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Gauntlet: A Novel of International Intrigue

Richard Aaron
Glass House Press (2008)
ISBN 9780981676883
Reviewed by Jeneke Lesak for RebeccasReads (2/09)

"Gauntlet," by Richard Aaron, is an incredible, multifaceted suspense novel about a new terrorist attack on the United States.  Following previous attacks, America is once again the target of global terrorism. When a significant amount of Semtex, a highly explosive material, is confiscated by terrorists, a complex plan is set into motion.  The US and Canadian authorities are only steps away from uncovering the scheme and the masterminds behind it.  But will they make it in time?  The suspense is almost painful. 

Aaron writes a realistic account of how the terrorist world intertwines with international drug smuggling.  He certainly has a knack for this type of writing.  With accurate and convincing characters and situations, I found myself on the edge of my seat, biting my nails, praying the character would get out of that tight situation in time.  The torture scenes are heinous.  The explanations of government protocol, political and cultural matters, and computer language are vast, but understood with little difficulty from the reader. 

Written from every possible angle, Aaron designs all of his characters with more than an ounce of humanity, both protagonist and antagonist.  Instead of portraying the bad guys as faceless monsters, they are treated as real people with backgrounds and history that brought them to their present day circumstances, many of whom have second thoughts about the path they have chosen (but is this the realistic nature of a terrorist’s feelings?)  A character that I came to love was Turbee, the "highly functioning autistic" genius, frequently misunderstood, but with a brain like no other, able to sort through, calculate and organize massive amounts of data as one of the employees for the US homeland security organization, TTIC.  Then there is Yousseff, the excellent businessman and drug smuggler.  Money is not enough for him; he wants power and turns to terrorism. 

Greed, corruption, and heroism in all senses of the word are recurring themes in this astounding first novel.  Frighteningly close to home, the events held within could very well be a reality.  The only nit-picky thing I can think of is that, at times, resolutions occur predictably easily.  But this does not hold true for the entire book, and it does not in any way apply to the exciting, unpredictable ending.  If international suspense is your thing, you will not be disappointed with Aaron’s “The Gauntlet.”  This novel is intense!

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