Okay, I cheated a bit...just a bit. I downloaded the book to my wonderful Kindle yesterday so I had a bit of a head start, but I finished it today, so it's going into the tally for 2011.
The book: Dead Zero by Stephen Hunter
Once again Bob Lee Swagger is called upon to defend the country and out-think the bad guys. I'm not giving any spoilers out, but if you like twists and turns and military speak and especially gun-speak, you'll like this book.
I've read all of White's books--a few of them twice--and rank him as one of my favorites. He writes 'guy books'. By that I mean, you won't find a lot of huggy kissy stuff in them. My wife would, for the most part, hate them. But so what. I wouldn't read better than half of what she reads anyhoo.
Many of White's books deal with the sniper culture and the Marine Corps. This one takes place in Afghanistan and around Washington DC and the surrounding area.
Okay, in the last few weeks I've read three different books where 'thermobaric' explosives have played a prominent enough role to mention. are they the new cool thing? And ain't it funny that three books coming out within a couple of months of each other feature a specific explosive?
At least he didn't have stolen nukes in it. Sheesh. is that an overdone thing or what?
Ah well, just something I've noticed.
I give Dead Zero a score of 87. The plot is ingenious, the language very readable and entertaining, and the end mostly satisfying. It loses points for White's reaching for a rather far fetched and entirely too coincidental way of introducing a new character to the Swagger lineage and for amateurishly concealing a tricky bit by Bob Lee that could have been played better.
Can't wait for his next book, though. 87's pretty good.
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