Customer Reviews

Dangerous Past

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The debut novel of reporter, military pilot and Vietnam veteran A. F. Ebbers, Dangerous Past is an aviation thriller about an airline captain and Vietnam veteran haunted by the choices he made in his past, and hunted by mysterious assailants. Suspended from his job after the airliner he was flying suffers a horrifying decompression explosion, Captain Frank Braden is under suspicion of the FBI for causing the accident in a suicide attempt; yet the truth of the intrigue closing in upon him and his wife is much more sinister. As the death threats mount, and his efforts to alert the authorities are dismissed as schizophrenic rantings, he must search for answers amid corruption in the highest levels of Washington. A gripping page-turner to the very end.

"Dangerous Past is a mystery-thriller in the spirit of both Scott Turow and Ernest K. Gann."
"When a bomb detonates in the hold of a West Sky airliner, Captain Frank Braden conducts a harrowing emergency landing, herocally saving the plane's 110 passengers and crew. During the investigation, the FBI accuses Braden of planting the bomb in a brazen attempt at suicide. To clear his name, he is forced to dredge deep into his Vietnam service, sifting through a world of narcotics, espionage, and murder. Braden must prove his innocence before his nemesis can eliminate him. A. F. Ebbers is already established in publishing and aviation circles. His debut novel will be well received in both. It will also prove a good read for anyone who enjoys action and intrigue."
Review by Stephen Phillips, Military Writers Society of America reviewer (March 2010).

I took Ebbers' novel along to read on an airplane trip across country. Big mistake. It opens to a scene from 30 years ago, as Captain Frank Branden's brother is murdered in Viet Nam, by a man who in the present time is up for the job of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, and then immediately launches in Chapter Two into a truly thrilling, very realistic, how do we keep this Boeing 737-200 in the air until we can get it safely on the ground again despite the fact there's 10 by 12 foot hole blown in the fuselage?

Wow. Talk about opening with action. I actually tightened my seatbelt, put my fold down tray into the upright and locked position, and stowed my carryon a little further under the seat before I could go on to Chapter Three.

Ebbers, the author of "Dangerous Past" is a pilot himself, having served in Nam, and flew Hueys and Otters in that war, and virtually every aircraft the U. S. Army put in the air in those days. He really knows his stuff.

I'd say this book is character driven with an excellent story to boot. One of the most unique characters I've run up on in my reading is Lan, a Saigon bar/brothel owner who worked drug deals with American pilots, but who also happens to be a Viet Cong colonel. Imagine walking into a bar in Saigon and spotting an Asian man his black hair in a pompadour, wearing a silk suit with a pearl handled 45 automatic lying on the table beside his drink.

The novel flops back and forth between present day Austin, Texas and Washington D.C. and the 1960-70s of the Viet Nam War including some of our country's "shadow" activity in Laos.

The book is historically accurate and offers some insight into the days leading up to the TET Offensive in Viet Nam. I learned some things reading this book. For one, even though the enemy lost 60,000 troops, and American fatalities were "only" 6000, that loss of life was too much for the American public to bear. TET broke the American spirit. It happened to the Russians in Afghanistan.

This first novel by A. F. Ebbers has all the elements of a Class A Thriller. Complicated bad guys like Lan and Captain, now General Miles Fenton, the CIA, FBI, Viet Cong, Pathet Lao, and drug smugglers, assassins, plus a new hero to love, Frank Branden. Hope to see more of him.

This was an extremely enjoyable book to read. The plot is interesting and is written well and keeps the reader turning the pages. I almost finished it off in one sitting. The author does a nice job of blending the historical back-story into the present-day action and pulls in a few new twists to the plot. The flashbacks to the past feel accurate and really help to move the story along. The action sequences are taut, and there are a few genuinely heart-stopping scenes. Anyone who enjoys military or aviation thrillers would most likely enjoy this book as well. I have not found any other books from this author but will be looking forward to the next one.

Intrigue, adventure, and a great plot make "Dangerous Past" a page-turner, a book I couldn't put down. A recommended read.