Listen to the BEA Podcast Interview with Certain Jeopardy author Jeff Struecker at this link. The book was fast-paced. The author clearly explained the equipment and jargon used in the story without bogging down the pace with too many details. Every moment was full of tension and conflict, both at home with the team's families and on mission with the team. The conflict and reactions all felt realistic and plausible. The good: interesting plot, knowledgeable authors, realistic pictures of soldiers and their lives. Very well-done portrayal of "the war on the home front" (which is oftentimes missing in millit); interesting spiritual perspective too. I read this book in 2 days. The authors create a perfect combination of action and drama in the lives of the special ops soldiers and their families back home. This book, although a work of fiction, paints a very good picture of the lives of a special ops soldier and also their families. 5 stars for sure. This is one hell of a good book! Oops! Perhaps I should have said 'heck', since the authors are an Army chaplain and a minister. But that word is too mild to convey the enthusiasm I feel. This is the story of an Army Special Ops team in Venezuela who experience big problems in carrying out their mission, which changes character while they are in country, and while their families back home are having major problems too. In that sense, the book is like "The Unit", the TV show. And, the interesting, believable, and realistic plot kept me engaged, even through a short relatively quiet section about two thirds of the way into the book. If you are tempted to stop reading at that point, don't. The action picks up quickly to a breakneck pace and stays there to the end. If you like military action, you will really like this story. As a former member of the US Army who saw just a bit of active service I find a lot of fault with most military fiction. The authors either make errors of fact or feel. The errors of fact should be corrected easily by most authors. Anyone with a computer can find in a matter of seconds just how much a M4 weighs or what kind of ordnance the Air Force would bring against troops in the open. The errors of feel are a lot harder to fix. Too many writers present the US Army as either filled with robot Rambo’s or killer buffoons. They are one dimensionally drawn to serve the purpose of the plot alone. At the end of the book you may well have enjoyed the story but you have obtained no insight or developed no relationship with the characters. Jeff Struecker and Alton Gansky fall into neither of these errors. The facts are straight and the people are real. I found this to be an excellent book that captures the problems and effects of the type of warfare that is going on today and will likely to continue through the next few years. The author’s technology and tactics are up to date and well presented. The true strength of this book however is in the people you will meet. Six primary characters are very well drawn. The members of an elite ranger team, both the men and their families, are brought to life. The real lives and problems of long serving military families are described to a fine point. I know I was a member of one of those families and these authors get it all exactly right. By the end of this fine book you will have enjoyed an action filled exciting tale and learned a lot about the members and families of our armed forces. You will also have come to care about the men that you will meet in the book. Right from the start, Struecker and Gansky grab the reader and pulls him into a world of an elite counter-terrorism strike team. The action is well-written, able to be followed but also giving some of the sense of confusion and fog that one expects to be present in a fight. More to the authors credit, the inner struggles of the characters, both those in the Ranger team and those they've left at home, are real and compelling. This book reads like an episode of CBS' The Unit -- only much more believable and without the rampant infidelity. It isn't just action-packed, it's fast-paced throughout. Clean enough to hand to an impressionable teen or "tween," easy reading, a plot that is easy to follow, "human" characters, and overall, very plausible (tough breaks, luck, and unexpected developments). Certain Jeopardy by Jeff Struecker and Alton Gansky is like the TV show The Unit on steroids! A group of six men appear to live normal American lives, but at any time they can be called to report to a Special Operations group performing actions for the safety of their country at the risk of their lives. The men are called to Venezuela to investigate rumors of a Al-Qaeda training camp. Instead they stumble into the kidnapping of a nuclear scientist who can empower Iran to create their own nuclear weapons. To rescue him and his family that is being held hostage for his cooperation will force them to use every skill they know and may cost them their lives. I'm not usually a fan of military thrillers, but this book grabbed me on page one and didn't let go until I finally remembered to breathe again at the end. Struecker has served several tours of duty himself, so the writing gives an inside look at secret military operations and the incredible amount of skill and fortitude needed by its members. The action is written so that every scene is almost cinematic; I could see it play out in my head. Interspersed are scenes of the families at home coping with never knowing where their loved ones are or if they will come home. Together they create a powerful look at Army life. I hope that the authors will revisit this team, because I would love to read more! Sit down and strap yourself in for this adrenaline filled story of a Special Ops team doing what they do best. Eye opening and thrilling Jeff Struecker and Alton Gansky combine combat experience with writing skill and show it off to full advantage. I was anxious to get beyond the early chapters and into the thick of things but getting to know the individual soldiers, their nicknames and personalities, is essential to the reading experience. While this book appealed to my adventurous side it also connected emotionally as the plight of the soldier's loved ones is also laid bare. Dealing with what life throws at us all, but having to leave with little or no notice to places unknown other than the certainty of danger, the sacrifices of our armed forces and their families is highlighted with accuracy and intensity. Leavened with humour and spiritual insight this book will appeal to both men and women. Certain Jeopardy is an excellent first foray into fiction by Captain Jeff Struecker - I hope he will be back with Sgt. Major Eric Moyer's band of brothers soon! -Relz Reviewz
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