Total Empire

Tata’s impressive sequel to 2021’s Chasing the Lion finds Gen. Garrett Sinclair, as head of Task Force Dagger, at an obscure terrain feature called the Eye of Africa in the Sahara Desert. His regular team is with him, including Command Sgt. Maj. Sylvester Morgan, at the behest of U.S. president Kim Campbell; they’re tasked with rescuing a kidnapped American missionary, “who also happened to be a large donor to her campaign.” The mission is successful, but Morgan is decapitated. When Morgan’s daughter, Zoe Morgan, who happens to be Sinclair’s goddaughter, is kidnapped in the same area of the Sahara, Sinclair and the surviving members of the team go rogue to rescue her. Intelligence reveals the possibility that five Chinese nukes may be hidden in the Eye and that the person who killed Morgan, known as the Executioner, is working with the Chinese and the French. Tata incorporates a bit of Tom Clancy with hypersonic super weapons and gives a nod to Clive Cussler with an archaeological find said to be the remains of Atlantis. Lots of credible action, plenty of government traitors, and shocking losses fuel the action. Tata continues to rise among the ranks of today’s top military action writers. Agent: Scott Miller, Trident Media Group. (Mar.)