The Delta Solution

Mack Bedford #3

by Patrick Robinson

The Delta Solution is an action-packed novel dealing with the Somali pirates operating off the southerly reaches of the lawless East African republic on the Indian Ocean. For the past three years, these heavily armed tribal brigands have been capturing and holding for ransom massive cargo ships, especially oil tankers, and violently demanding millions of dollars for their return. Pirating out of the tiny Somalian village of Haradheere has become a very lucrative, dangerous business, so much so that the village has its own Stock Exchange with a reputed $78 million cash, all in crisp $100 bills, in the town vault. And each time an owner pays big for the return of their ship, the pirates immediately do it again, enraging the Pentagon more and more by the day.

That is, until the "Somali Marines" make a big mistake, seizing at gun point two United States ships and demanding a $15 million ransom for their return.

Hero Mack Bedford, previously encountered in Diamondhead and Intercept, is deployed to SEAL Team 10 to form The Delta Platoon. His obliterate the Somali Marines in the middle of the Indian Ocean, at all costs, once and for all.

Genres: Fiction, Thriller, Military Fiction, Audiobook, War, Action, Spy Thriller

416 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 3, 2011

About the author

Patrick Robinson was a journalist for many years before becoming a full-time writer of books. His non-fiction books were bestsellers around the world and he was the co-author of Sandy Woodward's Falklands War memoir, One Hundred Days.

Reviews

[Terence M - [Quot libros, quam breve tempus!] · Rating 1 out of 5]

1-Star - DNF'd at 10%
Audible "Plus" Audiobook
Patrick Robinson - Mack Bedford, #3
12:34 Hours - Narrator: Peter Berkrot
Heard: 01:12 Hours (One chapter)
Balance: 11:24 Hours

I really should have known better - although I didn't have high expectations - there is no free lunch when an eleven year-old book is offered @ no charge! - My Bad!

[Connie Faull · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is probably one of the worst books I've ever read. I try not to give bad reviews or at least I try to find something positive about a book, since I think it takes a lot to write a book and I probably couldn't do it, but this book was just that bad. Part way through, the writing started to remind me of a non-fiction book I read a couple of years ago called "Lone Survivor." I really wanted to like the person that "Lone Survivor" was about but had a lot of trouble because throughout the whole book he continued to blame all the world's woes on the "liberals and the liberal media" and God forbid the evil Geneva Conventions. He never took responibility for any bad decisions made in the field. Anyway, this book (The Delta Solution) has the same closed minded view points and when I looked it up, both books were written by this author.

Anyway, it's too bad because the premise of this book was very relevant in today's world, focusing on the pirate raids out of Somalia. However, the plot was weak and there was very little character development so you really never care about any of the characters. I'd love to see a writer like Clancy or DeMille tackle this subject. Of course it would probably be a tome, but it would be a very well developed, fast paced book.

I don't recommend this book to anyone.

[Tim · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm done rewarding authors ignorance and biases. Case in point. There are far too many references to "savages," "black savages," "black asses," "boy," "black boy," "black fucker" and the like. It's too bad author Robinson couldn't focus on his "Mack" character, instead of his colonialist and bigoted attitudes. 4 of 10 stars

[Bjoern · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't know if i'm getting mild in my old days or if maybe Robinson ist losing his edge but this was almost completely pleasant to read. If you like Clancy-Style Techno/Military Thrillers Robinson is always a good choice and this book is no exception in this.

An honorable mention should go to the special "comic relief" element he chose for the halftime of the book... Al Qaeda in a very hilarious and short cameo.

Other than that he manages to describe an almost likeable pirate group with sympathetic characters and believeable as well as emotionally followable motives that nearly make it heartbreaking when the final showdown comes closer and closer. Retrospectively seen... he gives his villains more of characterisation and human face than his protagonists that end up as third rate paper cut outs of cliché-soldiers without real human sides or rough spots. Too smooth to believe.

Andthen of course there is the teaparty-like Military-fangirling. Yes. The SEALS do a heck of a job. YES they do train hard and are tough guys. Yes, they might even be by a wide margin the "best" special operations force on the whole wide world. But honestly... they are what they are because of training and SOP methods, not because a rabid author goes and writes a mantra down a thousand times on five hundred pages "they're cool, they're awesome, they're badass" and so on.

And they definitely are not "the best" because of the shitty mediocre scenario the Author wrote them on the fit bodies. Three year old kids could come up with better and more realistic "battle plans" than his nonplusultra SEAL commander. This was the most disappointing part in a up to then very enjoyable book and nice pastime. It ended with a slow and silent fart from a tacticle whoopie cushion nobody should believe in anymore. Shame on you Mr Robinson. That's FAR under your own worth!

[Haris Sladic · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nakon zaista dobre prve knjige i veoma lose druge knjige odlucih napravit pauzu od ovog serijala, i evo vracam mu se tek poslije godinu i po dana sa trecim nastavkom. Ovaj nastavak je malo bolji od drugog koji je bio zaista katastrofa, ali nije uspio da se priblizi prvom dijelu. Nekako imao sam osjecaj kao da ne citam knjigu iz ovog serijala jer je Mack glavni lik, nekako stavljen po strani i citava knjiga se vise vrti oko Somalijski pirata i njihovih otmica. Mack se u vecini knjige spominje vrlo malo kroz to kako treba da oformi tim za borbu sa piratima i opis njihovog treninga za tu misiju. Tako da sa ovim dijelom nisam vidio neki napredak u razvitku glavnog lika sto me zaista dosta razocaralo. Jos jedan problem jeste sto su pirati u toku veceg dijela knjige predstavljeni kao zaista vrhunska sila, iako mala ali veoma ubiticana i jaka. I onda u zadnjem dijelu knjige kad ih napada Mackov platoon oni ginu kao nekakvi amateri bez imalo pruzenog otpora. Mislim sama cinjenica da niti jedan Seal nije poginuo mi je nekako smijesno. Mislim da je kraj nekako zbrzan i da su pirati olako izgunili, cime se izgubio smisao citave knjige, jer sam stekao utisak da ce ako nista pirati uspjeti barem malo pruzit veci otpor. I na kraju se dobije utisak da je ovo jos samo jedno djelo koje dize Amerikance u nebesa i njihovu vojsku, kao silu koja je besmrtna i kojoj niko nije ravan. Ostala mi je jos jedna knjiga u serijalu tako da ocekujem da ce ona bar malo popravit utisak.

[Jerome Otte · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a bad read. The action was fine, if repetitive.

The writing is hackneyed, full of cliches (their "long" flight across the "burning desert" (4 hours is long?...), absolutely full of goofs that Patrick Robinson, of all people, should have known better. My favorite -- a single page that had both the SEALS packing for battle with "dynamite" (instead of C4) and a cruise ship that was described as 360 feet long, 50 feet wide, and drawing 176 feet! That's one odd ship.

And there's small scene in the middle of the book where a hastily-introduced Al-Qaeda terror cell attacks the pirates for no reason, and are afterwards never mentioned again.

Robinson also needs to leave his personal politics out of it. It's distracting, and in this case, doesnt even make sense. He constantly uses his characters as his political mouthpiece, creating contrived conversations about how weak lefties are ruining the world. In fact, the current "weak lefty" president they love to complain about is the one who's ordering the operations against the pirates.



In one scene 40 SEALs march and attack a well-fortified garrison full of experienced and well-armed pirates. In a John Wayne frontal assault through the front gates, no SEALs are killed, and grenades miraculously dislodge enemy resistance. All the while, the enemies perspective and views of the engagement are entirely missing.

Once, Commander Bedford briefs the Secretary of Defense, who asks if the SEALs can do the job. As expected, Bedford responds as a strong willed soldier full of confidence, bravado, cussing language, and tough talk. The Secretary of Defense agrees and moves on. Gee, where are the questions?


The author should have done some research into the structure of the Department of Defense. The US Special Operations Command (SOCOM) and the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) are never mentioned. The US Navy Special Warfare Command is a component of SOCOM. Neither the Chief of Naval Operation nor the Commander, NSW could not create a new SEAL unit without the involvement of SOCOM. Personnel could not be assigned from DEVGRU without involvement of JSOC.

- The NATO phonetic alphabet uses "Bravo", not "Beta", to represent the letter B.
- "10 knots per hour" is a nonsense statement
- Despite how cool it sounds, the acronym for a Folding-Fin Aerial Rocket is not FEAR.
- Cellular phones generally do not get service "700 miles offshore"

pg. 32: What the heck is an "ex-Rangers C-in-C"?

pg.38: "It was a frequently expressed opinion thet if Lancaster and Bradfield ever got into sole command at the Pentagon, a lot of America's most irritating foreign problems would vanish. Real fast."

Robinson keeps calling M-4s "light machine guns" when they're actually carbines.

On page 58, Robinson writes "hating" when he means "having".

There are too many real-life references, like Marcus Luttrell's recon operation in Lone Survivor: The Eyewitness Account of Operation Redwing and the Lost Heroes of SEAL Team 10. Apparently, one of the characters, Admiral Carlowe, wrote a preface to that book. Who cares?

pg. 300. "You got it, kid. In our business you don't have time to fuck about." After that, the SEALs laugh, even though that remark was not the least bit funny.

[Pierre Tassé (Enjoying Books) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this a very good read and one that progressed at a normal good rate. No crazy things happened only fair and tough progress. It is fun to read when you don't stop to say "really"??

[Betsy Garside · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oh my. I love a good bad action novel every once in a while; this is not such a book. Delta Solution came recommended, or I would have put it down after 12 pages. Clunky writing, complete with an excruciating use of first AND last names throughout as though one were endlessly just meeting what should have been well-established characters.

The only redeeming quality is that the book gets one to think about the dilemma of dealing with open-water pirates, and realizing how modern piracy really works. But if it's that perspective you want, try "The Pirate's Daughter," by Robert Girardi. You'll be much better served.

[Paul Murray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read.

Don't hear so much in the media about the shenanigans on the high seas anymore..Makes you wonder what ever happened to the 'real life' Somali pirates. ;)

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have previously read nine books by PATRICK ROBINSON and THE DELTA SOLUTION makes ten. All have been terrific “reads”. If you like naval fiction, by all means look into Mr. Robinson’s books.

Commander Mackenzie Bedford is the featured US Navy SEAL in this story. It is the third of four in print featuring Bedford. He had been involved in an incident in book one in Iraq/Afghanistan that forced him out of the Navy initially. Subsequently he was reinstated. Now he has been asked by the Navy brass to form a new SEAL unit, Delta Squadron, to tackle a growing threat from Somali pirates.

The pirates in question are based in Haradheere (Xaradheere according to 2 atlases I looked in), Somalia. A pirate leader, who has equipped his band with the latest portable Russian weapons, controls the village. He also has created his own stock market. Through this market, he sells shares to townsfolk at a very low price to finance the raids on shipping in the nearby Indian Ocean. When a raid is successful and the ransom is paid, the value of the shares goes up, handsomely rewarding all investors, including the leader. The pirates buy their weapons from an arms dealer in nearby Yemen.

The pirates have informants in Washington D.C. and New York City who supply them with shipping routes and cargoes. They also supply contact information for the shipping companies, shipping agents and insurance companies so the pirates know whom to call to get their ransom.

The pirates are somewhat gentlemanly in that they do not want to harm anybody if at all possible. Once the ransom is paid, they release the ships and hostages. For the most part, they do not want to attack U.S. flagged shipping. However, in the end, a very suitable cruise ship carrying wealthy passengers becomes their target. The cruise ship is U.S. flagged and two of the passengers are the parents of Bedford’s commanding officer. Big mistake!

Bedford and his newly trained and formed SEAL unit are sent to stop them. First, they retake the cruise ship. Next, they attack the pirates’ base.

The description of the training that the SEALs undertake is very compelling. No wonder they are the best Special Forces unit. The military actions and the pirate raids are well done as well. This nonstop action is at the top of this genre. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for fans of military action books.

GO! BUY! READ!

[RJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Commander Mack Bedford is back on the Grinder wearing dark blue! At his request, he became an instructor at Coronado; Instructor Mack! Meanwhile, thousands of miles away off the southern coast of Africa, Somali pirates are hijacking a U.S. freighter carrying one hundred million dollars of aid bound for Somalia. Since the Reagan era, it has been U.S. policy to never negotiate with terrorists, and that’s exactly what these pirates were. Through some fancy maneuvering, the ransom was paid and the freighter returned to Diego Garcia rather than continuing to Somalia. Perhaps the Somali government would get the message. Regardless of the covert attempt at ransom, the press still published word that the U.S. may be negotiating with the pirates. Navy and Marine Joint Chiefs were not happy. A casual meeting with Admiral Mark Bradfield, Commander of U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) soon followed. Plans were discussed to create a U.S. Navy Seal platoon to combat, and if possible stop, these Somali pirates. Commander Mack Bedford was once again called upon to serve his country. He would command the new anti-piracy platoon; Delta. The mindset of the Somali “Admiral” Wold was amazing. He thought of himself as some military genius and quite untouchable. In reality, he and his crew were nothing but a bunch of machine gun-toting thugs. He had quite a surprise and a rude awakening coming.
Today, sitting in my home writing this review, I cannot understand why the U.S. government would ever allow this piracy to continue. With our assets and capabilities, it would be simple and swift to eliminate these pirates and put the fear of God in them. They would no longer sail their pirate ships knowing they would be blown out of the water. Damn the lawyers, who would sue for the pirate families, and damn the bleeding hearts, who are more concerned with preserving the pirate’s rights. Gee, was that too harsh? Honestly, I don’t get it. Once the pirates get the ransom and run for home, why not just destroy their ship with a torpedo, a hellfire, or an air-to-ground missile? Why all the fuss using and endangering the Seals in boarding? It’s an interesting topic, and the Seal training is inspiring, but the actions and reactions are too improbable in my opinion.

[Kt · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars

A group of Somali pirates called the Somali Marines have been successfully capturing cargo ships for ransom. They stick to cargo ships because the Somali Marines have some well placed spies in the USA to ensure that they only capture ships that their owners cannot afford to lose.

When the Somali Marines uncharacteristically target a passenger ship with some very rich and important on board; all bets are off. Can Mack and his team of SEALs save the ship and sink the pirates once and for all or will the Somali Marines continue to cause havoc on the high seas?

I’m very torn about my opinion of The Delta Solution and have struggled to review it. As a stand alone book it was very good; as part of the Mack Bedford series it was lacking.

Had I picked this book up knowing nothing of the series; it would be a four star read. The plot was engaging, building in the right spots and providing the action you want in a military thriller; the characters interesting and well developed; the military aspect well described without being verbose and overbearing; and it was easy for me to visualise the story as I read it. Happy days!

However, The Delta Solution is not a stand alone book. It’s clearly written, defined and marketed as the third thriller in the Mack Bedford series. Why oh why then was there so little or Mack and his SEALs?! Mack doesn’t even show up for almost the first third of the book and even then, until the last quarter of it, the references to him are just about picking the men to join him on his pirate hunt. I get that in a novel when SEALs go in they get the job done first time every time and that killing the pirates off at page one hundred would have made for a very short story; but to base a book around the series of a character and to then only then feature him so intermittently in the first three quarters of it left me both very annoyed and confused as to why.

As good as the book is as a one off read; the fact remains it’s intended to be part of a series. In that aspect the lack of reference to Mack (the entire reason for this series) sadly takes a four star read down to a three read that was a little disappointing.

To play along with my book bingo and to see what else I’m reading, go to #ktbookbingo and @kt_elder on Instagram.

[Richard]

I listened to the whole Mack Bedford series (https://www.goodreads.com/series/8697...) while I was laid up with hip surgery and broken computer.
It helped keep me stay sane.
I've borrowed my wife's work MacBook to do some catchup, but I don't know far I'll get before she catches me.
Good Rah! Rah! series to keep your spirits up.

[Carl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book - took the scenic route to get to the climatic end though. The story-line was believable, with the exception of some questionable prose - hard to conceive a SEAL team leader using words like "darn" to frustration with a mission. The final operation provided realistic detail and the right amount of machismo.

[Kevin Burnell · Rating 4 out of 5]

looks as if author maybe a football fan. dutch characters were named Cruyf, van der Saar and van Nistelroy, although the van was dropped on last named a few pages later. for the first 100 pages felt that i had no read this book then it became familiar.

[Todd Stanley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very good story and a very timely story for it's time. I just didn't care for the repeating story line. The same scene over and over like 4 times. It just felt like this book could have been a bit shorter than it was is all.

[Joe Farley · Rating 3 out of 5]

A “Top Gun” type of patriotic tale that can wipe away all the current anti American sentiments being shown on the news. A predictable story line that really was more about the Somali pirates than the Seals of the Delta Team. It’s a good read with with no unexpected turns and twists.

[John Barwick · Rating 3 out of 5]

TOOOO much yaya detail and not enough action with Mack Bedford

[David Cole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good pace. I enjoy them.

[Don Weymouth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Far better than the first two Mac Bedford books.

[Peter Dunn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Note to self...it was worth finishing, but I found it lacking in depth and development. My first Patrick Robinson read, but likely my last. There are too many other good books to read.

[Mike Grady · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another fast paced read in the Mack Bedford series by Patrick Robinson. This one revolves around the Somali pirate issue with the SEAL centered response taking place in the last 20% of the story.

[Gary · Rating 5 out of 5]

#2021 - 18 Audiobook. Fast moving exciting story of the escapades of Sol
Malia pirate and. Special Seal teams action to take them down. Great book!!

[Denny]

NOOK

[Earl Gentile · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was okay but not worth taking time to say good or bad things about

[Elaine Sagman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another Great Read

As always I love all of Patrick Robinson's books. I can't wait to start the next installment . Yippee Ki yea ------ ------.

[Peter Nielsen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good look at the SEALs and a possible interaction with the Indian Ocean pirates.

[Barbara Ehrentreu · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book brings out a problem that we don't think about very much. However, it has caused a great deal of aggravation and a loss of hundreds of millions of dollars. This is the problem of piracy. In this case it is the very well organized efforts of the Somalian pirates who have made a fortune out of intimidating the crews of large ocean vessels and demanding ransoms.

Mack Bedford, the Commander of a group of SEAL recruits is suddenly faced with a massive task. When the Joint Chiefs of Staff give you a job there is rarely a way to say no to it. And frankly, Mack feels this is one job he has been training for all his life. Can he find and create a force that will be able to stop this piracy?

The book is a little heavy on describing SEAL training and also you get a good idea of what life as a pirate has been. Can the SEALS complete this mission? Will the pirates be able to be stopped? These are the questions that are ever present as you read this book. I felt it was a little uneven, because there are great scenes of adventure at sea interspersed with the plodding description of the extensive training and equipment the SEAlS go through and must have for their mission. So you are reading and waiting a great deal of the book for the real action to begin.

What kept me reading was the incredible character of so many of the military men and their drive to extinguish the menace of the pirates. Though you get to know the pirates very well, and the author does write them with a respect to their prowess, I was never really comfortable with their presence. I kept wanting to see how this affluent bunch of criminals was going to be destroyed. The author places you in the middle of the Indian Ocean for long periods of time and you almost feel the swell of the waves.

This is not a book that I usually read, because the topic doesn't really appeal to me. There are elaborate descriptions of high capacity assault weapons and you can see how easily they can be procured by ordinary people with a great deal of money. I found all the details of this fascinating as well as the everyday life of the pirates and their leader.

[Marianne Barron · Rating 2 out of 5]

Jeg har brukt 2 uker på denne boka. Det sier vel det meste. Det har vært to utrooolig lange uker! Ikke har jeg hatt det spesielt travelt heller. Hvor enn så mye jeg ville så klarte jeg ikke å drive meg selv kjappere gjennom boka. Den er langsom. Fryktelig langsom. Og detaljert. Over-detaljert til det pinefulle. 80% av boka brukes som bakgrunnsfyll. Her følger vi piratene i suksessfullt angrep etter suksesfullt angrep. SEAL gruppen bygges opp parallelt "på si".

Bakgrunnen og oppbygningen av den store (?) konfrontasjonen var så møysommelig at når først de to grupperingene - piratene og SEAL gruppa - møttes så var det hele over raskere enn jeg fikk sagt "løsepenger". Ingen motstand fra piratene, alt gikk på skinner for SEAL, long live USA and the SEALS are the best - f#%k the rest...

Dette var ikke noe for meg! Til og med SEAL angrepet på det kaprede piratskipet var kjedelig. Der jeg forventet spenning og action skjedde det ingenting uforventet. Ikke noe som gav historien kant eller interessant vri. Vel er helten Scarecrow til Matthew Reilly over the top and then some, jeg skal innrømme det, men plottene Reilly disker opp med er så utrolig mye mer spennende og forseggjorte enn dette her. Nei - jeg tror det går lang tid før jeg plukker opp Patrick Robinson igjen!

[Burt · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was my first book by author Patrick Robinson and I'll have to give some serious thought as to whether or not I care to read another of his books. The book started out well enough and set a believeable scenario for the types of piracy that actually occur along in the IO and along the Somalian coast. That said, the book begins to break down from there. I think Robinson might have more accurately titled the book "The Demise of the Somalia Marines Pirate Group," since the real focus of the story was on them and not on the Delta Platoon. Robinson goes through several pirate events, that for me became monotonous if not tedious before he began any real character building for the Delta Platoon. I got a bit worried when I got to page 250 of this 328-page hard bound book and the SOF had not even gotten involved. There was just so much NOT INCLUDED in that part of the story that would have made it much more realistic and enjoyable. It is really disconcerting when the main characters of the story actually occupy less than (by my guess) 25% of the story. In my opinion, Robinson is quite "out of his depth" with regard to the deployment and employment of SOF, SEALs or any others, at least as evidenced by this book.