Sword Point

I actually liked Swordpoint a little more than Team Yankee. I was a real life Cavalry Scout on a Bradley Fighting Vehicle during the Cold War and the Gulf War, I enjoyed the story from that perspective.

From Harold Coyle's first novel "Team Yankee," we learned that he could write extraordinarily well while threading much of his work around what was doctrine, at that time, against the ever present threat of a Soviet Union that was perceived to be bent on world domination. Fortunately, history proved this "threat" to have been a misperception. With "Sword Point," Harold Coyle proved that one, "Team Yankee" wasn't a fluke and two, that he was capable of even more depth in his story and that he is quite capable of delivering the "punch" in the story at the right time. This is why, when I wish to read a story involving mostly ground warfare and the people that must fight it, I look forward to a novel written by Harold Coyle. Although I truly do enjoy a Clancy novel in which he goes through all of the political machinations before during and after the fighting starts, what I truly like about Coyle's novels is that he doesn't spend too much time on that aspect and goes straight into the battles and the people behind those battles.From the Foreword, through twenty one chapters and the Epilogue, Harold Coyle placed a hauntingly poignant and quite relevant quote for that chapter, from Karl Von Clausewitz to Arthur Wellesley, each quote is "dead on" appropriate to that chapter. Also of great importance to this novel and for the likes of those from Publishers Weekly who didn't quite understand what was happening in this novel, is a brief description of the graphics and overlays used by the military and a glossary to help with some of the more common terminology used in the military. The premise:This is a story put to paper prior to the fall of the "iron curtain" that is told, with frightening clarity, of what could possibly have happened if during the later years of the cold war, the USSR had decided that a play for the Straight of Hormuz and Iran's oil fields would've been worth risking, turning the cold war into a very hot one.It is the predawn hours of May 25th in the Armenian province of the Soviet Socialist Republic and a Soviet Armored column makes an easy break across the border into Iran. They're headed straight for Tehran and further to the Straight of Hormuz, their mission; secure the country by removing those in power in Tehran and gaining control of the Arab nation's oil fields and reserves.The Politburo knows that the Iranians do not have the military power to stop them and doesn't believe the Americans will get involved. They're of course wrong as the United States immediately begins to mobilize its forces and heads for Iran in order to stop the USSR from gaining control of this key territory and destabilizing the oil industry.Along with the threat of the USSR gaining complete control of this key strategic area and the implied possibility that they might use chemical weapons against American and allied forces there is the very real threat that the Iranians, being besieged by both the greater Satan Americans who are there to "help" them,

I absolutely LOVE this book and this author. His stories are great eye candy and I cant get enough of them. Sword Point is a great book if you are interested in what a war between the US and the USSR would be like. The only flaw I sound in the book is the supply problem the Russians ran into. I can't imagine the Soviets really running out of gas, especially when their supply lines are far shorters than the Americans. Other than that small item, this book is great. I highly recommend it.

After serving in the M-2 Bradley's for some years, this book is a welcome site for the other infantrymen around. The commands are realistic. And, the pace is very good. While reading this book I relived all of my experiences in the field. This book was as good his his first, "Team Yankee".

Although we no longer have to fear from a Soviet invasion of Iran it is still agood book. The use of many Russian characters is a welcome sight indeed and the fact that the U.S. does'nt win all in the end is also something we don't see everyday. If you like extremely realistic land warfare and a very exciting storyline you have to read "SWORD POINT".