Guest Review: Unholy Code

Summary: The Summer of Blood explodes. The U.S. is under siege from foreign jihadists and domestic terrorists. When a brilliant exploit strikes at the heart of the National Security Agency's own network, former NSA operative Lana Elkins discovers that it came from within the United States itself. More surprising still is the attacker: Steel Fist, a cyber-savvy radical white supremacist whose legions feed on his anti-Islamic exhortations. His popularity only grows when a jihadist team carries out a bold, but baffling, attack on the Louisiana coast, bringing ashore a lethal invader no one can see.

Most mysterious of all are Golden Voice, a hacker of unparalleled skill with a murderous agenda and a secret past, and Tahir Hijazi, a Muslim refugee from Sudan with his own shadowy history. When Tahir's young nephew starts dating Lana's daughter Emma, Steel Fist calls upon his fans to embark on a new mission: assassinate the entire Elkins family.

As extremists battle each other with Lana fighting both ends from the middle the conflict becomes deeply personal, the stakes tragically high.

In Thomas Waite's edgiest tale yet, battles savage the American heartland, shaking the very foundations of the world's mightiest nation. -- Marlborough Press

A few years ago my dad reviewed LETHAL CODE by Thomas Waite, so it just made sense that he'd review the third book in the series UNHOLY CODE: A LANA ELKINS THRILLER. He seems to like thrillers that deal with the U.S. government, and UNHOLY CODE seems especially timely because it deals with cyber-security! Here are his thoughts:

Having previously enjoyed LETHAL CODE by Thomas Waite, I looked forward to reading UNHOLY CODE. Lana Elkins is again the lead character. Lana was a former NSA employee who now runs her own cyber-security company and works closely with the U.S. government in preventing cyber-attacks.

UNHOLY CODE deals with the issues of cyber-hacking and terrorism but does it with a plethora of story lines that keeps the reader very busy keeping track of them. The story begins with the United States on high alert for foreign attacks due to a nuclear blast on the arctic shelf that left the U.S. coast line vulnerable. Then Jihadists execute two brazen attacks – one on a Louisiana coast town and one on a Gulf oil platform. At the same time, a tech-savvy radical white supremacist fires up his followers with anti-Islamist rhetoric and a sophisticated hacker is manipulating several cyber-systems to enhance a murderous agenda. To complicate matters further, Lana’s 17 year-old daughter, Emma, is dating the nephew of a Muslim refugee with a somewhat questionable past. These issues puts the entire Elkins family in grave danger.

These story lines are greatly enhanced by a lengthy list of interesting and believable characters. First is Lana who has just reunited with her ex-husband, Dan, a prior drug runner and recent DEA informer. She also has her hands full with a serious gambling addiction and a difficult and somewhat independent teenage daughter, Emma. Those readers who like their heroes to show their vulnerabilities will love Lana. The readers are introduced to white supremacist, “Steel Fist”, hacker supreme, “Golden Voice” and Tahir, the Muslim with questionable loyalties. For good measure, author Thomas Waite throws in a speed boat racer, Jimmy McMasters, and an oil rig worker, Ken, who display a level of heroism that is pure American. The author mixes in an ex-Russian soldier, Ludmila and heroic dogs Jojo, Cairo and Biko.

Somehow author Thomas Waite pulls these complex and varied storylines about terrorism, national security, murder, bigotry, love and loyalty together in a fast paced high tension novel. The UNHOLY CODE is a thriller with plenty of violence and twists and turns to keep the most avid readers of this genre happy.

Thanks to Booking Pap Pap for his review and to Saichek Publicity for providing a review copy of this novel.