Rogue State

Well they don't and the author has served up yet another excellent title to finish off this duo. Lyons takes an absolute battering here both physically and mentally which is beautifully written and you will be right there with him as he draws on the very last reserves of his stamina/will/sanity to strive to survive. This reminded me of a couple of the first 38 by Don where the big guy does the same to finally survive out of a hopeless position. Phoenix Force deploys to North Korea minus the hospitalised TJ and their mission goes sour immediately with their guide having being captured and giving their meeting location the Force are captured by the North Koreans. So starts off some of the best action scenes you will read the author brings in some truly brilliant ORIGINAL stuff here it is a pleasure to read. The things the Force get up to and seeing the North Korean/Chinese/Russian bad guys pulling out their hair trying to stop them knowing that they are being hunted will keep you turning the pages. Probably what has already occurred would make this an excellent title to read but we aren't finished yet as the hidden missile launching facility under construction which will be used to blow the Slingshot Project satellites out of the sky and the encrypted disks have to be taken out. Superb reading here where the Force manage to gain entry to the site and bring on Jack in Dragon Slayer to inflict total carnage to the facility. It is rivetting reading where the insurmountable odds are slowly reduced until well we know what the guys can do. Both of these titles in the duo are cracking books and are HIGHLY RECOMMENDED reading in this series. This storyline follows on from #49 Dragon Fire and whilst it is not necessary, to truly enjoy this storyline I would recommend if you can read #49 just before reading this duo. This is a prime example of why this author is regarded as one of the top authors in these series. Another do yourself a favour and read it job, loved it/them. Well done Mike.

Beginning where Defensive Action left off we follow Carl Lyons and his imprisonment in North Korea and the others’ chafing at being forced to continue their mission while Lyon’s fate is still up in the air. In true Linaker fashion we are given great villains and spot on characterization of the heroes. Linaker proves again that he is a capable professional and eighteen year veteran of the Bolanverse. The ending of this book falls into all parties converging on a facility for a final climactic showdown but in Rouge State this does not seem formulaic. This book has little in the way of writing to detract from it and the only negative points are some sloppy editing work that seems to plague these later books.

I didn't feel this was as good as the first book, but it still held my interest with Lyons as a prisoner, and his eventual escape. Plus, having Phoenix coming to the rescue into Korea, some Dragon Slayer carnage, and a stunning final battle, it was a worthy effort.

This is a great read and a good conclusion to the series. I would have to recomend this series to any action reader. Mike Linaker has completed another great story. I was really enthralled by the emotions of the team in this book. The attention to the fact they had to wait to rescue Carl Lyons but only after completing another mission. Although, The mission was full of twist and turns that showed a little of Murphy's law. I enjoyed the fact that the mission DIDN'T go off flawlessly. I could sit and talk about a lot of circumstances to happened to the team from losing their contact in Korea, Hi-jacking an enemy Helicopter, or the attempt on Dr. Gilman. I am glad Mike Linaker did not forget the strong will of Carl Lyons in the book. You can't hold a good man down long, especially Carl.