Kremlin Devils

Soldiers of Barrabas #22

by Jack Hild, Robin Hardy

NILE BARRABAS'S BLOOD has been shed many times in run-ins with the Russians. But now the very people who had tried to kill him want to hire him and his outfit. Their mission: stop the Old Guard diehards who are stoking the fires of the nuclear nightmare at Chernobyl as a prelude to a military takeover.

The SOBs must avert an environmental disaster, but even more hangs in the balance. World peace is threatened by the attempt to turn back the hands of time to a more hostile era!

220 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1987

About the author

"Jack Hild" is a pseudonym shared by multiple authors ghostwriting the Soldiers of Barrabas (SOBs) series of action-adventure novels. The most prolific of these authors were Robin Hardy and Alan Philipson.

Despite Hild's output being the work of several authors, the novelist Warren Murphy provided a cover endorsement saying "Jack Hild is simply the best and gutsiest action writer around today."

In backmatter to some of the SOBs books, the publishers Gold Eagle jokingly stated Hild's "whereabouts are unknown. No one associated with Gold Eagle Books has ever seen Jack, in person or in a photograph... If you should ever meet Jack Hild... let us know."

Reviews

[Wayne · Rating 5 out of 5]

The S.O.B.s wind up in all places, Russia. One of the members is already there working on a project at the American embassy. The rest are called in when a plot to overthrow the Soviet Union is uncovered. With Glasnost on the horizon, a certain fraction want's to turn back time to more evil ways. They want the days of Stalin back. The S.O.B.s are hired by a group led by an old Bolshevik and a disgraced KGB agent. But can they be trusted. Is this just an elaborate trap to finally take out the Mercenaries?This one is loaded with top notch action scenes and subterfuge. one of the best in the series so far.

[Josh Hitch · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a bad volume in the series, I do think they dove into back stories just a tad too much for a book so far in the series. However that's a small gripe, overall the story moved well and all the SOBs are fun characters. This time they end up helping a Russian group who are fighting another group of Russians who want to set up a disaster so they can set up a military coup. Seems this group doesn't like losing their privileges in a Russia that was trying to become more open.

Recommended for readers of the series, and really with all the background it goes over not a bad book if you don't want to read the whole series but just sample it.

[Arizona Spartan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is another book in what I call the "Russian bad guys arc". In this series entry some old Russian enemies make an appearance however this time differs as a fifth column of Russian military and political figures recruit the team to stop another Chernobyl disaster, pitting the SOBs against their old special forces and KGB nemesis. The plot is breakneck quick as usual utilizing many members of the team especially Nate Beck who is front and center in the book. It's not a bad entry in the series but not a great one either.