Thrillers

Cobraville: A Novel

Name: Cobraville: A Novel
Author: Carsten Stroud
ISBN: 9780743463942

by Carsten Stroud

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Overview

Deep in the jungles of the Philippines, Cole Langan's covert CIA mission to infiltrate a terrorist stronghold collides disastrously with U.N. peacekeepers, sparking a firestorm of bullets and bloodshed — and certain charges of international war crimes for Cole's five-man unit. A world away, in Washington, D.C., Senator Drew Langan races to unmask a shadowy group behind his estranged son's betrayal — which means stepping into the crossfire inside the highest echelons of global power.

A master of "gut-grabbing action and hairpin turn plotting" (Booklist), Carsten Stroud delivers an adrenaline-charged novel of America's secret wars, told with stunning authenticity, mordant humor, and heart-pounding suspense.

Synopsis

Publishers Weekly

Betrayal among friends and enemies is the tie that binds in Stroud's latest standout novel of terrorism and international intrigue. When Sen. Drew Langan is given a classified tip that al-Qaeda is planning a bombing in Iligan City, the Philippines, where the United Nations is conducting a peacekeeping mission, he dismisses the communication as having little to do with him. Back at home, a little late-night Web surfing and an attempt on his life convinces Drew that maybe he should be paying more attention. At the same time, his estranged son, Cole, is embarking on a covert CIA mission just north of Iligan City. Cole is under no illusions as to the nature of the conflict he's stepping into: "What was actually happening here was obvious to anyone with a functioning cortex: Iligan City was the yawning iron gate of yet another United Nations feel-good rat-fuck fiasco, a doomed-from-the-get-go cub-scout jamboree that was slowly but inexorably sinking into the blood-drenched malarial swamps of Southeast Asia." Stroud (Close Pursuit; Cuba Strait; etc.) switches between Drew's investigation and Cole's jungle adventure, heightening the tension as the two men fight for their lives on two very different battlefields. The military scenes in the jungle are superb and the stateside political intrigue suspenseful and absolutely believable. The prose is sharp, funny, exciting and bloody. This is a solid, top-shelf performance from a quality writer who never fails to deliver. Agent, Barney Karpfinger. (June) Forecast: Although Stroud isn't as high-profile as some others in his genre, a solid fan base, big numbers on Cuba Strait and continuing film adaptations-not to mention the coming Jerry Bruckheimer film based on Stroud's Deadly Force, starring Johnny Depp-should ensure success for this one. Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

About the Author, Carsten Stroud

Carsten Stroud is the author of Cuba Strait, Black Water Transit, the award-winning Sniper's Moon, and other novels. His nonfiction titles include Deadly Force; Iron Bravo, chosen for the U.S. Army's recommended reading list; and the New York Times bestseller Close Pursuit. He lives on the shores of Lake Huron.

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Editorials

Publishers Weekly

Kirkus Reviews

Bad spooks, good spooks-gadzooks, it's hard to tell them apart. There's a hush-hush CIA unit called the Special Collections Service, and six of its highly trained members have been sent into deepest Philippines on a covert mission having to do with the repair of vital surveillance equipment. The mission is headed by Cole Langan, ex-army captain and increasingly disenchanted with it, a view shared by all in his command-too many unreliable people to deal with, too many operational aspects hanging loose. Such is his disquiet, in fact, that Cole has reluctantly begun to distrust his long-admired boss, Levi Sloane, the CIA's Deputy Director of Operations, the man responsible for putting the mission together. In this, Cole's not alone. Joining him, for instance, is Senator Drew Langan, a member of the influential Intelligence Oversight Committee and, not so incidentally, Cole's dad. He's a friend of Sloane's, but he, too, finds doubt creeping in and darkening his mindset. Much of this has its source in another enigmatic figure. Zen-like and bear-like Gunther Krugman lumbers around in the corridors of power, a fixture, though no one quite knows how he got there. No matter. What does matter-a lot-is that one bleak night in DC, in the Library Bar of the St. Regis Hotel, Krugman hands Drew a certain envelope, requesting that the contents be carefully studied. Pressed, he characterizes the package as, in effect, a warning. About what? About whom? About Sloan? About someone even closer? Krugman won't say, but as the mystery deepens-and as dangers mount for both father and son-Krugman himself comes under suspicion, giving rise at one point to a beleaguered secret agent's legitimate complaint: "All ofthis is so damn convoluted."Terrific with action scenes, but Stroud (Cuba Strait, 2003, etc.) undercuts them with relentless plotting and reams of expository dialogue. Agent: Barney Karpfinger/Karpfinger Agency