The Hawk Enigma

by J.L. Hancock

"A frightening, heart-pounding, high-tech thriller that flies to the finish. Brilliant storytelling makes Hancock a force to be reckoned with in action-adventure writing." -Dirk Cussler, New York Times Bestselling Author

Voodoo, a gifted military technician, struggles with harrowing memories of war and the emptiness that comes with loss. To cope, he’s thrown himself into his work for a secretive military research organization, purposefully leaving little time for anything else. Until one night, a familiar voice from Voodoo’s past interrupts his recurring nightmares with a cryptic prophecy.

At the same time, across the ocean in Japan, two world-renowned scientists go missing along with the secrets behind a powerful form of artificial intelligence called the “God Algorithm.”

To Voodoo’s surprise, he soon finds himself on the front lines of an A.I. arms race with the future of freedom at stake. Will Voodoo find the scientists in time? Or will the “God Algorithm,” a piece of code so terrifying it has the potential to shift global power, fall into the wrong hands. Find out in this mind-bending, relentlessly paced techno thriller sure to please fans of Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan and Jack Carr’s James Reece.

474 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 17, 2024

About the author

J.L. Hancock spent twenty years in the military where he toiled away in the dark corners of the government intelligence communities, learned Korean and Japanese, and conducted over one hundred combat operations with special operations forces in Iraq, Afghanistan, and the Philippines. As the senior enlisted advisor over future concepts and innovation for the Navy special operations community Hancock became a well-known subject matter expert in unmanned systems, 5G, and artificial intelligence. Drawing from a graduate level education in national security studies, foreign language expertise, and experience as a technician embedded with special operations forces, J.L. Hancock writes fiction that reflects the complexities of the modern world. He’s inspired by the many lives he has lived, the worlds he has seen, and the people he’s met along the way. Today, he lives in San Diego, CA with his wife and two daughters.

Reviews

[David Dalton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Glad I finally got around to reading this hi tech thriller! Great characters, well written, and features all sorts of hi tech devices and concepts. Special Ops and several threats to the main characters.
The follow up book was just published. I will probably pick it up soon.

[mommy_and_books · Rating 5 out of 5]

" [...] Never assume you know the strategy of the person beside you. And never, ever assume we're all playing the same game of chess. [...]"

Wow! I didn't expect the story hidden within the pages of "The Hawk Enigma" to captivate me so much. Author J.L. Hancock has established himself as an exceptional writer. I'm eager to read his next work.
"The Hawk Enigma" is the first volume in The Voodoo Series. I admit, I can't wait for the next instalment.
I met some extraordinary people here, including:
- Dr. "Taka-chan" Hawkins. She suffers from hyperthymesia—the ability to recall events with perfect clarity. She's a genius. At seventeen, she graduated with two specializations. She developed algorithms to mimic brain activity and improve it. I hope to hear more about her in the next instalment.
- Dr. Kenzo Ichikawa—a mysterious figure.  What he did filled me with fear. Thanks to this person, you'll see what can happen when you overdo something. Work is work, but obsession leads to nowhere good.
- Dr. Naomi Shimoda - is an outstanding neurologist. She worked alongside Dr. Ichikawa and Dr. Hawkins. Together, they conducted research that claimed many lives. This doctor is likeable. I liked her way of thinking. I was rooting for her.
- Voodoo - a truly brave man who stands for good. For unexplained reasons, he has prophetic dreams. Life isn't easy. He suffers with nightmares every day. Will his life change for the better? He's a strong man who knows his limits. This character is worth getting to know. What he experiences in this book can easily be called horror. It's terrifying.

In addition to the characters mentioned above, Frisco, Stu, Captain Tanaka, and Janet also deserve your attention.  You'll also encounter members of the Yakuza criminal group here. Their arrival heralds serious trouble.  In "The Hawk Enigma," we travel through locations including Tokyo (Japan) and Utah (USA). We encounter various interviews. The various countries are heavily mixed up here.
Thanks to this story, you'll discover what The God Algorithm means and why some governments will do anything to get their hands on it.
If you enjoy military-technology thrillers, don't hesitate to pick this book up. Be warned! The plot is captivating. You won't be able to put it down. And after reading "The Hawk Enigma," you'll want to learn more about the history of Voodoo.
Bravo to J.L. Hancock for creating this story. Who knows, maybe in the age of AI, his story will become a reality.

[Jill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just finished The Voodoo Series and wanted to share my thoughts as a whole. It was very gripping, smart and action-packed.

This techno- thriller series is really clever — full of AI, military ops and action . You can tell the author knows his stuff.

We follow Voodoo — a character with depth and emotion, he’s not just another action hero. He’s a military technician haunted by nightmares of the wars he’s faced and the people he has lost that then start to bleed into reality and you really do start to feel for him and his struggles.

It’s definitely on the more detailed side, not a light read — but if you like your techno-thrillers to have a bit of heart, this series is worth checking out it’s a fascinating, thought provoking read.

[Country Mama · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Hawk Enigma by J.L. Hancock is a high tech thriller book series by the author about our MC named Voodoo. The MC is a brave man who suffers from daily nightmares. He is such an interesting character overall. You can not help but root for him as a reader. In this first book we travel to Utah and also Tokyo Japan. The technology and military aspect was intriguing to me as a reader. There is so much action in this book. I loved how you went to other places in the world and we got to hear about them as readers. The thriller aspect was in full force in this first book! I think that the first book introduces the characters really well and starts our story out with a bang for the readers!

[Lisas Books, Gems and Tarot · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m always a bit apprehensive when reading a book by an author I’ve not read before.

I was pleasantly surprised by this one. It has ties to the military, which was what intrigued me more. I just did it fascinating.

The technology was so well researched, and it was so fun to read about Voodoo and the team as they try to rescue the hostage.

I liked that this had a lot of AI in it. AI is pretty much the future, and although it is intriguing and fascinating, it’s also scary as hell.

I gave this one ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Sue Wallace · Rating 5 out of 5]

The hawk enigma by J. L. Hancock.
I really did enjoy this book. Full of action from the start. I wasn't sure how I felt about the characters. I didn't have any favourites. It took me a while to get used to the writing style. I did like the start of each chapter which showed where they were and the city. This did take me a few days to read. I'm looking forward to the next book. I do recommend this book.

[Bryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of those amazing sci-fi books that make you get goosebumps because you can see the book in a future reality.