High
Treason by Sean McFate is
an authentic thriller. The story has plenty of political intrigue
and is action-packed. There are explosive assassinations,
heated gun battles, and trying to decipher who are the good
guys and who are the bad guys.
Tom Locke, the protagonist of the
story, is staying with a good friend in Israel. He watches
an explosion of a bridge that takes out the Vice-President
and his wife. Realizing that it is too sophisticated a job
for the suspected culprits, Islamic terrorists, Locke believes
his former employer, a high-tech mercenary organization, Apollo
Outcomes, is responsible.
The author explained, "It is never the case where everything
fits nicely into Column A and Column B. I was under contract
as a paramilitary in Africa. We helped stopped genocide in
Rwanda and took care of warlords in West Africa. These are
things I would be proud of if I was still in uniform as a
US Army paratrooper. While in Africa, I did some intelligence
stuff merged with some Special Ops stuff. I try to use fiction
to pull back the curtain on mercenaries. They do things the
US military cannot do, and the CIA does not want to do. The
Tom Locke series was actually going to be an autobiography.
I was told not to do it, or I would be sued, so I fictionalized
it."
He is not alone with his suspicions
about those accountable. An FBI Agent, Jennifer Lin, believes
that it is not Jihadists, but is certain that Russia is behind
the strike. Her off the book investigation leads her to Locke
and his former teammates who are also trying to find out the
murderers. They join forces to find the traitors and ruthless
mercenaries.
"I wrote Tom Locke as part of a military force that is
not glued to a nation. He makes decisions of what battles
he chooses to fight and does not fight. For him, it is not
about money, but the cause is everything. He is based on me,
but more badass. In the beginning of the series, he is a professional
warrior. The last two books, he is trying to find his soul.
He is neither a superhero or a boy scout. While Jennifer Lin
disarms him. She is cunning and a thinker who is in her twenties.
She is talented and does not have a lot of patience for the
chain of command. I wanted to write a female warrior because
I ran into a lot of women warriors in my line of work. Just
like Jennifer, they were able to be warriors but also feminine.
At first, this book was mostly about her. But I was told by
my editor it should be a Tom Locke book so I changed it. I
might have her come back in a Tom Locke book and work with
him, or there could be a spin-off into her own series. In
future books, she can be a main figure as a co-lead or possibly
come in and out of the Locke books."
Tom Locke is a hero people can get
behind. Unlike some other political thriller characters, he
does not have the attitude of feeling sorry for himself. He
and Lin make a good team and will remind readers of Brad Taylor’s
Pike Logan and Jennifer Cahill.
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