Stephen Coonts & Jim DeFelice Deep Black: Payback

Deep Black: Payback

Stephen Coonts & Jim DeFelice

St. Martin's, Oct 2005, $7.99, 480 pp.

ISBN: 0312936982

Peruvian general Tecume has concocted a brilliant plan to not only obtain a nuclear weapon, but to bluff the Americans into going after insurgents; his outcome is to become the president of Peru.

Crippled Stephan Babin owes a lot of people. He is in debt to Tecume for saving his life so is assisting him with his nuclear ploy. However, he hides from the General that his personal agenda is to take the nuclear option one step beyond his Peruvian host. He plans to avenge what the CIA did to him, when they shot down his plane leaving him crippled.

NSA assigns the Deep Black team headed by Charlie Dean to stop the General. The crack squad aided from thousand miles away by their Runner Rockman begin a counter ploy to keep nuclear weapons out of the hands of Tecume and local terrorists, but neither Charlie, his teammate Lia DeFransccesa, nor the home office are aware that the real threat comes from the more dangerous opponent Steve Babin who has armed his host with a second bomb unbeknownst to the Deep Black squad or any American intelligence agency.

The fourth Deep Black adventure thriller is an intriguing tale because just when the team and readers think the case is solved in spite of plenty pages to go, the plot offers a delightful exhilarating twist that ratchets up the suspense levels. The story line is loaded with testosterone action even when the females like Lia take charge. Fans of the series or anyone who appreciates a black ops antiterrorism thriller will receive plenty of positive payback from this adrenaline pumping tale that goes at one speed faster than light.

Harriet Klausner