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Covert Action
Rogue State
In the dead of night, CIA paramilitary contractor Avery leads a ragtag team of deniable operators off the back of a C-130 and into the heart of Yemen.
Their mission is to locate and extract a dissident journalist marked for death by one of the White House’s closest allies.
The CIA believes the journalist possesses politically sensitive information with the potential to bring down the Saudi crown prince and shift the balance of power in the Persian Gulf.
The Saudis deploy their own hunter-killer force of foreign mercenaries led by a former Navy SEAL who shares a bitter, violent history with Avery.
From war-torn Yemen to Pakistan, through illicit smuggling hubs in Oman, and to a daring military raid to secure a consignment of hijacked weapons of mass destruction, ROGUE STATE is an intense action thriller that is sure to satisfy readers of Vince Flynn and Brad Thor.
Their mission is to locate and extract a dissident journalist marked for death by one of the White House’s closest allies.
The CIA believes the journalist possesses politically sensitive information with the potential to bring down the Saudi crown prince and shift the balance of power in the Persian Gulf.
The Saudis deploy their own hunter-killer force of foreign mercenaries led by a former Navy SEAL who shares a bitter, violent history with Avery.
From war-torn Yemen to Pakistan, through illicit smuggling hubs in Oman, and to a daring military raid to secure a consignment of hijacked weapons of mass destruction, ROGUE STATE is an intense action thriller that is sure to satisfy readers of Vince Flynn and Brad Thor.
484 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 24, 2020
72 people are currently reading
49 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
October 16, 2020
AXE TO GRIND.
“The Yemen Republic is an exotic mix of mountains, deserts, frequently rebellious tribesmen and guns. Maybe 16 million of them are in circulation.” – Brian Barron BBC Correspondent.
“Saudi Arabia has become a firm friend of the United States. As its influence dramatically expands in the world, Saudi Arabia has been not only a firm supporter of the peace process but a moderating and conciliatory force on a wide range of global issues.” – President Jimmy Carter 1978.
“The Saudis have never shown any respect for human rights, either now or in the past. Even a petty burglar faces having one of his hands chopped off. The liberal press in America prefers to ignore all this, although they don't hesitate to blacken the reputation of Iran.” - Muhammad Reza Pahlavi, Shah of Iran.
The concept of geopolitical pariah is an enduring concept. Whether it be the Ottoman Empire, Revolutionary France, the Soviet Union or more recently, Iran, there is always a country who is shunned, despised and held in fear by other countries for their destabilizing actions or horrid crimes. Very few pariah states can escape the sanction of the world. One pariah however has managed to buck the trend. It is a nation that deserves the title ‘Rogue State’ just as much as North Korea, or Pakistan, if not more so. This is the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Drunk on the power of petro dollars, since WW2, Saudi Arabia has become notorious for its vicious, internal human rights abuses and gained disgust around the world for the vulgarity and decadence that successive generations of the House of Saud have engaged in. More concerning is the Kingdom’s love of missionary work, propagating its violent, bigoted Wahabi Islam alongside its unofficial hobby of sponsoring Sunni Islamic Terrorism.
Yet, Saudi Arabia is not penalized, shunned or isolated by the international community. This is because through thick and thin, it has possessed a get out of jail free card, developing a nexus of political alliances throughout the west locked in by its oil money and arms purchases. Such a get out of jail free card has been taken advantage of and tested by the new heir apparent, “Mr Bone Saw” who seeks to gamble with his life and regional geopolitical stability itself, even if it may end up forcing the Kingdom’s allies to admit the reality after two decades. That Saudi Arabia is for all intents and purposes a Rogue State.
It’s in this backdrop, in a world where the 20th century Middle Eastern geopolitics have completely changed beyond recognition in which paramilitary thriller maestro Ross Sidor sets his latest book, Rogue State. Centred around the life and times of a lone American Mercenary Avery, Sidor explores the hidden covert wars on battlefields less well travelled than that of Basra or Peshawar. He does this with a cast of competent, but all too human professional shooters, and a wealth of real-world detail. And with his fourth book, Sidor takes his writing to the next level, in a tale where the past finally comes back to haunt Avery in the worst way possible. An opposition who is willing to cheat at the game of spies. An unspoken gentleman’s agreement that could end the world when activated. And most threateningly of all, the one man who hates Avery more than anyone on earth, coming out from the shadows. Now to the review. When a demon from the past literally comes to haunt you, is there anyway to slay it?
The novel begins on the southern border of Saudi Arabia. A journalist is fleeing with compromising electronic data in a hard drive. He has realized that the heir to the Saudi Throne is looking for another journalist’s head to nail onto a hunting trophy on his yacht’s stateroom wall and so would rather put as much distance as he can between himself and the Crown Prince. After a brief scare at the customs checkpoint, the journalist drives to the safety of the warzone that is Yemen. A few days later, the CIA’s Gulfstream G550, touches down at Djibouti’s Camp Lemonier. On board is a hastily cobbled team of shooters, overseen by a lone female CIA Case Officer and led by Avery. None of them have worked together before and none of them have ever been tasked with such a delicate undertaking. Normally bodyguards under the Scorpion Global Response Staff program, these guns for hire are being pressed into service by Langley to extract the elusive Saudi Journalist. The Seventh floor, seeing the opportunity to get leverage over the erratic heir to the House of Saud parachutes Avery and his team into Hadhramaut Governate Yemen. On landing they’re immediately blown by a Saudi proxy fighter who gets word to the main Sunni coalition military base.
The notification catches the attention of one Brett Kozar. Kozar is a very large American mercenary, formerly of DEVGRU, previously of the CIA and currently manager of several highly lucrative death squads who kill whom the Sunni Monarchs need killing. As the intel slowly gets to him on the movements of these mysterious gunmen, the sparks of homicidal rage ignite in a ranging dumpster fire. He hates Avery more than anyone on earth. He’s waited for years to have a chance at murdering the Army Ranger veteran. And the Crown Prince has paid him a lot of money to bring the corpse of the meddlesome journalist back to Riyadh. So begins a reckoning with the past. From the rocky eternal drought of Yemen, to the dunes of Oman and the Port of Karachi, Avery finds himself struggling to match punches, knife stabs and bullets with an enemy who is in a class of his own. Fuelled by personal hatred rather than clinical professionalism. Backed by a patron who knows how to spend his petro – dollars. Able to cheat using equipment that Avery simply doesn’t have on site. For one consummate professional, as long as his nemesis is breathing, there can be no rest until he’s alive or dead.
In Terms of plot, ROGUE STATE is a surprise treat. A feast of a thriller novel, the author has raised his game and cooked up one of the most complex and rich narratives to come out of the indie thriller market in 2020’s Coronavirus Season. Successfully capturing the fluctuating geopolitics of contemporary times which have become increasingly unstable over the years is difficult. But Mr Sidor manages it with a seamless grasp of how the Arab World and the warfare that takes place in it, has drastically changed from the seemingly static days of the 20th century. Whether it be the increasing barbarity of violence that the war on terror has spawned, the great renaissance of mercenaries and non-state actors as tools of nation states or the realpolitik pragmatism and profit that none of the power players now bother to hide under religious platitudes or buzzwords, ROGUE STATE captures the new Middle East where new pieces have emerged on the board, a board that is far more dangerous, unpredictable and heartless in how it can destroy the weak and stagnant.
Action and setting? Outstanding. In the previous three books, the author had gradually improved with the blood pumping covert warfare Avery found himself in, whether shoot outs in the woods in Georgia or vicious knife fighting in the drug smuggling tunnels under the northern Mexican Frontier. With Rogue State, Sidor has hit his stride. This is a story where the action set pieces roar with visceral, bone crunching grittiness. From spectacular house to house fighting in Yemeni Streets, to a horrifyingly meticulous take down of a container ship in the Indian Ocean and pitched warfare on the West Sudanese plains, ROGUE STATE is unrelenting in how fast the bullets fly, whether into friend or foe. The backdrops on which the action takes place also deserve mention. The author captures the dryness of Yemen with impressive vividness and avoids falling into post 9/11 fiction trap of all the sandy deserts merging into one unmemorable mass. From the hills of the centre of the country, to one of its main ports, Sidor’s ability to bring his story setting to life is one of the things where he has raised his game.
Research? The author continues to improve on how he blends fact and fiction. The story of Rogue State approaches with an old school journalist – like eye, the geopolitics of 2020, where nothing is true and everything, whether murder, torture or annihilation is permitted. From the cynical realpolitik behind the Sunni – Shia civil war which has put America and Israel into one of the most secure geopolitical positions they have been in the Middle East for a long time, to the continued hollowing out of conventional military capability, the author provides his readers of a vision of the world that has increasingly come to pass. Where the little non state actors, while not able to take on nations yet, can punch above their weight with devastating force. Case in point, the opposition. Essentially, it’s a boutique death squad financed by Saudi money and put together with American professionalism. Staffed by trained but utterly heartless killers, it’s also well equipped, whether with the latest UAV technology, tricked out black hawk helicopters, FN SCAR assault rifles and, most dangerous of all, Israeli computer technicians who can track anyone or anything down. The opposition is a testament to the author’s skill at research and showing how warfare in the Muslim world has changed radically.
Characters? A few standouts. I’ll focus on two, Avery and Kozar. First Avery. Sometimes characters who are not the protagonist tend to steal the show in some stories. Not in this one. Avery’s story arc is one of my true yearly highlights. The man has always been human. Sure, he’s a professional warrior and plays things constantly smart rather than stupid, but in Rogue State, he’s thrown off his game in a big way. Facing a threat that has even more tricks up his sleeve than Avery has in the field, our hero is forced to survive challenges like nothing he’s fought off in his career. And it’s this duel against the odds, against a foe who has the brains, brawn and bullets to completely bowl over their targets, which Sidor uses to show us what Avery is made of, even when he’s injured, even when the flesh in his arms is actually on the verge of being skinned off by a homicidal maniac with a literal axe to grind. It’s this sheer persistence and will to endure setbacks and come back to win the next round which is Avery’s true strength and what ensures that he’s finally standing alive when all is said and done.
Secondly, we have Kozar. Brett Kozar is the living, walking embodiment of the malice and dehumanization of the post 9/11 world. The malice and dehumanization are the result of sending good men to war, time and again and expecting them to not start giving into the temptation to cut moral corners along with throats. Kozar is one such person who gave in to the cutting of throats and corners a long time ago. A golden boy of DEVGRU who seemingly could do no wrong, Kozar, like many of his fellow SEALS soon fell victim to a murderously nihilistic culture where depravity and ultraviolence against innocent and guilty was venerated. Moving to the CIA, Kozar found himself a star paramilitary officer until Avery got in his way. Now a man without a country, Kozar sees an opportunity. With the geopolitical stars lining up, he seeks the chance to watch a world he’s grown to hate, and paymasters, present and former whom he’s grown to despise with every fibre of his being to burn along with the rest of the world. Few authors have been able to create a compelling terrorist who doesn’t correspond to the usual ideological actors. But with Kozar, Sidor has managed it.
Overall, Rogue State is a sophisticated, impressive military thriller, one where a talented writer has demonstrated his maturing, grasp on the craft of high stakes action adventure. A compelling plot which captures the destabilized, shattered world we live in. Violent action scenes brought to life along with vivid, richly drawn settings. Impeccable research which has a firmer grasp of contemporary geopolitical trends than most major news organizations along with the ins and outs of the paramilitary side of the spying game. And a gripping, vicious character arc between two professional killers trying to get the better over one another in a trans – national war they wage across a wild, barbaric wilderness.
Rogue State is a thriller for our times and one which shows the true talent and potential of its author and the sheer range of possibilities he could be capable of. While Avery is getting beaten down, knocked around and more stressed and tired as the year goes by, neither he, nor his creator Ross Sidor show no sign of an empty tank. May they soldier on, and may their future in the thriller fiction game be bright.
“The Yemen Republic is an exotic mix of mountains, deserts, frequently rebellious tribesmen and guns. Maybe 16 million of them are in circulation.” – Brian Barron BBC Correspondent.
“Saudi Arabia has become a firm friend of the United States. As its influence dramatically expands in the world, Saudi Arabia has been not only a firm supporter of the peace process but a moderating and conciliatory force on a wide range of global issues.” – President Jimmy Carter 1978.
“The Saudis have never shown any respect for human rights, either now or in the past. Even a petty burglar faces having one of his hands chopped off. The liberal press in America prefers to ignore all this, although they don't hesitate to blacken the reputation of Iran.” - Muhammad Reza Pahlavi, Shah of Iran.
The concept of geopolitical pariah is an enduring concept. Whether it be the Ottoman Empire, Revolutionary France, the Soviet Union or more recently, Iran, there is always a country who is shunned, despised and held in fear by other countries for their destabilizing actions or horrid crimes. Very few pariah states can escape the sanction of the world. One pariah however has managed to buck the trend. It is a nation that deserves the title ‘Rogue State’ just as much as North Korea, or Pakistan, if not more so. This is the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Drunk on the power of petro dollars, since WW2, Saudi Arabia has become notorious for its vicious, internal human rights abuses and gained disgust around the world for the vulgarity and decadence that successive generations of the House of Saud have engaged in. More concerning is the Kingdom’s love of missionary work, propagating its violent, bigoted Wahabi Islam alongside its unofficial hobby of sponsoring Sunni Islamic Terrorism.
Yet, Saudi Arabia is not penalized, shunned or isolated by the international community. This is because through thick and thin, it has possessed a get out of jail free card, developing a nexus of political alliances throughout the west locked in by its oil money and arms purchases. Such a get out of jail free card has been taken advantage of and tested by the new heir apparent, “Mr Bone Saw” who seeks to gamble with his life and regional geopolitical stability itself, even if it may end up forcing the Kingdom’s allies to admit the reality after two decades. That Saudi Arabia is for all intents and purposes a Rogue State.
It’s in this backdrop, in a world where the 20th century Middle Eastern geopolitics have completely changed beyond recognition in which paramilitary thriller maestro Ross Sidor sets his latest book, Rogue State. Centred around the life and times of a lone American Mercenary Avery, Sidor explores the hidden covert wars on battlefields less well travelled than that of Basra or Peshawar. He does this with a cast of competent, but all too human professional shooters, and a wealth of real-world detail. And with his fourth book, Sidor takes his writing to the next level, in a tale where the past finally comes back to haunt Avery in the worst way possible. An opposition who is willing to cheat at the game of spies. An unspoken gentleman’s agreement that could end the world when activated. And most threateningly of all, the one man who hates Avery more than anyone on earth, coming out from the shadows. Now to the review. When a demon from the past literally comes to haunt you, is there anyway to slay it?
The novel begins on the southern border of Saudi Arabia. A journalist is fleeing with compromising electronic data in a hard drive. He has realized that the heir to the Saudi Throne is looking for another journalist’s head to nail onto a hunting trophy on his yacht’s stateroom wall and so would rather put as much distance as he can between himself and the Crown Prince. After a brief scare at the customs checkpoint, the journalist drives to the safety of the warzone that is Yemen. A few days later, the CIA’s Gulfstream G550, touches down at Djibouti’s Camp Lemonier. On board is a hastily cobbled team of shooters, overseen by a lone female CIA Case Officer and led by Avery. None of them have worked together before and none of them have ever been tasked with such a delicate undertaking. Normally bodyguards under the Scorpion Global Response Staff program, these guns for hire are being pressed into service by Langley to extract the elusive Saudi Journalist. The Seventh floor, seeing the opportunity to get leverage over the erratic heir to the House of Saud parachutes Avery and his team into Hadhramaut Governate Yemen. On landing they’re immediately blown by a Saudi proxy fighter who gets word to the main Sunni coalition military base.
The notification catches the attention of one Brett Kozar. Kozar is a very large American mercenary, formerly of DEVGRU, previously of the CIA and currently manager of several highly lucrative death squads who kill whom the Sunni Monarchs need killing. As the intel slowly gets to him on the movements of these mysterious gunmen, the sparks of homicidal rage ignite in a ranging dumpster fire. He hates Avery more than anyone on earth. He’s waited for years to have a chance at murdering the Army Ranger veteran. And the Crown Prince has paid him a lot of money to bring the corpse of the meddlesome journalist back to Riyadh. So begins a reckoning with the past. From the rocky eternal drought of Yemen, to the dunes of Oman and the Port of Karachi, Avery finds himself struggling to match punches, knife stabs and bullets with an enemy who is in a class of his own. Fuelled by personal hatred rather than clinical professionalism. Backed by a patron who knows how to spend his petro – dollars. Able to cheat using equipment that Avery simply doesn’t have on site. For one consummate professional, as long as his nemesis is breathing, there can be no rest until he’s alive or dead.
In Terms of plot, ROGUE STATE is a surprise treat. A feast of a thriller novel, the author has raised his game and cooked up one of the most complex and rich narratives to come out of the indie thriller market in 2020’s Coronavirus Season. Successfully capturing the fluctuating geopolitics of contemporary times which have become increasingly unstable over the years is difficult. But Mr Sidor manages it with a seamless grasp of how the Arab World and the warfare that takes place in it, has drastically changed from the seemingly static days of the 20th century. Whether it be the increasing barbarity of violence that the war on terror has spawned, the great renaissance of mercenaries and non-state actors as tools of nation states or the realpolitik pragmatism and profit that none of the power players now bother to hide under religious platitudes or buzzwords, ROGUE STATE captures the new Middle East where new pieces have emerged on the board, a board that is far more dangerous, unpredictable and heartless in how it can destroy the weak and stagnant.
Action and setting? Outstanding. In the previous three books, the author had gradually improved with the blood pumping covert warfare Avery found himself in, whether shoot outs in the woods in Georgia or vicious knife fighting in the drug smuggling tunnels under the northern Mexican Frontier. With Rogue State, Sidor has hit his stride. This is a story where the action set pieces roar with visceral, bone crunching grittiness. From spectacular house to house fighting in Yemeni Streets, to a horrifyingly meticulous take down of a container ship in the Indian Ocean and pitched warfare on the West Sudanese plains, ROGUE STATE is unrelenting in how fast the bullets fly, whether into friend or foe. The backdrops on which the action takes place also deserve mention. The author captures the dryness of Yemen with impressive vividness and avoids falling into post 9/11 fiction trap of all the sandy deserts merging into one unmemorable mass. From the hills of the centre of the country, to one of its main ports, Sidor’s ability to bring his story setting to life is one of the things where he has raised his game.
Research? The author continues to improve on how he blends fact and fiction. The story of Rogue State approaches with an old school journalist – like eye, the geopolitics of 2020, where nothing is true and everything, whether murder, torture or annihilation is permitted. From the cynical realpolitik behind the Sunni – Shia civil war which has put America and Israel into one of the most secure geopolitical positions they have been in the Middle East for a long time, to the continued hollowing out of conventional military capability, the author provides his readers of a vision of the world that has increasingly come to pass. Where the little non state actors, while not able to take on nations yet, can punch above their weight with devastating force. Case in point, the opposition. Essentially, it’s a boutique death squad financed by Saudi money and put together with American professionalism. Staffed by trained but utterly heartless killers, it’s also well equipped, whether with the latest UAV technology, tricked out black hawk helicopters, FN SCAR assault rifles and, most dangerous of all, Israeli computer technicians who can track anyone or anything down. The opposition is a testament to the author’s skill at research and showing how warfare in the Muslim world has changed radically.
Characters? A few standouts. I’ll focus on two, Avery and Kozar. First Avery. Sometimes characters who are not the protagonist tend to steal the show in some stories. Not in this one. Avery’s story arc is one of my true yearly highlights. The man has always been human. Sure, he’s a professional warrior and plays things constantly smart rather than stupid, but in Rogue State, he’s thrown off his game in a big way. Facing a threat that has even more tricks up his sleeve than Avery has in the field, our hero is forced to survive challenges like nothing he’s fought off in his career. And it’s this duel against the odds, against a foe who has the brains, brawn and bullets to completely bowl over their targets, which Sidor uses to show us what Avery is made of, even when he’s injured, even when the flesh in his arms is actually on the verge of being skinned off by a homicidal maniac with a literal axe to grind. It’s this sheer persistence and will to endure setbacks and come back to win the next round which is Avery’s true strength and what ensures that he’s finally standing alive when all is said and done.
Secondly, we have Kozar. Brett Kozar is the living, walking embodiment of the malice and dehumanization of the post 9/11 world. The malice and dehumanization are the result of sending good men to war, time and again and expecting them to not start giving into the temptation to cut moral corners along with throats. Kozar is one such person who gave in to the cutting of throats and corners a long time ago. A golden boy of DEVGRU who seemingly could do no wrong, Kozar, like many of his fellow SEALS soon fell victim to a murderously nihilistic culture where depravity and ultraviolence against innocent and guilty was venerated. Moving to the CIA, Kozar found himself a star paramilitary officer until Avery got in his way. Now a man without a country, Kozar sees an opportunity. With the geopolitical stars lining up, he seeks the chance to watch a world he’s grown to hate, and paymasters, present and former whom he’s grown to despise with every fibre of his being to burn along with the rest of the world. Few authors have been able to create a compelling terrorist who doesn’t correspond to the usual ideological actors. But with Kozar, Sidor has managed it.
Overall, Rogue State is a sophisticated, impressive military thriller, one where a talented writer has demonstrated his maturing, grasp on the craft of high stakes action adventure. A compelling plot which captures the destabilized, shattered world we live in. Violent action scenes brought to life along with vivid, richly drawn settings. Impeccable research which has a firmer grasp of contemporary geopolitical trends than most major news organizations along with the ins and outs of the paramilitary side of the spying game. And a gripping, vicious character arc between two professional killers trying to get the better over one another in a trans – national war they wage across a wild, barbaric wilderness.
Rogue State is a thriller for our times and one which shows the true talent and potential of its author and the sheer range of possibilities he could be capable of. While Avery is getting beaten down, knocked around and more stressed and tired as the year goes by, neither he, nor his creator Ross Sidor show no sign of an empty tank. May they soldier on, and may their future in the thriller fiction game be bright.
December 27, 2023
This review was initially posted on September 12th, 2020. It has been updated to reflect the current version of the work.
The latest entry in Ross Sidor's Covert Action series, ROGUE STATE, is hands-down the best entry to date.
The stakes are even higher for Sidor's Avery, who is called into action to recover a journalist that has drawn the ire of Mohammad Bin Salman, the Saudi Crown Prince responsible for the murder of another journalist, Jamal Khashoggi. MBS has hired disgraced ex-DEVGRU SEAL Brett Kozar to track down and kill the journalist before he can turn his information over to the West.
Avery and Kozar have an axe to grind with one another: Avery was responsible for getting Kozar drummed out of Ground Branch due to his psychopathic behavior. When they cross paths on the page, it's very clear Kozar hasn't forgotten Avery, and we see that grudge play out in blood by the gallons.
Sidor is a master of research. As you turn ROGUE STATE's pages, you'll find yourself wondering what's fiction and what's reality. His action scenes are crisp, leaving them drenched in sweat and reeking of cordite. They will feel like they're with Avery through every step of his high-risk, deniable paramilitary operation and will not be able to turn the pages fast enough.
This is the first book in the series that has earned a full five stars from me because it corrects the biggest pitfall of the series thus far: screeching to a halt after the final action scene. There is now a proper epilogue that gives the reader a chance to catch their breath, absorb the enormity of events, and sets the stage for the next novel. It was initially posted on Sidor's social media as a separate work, but has been fully incorporated into the novel at large.
My only complaint now is that Avery spent most of the last quarter of the novel wanting to punch out a certain "ally" and we only get to hear about it in passing. We absolutely should have seen that play out, but that is not enough to dock a star.
ROGUE STATE is one of the finest thrillers I've read this year, and Sidor continues to hone his craft, establishing himself in a high-caliber category with few peers.
The latest entry in Ross Sidor's Covert Action series, ROGUE STATE, is hands-down the best entry to date.
The stakes are even higher for Sidor's Avery, who is called into action to recover a journalist that has drawn the ire of Mohammad Bin Salman, the Saudi Crown Prince responsible for the murder of another journalist, Jamal Khashoggi. MBS has hired disgraced ex-DEVGRU SEAL Brett Kozar to track down and kill the journalist before he can turn his information over to the West.
Avery and Kozar have an axe to grind with one another: Avery was responsible for getting Kozar drummed out of Ground Branch due to his psychopathic behavior. When they cross paths on the page, it's very clear Kozar hasn't forgotten Avery, and we see that grudge play out in blood by the gallons.
Sidor is a master of research. As you turn ROGUE STATE's pages, you'll find yourself wondering what's fiction and what's reality. His action scenes are crisp, leaving them drenched in sweat and reeking of cordite. They will feel like they're with Avery through every step of his high-risk, deniable paramilitary operation and will not be able to turn the pages fast enough.
This is the first book in the series that has earned a full five stars from me because it corrects the biggest pitfall of the series thus far: screeching to a halt after the final action scene. There is now a proper epilogue that gives the reader a chance to catch their breath, absorb the enormity of events, and sets the stage for the next novel. It was initially posted on Sidor's social media as a separate work, but has been fully incorporated into the novel at large.
My only complaint now is that Avery spent most of the last quarter of the novel wanting to punch out a certain "ally" and we only get to hear about it in passing. We absolutely should have seen that play out, but that is not enough to dock a star.
ROGUE STATE is one of the finest thrillers I've read this year, and Sidor continues to hone his craft, establishing himself in a high-caliber category with few peers.
August 27, 2020
Ross Sidor rises the stakes in the best possible way
The author‘s previous books were already among the most impressive entries into the genre of recent memory but what Ross Sidor accomplishes here is a spy tale of epic proportions. Great characters, fascinating locations and a timely plot ripped from today‘s headlines which is action packed and full of twists. Ross Sidor is by now without a shadow of a doubt one of the hottest rising stars of the military/spy thriller genre!
The author‘s previous books were already among the most impressive entries into the genre of recent memory but what Ross Sidor accomplishes here is a spy tale of epic proportions. Great characters, fascinating locations and a timely plot ripped from today‘s headlines which is action packed and full of twists. Ross Sidor is by now without a shadow of a doubt one of the hottest rising stars of the military/spy thriller genre!
September 15, 2020
Another Great Read!
Do yourself a favor and read this series! For fans of Thor, Clancy, Greany and Flynn you are in for a treat! Go back and purchase the first book in the series and start there. All of the books are great! Enjoy!
Do yourself a favor and read this series! For fans of Thor, Clancy, Greany and Flynn you are in for a treat! Go back and purchase the first book in the series and start there. All of the books are great! Enjoy!
November 24, 2020
Five star
What's not to love. Action o'plenty with interesting characters, locales and much more background story than your average action thriller. I usually laugh at Thor/Flynn comparisons but not in this case. This series is as good as any 'big budget' novel series out there. Try any Sidor, Nealen or Hildreth Jr. novels and you won't be disappointed.
What's not to love. Action o'plenty with interesting characters, locales and much more background story than your average action thriller. I usually laugh at Thor/Flynn comparisons but not in this case. This series is as good as any 'big budget' novel series out there. Try any Sidor, Nealen or Hildreth Jr. novels and you won't be disappointed.
June 19, 2025
Another excellent all action book from Mr Sidor 👍🏻
January 29, 2021
Why oh why do lazy readers give thistype of book 5 stars. It is mis-leading. Whilst this author seems to have a half decent grasp of geopolitics and the plots are very imaginitive but he lets himself down with trashy writting appealing to the lowest common reading level. Where to start? The protagonist is probably the most unlikable character ever to be considered a hero. His only purpose in life seems to inflict violence on other people. His focus on this suggests a special type of autism given his extreme lack of interpersonal relationships, i.e. everyone else is wrong and I want to hurt you! Also he is absolutley terrible at being an operator, he is constantly getting caught, shot (only ever in the chest plates), hit repeatedly in the head (never concussed), stabbed. The bad guys constantly escape his clutches and he's surrounded by obvious red shirts (Star Trek reference to the guys who're going to die).
Then we get to the action sequences. These are written in the style of a 14 year old, writing late at night, amped up on energy drinks. There is no tactical sense at all. YOU ARE SENDING HELICOPTERS IN THE ASSAULT AND NEGLECT TO ASK THE PRISONER ABOUT AAA! Really? Then the ground assult element is 10 minutes behind with no overwatch and only attack from one direction. No-one stationed at the flanks or rear to prevent the totally predictable bad guy escape. Sorry for the spoilers but it's nothing unobvious and that has been scratched out in the previous 3 books.
Then there's the hating, Trump I can understand (although unnamed) but obvious, but why go so strongly against the Navy Seals. He has them all lumped together as some sort of psycopathic criminal organisation that love steriods and killing. DEVGRU are top operators and like any elite military organisation they are able to police themselves and weed out the undesirables. Then there's the Israelis. Why?
Then there's the proof reading, i.e. none at all. Still using "a couple X" rather than "a couple of X". Constant misspellings, incorrect words and bad grammar.
I've read reviews putting him in the same league as Vince Flynn and co. No way, a long way off.
Then we get to the action sequences. These are written in the style of a 14 year old, writing late at night, amped up on energy drinks. There is no tactical sense at all. YOU ARE SENDING HELICOPTERS IN THE ASSAULT AND NEGLECT TO ASK THE PRISONER ABOUT AAA! Really? Then the ground assult element is 10 minutes behind with no overwatch and only attack from one direction. No-one stationed at the flanks or rear to prevent the totally predictable bad guy escape. Sorry for the spoilers but it's nothing unobvious and that has been scratched out in the previous 3 books.
Then there's the hating, Trump I can understand (although unnamed) but obvious, but why go so strongly against the Navy Seals. He has them all lumped together as some sort of psycopathic criminal organisation that love steriods and killing. DEVGRU are top operators and like any elite military organisation they are able to police themselves and weed out the undesirables. Then there's the Israelis. Why?
Then there's the proof reading, i.e. none at all. Still using "a couple X" rather than "a couple of X". Constant misspellings, incorrect words and bad grammar.
I've read reviews putting him in the same league as Vince Flynn and co. No way, a long way off.
October 13, 2021
Hard-hitting action in an all too real environment that also shows the very believable actions of real-life US politicians at the time of writing. Very enjoyable like Ross' other books in the series.
March 27, 2024
2 Books For The (Very Reasonable) Price Of One!
No lie - this is TWO stories (same overall plot) in two parts of the book.
Once again, the author has produced a work of the very highest order. I find myself so fully invested in these tales it’s almost like being there. The twists and turns, the tension are all a great aspect of the activity.
One other thing unique to these books is the amount of information in them. It’s like a veritable trove of real life facts, figures and details across a whole spectrum of areas and interests. BUY IT NOW!
No lie - this is TWO stories (same overall plot) in two parts of the book.
Once again, the author has produced a work of the very highest order. I find myself so fully invested in these tales it’s almost like being there. The twists and turns, the tension are all a great aspect of the activity.
One other thing unique to these books is the amount of information in them. It’s like a veritable trove of real life facts, figures and details across a whole spectrum of areas and interests. BUY IT NOW!
June 12, 2021
A Thoroughly Enjoyable Read
A good, full bodied story. From the CIA to PMC’s to rogue SEALS, a full out sprint to neutralize WMD on the loose. Filled with descriptive and action packed fighting scenes. A thoroughly enjoyable & engaging read.
A good, full bodied story. From the CIA to PMC’s to rogue SEALS, a full out sprint to neutralize WMD on the loose. Filled with descriptive and action packed fighting scenes. A thoroughly enjoyable & engaging read.
September 14, 2021
Wall to wall action!
Would not be surprised to see this story pop up in the newsfeeds in the near future. Not only does it reek of explosives and gunfire, the author has a great grasp of current events and MidEast politics.
Would not be surprised to see this story pop up in the newsfeeds in the near future. Not only does it reek of explosives and gunfire, the author has a great grasp of current events and MidEast politics.
April 8, 2021
A thriller of a action read
Another action filled story in the series with Avery as the main character. The book has twists that make it a great read.
Another action filled story in the series with Avery as the main character. The book has twists that make it a great read.
May 25, 2021
great
great book, just like the others in the series. lots of action with awesome characters. can't wait for the next book
great book, just like the others in the series. lots of action with awesome characters. can't wait for the next book
August 14, 2021
Great action book
Graphic descriptions of action and spot on weaponry usage is fascinating. Great character development and story line. Really fun book!
Graphic descriptions of action and spot on weaponry usage is fascinating. Great character development and story line. Really fun book!
January 3, 2022
Sleep Deprivation
Now that I've finished this book, perhaps one can return to regular sleep patterns. Mr Sidor has kept me awake; couldn't put it down. Thoroughly spell-binding!
Now that I've finished this book, perhaps one can return to regular sleep patterns. Mr Sidor has kept me awake; couldn't put it down. Thoroughly spell-binding!
March 25, 2025
Plenty of action and suspense
Avery takes on a dangerous team of rogue Seals trying to steal nuclear warheads. The people behind the nukes are many and powerful
Avery takes on a dangerous team of rogue Seals trying to steal nuclear warheads. The people behind the nukes are many and powerful
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