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“Deceleration. The MT1-XX parachute billowed open in the night sky above him, snapping his shoulders back against the harness and pulling him out of freefall. Over six years at this game. . .and he still didn’t like the idea of jumping out of a fully-functional aircraft.” The year is 2006. As the Israeli Defense Force storms across the border into southern Lebanon, preparing to surround the stronghold of Bint Jbeil, three men wearing the yellow headbands of Hezbollah parachute off the ramp of a USAF C-130 Hercules, falling into the Lebanese night. Their rescue a compromised CIA asset from Bint Jbeil with only hours remaining before the IDF completes their envelopment of the town. For Harry Nichols, it isn't his first time dropping into a combat zone. But getting to the ground is only the beginning. . .for the woman they have come to save is the wife of a Hezbollah commander. Her husband has vowed to kill her. The CIA has promised to keep her alive. But as the mission descends into chaos—as the night explodes in fire—some promises will prove impossible to keep.

133 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 16, 2014

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73 people want to read

About the author

Stephen England

35 books160 followers
Stephen England is the author of the bestselling Shadow Warriors thrillers, including Amazon's #1 Bestselling Political Thriller, Pandora's Grave, and its long-awaited sequel, Day of Reckoning--a novel hailed as "the perfect spy thriller for our time--chaotic, cynical, with only a few good men keeping the barbarians from the gate."

Drawing upon nearly a decade of research into the nature of Islam, the Middle East, espionage and counterterrorism operations, England's work has drawn praise for breathing new life into the genre with the hard-edged, unsparing realism of his portrayal of the war on terror, the people who wage it, and the moral and psychological costs exacted of those who take the war to the enemy where he lives. "Soldiers without uniforms. Fighting a war without end. Shadow warriors. . ."

The short stories NIGHTSHADE and TALISMAN round out the Shadow Warriors series, and England's work also includes the stand-alone historical adventure novel, Sword of Neamha.

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5 stars
232 (64%)
4 stars
88 (24%)
3 stars
31 (8%)
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3 (<1%)
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3 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
Profile Image for Samuel .
180 reviews129 followers
February 10, 2017
HIGH SPEED NO DRAG.

=[six stars rounded down to five]=

Stephen England's Shadow Warrior's series. What can I say? For starters, anyone with a kindle app is cheating themselves if they haven't downloaded his books. Two smash hit spy novels and two equally exciting short stories. Mr England works like Masamune, the Japanese swordsmith. While the interval times between the release dates of his books are slightly longer compared to the big names, his stories are all the better from it. They are sharper, more cutting, well researched and have an edge to them that many other spy thrillers do not. His short stories for instance pack more thrills than a Tom Clancy novel into the span of a lunch hour. After reading his work, you won't need to buy a "24" dvd box set to get those edge of your seat thrills, Mr England's writing can do that while saving your time and money.
A case in point is his latest work, LODESTONE. Unlike his previous short stories, this one is a novella, meaning that he had more room to work with when writing. And boy did the final result deliver. I would say that this tops even his full length novels for sheer devastating action and plotting. Now to the review. What happens when the company attempts to conduct an extraction mission in the middle of a real-life war-zone?

We start LODESTONE a few thousand feet in the air. Three men are parachuting into a situation where everything can go wrong. It's 2006 and the invasion of Lebanon is in full swing. The IDF is advancing towards Bint Jbeil, a town full to the brim with Hezbollah militants. We then cut to a warship off the coast of Lebanon where CIA officer Iraida Harmon is meeting with Rebecca Petras, the Baghdad station chief who has flown in to oversee/micromanage the operation. It's a extraction mission, for an asset Harmon cultivated, the wife of a Hezbollah commander who believes her husband has caught on to the work she's been doing for the company. Unfortunately with the IDF hours away from sealing off Bint Jbeil and artillery shells blasting the area to pieces, CIA Special Activities Division officer Harry Nicholas, along with two Special Air Service troopers are tasked with bringing the asset out alive. But like all the books in the Shadow Warriors series, nothing is going to go completely to plan and nobody is coming out of the night intact.

In terms of plot, LODESTONE is a masterpiece. Jack Bauer has nothing on what the main protagonists of this story have to go through to get back home. From the opening, cinematic introduction to the harrowing exfiltration across the Lebanese hills, each part of the story is perfectly paced and executed. There is almost no drag, and not a single wasted word in LODESTONE.

Next, the research, an aspect of the spy thriller genre which can make or break most books. Mr England has proved over the past few years that he knows the right level of technical detail to put into his work. LODESTONE is no exception. From a highly accurate portrayal of the work the 160th SOAR do to one of the best sniping sequences portrayed in a spy thriller, all the tactics, nomenclature and kit used in LODESTONE is portrayed as accurately as possible without bogging down the narrative.

One of the reasons why LODESTONE does so well is the setting. Stephen England brings to life one hell of a night, and successfully captures the chaos and danger of the 2006 IDF Invasion Of Lebanon, a significant geopolitical event in the history of the War On Terror. From the crumbling buildings of Bint Jebil where terrorists who out-gun our protagonists lurk around every corner to the increasingly precarious race by the main characters to avoid getting an artillery shell dropped on their heads, LODESTONE has perhaps the best setting of the Shadow Warriors series.

Now to the characters. Several of them nearly stole the show from Harry Nicholas, one succeeded, so I will try cover the standouts, as best as I can.

First, we have SAS Sergeant Nick Crawford a new character. The author does a bang up job in establishing him. Sardonic and very competent at his job, he manages to make perhaps the darkest entry in the Shadow Warriors series less depressing. At several point in LODESTONE, there were times when my breath was caught in my throat as the universe seemed to go out of its way to squash Crawford like a bug. But he won the ultimate prize any protagonist in the Shadow Warriors series can receive. Staying alive to return in a future book.

Next, we have Baghdad station chief Rebecca Petras. She's your classic bureaucratic busybody, and a textbook example of who you wouldn't want giving the marching orders. Getting cold feet several times as the events play out and nearly abandoning the people out in the field to die will make her a character you will love to hate.

Then, there's Special Activities Division Officer Harry Nicholas. First-time readers in the series should start at LODESTONE as it has several great moments which highlight the different aspects of the main protagonist of the series. He's a competent professional, best exemplified when he makes the most of the FN-FAL he brought along for the op, to disrupt the opposition's attempts at bringing their big guns into range. But unlike, say Mitch Rapp, Nicholas is human and not the Terminator. This means that for all his training and smarts, there are moments when he acknowledges the numbers are stacked against him. Portraying a badass somewhat realistically in spy fiction is a increasingly lost art. Mr England has managed to master it with Nicholas.

Finally, we have CIA Case Officer Irada Harmon, who stole the show in LODESTONE. She is used to explore the morally ambiguous depths those in the espionage business go to when cultivating assets, from basic coercion and promises of a safety net. Such promises are hard to keep and can be fatal for everyone involved when things go wrong down the road. And Harmon in her own way, suffers for it. While safely situated off the coast of Lebanon away from the slaughter, during the events of the book, she's increasingly forced to fight her own battle to keep the operation running against the attempts by Petras' to shut it down. And in a moment which left me cheering, she manages to screw over the career bureaucrat and save the lives of those out in the field.

Overall, LODESTONE is simply perfect. Since it's longer than a short story, it eliminates the traditional character interaction problems caused by a shorter length. Because it's not a full-length novel, it doesn't need a glossary for technical acronyms or a character list. The Shadow Warriors series is what would result if "24" had been made with the research of Tom Clancy, and LODESTONE is a prime example. It packs the thrills of a full-length spy novel into a package which won't take you a month to get through.

The plotting is sublime, the characters (especially the newly introduced ones) are fantastic and Stephen England's willingness to show the brutality and messy reality of counter-terrorist work, along with the losses which victory gets built on is refreshing in a genre which sometimes indulges in machismo. If you want happy endings, get a Brad Thor novel, because in the Shadow Warrior series, there are none. If you're ready to experience the trials, tribulations and unglamorous hardship of post 9/11 espionage work, you should read LODESTONE. It blows many of its full-length novel peers to pieces like a 7.62mm NATO round and is the best spy thriller I've read in 2014.

COMPLETELY RECOMMENDED FOR BOOKS TO DOWNLOAD IN THE NEW YEAR.
Profile Image for Steven Jr..
Author 13 books91 followers
April 8, 2019
To say that Stephen England is a talented author would be a bit of an understatement. A more accurate assessment is that he is the Plastic Man of the spy thriller genre: give him any length of words to work with and he will spin you a tale with compelling characters, harrowing action, and a sufficiency of research.

The trend continues in LODESTONE, which is a novella (longer than a short story, shorter than a novel) set in 2006. The Israelis are launching an offensive against Hezbollah. A joint CIA-SAS operation led by Harry Nichols is given an objective: extract a high value source, the wife of a Hezbollah commander. Things rapidly deteriorate and Nichols is forced to adapt to stay a step ahead of the enemy.

One does not have to have read previous entries in the Shadow Warriors series to enjoy LODESTONE, but as somebody who has now read every entry in the series, it is nice to see subtle hints to other works.

The research is top notch. Whether it's discussing a bluff to get past a Hezbollah checkpoint or the 160th SOAR conducting a hot extract, England leaves no detail unattended. And of course, the action is gripping and the narrative littered with the realities of the intelligence business.

LODESTONE should be in every thriller fan's Kindle or smart phone. It is a hell of a read.
Profile Image for Jeff Benham.
1,713 reviews10 followers
September 29, 2014
If you have read the other books in the Shadow Warriors series, you will no doubt understand why this one is rated 5 stars. If you have not read them yet, this is an excellent way for you to get introduced. This is a prequel that doesn't really seem like one, except for the date it takes place. It packs as much action and intrigue as you can get into a novella. Excellently written! It would really be nice if the author would go back further, either another novella or a full length novel so we can see how Harry gets his start.
Profile Image for Aiden Bailey.
Author 18 books83 followers
October 3, 2016
Lodestone tells the story of three special forces soldiers tasked with infiltrating Hezbollah controlled territory inside Lebanon to rescue a CIA informant who happens to be the wife of a Hezbollah commander.

Led by Harry Nichols, the team’s mission is complicated by the clock, because the Israeli Defence Forces are about to storm the border attacking the very town Nichols and his team have been inserted into.

The story had a great pace and tension, which is what you want in a thriller. The characters were well rounded for this kind of fiction, and the military knowledge seemed bang on. Stephen England, the author of Lodestone, says in his afterwards that he sought out the expertise of U.S. pilots and that shows.

I like how the story really cut to the fundamentals motivations of humans. The CIA asset who needs rescuing won’t leave the highly dangerous situation she finds herself in without her children. A completely normal reaction for the scenario presented. So Nichols and his team’s mission is complicated. Again, exactly what you want in a thriller.

Lodestone is a great prequel to the stories that follow in England’s series, because it ends with a sense that there is more to learn. Well written and worth your effort is you enjoy contemporary military fiction.
Profile Image for David Dalton.
3,060 reviews
October 26, 2014
I took a chance and tried out Lodestone as my first Stephen England book to read. I enjoyed it a lot and will continue to seek out his other titles. I may knock out another novella or two before I take on his first full length novel. This short story packed a big punch with lots of action. It reminded me a lot of the TV series Strike Back (Cinemax). A side benefit of this being an action packed novella is that the author did not have time to throw in a mushy love angle (he tried a little bit).
154 reviews14 followers
July 12, 2016
A short and intense glimpse into the War on Terror!

Lodestone is my first read by Mr. England but definitely not my last!

The author skillfully weaves a short and compelling plot within not even 100 pages, where the tension never falls and the gunfire never ceases!

The characters are multi layered and intrguing and I can't wait to read more from them.

Totally recommended and looking forward to the next one!
Profile Image for Nate Granzow.
Author 9 books60 followers
February 19, 2016
Few authors can balance the dark, raw essence of warfare with an almost poetic literary style, but Stephen England does it with apparent ease. In "Lodestone," CIA paramilitary officer Harry Nichols continues his downward spiral into darkness. Driven and experienced enough to continue the fight, he still faces the inevitability of becoming colder and more emotionally calloused as he faces unspeakable horrors and slim odds of survival.

This is undoubtedly England's best work yet.
1 review
January 17, 2015
Always enjoy Stephen England's writing

Had to come up for air several times. The characters are intense and the circumstances mesmerizing. So glad when Harry and his team make it through. Makes one thankful for the courageous men and women who serve to keep America safe.
Profile Image for Richard E..
180 reviews4 followers
July 10, 2017
Lodestone: Shadow Warriors Novella.

Crisp, crackling action. team goes in to extract an asset and they are behind the power curve as Soon as they step off the C-130 ramp. HAHO jump, minimal gear, rush to the objective to rescue one individual, Then, Chance Contact up the Yin/Yang. Recommend to all for a look at the members of the team you will meet in the full-length Novels.
162 reviews6 followers
December 31, 2020
Brilliant

Stephen England has a way of writing that makes ones stomach churn with fearful anticipation. Thrilling from beginning to end. I read his books pell mell, sometimes having to go back and reread just to make sure I got it right.. I can’t put them down until I read the last word & then I download the next. Thrillers of brilliance.
Profile Image for John.
492 reviews18 followers
June 12, 2017
Enjoyable!

I really found myself getting caught up in the stories action scenes as well as the moral dilemmas the main character had to keep fighting even while engaged in fights that could well cause the death of his team.
10 reviews2 followers
October 16, 2017
Breathless

As cliche as it sounds, I really did find myself holding my breath at a few key moments ( the extraction! ) in the story. Intense and we'll written, this short book is worth reading.




999 reviews23 followers
January 28, 2019
Lodestone

Normally don't read novellas but wanted an idea of England 's work and seemed a good way. Excellent narratives and action with gaps due to the single mission story, but I will try more of his writing.
15 reviews
July 2, 2024
Non-Stop action

Blood, Guts. Impossible odds. Fear. Death. Lies. Lies. Lies. This is a roller coaster ride of epic proportion. You won’t be able to put this book down. Heartbreak vs. Victory. Don’t miss it.
20 reviews
July 22, 2025
Couldn't put it down!

At first I was disappointed that this was a short story but when I realized I wasn't gonna be getting any sleep till it was read, I reevaluated. Edge of your seat story!
1 review
November 29, 2017
Good read

The action was great and believable. I enjoyed it but wished it were a bit longer. Can't wait for the next. Keep it up!
33 reviews
March 10, 2019
The excitement continues

Eat is Hell and the author proves it. Tension, anger, anxiety,pride dedication all exude from these believable, lovable characters. Read it!!
402 reviews3 followers
April 17, 2019
Super short story

This is an excellent taster for a really good series of books. Stephen England was not an author I had heard of, but now I am hooked on these books
8 reviews
January 5, 2024
Another thriller...

I've read Flynn, Thor, Miles, Bentley and Taylor...and I rate Stephen England among those great writer! On to the next.
9 reviews
March 28, 2024
not everyone gets to go home

An interesting concept. No gratuitous sex, no foul language. How refreshing. I believe I’ll down load the next in thenseries
2 reviews1 follower
February 21, 2017
A gripping story

As a novella it was well done. We need a short book to contain the intense action. I look for more stories from this author
10 reviews1 follower
July 5, 2016
New author for me

Tried this author while waiting for Brad Thor's New book. Now I find myself waiting for England's next book! Hurry up Stephen! Exciting story lines and great characters. Very good read.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews

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