Fire of the Raging Dragon by Don Brown

There is plenty of action in this novel, the second in the Pacific Rim Series.

It is sometime in the near future and China is on the loose. The new President of China is a man named Tang. He is called the Raging Dragon.

China attacks and takes a small island in the South China Sea. The island, Itu Aba, has vast amounts of much needed natural gas deposits below it. It had been under the control of the Taiwanese and they are determined to get it back.

The Taiwanese capture a Chinese freighter bound for Itu Aba. It is carrying arms but also has a hold full of what are called “medical supplies.” When the Taiwanese discover the crates of “medical supplies” actually contain evidence of horrible crimes against humanity, they turn to the Americans for help.

What ensues is a potentially world war causing confrontation between the Chinese and Americans. And the Chinese Raging Dragon is crazy enough to target America's west coast with nuclear missiles.

I found this to be a satisfying novel of military suspense. In addition to the military aspect, the daughter of the U. S. President is on a Navy ship right in the middle of the action. She is a newly commissioned ensign and the President must weight the safety of his daughter against the needs of the nation and the world. The President and his family are Christians and his faith plays a part in his decisions.

I don't know enough about the military aspects of the book to judge the author's accuracy but it is certainly an enjoyable read. I did wonder about not using spy satellite information. The Chinese note that the U. S. satellites photograph Chinese bases every two hours, yet much of the action in the book is based on the U. S. not knowing where ships are in the South China Sea.

The book is very informative on the background material leading up to the altercation. It seemed to me that it could represent a possible scene in the near future.

Don Brown is the author of several novels about the U. S. military. He served five years in the U. S. Navy as an officer in the Judge Advocate General's Corps. He left active duty in 1992 nut remained on inactive status through 1999, rising to the rank of lieutenant commander. He and his family live in North Carolina.

Zondervan, 381 pages.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher for the purpose of this review.