Wired

by Ronson Duncan

On a picture-perfect day, a day cruise ship is hijacked off the coast of Clearwater, Florida and "wired" with explosives. At the same time car bombs explode across America, including one at the DEA Headquarters in Virginia. The perpetrators turn out to be a rogue army of Mexican narco-guerrillas formerly trained in the US to combat Mexico's drug mafia. Now working for the cartels, the 'Los Zetas' have joined forces with Al-Qaeda to exact the release of Juan Carlos Alvarez - the most feared and revered drug lord in the Western Hemisphere. For Captain Skip Myles, the situation transcends belief. The unimaginable shock of losing his vessel to armed terrorists - in Florida waters no less, a mere ten miles from port - has left him a bewildered captive on his own ship. When he doesn't come home from his evening cruise, his worried wife calls her ex-Navy SEAL brother in Detroit. That evening Cal rushes to her side and later embarks on a mission to rescue Skip himself - convinced that if he doesn't, no one else will. Coast Guard Rear Admiral Ray Hanna has the ship surrounded but finds himself on a political leash. He can't release Alvarez and he can't storm the ship without risking the 218 passengers. When the hijackers begin blowing up passengers one-by-one, Hanna receives 24 hours to end the standoff or lose his command, leaving him with just one unthinkable choice. Later that night, armed with a black-market Uzi and some borrowed scuba gear, Cal falls back into the Gulf of Mexico for his two-mile underwater swim to the Majestic Star, plunging headlong into a three-way Armageddon between the US Coast Guard, Al-Qaeda, and the Mexican Mafia. "WIRED" is an explosive new thriller about love, fear, self-doubt, determination, and self-sacrifice. It's about how a single event can change the fragile landscape of ordinary people's lives. It is a compelling modern-day saga that deals head-on with the proliferation of drug violence spilling across the U.S.-Mexican border.

480 pages, Paperback

First published March 25, 2010

Reviews

[Katelyn Roadhouse · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm so proud of my uncle Ron making this book love you Ron!(:

[Gino Cox]

Wired is an action-adventure/bromance set on a small cruise ship hijacked by a ruthless band of Columbian drug cartel enforcers aided by two al Qaeda terrorists, who hold the ship and its two hundred passengers and crew hostage, demanding release of two Columbian drug lords.

It is also the story of a friendship forged in the rice paddies of war-torn Viet Nam between two warriors and their lifelong bond, which was further strengthened when Skip married Cal’s sister Kate. Cal finds financial success but no joy in a career as a lawyer. Skip finds satisfaction, but limited financial rewards in the merchant marine, eventually taking command of a small ship that ferries gamblers on afternoon and evening excursions just beyond the legal boundary.

When Skip’s ship is hijacked and the various government agencies not only fail to act, but refuse to provide information to the families, Kate enlists 55-year-old ex-SEAL Cal to launch a daring one-man rescue mission. Cal must evade detection by both the Coast Guard and the hijackers to board the ship and rescue Skip and his passengers. His trials test the limits of courage, endurance and commitment, as well as the bounds of friendship and conflicting loyalties.

The book provides a fascinating and authentic glimpse into the operation of the United States Coast Guard. The characters are three-dimensional with authentic sentiments and conflicts. The narrative is deftly crafted.