Holy War Read online

  MIKE BOND

  HOLY WAR

  ALSO BY

  MIKE BOND

  Saving Paradise

  Tibetan Cross

  The Last Savanna

  House of Jaguar

  CRITICS’ PRAISE FOR MIKE BOND’S NOVELS

  Holy War

  “Mike Bond does it again – A gripping tale of passion, hostage-taking and war, set against a war-ravaged Beirut.” − Evening News

  “A supercharged thriller set in the hell hole that was Beirut…Evokes the human tragedy behind headlines of killing, maiming, terrorism and political chicanery. A story to chill and haunt you.” − Peterborough Evening Telegraph

  “A profound tale of war, written with grace and understanding by a novelist who thoroughly knows the subject…Literally impossible to stop reading ...” − British Armed Forces Broadcasting

  “A pacy and convincing thriller with a deeper than usual understanding about his subject and a sure feel for his characters.” − Daily Examiner

  “A marvelous book – impossible to put down. A sense of being where few people have survived. The type of book that people really want to read, by a very successful and prolific writer.” − London Broadcasting

  “A tangled web and an entertaining one. Action-filled thriller.” − Manchester Evening News

  “Short sharp sentences that grip from the start … A tale of fear, hatred, revenge, and desire, flicking between bloody Beirut and the lesser battles of London and Paris.” − Evening Herald

  “A novel about the horrors of war … a very authentic look at the situation which was Beirut.” − South Wales Evening Post

  “A stunning novel of love and loss, good and evil, of real people who live in our hearts after the last page is done…Unusual and profound.” − Greater London Radio

  Saving Paradise

  “Bond is easily one of the 21st Century’s most exciting authors … An action packed, must read novel … taking readers behind the alluring façade of Hawaii’s pristine beaches and tourist traps into a festering underworld of murder, intrigue and corruption … Spellbinding readers with a writing style that pits hard-boiled, force of nature-like characters against politically adept, staccato-paced plots, Saving Paradise is a powerful editorial against the cancerous trends of crony capitalism and corrupt governance.” – Washington Times

  “Bond’s lusciously convoluted story provides myriad suspects and motives … Bond skillfully adds new elements to the mystery, including several energy corporations and no less than three femmes fatales … In the end, readers may find it nearly impossible to guess the killer, but they’ll enjoy the trip. A complex, entertaining whodunit.” – Kirkus Reviews

  “Within the first page, I was hooked … From start to finish, I never put it down.” – Bucket List Publications

  “A wonderful book … quite powerful … going to create a lot of discussion.” – KUSA TV, Denver

  “A fascinating book.” – KSFO, San Francisco

  “Saving Paradise is one heck of a crime novel/thriller and highly recommended!” – Crystal Book Reviews

  “You’re going to love the plot of this book.” – KFVE TV

  “He’s a tough guy, a cynic who describes the problems of the world as a bottomless pit, but can’t stop trying to solve them. He’s Pono Hawkins, the hero of Mike Bond’s new Hawaii-based thriller, Saving Paradise … an intersection of fiction and real life.” – Hawaii Public Radio

  “A wonderful book that everyone should read.” – Clear Channel Radio

  “Mike Bond’s Saving Paradise is a complex murder mystery about political and corporate greed and corruption … Bond’s vivid descriptions of Hawaii bring Saving Paradise vibrantly to life. The plot is unique and the environmental aspect of the storyline is thought-provoking and informative. The story’s twists and turns will keep you guessing the killer’s identity right up until the very end.” – Book Reviews and More

  “A very well written, fast-paced and exciting thriller.” – Mystery Maven Reviews

  Bond “incorporate(s) a lot of the reality of wind turbines and wind energy hype and fantasy into Saving Paradise along with a very spectacular character, former Special Forces veteran Pono Hawkins ...” – Chris DeBello, Issues and Ideas, WNNJ-FM

  “A fast pace thrill ride that I think a lot of my mystery junkie readers would love … The descriptions of Hawaii are beautiful and detailed.” – Romancebookworm’s Reviews

  “Saving Paradise is an absolutely fabulous book … a wonderful book.” – Art Zuckerman, WVOX

  “An absolute page-turner” – Ecotopia Radio

  “Saving Paradise will change you … It will call into question what little you really know, what people want you to believe you know and then hit you with a deep wave of dangerous truths … Saving Paradise is a thrill ride to read and pulls you in and out of plots until you don’t know who to trust or what to do any more than the character. You trust no one, you keep going, hoping not to get caught before figuring out what is happening. Mike Bond is not only an acclaimed novelist, but an international energy expert and a war and human rights correspondent that has lived and worked in many war torn areas of our world. His intellect and creativity dance together on the pages, braiding fiction into deeper truths about ourselves, our nature, our government, our history and our future.” – Where Truth Meets Fiction

  Saving Paradise is a rousing crime thriller – but it is so much more. Pono Hawkins is a dedicated environmentalist, a native of Hawaii who very much loves the islands but regrets what they have become. Pono is a thinker, a man who sees a bigger picture than most, and Mike Bond deftly (and painlessly) uses the character to instruct the reader in Hawaiian history from an insider’s point-of-view. Saving Paradise is a highly atmospheric thriller focusing on a side of Hawaiian life that tourists seldom see. – Book Chase

  Tibetan Cross

  “A thriller that everyone should go out and buy right away. The writing is wonderful throughout, and Bond never loses the reader’s attention. This is less a thriller, at times, than essay, with Bond working that fatalistic margin where life and death are one and the existential reality leaves one caring only to survive.” − Sunday Oregonian

  “A tautly written study of one man’s descent into living hell … Strong and forceful, its sharply written prose, combined with a straightforward plot, builds a mood of near claustrophobic intensity.” − Spokane Chronicle

  “Grips the reader from the very first chapter until the climactic ending.” − United Press International

  “Bond’s deft thriller will reinforce your worst fears about the CIA and the Bomb … A taut, tense tale of pursuit through exotic and unsavory locales.” − Publishers Weekly

  “One of the most exciting in recent fiction … an astonishing thriller that speaks profoundly about the venality of governments and the nobility of man.” − San Francisco Examiner

  “It is a thriller … Incredible, but also believable.” − Associated Press

  “Murderous intensity … A tense and graphically written story.” − Richmond Times-Dispatch

  “The most jaundiced adventure fan will be held by Tibetan Cross … It’s a superb volume with enough action for anyone, a well-told story that deserves the increasing attention it’s getting.” − Sacramento Bee

  “Intense and unforgettable from the opening chapter … thought-provoking and very well written.” − Fort Lauderdale News

  “Grips the reader from the opening chapter and never lets go.” − Miami Herald

  A “chilling story of escape and pursuit.” − Tacoma N
ews-Tribune

  “This novel is touted as a thriller – and that is what it is … The settings are exotic, minutely described, filled with colorful characters.” − Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

  “Almost impossible to put down … Relentless. As only reality can have a certain ring to it, so does this book. It is naked and brutal and mind boggling in its scope. It is a living example of not being able to hide, ever … The hardest-toned book I’ve ever read. And the most frightening glimpse of mankind I’ve seen. This is a 10 if ever there was one.” − I Love a Mystery

  The Last Savanna

  “Tragic and beautiful, sentimental and ruthless, The Last Savanna is a vast and wonderful book.” – NetGalley Reviews

  “Mike Bond takes readers into a literary safari of Africa’s elephant poaching war with The Last Savanna, a novel that expertly captures the ravenous, chaotic and frustrating battles raging across the continent … Bond, who himself hiked and extensively explored Africa as a human rights journalist, leverages his first-hand experience to craft a novel that reads authoritatively and paints a vivid picture of life in the savanna … Bond’s knowledge of the Swahili language, local culture and even the wildlife result in what may be one of the most realistic portrayals of Africa yet … The novel is not for the timid, featuring intense descriptions of battle injuries, shocking portrayals of the emotional state of men at war and fully exploring the survival instinct of animal and human alike … Bond’s specialty in producing thrillers that editorialize human weakness and bring to light pressing world problems shines in The Last Savanna. Dynamic, heart-breaking and timely to current events, Bond’s latest book is a must-read.” – Yahoo Reviews

  “An intense and emotional story about the African wilderness … masterfully done … so many characters and themes that come into this, it’s amazing … Beyond being a romantic thriller, the elements of survival and the nature of both an animal and man itself really came together … The Last Savanna is intense, beautiful and completely captures the powerful emotion in this story. I was blown away, and it taught me a lot about the dangers and mysteries of Africa.” − RealityLapse Reviews

  “A manhunt through crocodile-infested jungle, sun-scorched savannah, and impenetrable mountains as a former SAS man tries to save the life of the woman he loves but cannot have.” − Evening Telegraph

  “A powerful love story set in the savage jungles and deserts of East Africa.” − Daily Examiner

  “Pulsating with the sights, sounds, and dangers of wild Africa, its varied languages and peoples, the harsh warfare of the northern deserts and the hunger of denied love.” − Newton Chronicle

  “A gripping thriller from a highly distinctive writer.” − Liverpool Daily Post

  “Exciting, action-packed … A nightmarish vision of Africa.” − Manchester Evening News

  “The imagery was so powerful and built emotions so intense that I had to stop reading a few times to regain my composure.” − African Publishers’ Network

  “An unforgettable odyssey into the wilderness, mysteries, and perils of Africa … A book to be cherished and remembered.” − Greater London Radio

  “The central figure is not human; it is the barren, terrifying landscape of Northern Kenya and the deadly creatures who inhabit it.” − Daily Telegraph

  “An entrancing, terrifying vision of Africa. A story that not only thrills but informs … Impossible to set aside or forget.” – BBC

  “The thrill of the chase when the prey is man – the only decent prey.” − The Times

  “Mike Bond’s The Last Savanna is shot through with images of the natural world at its most fearsome and most merciful. With his weapons, man is a conqueror – without them he is a fugitive in an alien land. Bond touches on the vast and eerie depths that lie under the thin crust of civilization and the base instinct within man to survive – instincts that surpass materialism. A thoroughly enjoyable read that comes highly recommended.” − Nottingham Observer

  House of Jaguar

  “A riveting thriller of murder, politics, and lies.” − London Broadcasting

  “Five Stars … Excellent story, every page takes the reader rushing forward. Horrific ending, strong images last long after finished reading.” – NetGalley Reviews

  “Tough and tense thriller.” − Manchester Evening News

  “A riveting story where even the good guys are bad guys, set in the politically corrupt and drug infested world of present-day Central America.” − Middlesborough Evening Gazette

  “A thoroughly amazing book … Memorable, an extraordinary story that speaks from and to the heart. And a terrifying depiction of one man’s battle against the CIA and Latin American death squads.” – BBC

  “Vicious thriller of drugs and revolution in the wilds of Guatemala, with the adventurer hero, aided by a woman doctor, facing a crooked CIA agent. The climax is among the most horrifying I have ever read.” − Liverpool Daily Post

  “House of Jaguar is based upon Bond’s own experiences in Guatemala. With detailed descriptions of actual jungle battles and manhunts, vanishing rain forests and the ferocity of guerrilla war, House of Jaguar also reveals the CIA’s role in both death squads and drug running, twin scourges of Central America.” − Newton Chronicle

  “Not for the literary vegetarian – it’s red meat stuff from the off. All action … convincing.” − Oxford Times

  “Bond grips the reader from the very first page. An ideal thriller for the beach, but be prepared to be there when the sun goes down.” − Herald Express

  for Jude, Lucas, and David

  God is well able to effect his purpose,

  but the greater part of men do not understand.

  −Koran, XII

  Ye lust, and have not: ye kill,

  and desire to have, and cannot obtain:

  ye fight and war, yet ye have not.

  − James, IV

  Time’s short your life’s your own

  And in the end we are just dust n’ bones.

  − Guns N’ Roses

  Beirut was a paradise when I first arrived there as a very young man. The golden sun and brilliant sea, the ancient streets, the hubbub of cultures, the food and wines, the tanned and sensual young women, the perfume of many million flowers, the pine hills and cold white peaks, all imbued it with a near-sacred substance. This, I felt, is a place where all peoples come together, vibrant with history, wisdom, lust, and delight.

  It was soon a battlefield of smashed buildings and bloody streets, its Phoenician treasures blasted, its forests and vineyards burned, its people huddled in bombed-out basements or sniping at each other from shattered windows, hating, killing, raping, pillaging. I survived by luck, by tricks, even in dark places where discovery was death. Everywhere I lived is gone, every good friend is dead. I refuse to let them die, to see it gone, without a testament, a memory.

  As the years went by, broken-hearted by Beirut, I tried to understand – why do we war? Now, after having covered wars on three continents, I can find no answer beyond the experience itself. What I mean is this: only when we have lived war do we hate and know it well enough to make it stop. For in every country, every city, neighborhood and family, Beirut is waiting.

  If everyone could live Beirut, I thought, we might war less. If I could tell one small true story of Beirut, let the reader fear the bullets, crouch beneath the thundering bombs in airless cellars as the concrete floors come crashing down, see loved ones die, grope for passion and belief amid terror and death, that it might make a difference.

  Every book must be a failure because it fails to say so much. Today fiction withers because it is too literary, and ceases to be relevant. But if we are to learn we must do so through the heart, not through the mind – a book that does not touch the heart conveys no experience at all. If readers turn away, we need look no further t
han ourselves.

  Like many people I still live Beirut every day, every night, and will probably the rest of my life. I have tried in Holy War to tell its story.

  1

  THE TROUBLE’S Sylvie, Yves decided. How she's never happy with what I am, what I'm doing. Wants me home.

  He stretched in his army cot, twisting his back to let the muscles flex up and down his shoulder blades. Shards of sharp blue through the sandbagged window. Another lovely day in the lovely Levant. Red-golden sun through the pines, the green hill sweeping down to the sea. Incense of cedars, salty cool wind, warm earth; promise in the fragrant air, the buzzing insects, the gulls crying over the waves.

  Off duty. Luxury of nowhere to go and nothing to do. Nowhere to go but a sandbagged perimeter and sentried corridors, maybe a quick trip to town in an armored car, the machine gun nervously scanning, the driver watching through the hot slit for an RPG, some mad kid with a Molotov. Vive la France, damn you, for sending us here...

  He rolled out of his cot and ambled down the corridor to the WC. Why do all urinals smell like Beirut? Ask the philosophers, he decided, the ones with all the answers. Yawning, scratching his overnight whiskers and under his arms, he wandered to the officers' mess, found a dirty cup and rinsed it, clamped fresh espresso into the machine, drew up and pulled down the handle, two streams of black gold dribbling into the cup.

  Makes you feel better already. He filled the cup to the brim and stood by another window, peering through chinks in the sandbagged concrete blocks at the day growing bright blue. Sylvie would still be in bed, the Paris light gray through the blinds. He imagined waking beside her, her lovely sleepy smell, the roughness of her morning voice, the smoothness of her skin.

  In Normandy, Papa would already be out in his garden, watering, picking on the weeds, Mama taking fresh brioches out of the oven, Papa coming in with a handful of onions and leeks, taking up his coffee cup in his big fist. André on maneuvers somewhere, playing at war. Trying to get stationed back here, where there's plenty of war. But none for La France, for the Multinational Force, impartially observing the slaughter. The United fucking Nations: you want to murder each other, we'll pay to watch.