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Alex Devereux #1
December
Embittered mercenary Alex Devereux has the fate of Europe in his hands when the British government orders him to overthrow a new Russian dictator, Viktor Krymov.
Working with an unstable Russian oligarch and his former lover, Lara, Alex races against the clock towards a violent showdown in Moscow – with the highest imaginable stakes.
Combining action, history and political intrigue, Steel creates a truly epic modern thriller. For anyone who's a fan of Robert Harris, Frederick Forsyth or Alistair MacLean, December is a must read.
Working with an unstable Russian oligarch and his former lover, Lara, Alex races against the clock towards a violent showdown in Moscow – with the highest imaginable stakes.
Combining action, history and political intrigue, Steel creates a truly epic modern thriller. For anyone who's a fan of Robert Harris, Frederick Forsyth or Alistair MacLean, December is a must read.
464 pages, Paperback
First published November 12, 2009
About the author
James Steel
8 books5 followersJames Steel is a writer, journalist and historian based in the UK.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
July 28, 2011
December is a book I picked up on a whim in Scotland, because the store had a three-for-five-pounds deal. Turned out to be a pretty good move; James Steel's book, while flawed, is a fun read with some kickass action scenes. After a power struggle in Russia, the new president shuts off the gas Russia supplies to the rest of Europe, grinding the UK to a halt and threatening to start a new Cold War. The British government brings in Alex Devereaux, a mercenary who cut his teeth in Africa, to execute a coup d'état.
Spoilers follow...
The biggest problem with December is that it's lead character is flat and dull. Devereaux is given no depth or personality; he's just kinda there. He's a mercenary, and his motivation for taking the job is purely selfish (in addition to ten million pounds, he wants a medal), but more effort could've gone to making him someone the reader cares about and wants to follow. A good point of comparison is Richard Stark's Parker. Parker is one of the most cold-blooded protagonists in fiction, but Stark endears him to us by describing his methodology, his philosophy, his expertise and his professionalism. Steel doesn't do anything like that with Devereaux, he just plops him down and expects us to root for him because he's the hero. Later on Steel attempts to humanize him a little with his feelings for Lara, but it never quite feels authentic. For example, there's a moment when Krymov's forces are pushing through a crowd of protestors on their way to the news building and Lara is in the line of fire. Devereaux shows up and rescues her, but it isn't handled particularly well. We don't really get his insight into the situation, his point of view. He's just there, all of a sudden, to get her to safety. It would've played better if Steel showed us the moment when Devereaux saw she was in danger and made the decision to risk himself (and the mission) to save her. Maybe even have Grigory try to stop him, tell him to leave her, and Devereaux chops him in the throat to get him out of the way and goes anyway. Anything like that, to show his drive to save her. Unfortunately, there's very little reason to care about him.
The others don't fare much better. Devereaux's team are completely interchangeable personality-wise. The members of the revolution feel like they were assembled from a box via instruction manual. Roman Raskolnikov gives no indication as to why he's such an inspiring figure. Lara comes off poorly as well, whining because she's attracted to both Sergey and Devereaux (and, of course, leading them both on as it suits her).
The one character who serves as the exception is Sergey. He's wonderful, a colorful patriot who risks his very enjoyable, comfortable life because he believes in the soul of his country. His scenes are the most fun, and his departure from the story is sad, triumphant and well-earned.
Despite this, I still quite enjoyed the book. I liked the premise a lot, and the action was terrific. The assault on the Siberian prison holding Roman was a lot of fun, and the siege of the news building was exciting in its escalation. I also appreciated how elements in the Russian military had a hard time deciding what to do, and some even went against Krymov's forces to help Roman's revolution. Fyodor's betrayal took me by surprise, and I cursed out loud when Devereaux had to have his finger amputated in the field. In terms of plot, it's a well-constructed book (though the beginning is a bit dull at times), I just wish it had characters worthy of the story.
If you want a fun diversion, you could do worse than December, but don't expect to come away caring about anyone in particular.
Spoilers follow...
The biggest problem with December is that it's lead character is flat and dull. Devereaux is given no depth or personality; he's just kinda there. He's a mercenary, and his motivation for taking the job is purely selfish (in addition to ten million pounds, he wants a medal), but more effort could've gone to making him someone the reader cares about and wants to follow. A good point of comparison is Richard Stark's Parker. Parker is one of the most cold-blooded protagonists in fiction, but Stark endears him to us by describing his methodology, his philosophy, his expertise and his professionalism. Steel doesn't do anything like that with Devereaux, he just plops him down and expects us to root for him because he's the hero. Later on Steel attempts to humanize him a little with his feelings for Lara, but it never quite feels authentic. For example, there's a moment when Krymov's forces are pushing through a crowd of protestors on their way to the news building and Lara is in the line of fire. Devereaux shows up and rescues her, but it isn't handled particularly well. We don't really get his insight into the situation, his point of view. He's just there, all of a sudden, to get her to safety. It would've played better if Steel showed us the moment when Devereaux saw she was in danger and made the decision to risk himself (and the mission) to save her. Maybe even have Grigory try to stop him, tell him to leave her, and Devereaux chops him in the throat to get him out of the way and goes anyway. Anything like that, to show his drive to save her. Unfortunately, there's very little reason to care about him.
The others don't fare much better. Devereaux's team are completely interchangeable personality-wise. The members of the revolution feel like they were assembled from a box via instruction manual. Roman Raskolnikov gives no indication as to why he's such an inspiring figure. Lara comes off poorly as well, whining because she's attracted to both Sergey and Devereaux (and, of course, leading them both on as it suits her).
The one character who serves as the exception is Sergey. He's wonderful, a colorful patriot who risks his very enjoyable, comfortable life because he believes in the soul of his country. His scenes are the most fun, and his departure from the story is sad, triumphant and well-earned.
Despite this, I still quite enjoyed the book. I liked the premise a lot, and the action was terrific. The assault on the Siberian prison holding Roman was a lot of fun, and the siege of the news building was exciting in its escalation. I also appreciated how elements in the Russian military had a hard time deciding what to do, and some even went against Krymov's forces to help Roman's revolution. Fyodor's betrayal took me by surprise, and I cursed out loud when Devereaux had to have his finger amputated in the field. In terms of plot, it's a well-constructed book (though the beginning is a bit dull at times), I just wish it had characters worthy of the story.
If you want a fun diversion, you could do worse than December, but don't expect to come away caring about anyone in particular.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 2, 2023
Enjoyed this very much although fiction it has a story near to events happening today.
Issues over energy supply’s territory and influence over different powers.
Has competing factions fighting for power & complete control.
Talks about petroleum economy and no diversification and harsh economic conditions.
The warfare is fast & intense with hind helicopters & armored platoons clashing with each other over control of some important landmarks and objectives.
Interesting read with short chapters and fast paced action.
Issues over energy supply’s territory and influence over different powers.
Has competing factions fighting for power & complete control.
Talks about petroleum economy and no diversification and harsh economic conditions.
The warfare is fast & intense with hind helicopters & armored platoons clashing with each other over control of some important landmarks and objectives.
Interesting read with short chapters and fast paced action.
October 7, 2018
This book completely changed my view of Russian culture, or 'Russkaya dusha' as Sergey would describe it. 'December' is a great thriller action story with deep background context. The book opens one's eyes to the Russian culture and shines light on Russia's current political situation. The book is a great read and does not get boring.
May 26, 2019
Second time I've read this story. Was enjoyable both times.
April 17, 2014
A group of sweary mercenaries attempt to organise a coup and thus depose a crazy Russian dictator who rules the country with an iron fist and several hundred pages of cliche. December is not terrible (I made I to the end after all), but none of the characters have any depth meaning there's little here for the reader to care about. A misfire.
August 25, 2012
A good action/adventure read but a little bit far fetched in some places.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews