Book picks similar to
Cauldron by Larry Bond
fiction
thriller
military
military-fiction
Flight of the Intruder
Stephen Coonts - 1986
Former Navy flyer Stephen Coonts gives an excellent sense of the complexities of modern air raids and how nerve-wracking it is, even for the best airmen, to technically solve sudden problems over and over, knowing that even a twist of fate like a peasant wildly firing a rifle from a field could wipe out the crew. Grafton alternates between remorse over the fate of his unseen Vietnamese victims on the ground and a gung-ho "let's win this war" sentiment that lashes at both policymakers who select less-than-important targets for the dangerous missions and advocates for peace back in the States.
Flight of the Old Dog
Dale Brown - 1987
It is the riveting story of America's race for technology, overtaken by our greatest enemy's mastery of "Star Wars." The U.S. arsenal of nuclear missiles has been neutralized. America's only hope: The Old Dog Zero One, a battle-scarred bomber fully renovated with modern hardware - and equipped with the deadliest state-of-the-art armaments known to man... When the Soviet Union masters "Star Wars" technology, rendering the U.S.'s arsenal of nuclear missiles impotent, America's only hope lies in The Old Dog Zero One--a battle-scarred bomber fully renovated with enough weaponry and stealth hardware to earn it the nickname, "Megafortress."
Red Storm Rising
Tom Clancy - 1986
"Allah!"With that shrill cry, three Muslim terrorists blow up a key Soviet oil complex, creating a critical oil shortage that threatens the stability of the USSR.To offer the effects of this disaster, members of the Politburo and the KGB devise a brilliant plan of diplomatic trickery - a sequence of events designed to pit the NATO allies against each other - a distraction calculated to enable the Soviets to seize all the oil in the Persian Gulf.But as this spellbinding story of international intrigue and global politics nears its climax, the Soviets are faced with another prospect, one they hadn't planned on: a full-scale conflict in which nobody can win.
Team Yankee
Harold Coyle - 1987
The awesome Russian invasion force smashes across the West German border, driving for a breakthrough. With M-1 tanks and a mechanized infantry division, Captian Sean Bannon's "Team Yankee" must defend their vital strategic post. They will engage the enemy with the ultimate in sophisticated weaponry. They will fight beyond all limits of human endurance - on the brink of World War III... "Team Yankee"
Where Eagles Dare
Alistair MacLean - 1967
A team of British Special Forces commandos parachutes into the high peaks of the Austrian Alps with the mission of stealing into an invulnerable alpine castle—accessible only by aerial gondola—the headquarters of Nazi intelligence. Supposedly sent in to rescue one of their own, their real mission turns out to be a lot more complicated—and the tension climbs as team members start to die off, one by one. Written by Alistair Maclean, author of the Guns of Navarone, this is the novel that set the pace for the modern action thriller (the film version, with Richard Burton and Clint Eastwood, also helped), and it still packs twice the punch of most contemporary best-selling thrillers. What's more, the cast of spooks, turncoats, and commandos who drive this story are more relevant than ever in our new era of special forces, black ops, and unpredictable alliances.
Op-Center
Jeff Rovin - 1995
It is run by a crack team of operatives both within its own walls and out in the field. When a job is too dirty--or too dangerous--it's the only place our government can turn.But nothing can prepare Director Paul Hood and his Op-Center crisis management team for what they're about to uncover--a very real, very frightening power play that could unleash new players in a new world order...
Nimitz Class
Patrick Robinson - 1997
Nimitz-Class aircraft carrier is seen as impregnable. But when the USS Thomas Jefferson suddenly disappears at sea, the Pentagon is stunned. There are no survivors, and all signs point to a tragic nuclear accident.While the world stands in shock, reports suggest that it was no accident. A rogue submarine armed with nuclear warheads may be on the loose. Where did it come from? How could it get within striking distance of the Thomas Jefferson? Worse yet, where is it now and could it strike again? The tension mounts, and a deadly chase begins.
Firefox
Craig Thomas - 1977
A thought-controlled, terrifyingly lethal warplane capable of ruling the Western skies.THE MAN: His name is Gant, an obsessed renegade American pilot. His Control: Kenneth Aubrey of Great Britain. His plan: infiltrate the shadowy worldwide KGB network and make his way into the Soviet Union. His job: steal Firefox.
One Rough Man
Brad Taylor - 2011
Their existence is as essential as it is illegal. Commissioned at the highest level of the U.S. government. Protected from the prying eyes of Congress and the media. Built around the top operators from across the clandestine, intelligence, and special forces landscape. Designed to operate outside the bounds of U.S. law. Trained to exist on the ragged edge of human capability.Pike Logan was the most successful operator on the Taskforce, his instincts and talents unrivaled-until personal tragedy permanently altered his outlook on the world. Pike knows what the rest of the country might not want to admit: The real threat isn't from any nation, any government, any terrorist group. The real threat is one or two men, controlled by ideology, operating independently, in possession of a powerful weapon. Buried in a stack of intercepted chatter is evidence of two such men. The transcripts are scheduled for analysis in three months. The attack is mere days away. It is their bad luck that they're about to cross paths with Pike Logan. And Pike Logan has nothing left to lose.
Politika
Jerome Preisler - 1997
The sudden death of Russia's president has thrown the Russian Federation into chaos. Devastating crop failures have left millions in the grip of famine, and an uprising seems inevitable.One of Russia's provisional leaders asks the American president for help. But the whole world is watching when a deadly terrorist attack stuns the United States and evidence points to the Russian government.Amidst the turmoil in Russia, American businessman Roger Gordian finds his multinational corporation and its employees in jeopardy. Determined to find those responsible for the attack, he calls upon his crisis control team to interven. But Gordian doesn't realize how far the terrorists will go and how much he has to lose...
The Fist of God
Frederick Forsyth - 1994
Peopled with vivid characters, brilliantly displaying Forsyth's incomparable, knowledge of intelligence operations and tradecraft, moving back and forth between Washington and London, Baghdad and Kuwait, desert vastnesses and city bazaars, this breathtaking novel is an utterly convincing story of what may actually have happened behind the headlines.
By the Rivers of Babylon
Nelson DeMille - 1978
Covered by F-14 fighters, accompanied by security men, the planes carry warriors, pacifists, lovers, enemies, dignatories - and a bomb planted by a terrorist mastermind. Suddenly they're forced to crash-land at an ancient desert site. Here, with only a handful of weapons, the men and women of the peace mission must make a desperate stand against an army of crack Palestinian commandos - while the Israeli authorities desperately attempt a rescue bid. A story of compulsive excitement, rich in personal drama and political tension that must rank as one of the greatest of our times.
The Lieutenants
W.E.B. Griffin - 1982
From the Nazi-prowled wastes of North Africa to the bloody corridors of Europe, they answered the call gladly. It was their duty, their job, their life. They marched off as boys, and they came back--those who made it--as soldiers and professionals forged in the heat of battle...
Splinter Cell
David Michaels - 2004
ONE MAN PAYS THE PRICE.In response to the growing use of sophisticated digital encryption to conceal potential threats to the United States, the National Security Agency has ushered forth the new dawn of intelligence-gathering techniques. The top-secret initiative is dubbed Third Echelon. Its existence denied by the U.S. government, Third Echelon deploys a lone field operative. He is sharp, nearly invisible, and deadly. And he has the right to spy, steal, destroy, and assassinate to protect American freedoms.His name is Sam Fisher. He is a Splinter Cel®.
Red Army
Ralph Peters - 1989
At command headquarters, a four-star general pursues a family tradition of military honor that reaches back centuries. They could be any two soldiers in the world. It could be any army - but it's not. The place is the East German border. The time is tomorrow - and the Soviet Army is about to attack. . .While western leaders debate the use of nuclear weapons, the Soviet Army and its Warsaw Pact Allies crash across West Germany, exploiting the NATO armies' deadly lack of preperation. In a matter of days, refugees clog the roads and the cities are in shambles. The Soviet Army wages a brutal battle for Europe - even as the hidden rivalries and divided loyalties within its ranks begon to emerge.In this extraordinary. controversial novel, author Ralph Peters a U.S. Army intelligence officer specializing in the Soviet military - takes us inside an army of dozens of languages and ethnic backgrounds, into the belly of an armored personnel carrier, the cockpit of a MIG, and onto the bloody battlefield where sophisticated tanks duel like ancient, flame-spewing dragons.From Chief of Staff Chibisov, fighting his ethnic heritage, to the daring tank commander Bezarin, locked in an unforgettable duel of wits with a British division, from bitter veterans of Afghanistan to raw recruits, a host of vivid characters are swept up in the chaos and drama. Some will be heroes. Some will die, and others will have their souls scarred forever.As the HATO armies make their last, desparate stands - divided by Soviet maneuvers and their own political squabbling - Red Army thunders to a truly frightening climax.Told entirely from a Russian point of view, Red Army is a riveting tour de force. More than a portrait of high-tech modern warfare, it is a fascingating novel of human strengths and weaknesses - a chilling look at the one army in the world that may have the power to defeat us.