Danger Close: A Novel

by William G. Boykin, Tom Weiner (narrator), Tom Morrisey

Barely into his 20s and already a highly decorated military hero, Army Special Forces veteran Blake Kershaw is now going to college, studying while recuperating from wounds received in Afghanistan, and planning to reenter the army as an officer after graduation. But life tosses Blake a curve when his country approaches him about using his special skills to avert a terrorist plot to detonate a nuclear device in a major eastern US city. To do that, he would need to become an operative deep within al-Qaeda’s innermost circles—changing his entire identity, even his face. A true patriot, Blake makes the journey into a shadow world that leaves friends, family, and, seemingly, even God far behind. But when things go terribly wrong, and his country looks set to destroy him, it is God and God’s people who intervene.

Genres: Thriller, Fiction, Christian Fiction, Christian, Military Fiction, Spy Thriller, War

Audible Audio

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

LTG (Ret.) William G. “Jerry” Boykin spent thirty-six years in the United
States Army, many of them as an original member of Delta Force, the world’s
premier Special Operations unit. His life reads like an action-adventure film;
Boykin helped capture Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega, hunted
notorious drug lord Pablo Escobar, and has served in Vietnam, Iran,
Mogadishu, Iraq, and Afghanistan, not to mention a tour with the CIA.
Today he is an ordained minister who is passionate about encouraging
Christians to become warriors in God’s kindgom. (Also see KingdomWarriors.net)

Reviews

[♠ TABI⁷ ♠]

Read this because we kinda-sorta-maybe met the general (actually my family just heard him speak at a homeschool conference convention thing), my dad bought the books and said I should read them, and so I did . . . but really don't remember being affected by them in any significant way. Except I do remember this was one of the first "adult" books I read that quite overtly hinted at a sex scene bwhahahaha

[Chuck · Rating 4 out of 5]

William G. Boykin is a retired army Lt. General, was an original member of Delta Force and eventually commanded Delta Force. He has now written a pretty good anti terrorist war story. As you might expect, his protagonist here is a Special Forces veteran recovering from wounds. Blake Kershaw has entered a college in search of a degree when he is approached by the CIA to train as an undercover agent for placement in a terrorist training base in Afghanistan preparing for a nuclear attack on the United States. If this is your kind of thing I would recommend it.

[Maureen Lamb · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an Audible audio book that I listened intently to and could not put down. The undercover assignment for Blake Keyshawn is quite unique and plausible in the world of secretive infiltration into terrorist organizations. I really enjoyed this book
Barely into his twenties and already a highly decorated military hero, Army Special Forces veteran Blake Kershaw is now going to college, studying while recuperating from wounds received in Afghanistan, and planning to re-enter the Army as an officer after graduation. But life tosses Blake a curve when his country approaches him about using his special skills to avert a terrorist plot to detonate a nuclear device in a major eastern U.S. city. To do that, he would need to become an operative deep within Al-Qaeda’s innermost circles—changing his entire identity, even his face. A true patriot, Blake makes the journey into a shadow world that leaves friends, family and, seemingly, even God far behind. But when things go terribly wrong, and his country looks set to destroy him, it is God and God’s people who intervene.

[RJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m happy to share an excellent military thriller that I picked up off of Audible’s Plus Catalog. If it is still there, I strongly recommend you grab it, especially since it’s free (if you’re an Audible member). Our protagonist Blake Kershaw is a highly decorated Special Forces veteran, currently in college after wounds received in Afganistan, planning to return to the Army acquiring after his degree. Before graduation, he is approached by the CIA to undertake an extremely dangerous covert mission for his country. Blake being a dedicated, committed patriot, accepted. I was impressed with the military details, the different dialogs, and the utter realism of events as they took place. It was a wonderful blend of action, sadness, and sincerity. Aliyah was a great addition to the story. She brought a calming, passionate perspective to the tale. The blossoming romance between her and Blake was genuine. People certainly can feel attraction when they first meet. I really liked the story, and I hope the General continues writing.

[Carolyn Wagner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mixed feelings on this. Spoilers ahead.



The story line was decent, although I have problems thinking that a special forces operative could have acted like an undereducated parolee for very long without people starting to question. When he saved Saif, no one questioned his shooting skills? I didn't care for how the romance played out. Too much, too fast, in my opinion. And the author switched brothers' names in the last 10% of the book, putting Saif in America and saying Raheesh was dead in the camp. How that got through editors, I do not know.

All in all, not terribly bad, but not the best in the military suspense genre either.

[Bill Hooten · Rating 4 out of 5]

Listened to this book on Audible, but that option is not available on "Goodreads". I thoroughly enjoyed this book for a number of reasons: (1) it was a great story; (2) the characters were likeable; and, (3) the main two characters were not ashamed of their Christian beliefs. That is unusual is books of this type, and may be unusual in the lifestyles of those that are in these situations -- but, it was interesting to see this. I was so interested in the book, that I got it listened to in about a 24 hour period.

[William · Rating 3 out of 5]

audio written in 2011 not well written
could they have imagined the surrendering of the USA that now has happened under the Biden admin.? They have created a change that will bring this country down to the level of the countries the mass has come from. Assimilation word will be replaced with authoritarian govt., vigilantism, and posible civil war. During my Army service, i served in three divided countries; it wasn't pretty.

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fast-paced spy/military adventure, delving deep into Taliban networks. Even as the author provides glimpses of the underpinnings of political and covert actions, the main character trusts in God as his true ally. Would make an exciting movie!

[Isaac Adepitan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really nice read. Very thrilling story. Kept moi on edge throughout. 👌👌

[Jim Morton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Absolutely superb.....I'm a fan.....

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty exciting story preventing middle Eastern terrorist nuclear attacks on the US.

[Brian Kirk · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great story keeps you interested without overdoing it

[Federico Bergés · Rating 3 out of 5]

La temática me gusta, pero no me ha terminado de convencer; demasiados momentos en los que no te terminas de creer la historia.

[Patrick Kinney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best books I have read in a while!! Amazing storytelling. As an Army Veteran I loved reading this. I hardly ever give 5 stars but this was well deserved!

[Patricis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kept my attention. Concept was good. Liked how all the characters mixed well

[James Boutwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book, however the ending felt a little rushed.

[Bill Beck · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read. Gen Boykin did not disappoint me. Interesting transitions, fearless inclusion of faith’s role for a soldier, even a super high-speed soldier...

[Kenny Fleshman · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author is a retired 3 star general with a rich and storied special forces career. He is also a genuine Christian (didn’t see that coming) so his faith plays a visible part of the proceedings. This is a complex, deep cover scenario that had me up late turning pages. It was fascinating to watch the side story of the protagonist meshing his faith with a very messy situation. Low body count, no gratuitous sex, not even language. You won’t miss it a bit. A fine action yarn.

[Paul Gover · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book keeps moving at a good pace without losing details that help build and get you involved in the story. I hope we have men like this out there working the front line keeping me safe while I sleep. Written by men who know the situation and paint a very scary picture while just being real enough to be scary.

[Margaret Chind · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review is from reading an Advanced Reader Copy/Unedited Proof. A couple days ago I finished reading a thriller/action-adventure/suspense novel in the latest Time Scene Investigators series, The Influenza Bomb: A Novel from Paul McCusker and Walt Larimore MD and I was immediately in the mood for more. Thus I looked through my shelves to find similar authors and found two books that I read last year about the same genre one was Gold of Kings: A Novel from Davis Bunn and the other Pirate Hunter by Tom Morrisey. So I looked up the authors and discovered that I had an ARC sitting on my shelf co-authored by Tom Morrisey at Lieutenant General (Retired) William G. Boykin. With some excitement I snatched it off my shelf and dove in.

When I read about this book I thought that it was going to be all military and more a "man's-novel" than something that I would enjoy, but it was both. There was tons of military jargon and descriptions, but for the most part I was able to keep up and catch on. This is a novel about a Army Special Forces veteran that turns Spook and works in some extremely dangerous double agent espionage in an Al-Qaeda cell. It was thrilling and suspenseful. I was nervous and excited. It was the same thrill as watching the television show 24 or reading/watching the Jason Borne stories. The characters were real and easy to follow.

My only issues were specific to it being an unedited proof and therefore hold no control over what the final press print will be like, but even in a draft this story was there and developed fully enough for extreme entertainment. I would not hesitate to recommend this story to anyone. Normally I try to stay out of the stories that deal with "current day scenarios" as it is true that anything in this book could be tomorrow's headline. But I felt that this novel was entertaining and if nothing more than that provides hope. Lt. Blake Kershaw is a good 'ole boy and a true patriot. I would gladly want to own a real copy of this novel for my keeper shelf.


*Thanks to Julie Gwinn for providing an ARC copy for review.*

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good. Well written, suspenseful, hard to put down. Frightening to think the enemy can get so close to the US

[Jody · Rating 4 out of 5]

These types of books are a double edged sword with me. On the one hand, I really enjoy the action and suspense. On the other hand...let's just say I usually end up more paranoid about how deceitful our government is. This is a great story and because of the author's past I am assuming there is a lot of truth woven into the fiction. Boykin shows us what "could" happen when a man goes undercover, not just the undercover part but also the whole preparation thing. That was very interesting. This book also adds some lines about Blake's Christian faith without coming across as "preachy" which I thought was a nice touch. The guy at church who let me borrow this said this was the first in a series so I am interested in seeing where this goes. I found some things kind of funny although I don't think the author meant it to be taken that way. This was a quick easy read and I am pretty sure you will enjoy this. It starts off with action, pulls back into a slower paced story to build the plot then explodes with action again at the end. It easily earns 3 1/2 - 4 stars.

[Randy Daugherty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Barely into his twenties and already a highly decorated military hero, Army Special Forces veteran Blake Kershaw is now going to college, studying while recuperating from wounds received in Afghanistan, and planning to re-enter the Army as an officer after graduation. But life tosses Blake a curve when his country approaches him about using his special skills to avert a terrorist plot to detonate a nuclear device in a major eastern U.S. city. To do that, he would need to become an operative deep within Al-Qaeda’s innermost circles—changing his entire identity, even his face. A true patriot, Blake makes the journey into a shadow world that leaves friends, family and, seemingly, even God far behind. But when things go terribly wrong, and his country looks set to destroy him, it is God and God’s people who intervene.

[J · Rating 4 out of 5]

There was a strong plot which pulled me through the novel and (after the first chapter) I found it a compelling and quick read. It humanizes war and espionage, while being clean and family-approbirate. Christian themes of asking God for help throughout. Doesn’t sugar coat Islam.

It is definitely a military book. Good men die but courage and integrity are abundant. Family values and christian values are reinforced.

The military jargon made the entry into the story a bit rough, but that cleared after the first chapter. The jargon came back heavily in a few areas later, but I got through them. Men will probably love the technical descriptions of weapons and machinery, but it was lost on me.

[Diane Holm · Rating 4 out of 5]

Action filled from page one….

Addicting writing and hard to put down, Boykin and Morrisey bring the realities of war to your imagination. The characters are more than just people on a page; they take on a life of their own full of emotions and struggles that will touch the closed places of your heart.

War is a terrible thing. When you face it head on the choices you make in the service of your country and the “better good” are often split second decisions. Faith in God is sometimes the only thing you have to hang on to when it seems all is lost.

Danger close will take you inside a soldiers mind…..if you dare to enter....

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book asks, "Can honorable men do dishonorable things in the interests of national security and still maintain their honor?" The author uses his own experience as the Former U.S. Army Special Forces and Founding Member of Delta Force. As a wounded Special Forces veteran, "Blake's country asks him to change his identity to help avert a terrorist plot involving a nuclear attack on U.S. soil." I rated this a five-star book because it is a political thriller with no bad language. Amazing.

[Jeff Carpenter · Rating 4 out of 5]

I guess I could be described as a casual fan of General Boykin. He is a founder and past commander of Delta Force, but I never knew he was an author. I am familiar with his co-author Morrisey, he has written some excellent adventure/action stories in the Christian fiction field. So when I ran across this novel written by these two men I could'nt pass it up. Glad I didn't, it was a great story. Not too give too much away but this one ended in a way that could easily turn into a series. That's pretty common in Christian fiction and I hope it's true in this case.

[Roger Scherping · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good story. You had to suspend your disbelief somewhat, like how could Blake, a strong and fit Marine, look physically like the loser Grant, and how easily Grant escaped from his captors at the ocean side house. But the prose is clear and well written, and the story moves along nicely. It also does a great job of putting you in the desert training camp. The story would have benefited from a few twists and turns because once it got going nothing too unexpected happened.

[Harris Butler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Boykin knows the military, and he walks the fine line between writing a book with Christian values and not being preachy. The Christian themes in parts of the book may make non-Christian readers uncomfortable, but to stop reading because of that would be a shame. Boykin (with the help of Morrisey) gives us a thrilling story that is hard to put down once you start reading it.

[Katy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good read. Kept me interested the whole time. Sometimes it was a little difficult to understand the military lingo, but it did not severely hinder my understanding of the storyline. There were a few minor editorial errors and one major one (the names of Raheesh and Saif were switched at the end).