Spoils

February 6, 2017
The horrors of modern war in Iraq in 2003 are vividly described in this debut novel by Iraq War veteran Van Reet, focusing on the deadly connections between a female American soldier, an American tank crewman, and a fervent jihadist insurgent. At an obscure roadblock near Baghdad, Army Specialist Cassandra is a gunner on a Humvee, idealistic and proud of her service. Private Sleed, the tank crewman, is naïve and easily manipulated. And Abu Al-Hool loses a leadership struggle with Dr. Walid, an Islamist extremist. Sleed and his crew have abandoned their posts to loot a palace when Walid and Al-Hool’s fighters attack the American roadblock, and Cassandra is wounded and captured by the jihadists, beginning 55 days of torture, abuse, and exploitation for propaganda. Sleed feels guilty that their dereliction of duty contributed to Cassandra’s capture. While the Americans search for Cassandra, Al-Hool suspects Walid will have him killed, so he makes desperate plans to avoid assassination and to seek his revenge. Cassandra’s POW captivity is horrific; Dr. Walid’s final propaganda use for her is calmly diabolical and will have surprising and devastating effect. Van Reet’s unsettling tale is an authentic portrayal of combat with its chaos, fear, and the finality of death. It is also a sobering commentary on war’s brutality and the burning intensity of Iraq’s jihadist insurgency.

Starred review from February 15, 2017
In a strong debut, an Iraq War veteran tells the before and after for both sides of a brief firefight in the early days of Operation Iraqi Freedom.Army soldiers Cassandra, Crump, and McGinnis and their Humvee are part of a group guarding a roundabout outside Baghdad in 2003. During a mujahedeen mortar and ground assault, the three are last seen taking shelter in an irrigation canal when the story shifts back two years. The mujahedeen are recruiting in Afghanistan and mulling their next campaign when 9/11 occurs and they embark on the trajectory that will end at that roundabout. The narrative hopscotch continues in pre-raid time jumps tracking the Humvee soldiers and the Muslim fighters, while Van Reet, who served with a tank crew in Iraq, adds a third group, a trio of tank crewmen whose hunt for Saddam souvenirs will take them off post when the call comes to head for the embattled roundabout. The author gives each of the three groups a distinctive voice, revealing the hearts and minds on both sides of the war and how training, stupidity, and fear all come into play. Cassandra, Crump, and McGinnis resurface in the main timeline as POWs in separate rooms of a makeshift prison. It's soon clear that the insurgent leader will use any method to make them serve his propaganda videos, leaving 100 grimly tense pages before the end. Van Reet's lean prose accommodates a laconic style suggesting military reports and detail-rich context fed by a keen eye and memory. He embeds the reader with the unwashed troops in a cramped Humvee, in a dark cell where only screams penetrate, and in the mind of a Muslim fighter with two decades of campaigning, a dead son, a lost wife, scant wins, and more doubts than faith can ease. A fine piece of writing that should stand in the front ranks of recent war novels.

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September 1, 2017

First-time novelist Van Reet trains his dispassionate eye on three soldiers in post-9/11 Iraq: Cassandra, a 19-year-old marine specialist; Abu al-Hool, an aging Afghani mujahideen fighter challenged by a younger leader; and Sleed, an older marine who wears hardened cynicism like armor. Van Reet's credentials-he was an Echols Scholar who left academia to join the U.S. Army after September 11-lend authority to this unnerving tale. No detail is superfluous. Van Reet forces readers to confront a daily existence that brutalizes even the toughest characters. We stand alongside Cassandra, who outside a bunker overhears men gossiping about who among them might have raped a female soldier-someone Cassandra knew but was too afraid to support. We feel al-Hool's grief as he mentors a disciple who reminds him of his son, who was killed on a suicide mission 10 years earlier in Chechnya. We lie next to Sleed in the dirty sand as he's awoken, after a blast knocks him unconscious, by a stray dog licking his face as he marvels, "It'd been so long since [I]'d touched any living creature in a gentle way." The capture of Cassandra connects these three lives, resulting in more death. This war novel with a human heart is powerful stuff. VERDICT Strong language, violence, and death pervade this narrative; recommended for mature teens only.-Georgia Christgau, Middle College High School, Long Island City, NY

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 15, 2017
A literary awardwinning Iraq War veteran tells the story of that conflict through disparate points of view, including that of a captured female combat specialist in the U.S. Army (known only as Cassandra), a higher-ranking American officer (Sleed), and an al-Qaeda fighter conflicted about the war (Abu al-Hool). These differences in points of view (and narrative voice), though ambitious, don't wholly succeed (al-Hool is a less than fully credible character, and Cassandra is not fully developed), but it's a unique approach and provides a thought-provoking insight into a complex war. In straightforward, often powerful prose, Van Reet captures the Iraq War as Tim O'Brien did Vietnam. As with O'Brien, the action very often hinges on tragic absurdities. Such is the nature of war. Cassandra's captivity is the focus of much of the novel, and Van Reet captures her experience vividly and terrifyingly. Seeing the conflict through a woman's eyes is a compelling approach and deserves attention.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)

November 1, 2016

Next in a long line of contemporary soldier writers, Van Reet sets his debut novel in 2003 Baghdad. Even as a mujahedeen named Abu Al-Hool starts questioning his actions, tank crew member Sleed gets involved in a supposedly victimless crime and 19-year-old gunner Cassandra is captured during battle. With a 75,000-copy first printing.

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 15, 2017

In an article for the New York Times, Van Reet, a veteran of the First Calvary Division in Baghdad and recipient of a James Michener Fellowship, criticized the publishing phenomenon of the "War on Terror Kill Memoir," exemplified by American Sniper and No Easy Day. Rather than complicate the intricacies of death and combat, argues Van Reet, these books directly satisfy the American public's morbid curiosity with body counts. Here, in his debut novel, Van Reet does something different, re-creating 2003 Baghdad and illuminating the confusion, patriotism, and regret experienced on both side of the battle lines. The triadic story unfolds around Cassandra, an American soldier captured by members of the Mujahideen Army; Abu Al-Hool, one of Cassandra's captors; and Sleed, an American soldier searching for Cassandra. Focusing on the internal lives of each character, the author illuminates their individual quests for liberation--physically, spiritually, and ethically--amid the chaos of war. The narrative crescendos toward a bang-up ending involving all three protagonists, with the resolution a distressing commentary on what is gained and lost in the pursuit of victory. VERDICT Van Reet has penned an absorbing novel with an unflinching ruminations on war's ultimate sacrifice, reminiscent of Roy Scranton's War Porn. [See Prepub Alert, 10/10/16.]--Joshua Finnell, Los Alamos National Lab., NM

Copyright 2017 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from April 15, 2017

In an article for the New York Times, Van Reet, a veteran of the First Calvary Division in Baghdad and recipient of a James Michener Fellowship, criticized the publishing phenomenon of the "War on Terror Kill Memoir," exemplified by American Sniper and No Easy Day. Rather than complicate the intricacies of death and combat, argues Van Reet, these books directly satisfy the American public's morbid curiosity with body counts. Here, in his debut novel, Van Reet does something different, re-creating 2003 Baghdad and illuminating the confusion, patriotism, and regret experienced on both side of the battle lines. The triadic story unfolds around Cassandra, an American soldier captured by members of the Mujahideen Army; Abu Al-Hool, one of Cassandra's captors; and Sleed, an American soldier searching for Cassandra. Focusing on the internal lives of each character, the author illuminates their individual quests for liberation--physically, spiritually, and ethically--amid the chaos of war. The narrative crescendos toward a bang-up ending involving all three protagonists, with the resolution a distressing commentary on what is gained and lost in the pursuit of victory. VERDICT Van Reet has penned an absorbing novel with an unflinching ruminations on war's ultimate sacrifice, reminiscent of Roy Scranton's War Porn. [See Prepub Alert, 10/10/16.]--Joshua Finnell, Los Alamos National Lab., NM

Copyright 2017 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.