| Title | : | The Aden Effect (Connor Stark #1) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 1612511090 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9781612511092 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Hardcover |
| Number of Pages | : | 224 |
| Publication | : | First published October 1, 2012 |
Meanwhile, Diplomatic Security Agent Damien Golzari is investigating the domestic death of a State Department official's son when he stumbles on to an illicit khat trade among Somali refugees in New England which he traces to the Horn of Africa. Witnesses are murdered in his wake as he travels to Yemen only to have his investigation interfered with by Stark.
As more ships are being attacked by pirates, Stark boards a Maddox International security ship, used to escort the company's cargo platforms to the oil rigs. Pirates sink it, killing most of the crew. Stark is rescued by the morale-plagued USS Bennington, a Navy cruiser on its final deployment. Stark is returned to the Embassy and plans on meeting with his contact, a Yemeni businessman who is part of the ruling family. Sumner assigns Golzari to protect Stark as Golzari's drug trail and murder investigation lead to a shipping company owned by Stark's contact. Stark and Golzari are ambushed on their return to the Embassy leading them to believe there is a leak at the embassy or in Washington.
Sumner plans a humanitarian assistance mission to Socotra to earn the favor of the Yemeni government. All she is given by the White House is the only ship in the region - the USS Bennington. During an attack engineered by the pirates off Socotra, most of the ship's officers are killed. Stark assumes command of the Bennington and plans a counterattack against the pirates. The ambitious counterattack is successful. Sumner negotiates a new treaty with the Yemenis and India to jointly develop the oil fields and provide mutual security from the Somali pirates.
Stark learns that the pirates have been organized and funded by a U.S. government official which leads to the White House. In a final confrontation between law and justice, Stark and Golzari must decide whether to challenge the most powerful man in the world."
The Aden Effect (Connor Stark #1) Reviews
-
Set in Yemen, //The Aden Effect//, stars a court-marshaled Navy lieutenant commander who is called back for active duty. Now, Commander Connor Stark is assigned as a defense attaché to the ambassador of Yemen. His mission: to mend strained diplomatic relations with the oil rich country. Unfortunately, the pirates who patrol the Gulf of Aden have a different assignment. They want him dead.
Author Claude Berube does an excellent job of keeping the story moving. He pairs Stark with an Iranian born American diplomatic security agent for instant tension. While the two have much in common, the increase in testosterone makes for compelling character development.
Like all military thrillers, the main female character—who in this case is the ambassador to Yemen—is slender, wears pastels, and eventually makes advances on our hero.
Also like most military thrillers, Berube utilizes many, many military acronyms. However, he does not define them on initial presentation. Readers of military thrillers will recognize most of them, the average person will not.
The plot is deftly woven and enjoyable for the most part, but the pieces that don’t fit will stifle the astute reader. With action suited for the screen, the story may find its niche in Hollywood. -
Easy to read, maybe a little over-the-top in its main character's competence. It kept me turning pages late at night, so it was well-paced and plotted.
-
B: Bought this on a USNI Clear the Decks sale, but I’ve been meaning to read it for years. Good 21st century swashbuckler!
-
The beginning was pretty slow but then began to be a page turner. I enjoyed it.
-
An outcast after the death of his men and a court-martial, Connor Stark lives in the Western Isles of Scotland minding his own business and enjoying a drink at his girlfriend’s pub until two uniformed military officers inform him that he is back in the U. S. Navy and must come with them. Following orders is about the last thing Connor wants, until a trio of East Africans attempt to kill him.
Faisal leads a team of Somali pirates in a successful bid to hijack a supertanker in the Gulf of Aden. Having no need of captives to ransom, they ruthlessly murder the crew and disappear. One of his men, however, takes the captain’s gold watch and sends it to his cousin in America.
Ambassador C. J. Sumner arrives in Yemen intent on negotiating contracts for oil from the offshore rigs that Maddox International has been building for the Yemeni government. Being a Western woman in a Muslim nation merely complicates the situation, and when she requests assistance from naval forces to protect Maddox employees, she discovers that only one ship remains from Task Force 151 and her captain is more concerned with fuel status and fresh vegetables. Washington provides little help either; the Chief of Staff seems more interested in getting her to resign. Finding herself with no other options, she calls in a favor and gets Connor Stark assigned as her defense attaché since he has friends within the Yemini government.
In the Diplomatic Security Service, Damion Golzari investigates the death of the son of Secretary Dunner, a family friend who helped Golzarri’s family escape from Iran after the overthrow of the Shah. A search of the victim’s room turns up illegal drugs, a gold watch, and the name “Abdi Mohammed Asha” – an elusive terrorist. The trail leads Damion to London, where someone tries to kill him, then Yemeni where he unfortunately crosses paths with Stark. The two men detest each other, but an attempt on CJ’s life and Yemeni militants planning to create unrest within the country force Damion and Connor to work together. They must unravel an intricate web of intrigue, betrayal, and power to thwart the evil master plan that threatens not only Yemen, but also the United States.
Over the course of twenty-two days, Berube takes readers on a cyclonic rollercoaster ride with hair-raising serpentine twists and turns that will make the reader’s skin crawl at the all-too-real possibility of an international conspiracy that reaches to the highest levels of government. His experience working in the Office of Naval Intelligence and being deployed to the Persian Gulf shine through, while his masterful storytelling takes you to distant shores and places you right in the midst of riveting action. The Aden Effect is a compelling and disturbing thriller that readers will long remember. -
Over all, I felt that the book was better than many no-name techno thrillers you see out there, especially those that have "Tom Clancy's ________" in the title.
Some thoughts:
(1)Although the book is described as "a Connor Stark" novel, and Stark is very obviously the protagonist, I think it would be more accurate to say that it is more of the "buddy cop" genre, with both DSS agent Golzari and Commander Stark getting equal billing. To be honest, I would rather see Berube's next novel be Golzari-centric rather than Stark centric, even though he set the stage more for either a Stark prequel(references to a incident in Canada that got Stark discharged from the USN before the novel) or sequel than Golzari novel.
(2)Claude Berube doesn't fall into the "and then a major conventional war happens" trap that so many techno-thriller authors seem to do. In fact, it's implied throughout the novel that there are serious foreign concerns for the US government and what's happening off the HOA is waaayyyy down the list of importance on the international stage. I'm glad that Berube went this route, Korean War v2.0 plots are a dime a dozen; plots that center on explicitly getting oil deals for the US? Not so much.
(3)Claude Berube doesn't utilize hamfisted infodumps in this novel(except for one instance when Stark is being sarcastic about the M-4 carbine after Golzari asks him if he'd ever used one before). I like this because, frankly, too many techno thrillers use infodumps as a way to just pad the hell out of the book because the publisher said "the book must be x number of pages long".
(4)The meat of the novel was obviously written before the Arab Spring swept through the region, and so perhaps the novel doesn't exactly reflect the current security situation in Yemen. I do not think this detracts much from the quality of the work though, and I think most people won't notice. I'm a huge polisci/international relations nerd though, so YMMV.
All in all this is a book I would recommend if you liked Tom Clancy's early work, rather than the impenetrable tomes they have become. Heck, I recommend it regardless. -
The Aden Effect – A Connor Stark Novel, by Claude Berube (Naval Institute Press – Oct 2012 publication). “Murder, politics, seapower, Middle East instability, and intrigue in the White House…” While that may describe the front page of the Washington Post these days, it is also the lead-in descriptor for the author’s first foray into fiction, set in the troubled waters off the Horn of Africa. A Navy Reserve Officer who has deployed to the region, Berube draws deeply on his expertise in intelligence, history and surface warfare to set the stage and populate his work with a wide variety of characters – and I do emphasize characters. The narrative flows well for a first fictional work and there are enough plot twists and sudden turns to keep you engaged and pressing deeper into the book. I won’t delve into details the plot as the book is slated for release in October, but an overview is available at the pre-order site on the Naval Institute Press’ website. I will point out that in order for the plot to work, the reader need not suspend all reality and disbelief as is the downfall of many works of fiction based on the real world. Likewise, you won’t need a copy of Jane’s or the DICNAVAB at your side to follow the action. The “stuff” of naval warfare – ships, aircraft, tactics and procedures, are nicely woven into the story, avoiding becoming the story themselves and allowing you to focus on the characters. With reference to the characters – it would have been nice to see a little more development of the ancillary actors but that is understandable in the first take at fiction.
Is it a buy? Certainly – coming out in October it is the perfect companion as you head up to the cabin for the weekend or off to the family reunion at Thanksgiving. Overall I’d rate it at 4 on a scale of 1-5 stars and am looking forward to the next installment in the series. -
this was written by a classmate of mine. I enjoyed it, it had scenes that take place in my home town, but the name was changed. I look forward to the next one.
