RECIPROCITY

In Gilbert’s thriller, a retired Navy SEAL tracks down kidnapping victims and a former American special forces sniper mired in the underworld of the Philippines

At the outset of this final installment of the author’s JD Cornell Action Thriller trilogy, readers find erstwhile special forces operative Bill Taylor floundering and far from home in the Philippines. Troubled by the atrocities he has seen and committed in Afghanistan, Bill is now mostly dedicated to drinking to forget, a habit he supports by participating in underground martial arts fights. Meanwhile, back in the United States, former Navy SEAL JD Cordell is marrying the love of his life, Ellen (who also happens to be pregnant), a doctor he rescued from intense fighting in Niger. Soon after their nuptials, JD is contacted by the Spring Lotus Foundation, an organization in Thailand that aims to aid victims of the rampant sex trafficking in Southeast Asia. Two of the girls in their charge have been kidnapped by Lt. Colonel Fong, a corrupt Vietnamese civil servant with a penchant for violence and keeping sex workers. Fong is an old foe of JD’s, and he knows this kidnapping will draw the onetime SEAL back into his reach. JD sets out for the other side of the globe, unable to turn down the desperate Spring Lotus Foundation. As he seeks out both Bill Taylor (referred by a contact as a possible ally) and the missing girls, it comes to light that JD is much more personally involved in the situation than even he initially realizes: his mother, a Vietnamese immigrant living in the states, was the only family member to escape a brutal execution at the hands of Fong’s family. Gilbert’s novel is certainly well researched, as is evidenced by his descriptions of modern-day Vietnam: “They would only have to cross through Laos or Cambodia and enter Vietnam almost anywhere in the border region… It has recently become quite popular with Western tourists who now bicycle between these border countries to take photographs.” While readers looking for high-toned literary prose may not be satisfied, fans of action thrillers and military espionage will find more than enough intrigue to keep the pages turning.

A fast-paced race against time.