The Pact by Robert Patrick Lewis
Full disclaimer, I've known Rob for several years now and did get an advanced copy of this book. I first heard of Rob when he was on the Adam Carolla Podcast with his first book Love Me When I'm Gone, his memoirs. That book came to me when I was dealing with some PTSD from my hypokalemic episode that I wrote about on this very blog. I reached out to Rob back then just to thank him for writing the book and we've been casual friends ever since. I HAVE bought the eBook of The Pact though and will also be buying the audio book as soon as it is up. I was fortunate enough to start seeing this book when it was only about a thousand words and have been anxiously awaiting the completion and release, now I can't wait for the rest of the series to get penned and published.
As some of my long-time readers know I really loved the show Jericho, a television show where the United States was attacked with nuclear weaponry in several cities and the government quickly fell apart. It was a great show and we tried our best to save it when it was cancelled. I've always been a fan of the original Red Dawn (and the remake) as well as the Australian movie Tomorrow When the War Began. The Pact, being the first in the series, has a similar theme. Robert Patrick Lewis is a former Special Forces Medic and wonderfully sets the stage for a plausible (and probable) future for America, a future where the fight has come to our doorstep and it is either do or die.
The book has a character Rob that is an echo of the real life guy and quickly launches in to guerrilla warfare and Special Forces tactics from an author that draws from his own experiences in Afghanistan and Iraq where while doing his job, picked up the Purple Heart, Bronze Star, NATO non-article 5 medal, two Army Commendation Medals, Special Forces Tab, Combat Infantry Badge, Airborne wings, Iraq Campaign Medal with star, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, and many other ribbons in his time there. Rob makes it 100% believable as he draws on his own experiences and wonderful imagination which is something authors like Clancy just couldn't do, having to rely on consultants as experts.
I can't recommend this book enough if you like this genre.