The New Breed: Brotherhood of War 07 (Brotherhood of War)

Features

• Cover Type: Paperback with 384 pages
• Published by: Jove July 1, 1988
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 0515092266
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-0515092264
• Book Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 1 inches
• Weighs: 6.6 ounces

Reader Reviews
"The Brotherhood of War" series is really six books, beginning in 1944 with "The Lieutenants" and ending in 1970 with "The Generals." This book, though nominally #7 in the series, is (like "The Aviators," nominally #8) not so much a part of the series as a stand-alone adjunct to it. Major characters from the first six books (Craig Lowell, Sandy Felter) are supporting characters here, and the focus is on characters that didn't exist (or received limited attention) in the main series. One happy result of this is that, although "The New Breed" *can* be read as part of the original series (Note: Descriptions of it as a "prequel" to "The Generals" notwithstanding, it's really read better *after* that book) it also works perfectly well as a stand-alone novel. Fans of the series will see dimensions in the Craig Lowell/Geoff Craig relationships that first-timers won't, but those nuances aren't critical to enjoying the story. The story proper is about U. S. Army intervention in the former Belgian Congo during its post-independence civil war . . . an aspect of the Cold War that most Americans know about only from an old Tom Lehrer lyric about making peace "the way we did in Stanleyville and Saigon." Griffin makes good use of the post-colonial setting, and Col. Michael "Mad Mike" Hoare, a famous leader of mercenaries in the real world, makes a credible supporting character. The three leading fictional characters, Karl-Heinz Wagner, Geoffrey Craig, and Jacques "Jack" Portet are all drawn well enough to be interesting, and Griffin uses Wagner (an East German defector) and Portet (a Belgian-American airline pilot who gets drafted) to say some thoughtful things about loyalty and cultural differences. What really makes a novel like this stand or fall, however, is the quality of the plot, and here (perhaps sensing that he's writing a stand-alone story) Griffin does better than usual at creating a story arc that lasts through the whole book, ties the characters together, and comes to a satisfying conclusion. This is (like Griffin's other books) more a "military procedural" than a slam-bang, shoot-em-up "war story." That may disappoint some readers (try Wilbur Smith's "Dark of the Sun" or "Cry Wolf") but it's true to the characters and material in a way that extravagant violence wouldn't be. Recommended Comment | | (Report this)