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Patrick McLanahan #10
Wings of Fire
Dale Brown wings of fire
496 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 2002
9 people are currently reading
800 people want to read
About the author
Dale Brown
151 books1,132 followersFormer U.S. Air Force captain Dale Brown is the superstar author of 25 consecutive New York Times best-selling military-action-aviation adventure novels: FLIGHT OF THE OLD DOG (1987), SILVER TOWER (1988), DAY OF THE CHEETAH (1989), HAMMERHEADS (1990), SKY MASTERS (1991), NIGHT OF THE HAWK (1992), CHAINS OF COMMAND (1993), STORMING HEAVEN (1994), SHADOWS OF STEEL (1996) and FATAL TERRAIN (1997), THE TIN MAN (1998), BATTLE BORN (1999), and WARRIOR CLASS (2001). His Fourteenth Novel AIRBATTLE FORCE will be published in late Spring 2003... Dale's novels are published in 11 languages and distributed to over 70 countries. Worldwide sales of his novels, audiobooks and computer games exceed 10 million copies.
Dale was born in Buffalo, New York on November 2, 1956. He graduated from Penn State University with a degree in Western European History and received an Air Force commission in 1978. He was a navigator-bombardier in the B-52G Stratofortress heavy bomber and the FB-111A supersonic medium bomber, and is the recipient of several military decorations and awards including the Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster, the Combat Crew Award, and the Marksmanship ribbon.
Dale was also one of the nation's first Air Force ROTC cadets to qualify for and complete the grueling three-week U.S. Army Airborne Infantry paratrooper training course.
Dale is a director and volunteer pilot for AirLifeLine, a non-profit national charitable medical transportation organization who fly needy persons free of charge to receive treatment. He also supports a number of organizations to support and promote law enforcement and reading.
Dale Brown is a member of The Writers Guild and a Life Member of the Air Force Association and U.S. Naval Institute. He is a multi-engine and instrument-rated private pilot and can often be found in the skies all across the United States, piloting his own plane. On the ground, Dale enjoys tennis, skiing, scuba diving, and hockey. Dale, his wife Diane, and son Hunter live near the shores of Lake Tahoe, Nevada.
Dale was born in Buffalo, New York on November 2, 1956. He graduated from Penn State University with a degree in Western European History and received an Air Force commission in 1978. He was a navigator-bombardier in the B-52G Stratofortress heavy bomber and the FB-111A supersonic medium bomber, and is the recipient of several military decorations and awards including the Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster, the Combat Crew Award, and the Marksmanship ribbon.
Dale was also one of the nation's first Air Force ROTC cadets to qualify for and complete the grueling three-week U.S. Army Airborne Infantry paratrooper training course.
Dale is a director and volunteer pilot for AirLifeLine, a non-profit national charitable medical transportation organization who fly needy persons free of charge to receive treatment. He also supports a number of organizations to support and promote law enforcement and reading.
Dale Brown is a member of The Writers Guild and a Life Member of the Air Force Association and U.S. Naval Institute. He is a multi-engine and instrument-rated private pilot and can often be found in the skies all across the United States, piloting his own plane. On the ground, Dale enjoys tennis, skiing, scuba diving, and hockey. Dale, his wife Diane, and son Hunter live near the shores of Lake Tahoe, Nevada.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
March 5, 2018
This one isn't quite as heavy on "new" technology as previous entries in this series, but focuses more on the tactical use of the equipment that the previous several books developed. While the battle scenes were somewhat interesting, they were also, to my mind, a bit unbelievable. While I can buy into the "tin man" battle armor and systems, I have problems with the fact that only 1-3 men in this armor can defeat whole platoons and brigades of heavy armor, helicopters and other heavy weapons.
Also, the main character, Patrick McClanahan, who had been a quite engaging character in previous books, was extremely unemotional and one-dimensional in personality, especially in light of his personal losses. It isn't until the end of the book that we start to see the old character return to form.
However, I will be interested in reading the next several volumes due to the introduction of a pre-teen physics and weapons systems genius. Dr. Kelsey seems like a very interesting character to develop and works well with John Masters' character. I look forward to their partnership in future books.
Also, the main character, Patrick McClanahan, who had been a quite engaging character in previous books, was extremely unemotional and one-dimensional in personality, especially in light of his personal losses. It isn't until the end of the book that we start to see the old character return to form.
However, I will be interested in reading the next several volumes due to the introduction of a pre-teen physics and weapons systems genius. Dr. Kelsey seems like a very interesting character to develop and works well with John Masters' character. I look forward to their partnership in future books.
October 20, 2020
I received this book in a Used Books Monthly subscription box. It's not something I would have chosen for myself, but I was more than happy to give it a shot.
While the book was largely entertaining, I also thought a number of things didn't work. Brown has put a lot into his sci-fi-like military systems, and they were cool, but also sometimes a bit overpowered in ways that made the story less interesting. The characters had potential, and perhaps I needed to fill in information from earlier books in the series to enjoy them fully, but they were pretty flat. I was especially disappointed with Dr. Kelsey. Brown has basically created a little girl who is a child genius with a strong interest in weapons systems. Other characters are also shown to be unnaturally brilliant because they got PhDs at a young age.
As someone who knows a lot of PhD holders and who got one myself, it was really weird to read about academic researchers presented in this way. Even if a now-nine-year-old were indeed able to read the Wall Street Journal at the tender age of 1, would you assume she had the emotional maturity for doctoral studies by 6? (For the record, the youngest PhD ever was 13 years old.) Would you trust a child, even the smartest one in the world, to make life and death decisions? The entire problem with being a child prodigy is that your intellectual ability outpaces your emotional development. I think Brown was going for "strong female characters" but the widow of the Egyptian president is constantly prized for her unnatural beauty, even after a major injury, and Dr. Kelsey is more creepy than compelling.
This book has its amusing parts, but overall, it didn't really work for me.
While the book was largely entertaining, I also thought a number of things didn't work. Brown has put a lot into his sci-fi-like military systems, and they were cool, but also sometimes a bit overpowered in ways that made the story less interesting. The characters had potential, and perhaps I needed to fill in information from earlier books in the series to enjoy them fully, but they were pretty flat. I was especially disappointed with Dr. Kelsey. Brown has basically created a little girl who is a child genius with a strong interest in weapons systems. Other characters are also shown to be unnaturally brilliant because they got PhDs at a young age.
As someone who knows a lot of PhD holders and who got one myself, it was really weird to read about academic researchers presented in this way. Even if a now-nine-year-old were indeed able to read the Wall Street Journal at the tender age of 1, would you assume she had the emotional maturity for doctoral studies by 6? (For the record, the youngest PhD ever was 13 years old.) Would you trust a child, even the smartest one in the world, to make life and death decisions? The entire problem with being a child prodigy is that your intellectual ability outpaces your emotional development. I think Brown was going for "strong female characters" but the widow of the Egyptian president is constantly prized for her unnatural beauty, even after a major injury, and Dr. Kelsey is more creepy than compelling.
This book has its amusing parts, but overall, it didn't really work for me.
June 30, 2016
This book was LOOOOOOOONNNNNG! I realize it was over 440 pages, but it still took a long time to read. I cannot say it was nearly as ‘good’ as the first time I read it; I do not remember being that impressed with it the first time I read it, now that I think about it. The character development was so-so, the plot was okay, and the flow of the story was boring/slow/sluggish. It was not an exciting read. So why did I finish it? Because I have this annoying tendency to finish what I started in hopes that it will get better and redeem itself by the time I finish it. It was an okay book; not the best, but most definitely not one of the worst I have ever read.
This book was nutso crazy, in some respects. It had cool technology , a Libyan rebel prince , a former female USAF officer ‘now’ married to the Egyptian president, assassinations, Russian mobsters, a new formation of a United Arab Republic, Islam apparently ascendant in Africa, oil fields, nuclear weapons fired in anger, spies, murder, revenge, and a female Russian bodyguard/assassin with bizarre sexual fetishes matched only by her [apparently] exquisite beauty.
It also had President Thorn in charge of the US, so we get more of his brand of ‘government’ and ‘world leadership’ by doing nothing to assist America’s ally, Egypt, in her time of crisis with the Libyans. Susan, after being elected President of Egypt, calls Thorn to ask for his assistance in protecting Egypt from another Libyan attack. Thorn’s ‘international policy’ of refusing to use American troops to defend other countries is again restated in this novel [which, in some respects, does make sense; on the other hand, there are numerous treaty obligations that would require American troops be used to provide assistance if an allied nation were under attack]. Thorn says there is not enough evidence to warrant any kind of intervention on the part of the American military. Susan then tells of how Libya has already used nuclear bombs [neutron bombs] and plans to use more; the American President then tells the Egyptian President that if Libya is prepared to use “more” nuclear bombs, then America will in no way send more troops [or carrier battle groups] into the region to face a potential nuclear exchange. Susan’s question on page 336 was ‘brilliant’ when she asked” “My warning is real enough so you won’t send your ships anywhere near Egypt, but not real enough to assist us?” It was a valid question on her part.
The author has given the American President a bizarre form of ‘appeasement policy’ in this ‘scene’ because Thorn tells Susan maybe she should give Zuwayy what he wants to prevent another attack. This is similar to what Chamberlain did prior to WWII; he chose to appease Hitler in hopes that Hitler would stop attacking and conquering surrounding nations. It did not work. It is bizarre how Thorn does not see how his ‘international policy’ is no different than Chamberlain. At the same time, he does make a valid point that America is not the world’s police officer [my words, not the author’s this time, about being a global police officer] [337].
I saw in other reviews people comparing Kelsie Duffield with a book by Arthur C. Clarke called Childhood’s End because of Kelsie Duffield. Kelsie is a child prodigy and did get a little annoying in the book. At the same time, she could be an interesting character at times. Jon Masters finally met his match in her! I’m on a rabbit trail, though. What I am getting at is that now I really want to read Clarke’s book, based on the number of comparisons [albeit negatively in nature toward Brown’s book].
It was an okay book. Despite taking me what felt like forever to read it, I am still glad I reread it.
This book was nutso crazy, in some respects. It had cool technology , a Libyan rebel prince , a former female USAF officer ‘now’ married to the Egyptian president, assassinations, Russian mobsters, a new formation of a United Arab Republic, Islam apparently ascendant in Africa, oil fields, nuclear weapons fired in anger, spies, murder, revenge, and a female Russian bodyguard/assassin with bizarre sexual fetishes matched only by her [apparently] exquisite beauty.
It also had President Thorn in charge of the US, so we get more of his brand of ‘government’ and ‘world leadership’ by doing nothing to assist America’s ally, Egypt, in her time of crisis with the Libyans. Susan, after being elected President of Egypt, calls Thorn to ask for his assistance in protecting Egypt from another Libyan attack. Thorn’s ‘international policy’ of refusing to use American troops to defend other countries is again restated in this novel [which, in some respects, does make sense; on the other hand, there are numerous treaty obligations that would require American troops be used to provide assistance if an allied nation were under attack]. Thorn says there is not enough evidence to warrant any kind of intervention on the part of the American military. Susan then tells of how Libya has already used nuclear bombs [neutron bombs] and plans to use more; the American President then tells the Egyptian President that if Libya is prepared to use “more” nuclear bombs, then America will in no way send more troops [or carrier battle groups] into the region to face a potential nuclear exchange. Susan’s question on page 336 was ‘brilliant’ when she asked” “My warning is real enough so you won’t send your ships anywhere near Egypt, but not real enough to assist us?” It was a valid question on her part.
The author has given the American President a bizarre form of ‘appeasement policy’ in this ‘scene’ because Thorn tells Susan maybe she should give Zuwayy what he wants to prevent another attack. This is similar to what Chamberlain did prior to WWII; he chose to appease Hitler in hopes that Hitler would stop attacking and conquering surrounding nations. It did not work. It is bizarre how Thorn does not see how his ‘international policy’ is no different than Chamberlain. At the same time, he does make a valid point that America is not the world’s police officer [my words, not the author’s this time, about being a global police officer] [337].
I saw in other reviews people comparing Kelsie Duffield with a book by Arthur C. Clarke called Childhood’s End because of Kelsie Duffield. Kelsie is a child prodigy and did get a little annoying in the book. At the same time, she could be an interesting character at times. Jon Masters finally met his match in her! I’m on a rabbit trail, though. What I am getting at is that now I really want to read Clarke’s book, based on the number of comparisons [albeit negatively in nature toward Brown’s book].
It was an okay book. Despite taking me what felt like forever to read it, I am still glad I reread it.
November 14, 2021
I enjoyed this Patrick McLanahan novel more than some of the more recent ones.
The new Libyan president is causing troubles and havoc with Egypt. The Eqyptian president was assassinated. His widow enlists the help of Patrick McLanahan and his Night Stalkers.
The Libyans hold a trump card that has a deeply personal meaning for Patrick.
Dale Brown is a great military story teller. If you have enjoyed other Patrick McLanahan novels I think you will enjoy this one.
The new Libyan president is causing troubles and havoc with Egypt. The Eqyptian president was assassinated. His widow enlists the help of Patrick McLanahan and his Night Stalkers.
The Libyans hold a trump card that has a deeply personal meaning for Patrick.
Dale Brown is a great military story teller. If you have enjoyed other Patrick McLanahan novels I think you will enjoy this one.
May 5, 2022
Patrick McLanahan is now out of the airforce due to a passive president of the US, but he is still very much into designing weapons to defend the USA.
His team and him are drawn into the war between Libya and Egypt and Wendy (his wife) is part of the team. Without giving too much away, Patrick's life is about to change in a big way and his team and he must fight a battle to try and return it to what he knows.
His team and him are drawn into the war between Libya and Egypt and Wendy (his wife) is part of the team. Without giving too much away, Patrick's life is about to change in a big way and his team and he must fight a battle to try and return it to what he knows.
February 7, 2021
OK read. Good plot. A bit confusing for awhile because of all the many characters.. took awhile to sort them all out. Got a little tense at times, which is good, but Patrick came out on top as usual. Too bad not all his people did, but that's the way it is.
July 19, 2020
595 pages
March 8, 2021
The story is very interesting in general. But the military lingo and the description of weapons was sometimes too much for me. There were pages I skipped just to get on with the story.
August 2, 2022
A fun book but was missing an ingredient or two-- not sure what exactly...see what the next book brings. may be a good set up.
October 5, 2022
Great book
December 18, 2022
2.5 stars
It was more than a bit unbelievable in many aspects. It was also depressing as all get out.
It was more than a bit unbelievable in many aspects. It was also depressing as all get out.
October 4, 2024
Kinda drags on, great tech stuff, but is kinda repetative
March 26, 2010
I questioned why I finished this book and came up with two reasons. One, I have a compulsion to do so. Two, I wanted to see if Brown could work out an ending that didn't strain all credulity.
Although, this book pretends to be military fiction, it is actually science fiction. The weapons which are described in excruciating detail are often a figment of someone's imagination. The scenarios are always set in some indeterminate near-future.
The plotting is spotty. At one point the story line skipped two or three events that we were supposed to figure out led to the event we were reading about. Characterizations are cardboard-like. The bad guys are unremittingly bad and the good guys are perfect. The piece de resistance was the introduction of a nine year old girl-genius with an MIT PhD, who could design weapons that experienced engineers could not even imagine. Talk about Childhood's End.
There was a time in the distant past when I liked Dale Brown's output. Those times are gone. Like Tom Clancy, he has gone as far with this genre as he can go. The ending of the story, here, was beyond belief. Even the practice of allowing weird things to intercede in a science fiction novel were of no use.
I doubt if I will read any more of his books.
Although, this book pretends to be military fiction, it is actually science fiction. The weapons which are described in excruciating detail are often a figment of someone's imagination. The scenarios are always set in some indeterminate near-future.
The plotting is spotty. At one point the story line skipped two or three events that we were supposed to figure out led to the event we were reading about. Characterizations are cardboard-like. The bad guys are unremittingly bad and the good guys are perfect. The piece de resistance was the introduction of a nine year old girl-genius with an MIT PhD, who could design weapons that experienced engineers could not even imagine. Talk about Childhood's End.
There was a time in the distant past when I liked Dale Brown's output. Those times are gone. Like Tom Clancy, he has gone as far with this genre as he can go. The ending of the story, here, was beyond belief. Even the practice of allowing weird things to intercede in a science fiction novel were of no use.
I doubt if I will read any more of his books.
October 8, 2015
#10 in the Patrick McLanahan series.
#10 - Patrick McLanahan series - Forcibly retired Air Force Gen. Patrick McClanahan leads the Night Stalkers on secret humanitarian ops. His latest contract, from Big Oil, is to destroy missile sites set up by Libyan president Zuwayy, a Muslim fanatic who deposed Khadafy and wants Egypt's oil fields. Zuwayy kills Egypt's president; the president's widow, former American air force pilot Susan Bailey Salaam, barely escapes. Patrick's team attacks during the uproar and destroys the missiles, but many soldiers are captured, including Patrick's wife, Wendy. Susan, wildly popular in Egypt, decides to run for president and sees the Night Stalkers as her secret weapon against Zuwayy's aggression. Needing a base from which to rescue Wendy, Patrick agrees to help Susan take action when a deadly nerve gas wipes out an Egyptian army post. Meanwhile, the Night Stalkers' weapons lab in Nevada is facing a coup led by the parents of a child science prodigy who takes laser weapons to a new level and gives the Stalkers a deadly edge.
#10 - Patrick McLanahan series - Forcibly retired Air Force Gen. Patrick McClanahan leads the Night Stalkers on secret humanitarian ops. His latest contract, from Big Oil, is to destroy missile sites set up by Libyan president Zuwayy, a Muslim fanatic who deposed Khadafy and wants Egypt's oil fields. Zuwayy kills Egypt's president; the president's widow, former American air force pilot Susan Bailey Salaam, barely escapes. Patrick's team attacks during the uproar and destroys the missiles, but many soldiers are captured, including Patrick's wife, Wendy. Susan, wildly popular in Egypt, decides to run for president and sees the Night Stalkers as her secret weapon against Zuwayy's aggression. Needing a base from which to rescue Wendy, Patrick agrees to help Susan take action when a deadly nerve gas wipes out an Egyptian army post. Meanwhile, the Night Stalkers' weapons lab in Nevada is facing a coup led by the parents of a child science prodigy who takes laser weapons to a new level and gives the Stalkers a deadly edge.
Want to read
September 5, 2011Patrick McLanahan flies into a storm of troubles in a spectacular new thriller, packed with high-adrenalin flying action and adventure.
Ostracised by the government, the Air Force and even his own family, Patrick McLanahan has reached rock bottom. Or so he thought. While testing cutting-edge weapons in the skies over Libya, he and his private team are drawn into a power struggle between North Africa's rulers. In the face of tragic loss, unexpected defeat and ultimate betrayal, the ex-USAF general must quickly decide where his loyalties lie. For it may be too late to stop the destruction rolling across the Sahara. And this could be McLanahan's final battle.
"When a former pilot turns his hand to thrillers you can take their authenticity for granted. His writing is exceptional and the dialogue, plots and characters are first class…far too good to be missed"
Ostracised by the government, the Air Force and even his own family, Patrick McLanahan has reached rock bottom. Or so he thought. While testing cutting-edge weapons in the skies over Libya, he and his private team are drawn into a power struggle between North Africa's rulers. In the face of tragic loss, unexpected defeat and ultimate betrayal, the ex-USAF general must quickly decide where his loyalties lie. For it may be too late to stop the destruction rolling across the Sahara. And this could be McLanahan's final battle.
"When a former pilot turns his hand to thrillers you can take their authenticity for granted. His writing is exceptional and the dialogue, plots and characters are first class…far too good to be missed"
September 22, 2015
Patrick McLanahan is back into the action in Wings of Fire.
It's not a bad book, and 10 books into the series there certainly is the danger of an author falling into the same old - same old trap; in order to avoid this two main characters of the series are knocked off. This seems to be a bit too far in the opposite direction though for my tastes. It was all a bit cheesy and underwhelming, one of the deaths didn't seem to link into the plot much, yeah Pat's sad but it quickly fades into the background only to be brought up at convenient points.
That being said, it's a pretty good techno-thriller and there are worse ways to spend an afternoon.
It's not a bad book, and 10 books into the series there certainly is the danger of an author falling into the same old - same old trap; in order to avoid this two main characters of the series are knocked off. This seems to be a bit too far in the opposite direction though for my tastes. It was all a bit cheesy and underwhelming, one of the deaths didn't seem to link into the plot much, yeah Pat's sad but it quickly fades into the background only to be brought up at convenient points.
That being said, it's a pretty good techno-thriller and there are worse ways to spend an afternoon.
September 12, 2012
Dale Brown's "Wings of Fire" is complex, smart, and exciting. Combine a futuristic U.S. weapons company with American mercenaries made up of former military elite, put them in an inflamed Egypt facing off against an aggressive Libya, and we have the ingredients of an explosive and fast-paced thriller. This was my first reading of Dale Brown, and I am now a fan. To be fair, not every reader of thrillers will find Brown's work readable, as he invests much time into detailing the technology. I found it incredibly interesting; others might not.
June 21, 2010
As I have come to expect from Dale Brown, this story is excellent. I was exposed to tons of technological aeronautics (too much sometimes, yes) and concurrent personal story development and I loved every moment of it. Several unforeseen circumstances arise and some have unexpected results. A wide array of bombing and strafing events wowed me while keeping me intrigued.
I haven't found a Dale Brown book yet that I didn't love.
I haven't found a Dale Brown book yet that I didn't love.
August 17, 2009
I've read a couple of early Dale Brown and found them poor to mediocre, but thought I'd try this for a holiday read. Turned out to be a waste of time: predictable plot, cardboard/stereotyped characters etc. I was half way through this when a I found a book exchange shelf in an inn with Terry Pratchett's "Interesting Times" - it was a great exchange for me.
January 1, 2016
Very entertaining and fast paced military techno-thriller; not much down time during the story due to multiple plots going simultaneously. Over the top in some spots, corny in others, and better than many movies I've seen lately...4 stars
May 24, 2008
One of his earlier books
Read
October 2, 2008A Bro
October 22, 2008
Awesome story! Author has an incredible grasp of military hardware and tactics.
May 25, 2009
did not finish- no good
March 15, 2011
Enjoyable read. Not memorable as I finished it about a month ago, but it was entertaining while it lasted.
October 4, 2010
I have read many in this series and this was as good as any and better than most despite being late in the series.
February 21, 2015
Extremely weak start, extremely strong finish (for Dale Brown)
February 19, 2013
entertaining
June 17, 2013
a good techno thriller
September 10, 2015
Excellent, even if overly descriptive.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews