Outstanding story. Visceral action and narration

Mike Lunnon-Wood is one of my favorite authors. In my experience, he stands alone when it comes to writing stories that capture the full spectrum of a country at war. He expertly moves back and forth between the front line soldiers, the various arms of the British armed forces, the politicians and the generals and in doing so, tells a gripping and complete story.

In my opinion, Congo Blue is the pinnacle of this author's storytelling. It follows a company of British Marine commandos as they trek into and out a country in Africa in order to save a group of ex-pats. As mentioned above, the story weaves multiple perspectives but also does an exceptional job of developing the main characters. They seem real, their relationships are compelling, and by the end of the book you care about them. The villian is equally well-written. Lunnon-Wood allows you to understand the baddies' motivation and does not hold back on the details allowing the reader/listener to build up a frothy amount of loathing.

The action throughout the novel is realistic and gritty. I liken it to that scene in Saving Private Ryan where the Tom Hanks and his company hit the beach on D-Day. Epic, visceral and believable. There are no superheroes in this story. Just well-trained soldiers who rely on their training and each other to survive.

Finally, if you listen to this story, the narration is terrific in every way. The narrator has a gift for various British accents and does an equally good job with the French characters. And when he describes the scenes and settings, if you close your eyes, it feels like you're somewhere in Africa.

This story is worthy of the five stars I've given it.

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