Drop Zone: A Novel

by Michael Salazar

In the pulse-pounding tradition of W.E.B. Griffin and Richard Marcinko, here is a pure adrenaline skydive into enemy territory — a top-notch military adventure written by an Air Force Combat Crewmember who knows firsthand what awaits in the Drop Zone.Among the U.S. Special Forces’ most valued troops are the Air Force’s Pararescue Teams — “PJs” who drop out of C-130s or HH-60G Blackhawks into places no one else can reach, to retrieve the wounded, the dying ... and the secrets their government will kill to uncover.Outfitted with the military’s most sophisticated equipment, Master Sergeant Jason Johnson is one of the nation’s best pararescue jumpers. Now he’s been teamed up with a hotshot Marine for his most perilous mission yet.Johnson must drop behind enemy lines in war-torn Bosnia to find and retrieve evidence of a horrifying war the ethnic cleansing of five thousand civilians through the use of a deadly nerve toxin. But from the moment they leap into the swirling Balkan darkness, Johnson and his partner enter a landscape of unspeakable destruction and despair — and a mission that goes wrong in every conceivable way.On a race through enemy territory, Johnson is stripped of every means of survival — and only a miracle will bring him out alive....

338 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 29, 2000

Reviews

[Denny]

NOOK

[Martin · Rating 2 out of 5]

The weird mix of militarism-worship and techno-lust in this book are woven together with dollops of homo-eroticism.

I don't think the author had intended this, but this is a very gay book.

The affected paramedic-cum-assassin hero, and his dwarfish Marine side-kick (no I'm not making this up), coupled with the underlying theme of cannon-fodder vs. brass, provide a quirky read, enjoyable if only to revel into the disbelief and wonderment of the gay military apparatus protecting us against.. erm, themselves.

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author is clearly a real life PJ with some interesting stories to tell. I'd love to sit down and listen to him talk for a while. This book was a fun read that uses the events in Bosnia as a backdrop to tell a covert ops story. I'd forgotten how much I loved this book until I started rereading it. Now I'm going to have to look up the rest of the series and read the other two.

[Aria · Rating 3 out of 5]

It had some interesting parts to it, mostly towards the end. I didn't really care for any of the supporting characters because you never really get to "know" them, they just pop up randomly throughout the book.

[Vicki · Rating 3 out of 5]

This Book I have begun to read is the Drop City by Boyle, not this Drop Zone...Sorry I am having trouble navigating Goodreads.