Sand and Fire

May 19, 2014
Gunnery Sgt. A.E. Blount joins the cast in Young’s gripping fifth military thriller (after 2013’s The Warriors). A day away from retirement, Blount witnesses a brutal chemical weapons attack by enemy jihadists on a nightclub mere steps away from the Sigonella Naval Air Station in Sicily. In the aftermath, Blount—a big man, at almost seven feet tall and 245 pounds—reverses course, rejoining the Marines for another final mission, which might be his most dangerous yet. As for the series regulars, Sophia Gold now works as a U.N. translator stationed in Libya, while Michael Parson has been promoted to lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Africa Command, headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany. With the strikes spreading to North Africa, the three heroes unite with old friends to take out terrorist leader Sadiq Kassam before he carries out his threats to bring chemical warfare to the U.S. This page-turner offers thrilling action sequences and harrowing plot twists in abundance. Agent: Michael Carlisle, Inkwell Management.

July 1, 2014
A Marine hero re-enlists to bring down a North African terrorist who's been orchestrating a string of chemical attacks. Air National Guardsman Young (The Warriors, 2013, etc.) delivers the latest addition to his growing list of realistic military thrillers. The protagonist is a 6-foot-8-inch gunnery sergeant named A.E. Blount who is nearing retirement after bravely serving his country in a number of dangerous deployments. However, a quiet life with his wife and two daughters on their little slice of Carolina paradise is put on hold when an unusual terrorist modeled on the Barbary pirates of yesteryear initiates a series of sarin gas attacks. When duty calls, retirement can wait, and Blount finds himself once again at the tip of the American military spear. Recurring characters from previous Young novels-Army translator Sophia Gold and Lt. Col. Michael Parson-play supporting roles when they lead efforts to rescue Blount after a botched mission leaves the large Marine in the clutches of terrorists, where he faces imminent decapitation. Yet when Blount turns his formidable fighting prowess against his captors, it may be the terrorists who need saving. Rather than relying on crude violence and gratuitous action scenes, Young takes the time to offer the reader a window into the deliberative process of these military men and women of action. There are, nonetheless, hearty helpings of realistic shootouts and fistfights. A realistic portrayal of contemporary military action.

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Starred review from July 1, 2014
Young's fifth novel features his compelling series characters Lieutenant Colonel Michael Parson and Sophia Gold, but they take a backseat to Gunnery Sergeant A. E. Blount in what is easily the author's best novel to date. Blount, an African American, is getting ready to head home from North Africa after his latest deployment, but the night before he flies out, a nerve-gas attack leaves several people dead, including one of Blount's friends. As he struggles to figure out what to do with his civilian life, more attacks occurat a nightclub in Sicily, on a street in Gibraltarobligating Blount to return to Africa and, along with Parson and Gold, attempt to stop the jihadist responsible. Blount's struggle to fit in at home reflects the difficulty real soldiers have in adjusting to a world without the need to give orders and carry heavy artillery. But when Blount puts the uniform back on, he quickly has doubts about the decision. Young has a gift for allowing the reader to experience the emotional aspects of being a soldier and for describing the desolation of the desert countries our troops are patrolling. Military-thriller fans should make Young's work an essential addition to their reading lists.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)