Tech Inferno

C.A.D.S. #6

by John Sievert

Wearing Computerized Attack/Defense System suits equipped with machine guns, armor-piercing shells, and flame-throwers, America's high-tech soldiers launch a defiant strike into the very heart of the Soviet Union

255 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published July 1, 1988

About the author

A pseudonym of Ryder Syvertsen

Reviews

[Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the sixth book of a twelve-volume post-apocalyptic men's adventure series published from 1985 - '91. All of the books were published under the pseudonym John Sievert. The first one was written by Jan Stacy in collaboration with Ryder Syvertsen. Numbers two through eight were written by Syvertsen alone, and the final four were written by David Alexander. It's set in the near future (2002, I think), five years after the Soviet attack in '97, in which the Russians hit the Eastern half of the U.S. with nuclear bombs, and their invasion force uccupied much of the country. The last line of defense is Colonel Dean Sturgis and his cadre of C.A.D.S., which stands for Computerized Attack/Defense System, as we're told quite frequently. The C.A.D.S. are suits of weaponized armor that turn the wearers into super soldiers, but their numbers are low. Society disintegrates rapidly, and the C.A.D.S. troopers have to fight mad bands of rampaging rapists nearly as often as they oppose the godless commies. The book is unapologetically patriotic, as one might expect from the days of Reagan's second term, and has several over-the-top but amusing bits of black humor interspersed with some rather gritty violent scenes, though it was somewhat tamer than many of Zebra's other such series. In this one, the nefarious commies have dropped three nukes in the West, on new settlements and the Utah Airdrome. The President and his high command want to launch a reprisal, but their resources are thin. It gets weird; they decide to strike Moscow, and they send Sturgis and the C.A.D.S. to Siberia via plane and tell them to walk the rest of the way. Robin, Dean's long-lost wife, is being held there, but first they have to fight a pack of mutant lobster wolves and a giant mutant walrus, koo-koo-kachoo. They make it to Moscow, sneak into Lenin's tomb (which connects to the Kremlin), and get their revenge, rescuing Robin (who's been a brainwashed sex slave for five years now, so it's about time) in the process. It's a good survivalist-type adventure of the time, starting to get a little rough around the edges and more than a little soap-opera-ishy, but still an entertaining diversion.

[Paul Berner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read.

It's fast paced and easy to read. I've enjoyed all the books so far am looking forward to reading th rest of them.

[Little Timmy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Average apocalyptic adventure story. This one has the rebels using really cool computerized armor to fight with. Recommended