Review: Top-Notch Thriller!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 07 26, 2013
The Congo -- a group of former soldiers are on a rampage to take over the mineral-riches in the jungle.  Hundreds of Congolese are being raped and murdered..  Entire villages are being pillaged.  Former special forces soldier Zeb Carter has been sent to observe the conditions of mines and report back to his superiors what is happening..  Against orders he intervenes in the carnage.  Returning to the U.S he finds that the govt isn't much interested in stopping the slaughter.  A NYT reporter is working on a story of a prominent senator who owns some of the mines.  Zeb is ordered to back off.  The reporter is getting veiled threats, but does not take them very seriously, at first.. Zeb becomes involved w/ the reporter through his sister.  When it becomes clear that the reporter is closing in on the senator's connections, the reporter's wife and son are taken hostage by a rogue former special forces operator.  Zeb and his colleagues spring into action. The emphasis is on action and Zeb's taciturn and stoic response to danger.  The dialogue and character development are secondary.  But it is a taught page-turner.  I read it at one sitting.  Highly recommended.