Mortal Allies [Hardcover]

Brian Haig (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Sean Drummond is back in a provocative mystery featuring the clever, irreverent JAG lawyer introduced in Brian Haig's debut thriller (Secret Sanction). Ordered to Seoul to assist a civilian lawyer representing an army captain charged with raping and murdering the son of the South Korean defense minister, Sean is chagrined to discover that he's second-chairing his old law school rival, the brilliant, beautiful Katherine Carlson, who's famous for challenging the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy. Katherine insists that Thomas Whitehall was framed by the Army because of his sexual orientation; while Drummond agrees that Whitehall might be the victim of a conspiracy, he thinks it has more to do with espionage than homophobia. By the time he uncovers a plot to destabilize the alliance between the U.S. and South Korea and rid the region of American troops, he's been threatened, bugged, and embarrassed--and that's by his own co-counsel, whose motives and intentions he's entirely misread! While Katherine is almost a parody of a legal provocateur, Sean comes across as an engaging fellow with a ready wit, a well-honed legal mind, and a willingness to confront his own prejudices that wins the reader's admiration. So does Haig, (incidentally, the son of Colonel Alexander "I'm in charge here" Haig) whose skillful pacing and narrative gifts mark him as a writer worth watching. --Jane Adams

From Publishers Weekly

A relentless fusillade of surprise and humor drives this unusually jocular military/legal thriller set in Seoul. When the soldier son of South Korea's defense minister is raped and murdered by an American soldier, career military Judge Advocate General Maj. Sean Drummond is yanked from a Bermuda beach to serve as co-counsel at the request of brilliant civilian defense attorney and gay/lesbian legal activist Katherine Carlson. Bitter rivals in law school and complete political opposites, these two bash heads on a case that is anathema to army brass, sparks Korean riots, ignites gay activist and right-wing religious groups, sets off a media frenzy and fuels a push to get U.S. troops out of South Korea. JAG officers are unloved at best, but Drummond is despised and sabotaged on all sides as Carlson plays puppet master by fueling his ego and baiting the brass. Facing the army equivalent of a hanging judge, corrupt Korean police and devious CIA actions, Drummond fears for his client's future and his own. Haig's hero (back in action after his turn in Secret Sanction) cracks wise with refreshingly derogatory humor, skewering diplomats, bleeding hearts, religious nuts, military homophobes and gay activists alike while skillfully untangling the issue of gays in the military. Korean culture and the country's North/South divide play an important role in the novel's denouement, as Haig successfully kindles his powder keg of a plot.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 416 pages
• Publisher: Warner Books (May 2, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446530263
• ISBN-13: 978-0446530262
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 1.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (45 customer reviews)
• Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #377,960 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic Military Law Thriller, December 11, 2005

By	Daniel T. Ferry "Casual Reviewer" (Tampa, FL) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Mortal Allies (Mass Market Paperback)

Major Sean Drummond continues to fit the bill, as a witty, wise-cracking, charismatic JAG attorney who finds ways to entertain in cases where the odds are severely stacked against him. "Mortal Allies" takes place in South Korea. A by-the-book Captain is charged with the most unspeakable acts one can be charged with. The evidence is strong enough to convict even with a severely biased jury. Sean Drummond was hand-picked as co-counsel by an old schoolmate from Georgetown Law. A female student whom he just couldn't get along with. As an added kicker, these charges were committed against the son of the South Korean Minister of Defense!

All of this makes for a compelling novel. And from what it seems, when this novel is written by Brian Haig, it's practically guaranteed to satisfy. Drummond is raw, funny and witty. The plot is thoroughly engaging and quick. The character development is as strong as is necessary.

This is easily a book I'd recommend to anyone who likes a strong central character in military fiction. Well done!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mortal Allies, May 6, 2002

By	Konrad Kern (OFallon, MO United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Mortal Allies (Hardcover)

I've definitely become a fan of Brian Haig's with this latest (second) novel.

The South Korean Defense Minister's son is brutally murdered and raped. The people whom stand accused for this heinous crime are three US military men. Katherine Carlson, a highly intelligent and cunning civilian attorney, is representing one of the accused, a Thomas Whitehall, who doesn't stand much of a chance since the other two will testify against him. Katherine requests Major Sean Drummond to be the military co-council. Drummond takes on the job with some reservations. When Drummond was in law school, Katherine was a classmate and they constantly fought like cats and dogs. Never did they get along. So needless to say Drummond is quite baffled as to her choice of co-council. It turns out the case goes beyond just the murder and rape.

Brian Haig's witty first person narrative and a fast-paced story line, gets the reader highly involved and makes this a very good novel. The South Korean setting and gays in the military are two prominent themes in the story. A great military legal thriller.

Highly recommended

14 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Saved from a Death Sentence by Attila and the Easter Bunny, March 31, 2004

By	Tucker Andersen (Wall Street) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Mortal Allies (Mass Market Paperback)

This is an action-packed legal/military/political thriller; it is not primarily a courtroom drama but rather a story told from the viewpoint of Major Sean Drummond, a JAG officer whose Bermuda vacation is interrupted when the Army summons him to Seoul and charges him with the unenviable task of defending Captain Thomas Whitehall against multiple charges including homosexual rape and murder. Not only is the evidence supporting the charges against Whitehall overwhelming, but Drummond's problems are greatly increased by two additional factors. First, the murdered individual was a South Korean soldier attached a US army base in Korea; thus a firestorm of protest has erupted potentially endangering the United States- South Korean alliance and making the trial a high profile media event. Second, the lead civilian counsel for the accused is Katherine Carlson, a classmate at Georgetown law whose disagreements with Drummond grew so heated that the dean eventually disallowed all personal contact between the two of them. Drummond summarizes the situation, "think about what kind of philosophical discussion the Easter Bunny and Attila the Hun might have if they sat down to compare lifestyles". Thus, he is stuck with the sobriquet Attila, while she is invariably referenced as Moonbeam in return. Since the Army has fast tracked the proceedings, the defense team is forced to quickly develop a strategy that has some chance of explaining the evidence against Whitehall, who insists on his innocence but provides no helpful insights upon which they can build their case.

What makes the story so riveting is the complexity of the plot and the time the author takes to sketch out more character development and interplay than most books of this genre. Sean Drummond is a wonderful hero, part regular Army and part counterculture with his streak of irreverence and humor that infuses Haig's books. In addition, I found the background information concerning Korea and our alliance very educational; my assumption that it was factually correct added to my enjoyment of the book. Most importantly, this book is used as the platform for an interesting and quite extensive discussion of societal attitudes towards gays and lesbians (and the differences between our culture and that of Korea) and implicitly questions the appropriateness of the military's "don't ask, don't tell policy". The implications of the case and his reaction to Whitehall combined with his interaction with Moonbeam led to an interesting evolution in Attila's views; yet this aspect was simply part of the fabric of the story, not in any way either extraneous or distracting. This summary only scratches the surface of the story, which includes more murders, potential espionage, involvement of the CIA and other undercover operatives, and lots of trademark Drummond humor tinged with irony and cynicism. And I haven't even mentioned yet that the murdered South Korean was the son of the country's Defense Minister; Korean police procedures, rules of evidence, and the criminal justice system and prisons are significantly less favorable to defendants than those of the US and the crime was committed off military property. While I cannot reveal any details of several plot elements without providing significant spoilers, I want to attest that the author managed to keep me guessing, and not always correctly. I especially enjoyed one key aspect of the conclusion, which both managed to surprise me and also succesfully pull together several elements of the storyline.

This is the fourth book by the author which I have read that features Sean Drummond as the protagonist, but it is the second sequentially which he wrote. The series features a central cast of characters, including Sergeant Imelda Pepperfeld as Drummond's invaluable assistant and General Clapper as his boss, but most of the individuals are unique to the story and it is a great standalone read. However, if you plan to read all the books I would read them in the proper sequence, both because there are references to Drummond's previous exploits and because the character development is quite interesting. The first book is SECRET SANCTION (3 1/2 star review 7/30/03), which I decided to read after thoroughly enjoying the third book written by Haig, THE KINGMAKER (5 star review 5/13/03). The fourth book in the series, PRIVATE SECTOR was published late in 2003, (4 1/2 star review 11/11/03), so I skipped to that before returning to MORTAL ALLIES. In my estimation, the book reviewed here and THE KINGMAKER are the best two books in the series, although all are enjoyable reads. Both are action packed; this has a more complex philosophical dimension and convoluted plot, while the third novel in the series had several interesting twists, an intriguing personal dimension, and a further development of Drummond's character which I really enjoyed. So, you can partake of the complete meal which the author has prepared - appetizer, main course and dessert, or simply choose a la carte from among the choices. Among those choices, this one is especially recommended.

Tucker Andersen