Tempest of Fire

MWSA Review

Rogue officers within the Chinese Navy launch a plan using stealth, sophisticated cyber attacks, and top secret high-speed torpedoes to bring Taiwan back into the fold of the Peoples Republic, triggering a war between China and the U.S.  But the scheming Chinese admiral in charge of the plan had not factored in the resourcefulness of two U.S. Marine commandos and an unlikely pair of sailors.

“Tempest of Fire” begins with the largest and most advanced Chinese submarine sunk by another mysterious submarine firing a high-speed torpedo unlike anything the world has yet seen.  In the U.S., sophisticated hackers disrupt communications service of major cable companies on the West Coast, but fail to break into the military’s top secret network, their efforts blocked by skilled counter-intelligence programmers at the U.S. Cyber Command.

Searching for clues about the cause of the submarine crash, allied satellite surveillance picks up what looks like a small uncharted submarine pen on an isolated, unpopulated Island claimed by China.  At the same time, an American millionaire, whose family is a major military communications programming contractor, has been selling secret codes to the disloyal Chinese admiral.

A small four-man team slips onto the island to quietly investigate the situation and to recover software codes. Leading the group is Marine Lieutenant Michael Neill, a highly trained special operations warrior who has direct contact with the National Security Adviser in the White house. With him are a Marine sharpshooter, a young naval computer programmer who is fluent in Mandarin and a seasoned master chief boatswain mate. Neill is also a devout Christian whose faith guides his actions throughout the adventure. Taken to the area aboard a British warship, the American team clandestinely goes ashore as a typhoon approaches the area, further complicating the situation.

While the American team is searching the island, the Chinese navy begins its annual war games in the seas around Formosa. During the maneuvers, the rogue admiral plans to goad the Taiwanese into sinking one of his ships, opening the way for a People’s Republic of China military takeover of Taiwan.  To trigger the assault, Taiwan’s satellites suffer a crippling cyber attack, causing a communications shut down within the Taiwan Navy.

Steve Wilson’s “Tempest of Fire” is a military thriller that quickly captures a reader’s attention and holds it in suspense until the end.

Reviewed by: Joe Epley (2014)

Author's Summary

Somalia has split in two, with armed insurgents threatening American lives. China has emerged as a leading arms exporter, supplying weapons to Third World nations. But before National Security Advisor Willis Avery can deal with either danger, he faces a new challenge On her maiden voyage, Beijing’s newest and most advanced nuclear submarine is destroyed by a weapon of unimaginable power. While the loss of the sub is kept secret, America and her allies want to know what happened. Avery believes a renegade faction of China’s Navy is behind the attack, striking from a secret naval facility in the South China Sea, and assembles a group to investigate. Leading the mission is Marine Corps Lieutenant Michael Neill. Fresh from his assignment in the Ukraine, Neill and his team, with a little help from British Intelligence and the Royal Navy, must find a way to locate the weapon before it is deployed again. Along the way, they must stop a Chinese Admiral who plans on seizing control of an independent Taiwan. Neill’s squad is aided by a mysterious informant, but is he baiting them into a trap?