Seas of Crisis

Jeffrey Fuller #6

by Joe Buff

The next world war draws toward its climax. Both the Allies and the Berlin-Boer Axis are bitterly deadlocked. But a familiar enemy from the past may hold the key to victory -- or could be the instrument of global Armageddon. In a war that needs every capable body, every scrap of matériel, America's greatest military hero worries that his days on the front lines are over. Captain Jeffrey Fuller's last mission forced him to sacrifice the lives of good men in order to secure a victory, a tactical decision that he fears may have ended his career. But an opportunity for redemption comes in the form of a new mission that will pit Fuller against his former adversaries from the Cold War. Washington has concluded that Russia is the key to victory. The former superpower, officially a neutral country, is clandestinely supplying the Axis powers with advanced weapons technology. Russia must be punished, but it needs to be orchestrated in such a way that will, at the same time, avoid creating a new enemy. To accomplish such a bold maneuver, Jeffrey Fuller must sneak a team of commandos into Russia to launch a nuclear missile -- against his own country. If successful, the Allies will be able to destroy the missile and use the event to pressure the Russians into an alliance. It's an all-or-nothing gambit, with no room for error. If the Russians discover the commandos, they will side with Berlin against the United States, a political disaster that will ensure victory for the Axis. If something goes wrong with the missile, Fuller could kill millions of people, and perhaps even initiate a full-blown nuclearholocaust. Such worst-case scenarios assume that Fuller can first navigate his ship, the fast attack nuclear submarine USS Challenger , through the mine-strewn and submarine-patrolled waters between Alaska and Siberia, a nearly impossible feat unto itself. It is a mission that will, one way or another, finally put an end to the war.

Genres: Fiction, Military Fiction, War, Thriller, Action

416 pages, Hardcover

First published January 10, 2006

Reviews

[Neil · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very good book! Probably the best of the series [and the coolest cover in the series], in my opinion. It had a good flow to it and I did not want to put it down. The author had good character development [overall] in it for new characters to the story. It is the last book in his series; it was somewhat anticlimactic in that you knew the United States would not lose, so the author may have made the stakes 'too high', but at the same time not too many people [i.e. - Americans] enjoy reading books where the United States loses, either. The ending reminded me of the movie 'Crimson Tide' in that the movie was also fairly anticlimactic.

In this final story in the series, Jeffrey Fuller and the crew of the Challenger is given one final, top-secret mission which will end the Third World War one way or another. They take one some mysterious passengers outside of Hawaii and Fuller discovers he has been promoted to 'Captain' and designated 'Commodore' as he will be leading a multi-ship task force for this mission. His orders are that he is to rendezvous with another American submarine with seventy-four other elite specialized commandos and take them to Russia where they are to invade a missile silo base, launch three modified nuclear missiles at the United States, and then Fuller is to play the aggrieved party in order to force Russia to denounce its neutrality and join the side of the Allies against the new Axis powers. It is quite a game of subterfuge, deception, and trickery with the fate of the planet in the balance, and Fuller has to be on his toes to survive, especially since he and the Challenger are considered expendable.

There are some rather crazy scenes in this book. One scene is encountering a German-controlled Amethyste-class submarine and sinking it under the ice pack. Another scene is the commandos' attack on the Russian missile base and the subsequent carnage up to the point of the nuclear missiles being launched. It was fun reading about Fuller having to be on his toes when the Challenger surfaced and he was taken to Russia as an acting emissary for the United States after the missile launch. It was also interesting to read about some of the various Russian defenses the two crews encountered.

The 'best' part was the attack on the missile base. In previous novels most of the action takes place on the submarine or in meetings with various leaders. Very little action on land was described in the other books [that I can remember]. This was the first time where a 'major land battle' was extensively described any of the books and the author did a fine job with the telling. Granted, what happened at the missile base was an important part of the story, but he could have left it out. I am glad he included it, however, as I think it was an important and integral part of the narration; the story would definitely have suffered had he not included it.

Even though Ilse had become annoying by the time she was removed from the story line in the previous novel, I was glad to see that she was truly not the mole the for whom investigators were searching. I would have been disappointed had she been, especially considering the way her actions had been written when she was arrested and taken away in the last novel.

I think the plan to stop the war was one of the craziest plots I have read in a long time. A nation fakes an attack on itself using a neutral opponents weapons in order to bring about the end of a world war by forcing said nation to renounce its pretend neutrality and declare war against its former customers. The nukes were launched and set up to explode in outer space above Moscow, creating an EMP that would wipe out most of Russia's ability to function. Then Fuller was to go in with the mother of all bluffs and state the missiles were destroyed by a working American space shield, the description of which was borderline fantastic and funny to read. He even encouraged the Russians TO FIRE A THIRD MISSILE to test the shield if they wanted more proof! Crazy! Sheer insanity, had they followed through on this bluff! [obviously, they did not] It was an amazing plot, an incredible plot, and it worked. Despite coming across as anticlimactic like I had said previously, it still worked. Perhaps if I read this book a second time my opinion will change.

Another thing that I thought was good was the interactions between the new captain and XO of the Challenger with Fuller now that he was the commodore of the task force. It introduced new variables to a command team that had worked together like a well-oiled machine in the past and almost threatened their ability to work together under the 'new arrangement.' I felt this was incredibly believable and incredibly well done. I liked how they were still able to work together despite how their roles had dramatically changed. I felt like the author showed great skill in bringing these changes about and in describing the transition throughout the course of the book.

I thought it was a good book, overall. I thought it was well-thought out and well-written. I greatly enjoyed it more than I thought I would. However, the ending was rather abrupt. I felt like he could have gone a bit further with the ending, but perhaps it would just have seemed rather dragged out.

[PAUL SULLIVAN · Rating 5 out of 5]

Challanger

What a ride. Up and down the polar ice cap, avoiding sure destruction by cleverly placed obstacles and helping to avoid worldwide chaos.
Also keeping me up all night reading a page turner, I'm satied by an adrenalin rush.
Thanks. Keep it up.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Joe Buff

Haven't read Joe buff in a while and I will get back into his books once again. I enjoyed this one.

[Rick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

Another great read from Joe Buff. More tense action and thrills. How many medals can Jeffrey Fuller get from how many countries?

[Don Lockhart · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great read

Joe Buff has written yet another can't put down undersea adventure. I truly enjoyed this series and recommend it to all .

[Tom Madigan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written and very believable. The details of the operation of a nuclear sub are all very lifelike.

[Gerald.Menefee · Rating 5 out of 5]

seas of crisis

Joe Buff does it again. His fiction talents combined with a futuristic knowledge of warfare make this a must-read book.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Thrill a Minute

Another excellent Jeff Fuller adventure thriller. Many unexpected twists and turns with much detail regarding the audacious plan to benefit America and its allies.

[Ronnie Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Underwater thriller

One of Joe Buff greatest novels,I couldn't put it down,you must read in order to see the progress of the characters, but still a must read

[Richard McCubbin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great series

Great series but it just seems to end without a satisfying conclusion. I have recommended this to friends. Hope another one is coming

[james baker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite a highly implausible not to say complex plot the author manages to pull it off again and give us an exciting and dramatic ending to this series - or is there more to come?

[Eugene Edynak · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author has an incredible knowledge of naval warfare, in particular, submarine warfare including the vessels of foreign nations. I almost didn't ever want the book to end.

[ISIK TANSAL · Rating 1 out of 5]

Submarine jargon book

This is not a Novel. I read until page 90 only event, a submarine passan through Bering Strait. Too many jargons. Not suitable foreigner readers. Mr. Buff satisfied his professional knowledge

[William F Kimpflein · Rating 5 out of 5]

My review

Can't wait for another book in this series. Can't stop reading this author's books. Excellent details, and suspense, and characters.

[CJ Wilkinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won't go into the synopsis much, but it was good!

I am finding that I really like Naval Warfare type books. I like the political aspect and then the suspense of the warfare itself. This was no different!

The United States is embarking on a mission that could either A: Prevent nuclear holocaust, or B: Cause it. However they are in such dire circumstances with Russia, that it's calculated that the only way to PREVENT it, is to try this hail mary mission.

The book is well written. The suspense is great. The ... technical aspects of the mission and what the teams did to avoid being caught, etc., was really well thought out and really well described. It's suspenseful and really just narly.

Go Read It Folks!

- CJ

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was looking for this author for the longest time! I read 2 of his books years ago. This book was a fantastic thriller involving the US and submarine warfare! Loved it and glad I found the author again!

[Michelle S · Rating 3 out of 5]

An entertaining read, somewhat predictable though.

[Rob · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read every one of Joe Buff's books in this series and this one is as good and interesting as the first one.

[Kyrilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

First Joe Buff book, but definitely not my last! Really enjoyed it.

[Ruth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love submarine spy thriller type books so this was right up my alley.

[Roland · Rating 4 out of 5]

too detailed

[Heinz Park]

this Novel is for a bubble head that sheared his time on submarine, its really a techno story and an unbelievable story but it was superior entertainment at Full Speed ahead. Lets just hope a nuclear war will never happen.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first read from this author and I very much enjoyed it. A bit slow to start as I had to digest the opening scenario but fine after that. It helps to be a sub aficionado or a former Naval Officer. I'm both so I could identify with much of what went on.