Unmanned

June 30, 2014
At the outset of this timely thriller, Capt. Darwin Cole, a Predator drone pilot comfortably ensconced at Nevada’s Creech Air Force Base, discovers too late that children have entered his target area in eastern Afghanistan. The missile strike leaves two children dead, and Cole, devastated, spends a year in self-abnegating seclusion in the Nevada desert. Journalist Keira Lyttle finds Cole and persuades him to help her and two of her colleagues investigate the high-level misuse of government drones by a rogue CIA officer. As Cole and the reporters follow a trail through ex-CIA agents, intelligence contractors, and military technocrats, Fesperman (The Double Game) delineates the capabilities of modern drone aircraft in details that evoke wonder as well as chills at their disturbing implications for personal privacy. Though the characters never completely gel and the action sags in places, the technical information will keep readers turning the pages up to the rousing conclusion. Agent: Jane Chelius, Jane Chelius Literary Agency.

December 1, 2014

Fesperman's (The Double Game) latest enjoyable thriller is concerned with the use of surveillance and attack drones in U.S. combat operations. Former F-16 fighter pilot Darwin Cole is transitioned to flying drones and becomes so psychologically troubled by collateral damage from a botched mission that he leaves the air force. Lured from his hermit-like existence by a trio of journalists looking to write a book about a rogue intelligence operative thought to have targeted civilians on many missions of questionable military value, Cole commits to helping them unmask the unknown man behind Cole's last outing. Well-done depictions of drone technology and descriptions of the Chesapeake Bay area will encourage listeners to overlook some stereotypical characters and overly clever solutions to plot dilemmas. VERDICT This novel is excellently narrated by Armand Schultz and is recommended for inclusion in adult audio collections. ["A paranoia-inducing page-turner, and there's even a romance angle if you need one.... Essential for fans of Child and like authors," read the starred review of the Knopf hc, LJ 8/14.]--Cliff Glaviano, formerly with Bowling Green State Univ. Libs., OH

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