Book picks similar to
Baptism of Fire by Todd McLeod


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World on Edge


Chris Pike - 2021
    No technology. No nothing.A deadly EMP obliterates the nation's power grid.The survivors must rely on themselves, their courage, and wit, while enduring horrific hardships.Joe Buck is on a collision course with a life altering event. He’ll need to rely on his skills to survive the catastrophic EMP about to unfold as he’s working behind the scenes of his blue collar job at the Super Bowl. Breakout country singer, and small-town girl Lexi Carter is on the same trajectory. She has just finished singing a well-received rendition of the National Anthem at the Super Bowl. It’s 5:23 pm and Ethan Crossfield, the lead pilot of the Blue Angels, has NRG Stadium in his sights, packed with thousands of people as he streaks across the sky at mind numbing speeds, moments before his flyover.The crowd is raucous.The performances were meticulously rehearsed, finely tuned down to the second, and should have gone off without a hitch. Except for one surprise glitch: An EMP.During the chaos and the ensuing struggle to survive, society collapses faster than expected, and an unlikely hero emerges, unknowingly stalked by powerful and ruthless people willing to kill at all costs to maintain the secrecy of their diabolical plot.Find out who is left standing in this fast-paced and thrilling first installment in the World on Edge series.

Disease X


N.J. Croft - 2020
    Drafted onto the WHO Fast Response Team sent to lock down a possible outbreak in Mexico, he realizes that this is the big one they've been waiting for. Disease X: the unknown pathogen with the potential to destroy mankind.It's a battle of man against virus. And we're losing. As the deaths mount and civilization breaks down, the team must race against the clock to connect the clues and uncover patient zero. But Eli is unprepared for the shocking secrets he exposes when the truth is finally revealed.

Savage Coast


Jack Hardin - 2019
    Please double-check that you haven’t read or purchased in the last few weeks.** FIRST, find the killers. SECOND, disrupt their agenda. And then make them pay, whatever the cost... After two weeks on a secret mission in Central America, Ryan Savage has barely returned home to Key Largo when a critical investigation begins to unravel before his very eyes. As he and his partner race to uncover the truth, Ryan nearly stalls out as a horrific tragedy hits a little too close to home. And when he finally surfaces, he discovers that nothing is what he thought. But then he never was one to go down without a fight. The Florida Coast is about to get Savage. If you love books by Wayne Stinnett, Jack Hardin, Cap Daniels, or Jeff Carson, you’ll love Ryan Savage. The boat’s leaving the dock—get Savage Coast and join the pulse-pounding ride now…

D.E.D Dead


Geoffrey McGeachin - 2005
    . .From the moment Alby drops his gun on a St Kilda tram he knows he's in for a bad day. Then his partner Harry is gunned down in a Double Bay coffee shop. By lunchtime Alby realises someone wants him dead – and they want him dead now.All Alby wants is some pasta, a good bottle of wine and to know more about the mysterious Grace Goodluck . . . long dark hair, legs up to there, and piercing slate-grey eyes...sniper's eyes. But he also has to figure out who shot Harry and who wants him dead. And why.Unfortunately for Alby, the answer lies over the razor wire and past the anti-personnel mines protecting Bitter Springs, a top-secret US military facility deep in the central Australian desert. Now that can really ruin your day . . .

The Saxon Spears


James Calbraith - 2019
    Now, the old world crumbles.  Pirates roam the seas, bandits threaten the highways, and barbarian refugees land at Britannia's shores, uninvited. The rich profit from the chaos, while the poor suffer. A new Dark Age is approaching - but all is not lost.Ash is a Seaborn, a Saxon child found on the beach with nothing but a precious stone at his neck and a memory of a distant war from which his people have fled. Raised on the estate of a Briton nobleman, trained in warfare and ancient knowledge, he soon becomes embroiled in the machinations and intrigues at the court of Wortigern, the Dux of Londinium, a struggle that is about to determine the future of all Britannia. A child of Saxon blood, an heir to Roman family, his is a destiny like no other: to join the two races and forge a new world from the ruins of the old.The Saxon Spears is the first volume of the Song of Ash saga, perfect for fans of Bernard Cornwell's "The Last Kingdom" series, Simon Scarrow and Conn Iggulden.

The Bard of Blood


Bilal Siddiqi - 2015
    Hussain Zaidi, The Bard of Blood takes you on a thrilling journey from the power corridors of RAW to the war-torn terrain of Balochistan.In Delhi, ex-RAW boss Lieutenant General Sadiq Sheikh is killed by a double agent. Sadiq’s killer is a man who knows too much and is part of a diabolical plot to create what might become the Third World War.In Mumbai, literature professor Kabir Anand is settling down into his new life, when a call from the PMO thrusts him back into the world he is trying hard to forget. A brilliant agent who served under Sadiq Sheikh, Kabir has been forced to leave RAW because of a disastrous mission in Balochistan in 2006 that was undertaken as part of the Indian secret service’s covert support of the Balochi rebels against the Pakistan government. Kabir must now revisit those ghosts, avenge his mentor and face his deadliest enemies—Mullah Omar and the ISI—while racing against time to save his country.

Forceful Intent


R.A. McGee - 2018
    The former federal agent has the bank statements and body count to prove it. But when a good friend asks him to take on a charity case gone cold, he reluctantly agrees. After all, no family should have to bury their little girl's empty coffin…As he retraces the girl's last-known steps, Porter squares off against a disgruntled bus driver, Tampa gang leaders, and human traffickers who peddle their wares on the darkest corners of the web. Through dirty hands and bloody knuckles, Porter learns that the girl may still be alive. And he won't stop until he's given her captors exactly what they have coming…Forceful Intent is the brutal first book in a series of suspenseful crime thrillers. If you like flawed heroes, pulse-pounding action, and the Jack Reacher series, then you'll love R.A. McGee's gritty tale. Buy Forceful Intent for a thrill-ride that gets its hands dirty today!

Targets of Deception


Jeffrey S. Stephens - 2007
    He is reluctantly drawn back into action when a series of violent events leads him to suss out a new al-Qaeda conspiracy to initiate cataclysmic assaults with poison gas.Sandor follows the deadly trail from New York to Florida to Paris and, ultimately, to the small town of Portofino on the Italian Riviera. Never sure who he can trust and who may be an enemy, Jordan relies on his experience, instincts, and skills as he risks his life to uncover plans for attacks against the United States and its allies. When Sandor discovers a rogue agent behind the plot, he realizes he is the one man who can prevent the catastrophe that could put the lives of millions of people at stake.

Edge of Valor


Josh Hayes - 2019
     Special Agent Jackson Fischer is a man after truth. When a military operation to extract a high-ranking ambassador from the war-torn, border-world of Stonemeyer ends in disaster, Fischer is called in to investigate. A whole platoon went in, but only three Alliance Marines returned home, the rest killed in action along with hundreds of civilians. With tensions between the Holloman Alliance and Stonemeyer rising, Fischer attempts to stitch the pieces together. One thing becomes more and more certain: The surviving Marines are lying. As the truth unfurls, Fischer begins to realize this was far more than a simple rescue mission...and that the truth might be something best left buried. Filled with action, mystery, and well-crafted characters, Edge of Valor (Valor Series Book 1) will pull you into a world of war, conspiracy, and betrayal. It's perfect for fans of David Weber’s Honorverse, or Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan with a futuristic flair. Also available on Audible, narrated by the award-winning Marc Vietor.

Aimpoint


Candace Irvin - 2020
    "Your suspect is Special Forces."The tip is from a Stateside colleague. With it comes the chilling reality: Regan's latest mission just might be her last. Has one of the Army’s elite soldiers turned terrorist? It's happened before—with deadly results. Not only is this soldier more lethal than most, he's a master at rigging bombs. Unfortunately, Regan's gun-shy commander won’t let her tail the sergeant. Worse, her suspect has refused to take the bait—her.Regan has one option left. She'll have to maintain her cover and get close to the sergeant's roommate, deliberately using their budding relationship to zero in on her target. But John Garrison is hiding something too.Has the war-weary Green Beret captain been turned as well?As the investigation deepens, lines are crossed—personal and professional. Even if Regan succeeds in thwarting a horrific bombing on German soil, what will the fallout do to her career?Aimpoint is the 43,000-word prequel novella to the US Army CID Detective Regan Chase Series.