I’m killing every one of them — Lance Bear Wolf in “Shadow Tier”
As I read my advance reader copy of Steve Stratton’s debut novel “Shadow Tier,” I was transported back to the release of Tom Clancy’s “Clear and Present Danger” in 1989.
I was 16 at the time, and had just started reading Clancy’s novels (after my high school English teacher had given our class the assignment of writing a book report on a Clancy or Robert Ludlum novel during the spring semester that year).
I’d never read “grown up” thrillers like those before (most of the books I read were “movie tie-in editions” I picked up at the grocery store).
But within two months, I’d read “Patriot Games,” “The Hunt For Red October,” and “The Cardinal of the Kremlin” — not bad for a 16-year old!
My parents — wanting to encourage this newly-minted hobby — let me pre-order the hardcover of “Clear and Present Danger” at a Waldenbooks two blocks from our house.
That novel centers around the “war on drugs.” It posits a “what-if” scenario looking at the ramifications of the U.S. government sending military assets into Central and South America to combat the drug cartels.
Another thriller I read during that era was Dale Brown’s “Hammerheads” (hardcover, 1990), about an elite armed force (combining the U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Customs and Border Protection services) that used V-22 Ospreys operating from offshore platforms to combat the cartels.
In addition to both of those fictional examples, the U.S. invaded Panama in Dec. 1989 to depose de facto Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega, who was wanted for racketeering and drug trafficking.
It is in this geopolitical milieu that Stratton’s “Shadow Tier” operates.
“Shadow Tier” follows the exploits of Master Sergeant Lance Bear Wolf, who works with the U.S. Special Operations Command in Tampa, FL.
As the novel begins, Wolf’s Florida Army National Guard 20th Special Forces team is training with Mexico’s new Tier 1 unit Fuerza Especial de Reaccion.
Before Wolf knows it, a 30-day training assignment has turned into a full-blown operation against the Sinaloa Cartel.
In addition, Wolf’s mother Alma and stepfather Andrew Anderson are vacationing in Mexico — staying in a fifth-wheel camper they drove to Puerto Vallarta.
Following the counter-drug operation, Wolf is “voluntold” by his team’s leader to help his parents drive the camper back to Arizona.
What seems like a nice opportunity for the 32-year-old to spend some much-needed time with his family soon becomes “the worst decision of Lance Wolf’s life.”
The trio decides to stop for seafood at the El Gran Pez restaurant (at the recommendation of one of Wolf’s colleagues). As our protagonist is taking a bite of his grouper, members of the Cortes family (part of the Sinaloa Cartel) arrive on the scene.
An ensuing gunfight results in the death of Alma and Andrew. As a result of his tragic loss, Lance Bear Wolf sets out on a mission of revenge against the Cortes family and the Sinaloa Cartel.
Our hero — born on the Crow reservation in Montana — starts his own guerrilla war against the cartel. His plan is impulsive and unsupported by the government — and affects friends, relatives, and colleagues north and south of the U.S.-Mexico border.
One of the strengths of Stratton’s novel is his knowledge of military operations.
He began his career in the U.S. Army in the White House Communications Agency working for Presidents Ford and Carter. He also had a stint as a technical specialist with the U.S. Secret Service.
In 1986, Stratton was awarded his Green Beret. In the following years, he was deployed with the 20th Special Forces supporting active duty units on counter-drug and training missions in the SOUTHCOM region in countries like Colombia and Ecuador (a stint that lasted until 2000).
Stratton discusses his background (and “Shadow Tier”) in this interesting interview with David Temple on TheThrillerZone podcast:
His military experience (combined with his time as a civilian contractor) is evident in “Shadow Tier.”
Tools of the trade — like MH-60 Pave Hawk helicopters and various weaponry like custom-made Springfield Armory M25 White Feather rifles, Glock 19s, and Kalashnikov AK-103s — are included throughout the story’s narrative, giving things an authentic vibe.
As a lifelong Omahan, I’m not quite sure I understand the answer to the coded question “Is it raining in Omaha?” (featured in Chapter 45), but I enjoyed the reference to my hometown.
I also enjoyed references to other contemporary thriller writers like KR Paul, nods to “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan” and “Rambo,” and a mention of the influential guerrilla-warfare manual “The War of the Flea” (Paperback, 2002).
Overall, I found Steve Stratton’s “Shadow Tier” to be a fun debut. I’m excited to see where the Lance Bear Wolf series goes from here, and am looking forward to reading the next entry!
I had the opportunity to read “Shadow Tier” (in advance of its June 14, 2022 release) as part of the “Steve’s Squadron” promotion on the author’s website (it also included a Shadow Tier patch and a card from the author).
You can order your copy of “Shadow Tier” here.
If you are interested in learning more Steve Stratton and his novels, visit www.stevenstrattonusa.com and follow the author on Twitter @strattonbooks.
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