The American flag flutters above the nearly cut in two and listing USS Stark (FFG-31). On May 17, 1987, in the Persian Gulf –15 months before the Iran/Iraq War ends – the guided missile frigate is on a routine exercise in international waters.
Title: Rogue Crusader
Author: John R. Monteith
Genre: Fiction
Reviewer: Gail Chatfield
ISBN (links go to the MWSA Amazon store): 0985044306
A hijacked Israeli submarine. An unprovoked attack against a U.S. Navy destroyer. A civilian oil tanker with a secret cargo of nuclear weapons. Together, they add up to an ingenious plan to penetrate the ballistic missile defense of the United States. Standing in the path of destruction is a crew of mercenary submarine sailors, led by ex-U.S. naval officer, Jake Slate. Exiled for crimes that should have earned him a military execution, Slate is not anyone’s idea of a hero. But he’s all we’ve got….
The main job an officer had in the squadron was to be a pilot or RIO. Pilots were judged on their competency in the air, whether they were ‘a good stick’. This ranking went on a scale from “a damn fine stick’ to ‘unsafe at any speed’.
Title: A Wound in the Mind
Author: Francis J. Partel, Jr.
Genre: Historical Fiction
Reviewer: Fran McGraw
ISBN (links go to the MWSA Amazon store): B00361FBVS
It is 1968. The US naval war in Vietnam is at peak level of intensity. USS Ticonderoga, Attack Carrier 14, is in the Gulf of Tonkin for her fifth combat cruise of the war prosecuting Operation Rolling Thunder. The historical naval novel has moved forward from the Napoleonic Wars of C. S. Forester and Patrick O'Brian to the modern navy. The ships and weapons may have changed, but time-tested traits of courage and leaderhip remain very much in demand.
Ltjg. Cannon has just returned to his stateroom when Gunnery Sergeant Mates phones him to take on the defense of a marine's marine who won the Navy Cross in the brutal Hill Fights of Khe Sanh in 1967. LCPL Cachora is charged with assault and battery while on liberty in Hong Kong. Ltjg. Cannon along with Ens. Chase take on an uphill struggle to defend their client. With the odds stacked against them, they creatively mount a spirited defense. This is the thrilling drama of Cahora's court-martial.