About the Book :
The Cocaine industry is worth billions of dollars a year to the drug cartels who spread their evil seed across Western society. Its usage causes incalculable misery, poverty and death. Slowly, gradually, inexorably it is spreading...it is a blight which must be stopped. One man, Paul Devereaux, intellectual, dedicated, utterly ruthless and ex-CIA special ops, is given what seems like an impossible task. At his disposal, anything he wants - men, resources, money. He will not stop until he has completed his mission.
Up to now the drug trade has been used to world governments attempting to prevent them plying their trade. But up to now, those governments have played by the rules. That is about to change. The rules no longer apply... and a dirty war is about to get a whole lot dirtier...
About the Author :
Former RAF pilot and investigative journalist, Frederick Forsyth defined the modern thriller when he wrote The Day of The Jackal, with its lightning-paced storytelling, effortlessly cool reality and unique insider information. Since then he has written ten further bestselling novels: The Odessa File, The Dogs of War, The Devil's Alternative, The Fourth Protocol, The Negotiator, The Deceiver, The Fist of God, Icon, Avenger and, most recently, The Afghan. He lives in Hertfordshire, England.
Frederick Forsyth has weaved a thriller around a next to impossible idea and very nearly pulled it off. After Al Qaeda (in "The Afghan") he tackles the issue of Cocaine trade in the book "The Cobra". The US president (modeled on Obama, complete with the First Lady being Michelle) wants to put an end to the drug-menace, and asks an ex-CIA guy to take over the task. Paul ''Cobra'' Devereaux, heads the operation to finish off the cocaine trade with all the military might and intelligence of US and UK combined.
The book is divided into four parts - initiation, preparation, attack, and the repercussions. Each part of the book is very heavily researched. There were passages that would not have been out of place in a non-fiction book on the drug-trade. Frederick Forsyth has taken care of all the facts that can be researched, and has weaved a story around those facts.
The initiation part of the book deals with how cocaine is manufactured, how and from where is it distributed across the world, and how the cocaine business runs and ends with how Cobra plans to deal with this menace. The preparation part of the book is a tad long, and a bit too detailed; but the part where the Cobra group attacks the drug cartel is amazingly written. The repercussions part again left a lot to be desired after the high that was the attack.
One small aspect I loved about the book was that a page was devoted to the recurring characters of the book. As is common in thrillers, there are so many characters that sometimes it gets difficult to keep track of who is who. And having a map on your side really helps while reading this book, either that, or you have a phenomenal grasp of world geography.
On the whole a good read. If you enjoy thrillers, this book can easily be picked up.
Reviewed by Kunal Dhabali , Co-author of Urban Shots.