Review: "Fourth Crisis" -- Can't Put It Down
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 04 21, 2013
Although China has been rattling its saber about Taiwan for years, thankfully nothing has happened, but, what if? Peter von Bleichert explores the what if in an action-packed battle yarn that, while it may not rival the rich characterization of the World War II novels, "The Code Talkers" and "Guadalcanal Diary." is an excellent work. Yes, the circumstances were different as those classics were written by correspondents who, though they couldn't or shouldn't have raised a rifle or pistol, still shared the dugouts, foxholes and deprivations of their subjects. Their characters were real or "had gravitas," as some are wont to day because they were real men who lived, bled and died. Wartime authors lived with their (were embedded with) their main characters and they became friends. Every time one was lost or wounded, you can feel it. Von Bleichert, on the other hand, has voluminious knowledge of today's warfare and his writing skills are actually beyond reproach. He just needs a little more work on character development and we may have our next great war story writer. Some do argue his characters are a little too superficial, but, I would counter that the point of the novel is the WHAT IF! What if the unthinkable happened and some loonie, who wanted to "reunite" China, pushed them to war. That's the point von Bleichert, I think, is making. In this day of drones, smartbombs, electronic and cyberwarefare, we cannot afford to let this happen. "The Fourth Crisis: The Battle for Taiwan" is as much a cautionary tale as it is a people tale. Von Bleichert has the writing chops to do more. I suspect that, as he develops as a writer, his characters will grow in complexity, too. For the moment, though, let's just revel in the fact that this is one great read that I just couldn't put down.