Z

The Green Berets #6

by Bob Mayer

Although retired from the US Army, Dave Riley is not out of the action as he battles crafty villains and a deadly pestilence in southwestern Africa in this sixth installment of Mayer's absorbing and well-written series (Cut-Out, 1995, etc.). Now a civilian security specialist hired to protect Satellite News Network correspondent Conner Young, the ex-Special Forces warrant officer accompanies his comely charge to Angola, where she's covering a multinational mission to end the civil strife that's racked the onetime Portuguese colony since it gained independence in 1975. After overrunning rebel strongholds and establishing a base camp along the Zairean border, the Green Berets in the UN's vanguard are stopped cold by the outbreak of a virulent plague. Quarantined with Conner and a handful of soldiers who have also been exposed to whatever's in the air, Dave apprehensively follows the unavailing attempts of epidemiologists who have been flown in from the States to deal with the highly contagious disease they refer to as ``Z.'' Released from hot-zone confinement to escort the medical team on a fact-finding mission, he helps determine that man, not nature, has unleashed the lethal virus. With an assist from the National Security Agency, American commanders soon identify the likely culprit as Pieter Van Wyks, head of the syndicate that effectively controls the world's diamond trade. Aware that the avaricious mining magnate has stockpiled vaccine that can reverse the invariably fatal course of Z, the Pentagon details Dave to lead a small band of nothing-left-to-lose troopers in an airborne assault on the cartel's strongly defended headquarters on the Namibian coast. Though on his last legs and facing die-hard adversaries, the old soldier will manage to beat the odds. A ripping good biotech/military thriller that plausibly depicts the high costs (psychological and otherwise) of combating unseen enemies. -- Copyright ©1996, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

This military action thriller set in the war-torn jungles of Africa, finds SF veteran Riley on the most dangerous mission of his life.

Genres: Military Fiction, Fiction, Action, Adventure

288 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published December 10, 1996

About the author

Besides my own interests, I read whatever my wife tells me to read-- she's a voracious reader and has wide-ranging tastes as my reviews show (she also always has the TV remote and she's always right about what to watch). I read a lot of nonfiction, mostly for research. Some of my favorite books are Lonesome Dove, Mystic River, LOTR, and an array of science fiction classics including the Foundation series. Our house is covered with books, although I finally broke down and started reading eBooks, strangely enough on my iPhone. Since I carry it pretty much everywhere, it means I always have an entire library of books with me.

I'm a West Point graduate, former Green Beret and a New York Times Bestselling Author. I've sold over five million books. My newest series begins with New York Minute, a thriller set in New York City in 1977.

I love using history and science in my books. My Area 51 series pretty much had me rewriting our entire history of civilization.

Reviews

[Robert Mills · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great action but...

Mr Mayer seems to have forgotten who the rebels were compared to the elected government of Angola. In the story the MPLA became the elected government while UNITA, led by Savimbi, were the rebels the UN was getting rid of. During the early chapters all the characters stated they were there to destroy the MPLA heavy weapons and armor to lessen Savimbi's ability to wage war. Otherwise the action and local description put you right in the action. Id recommend it.

[william h bowen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Whoops

The ending of this book the usual Bob Mayer tough and gritty writing style but overall this was not his best work. The author gets carried away with the geopolitical struggles of the African continent and if this was a history novel would be great but it became bogged down and to me took the flow out of the book.

[Edward L · Rating 4 out of 5]

taut adventure

Bob Mayer wrote this story before OVID-19. He was spot on except instead of a Chinese bio-weapons lab this was released by a lunatic. The style is riveting and drives the reader forward. This is a great read!

[Gerry O'Brien · Rating 4 out of 5]

Riley rules the Roost

Dave Riley again rears his composed head to thwart an evil mastermind of epic proportions. The story is a bit fanciful, but it does enable Riley to shine which is why we read Mayer's "The Green Berets".

[Roy Rutledge · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another good book from Bob Mayer. Boats, planes,weapons. all put to good use.
Makes you wonder just how far from the truth this story really is.
Now on to the next book by Mayers

[Kyla Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a story

An enthralling tale full of action & anticipation. A page turner for sure. Highly relevant. Superbly written. Entertaining from beginning to end. Thoroughly enjoyable.

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

A riveting account of what quite possibly could be happening right now. As the terrorist threat to the US continues to be high, it's not that unlikely that there are those among us who would turn against us. This book was a great read. It started a bit slow but picked up in the end.

[Benton Mcpeak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dave Riley is still the man. I love these Green Berets series of books. Mayer explains just enough technical details for the reader to understand what is going on while keeping an interesting story going. The subject matter of this book could actually happen.

[Honza · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad.