The Mullah's Storm

Thomas Young's book was fantastic. I highly recommend this book to anyone that likes "edge of your seat" type novels. I look forward to reading the sequel to this book.

I thought The Mullah's Storm was excellently paced and I invested myself heavily in Parson and Gold. I devoured this book in just over three hours of voracious reading, as each conflict resolution pulled me deeper into the story. Gold and Parson's long journey culminates in a final conflict with a crafty antagonist, that left me both exhilirated and partially disappointed with the ending. I understand the ending, but the "popcorn" reader in me wanted more resolution with Parson. I have already enthusiastically recommended this book to my friends, and am sending a signed copy to my father for his birthday. This is an excellent book from an author who I look forward to reading in the future.

In Afghanistan, the C-130 Hercules transport plane left Bagram Air Base to deliver a Taliban Mullah prisoner for interrogation when the storm hit. The heavy blowing snow made visibility impossible and a rapid drop in pressure made flying even more dangerous. However, a surface to air missile strikes the plane causing it to crash in the mountainous lethal Hindu Kush region. The crew has several dead or severely injured; the blizzard cuts them off from immediate rescue while the Taliban who know the area intimately are coming to rescue the Mullah. With broken legs keeping him trapped, Lieutenant Colonel Fisher assigns the highest ranking person standing navigator Major Michael Parson and Army Pashto interpreter and cultural awareness expert Master Sergeant Gold to escort the Mullah to the authorities. The enemy who heed the Mullah's call to bring hell to the Americans and their allies know the terrain made more treacherous by the storm while his two escorts already believe they are traveling in a frozen hell. The Taliban hunt them abetted by frightened villagers and the Mullah who prays for deliverance. This is an action packed military thriller that brings alive the stark reality of war in Afghanistan. The Air Force navigator and the Army interpreter are fully drawn characters, but it is the prisoner they escort who owns the plot (along with his country).as his beliefs profoundly contrast with prevalent Western philosophy. The suspense is summed up by author Thomas W. Young as an airman in Afghanistan: "..., what scared me the most wasn't the thought of getting shot down and killed. It was the thought of getting shot down and not killed..." Harriet Klausner

The Mullah's Storm is a fast-paced, thoroughly gripping novel that drew me in from the very first page. Written by Thomas W. Young, it tells the story of Air Force Navigator Parson and Sergeant Gold, who are escorting an important Taliban detainee back for interrogation when their plane is shot down in a blizzard in Afghanistan. With most of the plane's crew either dead or wounded, Parson and Gold make the decision to hoof it with their captive through hostile territory, never knowing who they will run into or if they will make it out alive. I liked this book because unlike some who attempt to write a novel that has anything to do with the military, Young writes from experience. He has served (and is still serving, if I read the bio right) in the Air National Guard in both Iraq and Afghanistan as well as other missions, and this gives his writing a gritty realism that made it hard for this reader to put his book down once I started it. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who likes military fiction.

Oh yes. If I had to sum up my feelings in two words, those would be it. Before I read this book I was coming off a three week summer vacation and I was looking for books from my "go-to" authors. You know, the one who never let you down because all of their books rock? While doing that I came across this one... and here is where I stopped. As you read you wonder why this story seems so "real". I won't give away the answer but with a tad bit of research you'll find out. Modern military-thriller readers will tear through this like a Hummer H1 through the deserts of the Middle East. While both of my parents proudly served in the Army, I have no clue of all the Army lingo and special language used to convey even a simple, "move to the left". Mr. Young handles it deftly without making you feel like a newbie. There is plenty of suspense to go along with the action as we follow Major Parson and Ms. Gold through some of the most unforgiving terrain this side of hell. They also have to fight some of the most evil and despicable people this side of hell. You're going to hear a lot of words like "thrilling", "gripping", "exciting", "heart-pounding", "captivating", and "fascinating" to describe this novel. And you know what? They'd all be right. You know you're into a book when your heart starts pumping fast to either 1. catch up with the action or 2. to match beats with the character's. Mr. Young also tells this story with some pretty raw emotion too. While certain people would like us to behave like mindless robots and have no feelings toward people trying to KILL US, Major Parson has (good or bad) other ideas. I found myself shouting "YES"!! when he would allow himself to be human, even for just a moment. Like I said earlier, this is a fantastic book that will keep you from the first snippet of action, through the mind numbing cold, to hunt of the enemy that runs, until the "end". When I read books this good and see that it's an author's debut... I can only wonder who were the idiot publishers that told this guy "no".