Nightwatch

A good story lurks somewhere beneath the machismo posturing, wooden dialogue, confused plotting and acronym-heavy prose of Henrick's (Crimson Tide; Attack on the Queen) new military thriller. All that clutter gets in the way of a wild adventure that otherwise would have the firepower of a bazooka. For starters, the president of the U.S. is assassinated while on a diplomatic mission to the Crimea. Soon after, a mysterious group of thugs kidnaps the vice-president during a river rafting trip in Missouri. Then, an ICBM leaves Russian soil, heading for the West. It soon becomes apparent that an overthrow of the U.S. government is underway. The leaders of the coup carry out their plot from aboard Nightwatch, a high-tech 747 that follows the president wherever he goes, ensuring communication with the nation's capital. The militants, led by Admiral Trent Warner, stay in contact with their cohorts aboard a nuclear sub off the coast of the eastern seaboard and in the rough terrain of the Missouri Ozarks, where the vice-president and his bodyguard have been taken hostage, first by a family of local hicks, then by the forces plotting the government overthrow. The coup leaders' main gripe is that old saw: The government has gone soft politically and panders to too many special interests. A large cast of disposable and unmemorable characters move in and out of the story. They are led, nominally, by two brothers, Vince Kellogg, who guards the vice-president, and Thomas Kellogg, who leads the search party for the v-p. The dialogue throughout is tough and labored, and the military jargon often becomes overwhelming. An 80-item glossary of abbreviation emphasizes that this book will best appeal to those obsessed with the fighting forces. Film rights optioned to Jerry Bruckheimer, coproducer of Crimson Tide. (June)