War is brutal.  Colonel Wes Stauer <I>gets </i>it.  He ought to.  He was once one of war's most brutal practitioners – not to mention one of its most effective and <I>least </i>bloody.  Brutal yes; stupid no.  Now, not only must Stauer command his crack outfit of former comrades and pull off yet another miracle mission, he must also harness and direct the brute within himself – a beast he will need in order to destroy an intelligent enemy who is as implacable as Stauer himself. Okay, <I>almost</i> as implacable. There will be war.  And there will be warriors like Wes Stauer who have the know-how and, once set in motion, the unstoppable professional drive, to see the bad guys to their graves and destroy every last earthly piece of their nasty legacies.<P><b>About Tom Kratman's military thrillers and military science fiction:</b><P>“Kratman's dystopia is a brisk page turner full of startling twists…[Kratman is] a professional military man…up to speed on military and geopolitical conceits.” –Best-selling author of <I>America Alone </i>Mark Steyn on Tom Kratman's uncompromising military SF thriller, <I>Califate</i><P>“Kratman raises disquieting questions on what it might take to win the war on terror…realistic action sequences, strong characterizations and thoughts on the philosophy of war.” – <I>Publishers Weekly</i>