Against All Enemies [Kindle Edition]

Harold Coyle (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Bestseller Coyle (Dead Hand) begins this chillingly plausible military thriller with an Oklahoma City-style terrorist attack and a bloody militia-FBI standoff. Linking these events is right-wing Idaho Gov. George Thompson, who has strong connections to various militia organizations and an eye on the presidency. When six Idaho militiamen are ordered to stand trial in Seattle, Thompson and his attorney general refuse to arrest the militiamen, using the Idaho National Guard to expel the FBI and federal Justice Department employees at gunpoint and demanding a constitutional rewrite to resolve the impasse. Other key players are Gulf War hero Gen. Scott Dixon; his journalist wife, Jan, who has the inside scoop on Thompson; and their son Nathan, an army lieutenant fresh out of Virginia Military Institute, whose unit is called in to "neutralize" the situation in Idaho. Lt. Col. Nancy Kozak is charged with keeping the state's ammunition away from the armed militias as well as from the Guard itself. The lid blows off when a stray shot spurs Nancy's crew to open fire on Nathan's division, sparking open war. With Nathan's platoon missing, Scott steps up the pressure while Nancy is disgruntled with the militia's influence on the statehouse and plans some counteraction of her own. Coyne frequently crosses the line between rounding out his characters and bloating the novel with too many useless personal details, not to mention pontification on everything from the Constitution to army physical training. Still, his military knowledge is first-rate, and when the action kicks in it makes his "what if" scenario all the more gripping and unsettling.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Coyle's latest thriller opens with the demolishing of a federal building by an ailing and disgruntled Gulf War veteran and segues into the story of army lieutenant Dixon, the son of a famous general, who is called on to stop a powerful militia group in Idaho. These "Patriots" have planned a number of terrorist actions, and the novel ends with an attack on the capitol building in Boise. Dixon has lots of help; there's a SWAT team, the National Guard, state troopers, and the FBI. Coyle, a former soldier, has said that although real-life events triggered his interest in domestic terrorism, this novel is not intended to be a "fictionalization, glorification, or justification of any of those crimes or the events of 9-11-01." He calls it "simply a tale of people in crisis." The result is an intelligently crafted and suspenseful story with plenty of action on every page. George Cohen
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Format: Kindle Edition
• File Size: 668 KB
• Publisher: Forge Books; 1 edition (April 29, 2008)
• Sold by: Macmillan
• Language: English
• ASIN: B000FA5S8E
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #141,547 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars You won't be disappointed, July 9, 2002

By 

Timothy J. Kindler (Rochester, NY) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Against All Enemies (Hardcover)

For those who have enjoyed the works of Harold Coyle, Against All Enemies is a solid story that will not be a disappointment. Coyle sets the stage with a prelude that goes back to the period just before the Revolutionary War. Moving to current times, Coyle presents a completely plausible story of an analogous quest for independence where events spin out of control, ultimately pitting Americans against Americans. What stands out in this work from Coyle is his ability to portray the anxiety, turmoil and inner conflict experienced by the combatants of both sides as tensions escalate. Written in 1996 but just published, Against All Enemies presents Lt. Nathan Dixon as he graduates from VMI and begins his active duty, along with characters from previous novels, Scott Dixon, Nancy Kozak, and Jan Fields. All in all, this is a very strong effort from Coyle. Although not as good as The Ten Thousand (which I consider to be Coyle's best work), Against All Enemies is solid and worth your time.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Really needs an editor, July 21, 2002

By 

James E. Beckman (Leonardo, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Against All Enemies (Hardcover)

Harold Coyle delivers his customary slam-bam military action thriller, but the experience is marred by the obvious lack of any sort of proof-reading (is that a lost art by now?) with many jarring typos that interrupt the pleasure of reading. Coyle makes several mistakes himself - the most obvious howler is his use, twice, of the word "marionette" when he really
wanted "martinet." That one's hard to forgive. Also, way too much of his dialogue consists of speeches and harangues that no normal person would ever actually deliver in conversation.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Realistic battlescenes but dull characters, March 1, 2004

By 

Larry Gandle (Tampa, Florida) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Against All Enemies (Paperback)

After bombing a federal building, a group of "patriots" from Idaho take credit for the bombing. When the army takes action against this militia, a battle is fought on US territory with the resultant loss of lives. Within the context of this battle is Lieutenant Nathan Dixon who lives in the shadow of his father, a decorated general. His stepmother, Jan Fields, is covering the war as an anchorwoman. These characters serve as an anchor around which the battles rage.
Harold Coyles has written nine military thrillers. He has seventeen years of service in the military which is reflected in the realism of the battle scenes, as well as, the military strategy. His novels are known for their realistic nightmare scenarios. This, of course, is no exception. Characterizations are not a strength of his as they are all quite superficial with average dialogue. He pacing is interesting in that the story starts out slow as the characters are introduced and the battle is set up. Then, chapters get shorter, the action jumps around and the pacing picks up as we head into war.