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29th out of 35 books
—
44 voters
The War After Armageddon
by
Ralph Peters
Shocking scenes of battle... unforgettable soldiers... heartbreaking betrayals...
In this stunning, fast-paced novel, a ruthless future war unfolds in a 21st century nightmare: Los Angeles is a radioactive ruin; Europe lies bleeding; and Israel has been destroyed... with millions slaughtered. A furious America fights to reclaim the devastated Holy Land.
The Marines storm ash...more
In this stunning, fast-paced novel, a ruthless future war unfolds in a 21st century nightmare: Los Angeles is a radioactive ruin; Europe lies bleeding; and Israel has been destroyed... with millions slaughtered. A furious America fights to reclaim the devastated Holy Land.
The Marines storm ash...more
Hardcover, 384 pages
Published
September 15th 2009
by Forge Books
(first published 2009)
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I was disturbed by the book and felt it was completely unrealistic. It is my belief that a vast portion of the population would need to be dead for our society to fall so far over the line. The author wishes it to be a plausable society that tolerates the eradication of an entire race and religion. The author would have you believe that book burning and forcing people to follow your religious beliefs would be tolerated. In essence the author wants you to believe that if Adolph Hitler were alive...more
When I was younger, when I was entranced by a book, I stayed up real late, knowing that I was going to wake up early. The War after Armageddon.... Wow.
All I can say about just finishing this book that it really is an eye-opener. Some spoilers... but who cares? Anyways, it's a fictional war against the US against the Muslims. The US is falling into a Theocracy rather than a democracy, and oh by the way, it's not "guys with AKs and Turbans", we're talking a modern, fierce opponent that can Stop T...more
All I can say about just finishing this book that it really is an eye-opener. Some spoilers... but who cares? Anyways, it's a fictional war against the US against the Muslims. The US is falling into a Theocracy rather than a democracy, and oh by the way, it's not "guys with AKs and Turbans", we're talking a modern, fierce opponent that can Stop T...more
Sep 24, 2011
John Hanscom
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
everyone
Recommended to John by:
myself, I suppose, as I had enjoyed an earlier novel
If there is one contemporary novel I would make required reading, this one would be it (along with The Handmaid's Tale), especially under the present political and religious climate, both here and abroad. The premise is simple - a group of radical Islamists use nuclear weapons to try to conquer the world, especially the US, for their version of Islam. The US retaliates. However, within the US, the religious right uses this as an excuse to begin an inexorable takeover of the government. This nove...more
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A face paced military thriller that keeps you wonder what's going to happen next. While a work a fiction the author's note at the end does bring to light some of the themes of the book that others find controversial: religious fanaticism and our military's over reliance on technology. To the second I can have first hand knowledge. GPS were becoming smaller and less cumbersome when I left the Army in 1995 and already the up and coming troops were using them as a crutch in navigation instead of ma...more
An exciting and frankly terrifying hypothetical look at the rise of fundamental Christianity in the US in response to fundamental Islam abroad. After devastating nuclear and radiological attacks on major European cities follow the total annihilation of Israel and Iran in a nuclear exchange, the Europeans begin a series of anti-Muslim pogroms, which the US finds it necessary to play peacekeeper...until Los Angeles and Las Vegas are wiped out, as well. The US gazes into the abyss and finds the aby...more
I am starting to think that I should put Ralph Peters into the same category I created for John Le Carre. Allow me to explain. I have read several Le Carres. And every time I finish myself I promise myself I won't read any others. Only to dupe myself later into reading another. Lather, rinse, repeat.
I think this is the third Peters book I've read and it's by far the worst. The plot is a bit on the far-fetched side but I can forgive that. Fiction writers are supposed to stretch the boundaries of...more
I think this is the third Peters book I've read and it's by far the worst. The plot is a bit on the far-fetched side but I can forgive that. Fiction writers are supposed to stretch the boundaries of...more
A disturbing and depressing book.
Peters clearly belongs to the school that believes religion - all religion - is the source of all evil in the world and that there is no difference from one religion to another. All are ultimatley based on a foundation of blood thirsty fanaticsm.
In the near future, a United States, weary of the clash of civilization conflict with Islam, elects a fundamentalist Christian Vice President, reconstitutes the National Guard as the Military Order of the Brothers in Chr...more
Peters clearly belongs to the school that believes religion - all religion - is the source of all evil in the world and that there is no difference from one religion to another. All are ultimatley based on a foundation of blood thirsty fanaticsm.
In the near future, a United States, weary of the clash of civilization conflict with Islam, elects a fundamentalist Christian Vice President, reconstitutes the National Guard as the Military Order of the Brothers in Chr...more
This is a frighteningly realistic look at what could easily be the near future of warfare for the United States military. Peters takes readers on a vivid journey through an all out war in the Middle East between radical Islamist regimes, and the US that begins with nuclear / dirty bombs exploding in several European and US cities.
In addition to exploring what "modern" warfare could look like in a world of constant EMP and electronic jamming, Peters also gives us a peek into what the US will loo...more
In addition to exploring what "modern" warfare could look like in a world of constant EMP and electronic jamming, Peters also gives us a peek into what the US will loo...more
Unlike "Team Yankee" from Harold Coyle and Eric Harry's "Protect and Defend" Mr. Peters book is in my opinion less believable but still distrubing. The chance that the military and government could be compromised from an extreme political faction seem far more believable today than five years ago. Where the story fails is in how the rest of the world react. "The War after Armageddon" fails to embrace the worlds reaction to a nuclear strike on U.S. soil and a major nuclear war in the Middle East....more
Like Frankie said, this book could have been huge - in size and impact. This is a story about the military engagement after the US is nuked in LA and Vegas, and the religious right rises up to form its own military arm to fight back. The ol' US Army and Marines are left to fight with the left-overs that the Evangelical avengers leave behind. And the US Army general, "Flintlock" Harris, is a great character who could have withstood so much more fictional development. A religious man himself, he w...more
I enjoy Ralph Peters analysis of the conflicts in the middle east and thought he might present an interesting scenario as to how things might play out in this novel. The basis of the story is that a number of nuclear Bombs have been used in Israel, Europe, parts of the United States and the middle east. The United states is being overtaken by Christian zealots who have become a major political force and have their own army, Military Order of the Brothers in Christ (MOBIC). MOBIC wants to replace...more
Sadly, if I could give less than one star I would. Mr. peters has a good deal of military experience and knows a bit about the military (though he shorthands a few things here, most won't notice it.). What he doesn't understand is "actual Christianity".
I won't try to give a seminar on this book's flaws. I know there will be those who want to debate the point, But, the "book" adopts the idea that all religions must be pretty much the same, if you are what is termed a "fundamentalist". The lack of...more
I won't try to give a seminar on this book's flaws. I know there will be those who want to debate the point, But, the "book" adopts the idea that all religions must be pretty much the same, if you are what is termed a "fundamentalist". The lack of...more
Very good, though also very depressing. As a retired military type I appreciated the skill with which the author translated a lot of military jargon into clear English, making the story much more accessible for readers who haven't had occasion to learn that jargon, and did so without making the dialogue or narrative feel stilted.
This story also addresses a pet worry of mine: the growing influence of hateful fanaticism in both domestic and world politics. The author did an excellent job of showin...more
This story also addresses a pet worry of mine: the growing influence of hateful fanaticism in both domestic and world politics. The author did an excellent job of showin...more
One of those, I need to have something on the plane to read.
The book has two heroic individuals, with strong moral compasses who are willing to die for others and they are obliged.
Everyone else including the author is well, jaded I think best describes the book; somehow the author gives the impression that 99.8% of religious people have become hate mongers with zero humanity, I mean zero humanity.
Author's theory: religion = hate filled fanaticism.
Therefore: simplistic religion = genocide = end...more
The book has two heroic individuals, with strong moral compasses who are willing to die for others and they are obliged.
Everyone else including the author is well, jaded I think best describes the book; somehow the author gives the impression that 99.8% of religious people have become hate mongers with zero humanity, I mean zero humanity.
Author's theory: religion = hate filled fanaticism.
Therefore: simplistic religion = genocide = end...more
An interesting and utterly depressing view of our future. One of the strengths of this book is that it addresses the religious fundamentalism that is growing within our own country as a parallel to Muslim fundamentalism. It's nice to see someone remember that Christians are quite talented at holy wars themselves.
On a literary note (having not ever read contemporary military fiction before!), the book takes quite a long time establishing characters and locations before anything actually happens....more
On a literary note (having not ever read contemporary military fiction before!), the book takes quite a long time establishing characters and locations before anything actually happens....more
Nightmare scenario near-future techno-thriller depicts the end of the US and its current military in the face of a rising tide of domestic religious fundamentalists and amoral political opportunists. Tom Clancy in ashes: weapons fail, valor fails, the best lack all conviction, while the worst are full of passionate intensity. Initially put-off by thin characters and obvious failure of copy-editing, but won over by the plot and the bits of sometimes nihilistic speculation about possible cultural...more
I really did enjoy this book and would have given it five stars but I didn't find it all that realistic. The story is about a holy war between the west and east. A modern day crusade more or less. It would have been more believable if the jidhadists didn't have so many soldiers and nukes.
I understand the future of warfare is drones, but I really do think the author went a bit over board in his assertion jets would be obsolete.
Overall there was a lot of action and Ralph Peters pulled together a...more
I understand the future of warfare is drones, but I really do think the author went a bit over board in his assertion jets would be obsolete.
Overall there was a lot of action and Ralph Peters pulled together a...more
Ralph Peters is a talented writer, with obvious ideology in his bones. The story he presents here borders on plausible and very worth having an understanding of what can go wrong in these days of memory of 9/11 and all these terrible events of the last 10 to 20 years.
Israel has been obliterated but not defeated. The USA is not the USA - but parts remain ....
Saying anything more gives away too much - I recommend it - but, be prepared to question - could that really happen? Many times, the answer...more
Israel has been obliterated but not defeated. The USA is not the USA - but parts remain ....
Saying anything more gives away too much - I recommend it - but, be prepared to question - could that really happen? Many times, the answer...more
Armageddon, said to be Hebrew for Mount of Megiddo, Megiddo being just another town being battled for by the Marines following widespread nuclear destruction. Jihadists nuke LA, Las Vegas, and numerous European and Israeli cities. They reclaim Syria and Israel for themselves. So, the US Army and Marines go ashore and root them out. I'm not sure how to feel about this book. It tries very hard to be outrageous, to dethrone conventional wisdom, and to claim we are vulnerable to taking on the worst...more
Great premise. Interesting premise and fair character development, but plot movements were obvious, heavy-handed and the ending is completely unsatisfying. It seems like he got through half the writing of this book and then ran out of either time or give-a-crap. It provoked some thought about the nature of relgious fanaticism, but in the end it was little more than free reading material during three weeks at sea on the Ike. I would have been pissed had I paid money for it...
Initially, I was skeptical. The book starts w/an abundance of military lingo, and though I've always liked Clancy's techno-thrillers it's easy to go overboard. But the novel grows as does the characters, and the G.I. Joe caricatures melt into some thing far more interesting. Couple this w/ several shock and awe moments of a writer doing the surprising and some interesting near future sci-fi turns and this is Mission Accomplished.
One of the most refreshing “what if?” books I’ve read in awhile.
Not a happy book, Peters takes the reader 50 years into the future where a full on Crusade is occurring, modern weapons and all. I enjoyed the military aspects of the book as well as the political/religious rationale leading up to the book’s conclusion, though the latter part was chilling. Good read.
Not a happy book, Peters takes the reader 50 years into the future where a full on Crusade is occurring, modern weapons and all. I enjoyed the military aspects of the book as well as the political/religious rationale leading up to the book’s conclusion, though the latter part was chilling. Good read.
While the writing and the plot were effective and interesting, I just couldn't accept the premise. Yes, I can accept that Muslim extremists will go too far one day, nuke a city or two and force an overwhelming response that will result in massive suffering. What I can't buy is that the response will be couched in terms of a Crusade, and that the US would become a Christian polity. Our nation is too secular, and divided too much. Any attempt to force a Christian coup here would be strongly oppose...more
Excessive use of F word--- too much military jargon and acronyms... I am glad the author reduced them (claims author in endnotes) very little story line. Just war details. I would add this to worst books of all time.
If you do decide to read this book check out the glossary FIRST as well as the list of characters.
If you do decide to read this book check out the glossary FIRST as well as the list of characters.
Three parts to this novel:
1) milirary subgenre, boilerplate Clancey battle scenes.
2) twist on 1, electronic countermeasure bring back the pilot on the joystick.
3) the most important part of this novel, an extremely pessimistic view of the US governed by a conservative christian theocracy. Very scary ending.
1) milirary subgenre, boilerplate Clancey battle scenes.
2) twist on 1, electronic countermeasure bring back the pilot on the joystick.
3) the most important part of this novel, an extremely pessimistic view of the US governed by a conservative christian theocracy. Very scary ending.
I decided to read this book knowing that 'futuristic', 'end of the world as we know it' stories are not my thing. But I have read and enjoyed this author's other novels, so I gave it a try. I think that anyone who enjoys this genre will like it and those who don't won't, which explains why there so many 5 star and 1 star reviews.
As all of Peter's books, he gets the technology and details right. The premise is very disturbing, and, unfortunately, quite plausible.
If the US-Islamic Terror war we are currently waging seems bad, the future Peters describes is so much worse.
If the US-Islamic Terror war we are currently waging seems bad, the future Peters describes is so much worse.
This is an enjoyable and intriguing read. Author Ralph Peters brings a career of military intelligence experience to the written page to make this suspenseful read entirely credible. I highly recommend this book to others.
Interesting premise. I made it to about p. 80 and quit. Reading the blow-by-blow account of armed forces attacking the Middle East didn't appeal to me. I needed more about what led up to the war to keep me interested.
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Ralph Peters is a novelist, an essayist, a former career soldier, and an adventurer in the 19th-century sense. He is the author of a dozen critically acclaimed novels, two influential works on strategy, "Beyond Terror" and "Fighting for the Future".
Mr. Peters' works can also be found under the pen name "Owen Parry." He also appears frequently as a commentator on television and radio networks.
http:...more
More about Ralph Peters...
Mr. Peters' works can also be found under the pen name "Owen Parry." He also appears frequently as a commentator on television and radio networks.
http:...more
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