopers, British version of our "Rangers") and went to helicopter training instead. He eventually transitioned to Apaches (the British version has a 30% stronger engine and thus flies a lot better) and went on variety of missions in Afghanistan where the Apache had proven invaluable against Taliban forces both as top-escort and "intimate support" roles. He described in detail some of the missions, including chasing down a sniper team and engaged an anti-aircraft gun that came close to hitting him, among others.

Half of the book is about his journey up to that point, including being among the first in British Army to qualify in Apaches, and therefore literally "wrote the book" on operational doctrines, procedures, and whatnot. The other half is his experience in Afghanistan.

If you read Andy McNab or some of the other Brits in war you should like the style. There are no punches pulled. Politicians are treated with disdain. Some even told them they are NOT there to shoot any body, and ROE basically had one hand tied behind their back as they are only allowed to shoot when they can clearly identify the shooter or shooting location.

If you like this sort of autobiographical book by warriors it is definitely worth a read.

KCR: Kill Bin Laden (non-fiction, history, military)

Cover via AmazonNow that Osama Bin Laden is finally dead, some people may wonder what took the US so ****ing long. The answer is in the book "Kill Bin Laden" by Dalton Fury.  (clearly a pen name)

Dalton Fury is the on-scene commander of the Delta Force contingent in Afghanistan on the hunt for OBL. He lead like 40+ Delta Boys, and about 90+ other contingents including SAS, SBS, CIA, and many more. The short of it is... we were TOO nice to the friendlies, who are eager to take our money instead of deliver results.

Did you know that our "allies" leave the mountain every evening, so any "territory conquered" by them was given up?

Did you know we have two factions of allies "fighting" each other? And one of them is probably in cahoots with the Taliban, and declared a "cease-fire and surrender", which is probably how OBL got away.

Did you know that OBL got away in Winter, which is VERY harsh in the mountains of Afghanistan? Geraldo Rivera's "report" is all bull****, since he did it in the summer.

If you are interested in the hunt for Bin Laden on Tora Bora at all, you should read this book.

BTW, Kathryn "Hurt Locker" Bigelow is turning this book into a movie due in 2012, and now they have a new chapter to add.

Rating: read it!

Related articles

• Kathryn Bigelow was already working on 'Kill Bin Laden' before the U.S. killed Bin Laden (insidemovies.ew.com)