The COMMON DEFENSE [Mass Market Paperback]

Ed Ruggero (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1992

When a band of right-wing German terrorists begins attacking American citizens--overseas and at home--and demanding a U.S. withdrawal from German army bases, Captain Mark Isen is recruited to help stop it. Reprint. PW.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In the near future of Ruggero's second techno-thriller (after 38 North Yankee ), U.S. "advisers" have been assigned to the Mexican army as part of an anti-drug campaign. Infantry captain Mark Isen and Delta Force major Ray Spano, already aware that the local authorities bitterly resent their presence, run into larger troubles when neo-nationalist German terrorists, led by Heinrich Wolf, infiltrate Mexico and attack U.S. targets with bombs and nerve gas. The planned climax of Wolf's campaign is a strike against Washington on July 4; Isen and Spano have 48 hours to stop him. Ruggero, who demonstrates sound knowledge of the U.S. Army's inner dynamics, has a good ear for dialogue and the ability to create effective characters--the relationship between Isen and his wife is especially convincing. But these virtues are subverted by his focus on two tangentially connected themes. The question of whether U.S. armed forces can provide a quick fix for the drug problem outside the country's borders is posed but never developed, and Ruggero switches to a conventional terrorist adventure that overshadows the initial, more promising story line. In the end, the reader is left unsatisfied.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Captain Mark Isen, hero of Ruggero's 38 North Yankee ( LJ 5/1/90), makes a second appearance, this time in a technothriller set in Mexico. Isen, assigned to a U.S. Army drug interdiction program, has to cope with Mexican opposition, incompetence, and apathy in his primary training and liaison role, as well as with a group of German terrorists armed with chemical weapons that is operating out of Mexico. A fast-paced piece of genre fiction, the book is somewhat weakened by Ruggero's treatment of his Mexican and terrorist characters, whose individuals remain little more than cardboard stereotypes for the Americans to encounter. This weakness is unlikely to influence readers looking for a military thriller, however, and the title will undoubtedly be in heavy demand, particularly with readers of Ruggero's first novel. Recommended for collections where the works of Tom Clancy and Larry Bond have been popular.-- Stanley Planton, Ohio Univ.
Chillicothe Lib.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: Pocket (September 1, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671730096
• ISBN-13: 978-0671730093
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,758,857 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Following graduation from West Point, Ed was commissioned in the United States Army and served as an infantry officer in a variety of positions, including an assignment teaching at West Point. Following his service, Ed pursued a career as an author and public speaker, engaging audiences around the world in discussions on leadership and leader development. He also leads a Gettysburg and a Normandy Leadership Experience, where participants walk the ground of these great struggles to learn battle-tested leadership lessons that will help them meet their own challenges. Ed lives in Wallingford, Pennsylvania with his wife, Marcia Noa and a bunch of dogs. For more information, see www.edruggero.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Common Defense, July 17, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The COMMON DEFENSE (Mass Market Paperback)

Overall good reading material from a writer who knows his subject. You can almost feel the hot Mexican sun on your neck. For those who have been in the military, you will recognize the problems Mark Isen has with the U.S. Army and Mexican Government policies. Good reading for a plane trip, it will keep you reading the entire trip.