Product Description

U.S. Army Special Forces Captain Sandy Caine doesn't know that what happened to his father-who cracked under fire in Vietnam-and has grown into a thirty-year legacy of silence and deception perpetrated by the most powerful players in Washington.

Because in times of war, the first casualty is truth. And truth is the only thing that can set Sandy Caine free-if it doesn't kill him first.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1586764 in Books
• Published on: 2005-06-15
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 512 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Retired army colonel and reporter Hackworth's first novel, a fine-tuned military thriller, follows on the heels of his two acclaimed nonfiction critiques of the U.S. military, About Face and Hazardous Duty. While conducting a mission in Somalia, Special Forces Captain Sandy Caine (an eighth generation warrior) meets up with Sgt. Major Dan Perkins, a soldier who fought alongside his father, Lt. Alex Caine, in Vietnam. The elder Caine, in his final battle, was branded a coward by men who "witnessed" the fight from a chopper overhead. The only survivor, Medal of Honor winner and now Republican senator Jefferson Taylor, has confirmed the story. But Perkins tells Sandy that his father was a hero. Before he can explain further, he is killed in action. Haunted by Perkins's statement, Caine and his lover, Abigail Mancini, a Washington D.C.-based investigative reporter, embark on a search for the truth. The discovery of a conspiracy (involving weapons procurement for the military) and a cover-up (which tarnished Alex Caine's record) draws Sandy and Abbie into a tangled web of army generals and Beltway politicians. And Abbie's investigations turn up another survivor of Alex Caine's final battle. As they edge closer to the truth, Abbie, Sandy and anyone connected to them find their lives threatened by guns-for-hire. What's more, Sandy's grandfather, General Caine, seems to be up to his elbows in all of it. With the help of Sandy's A-Team army pals (an ethnic mix of Caldwell, Mayemura, Kruger and Santana), Sandy and Abbie declare war on the conspirators. Despite some improbable typecastingAall the Special Forces soldiers seem to be buff and brainy culinary mastersAHackworth has written a top-notch, action-packed thriller that also ruminates on the state of America's military establishment. Author tour. (Sept.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
Hackworth (Hazardous Duty: America's Most Decorated Soldier Exposes the Real Truth About the U.S. Military), a distinguished and decorated former army colonel, presents his first novelAa story of deceit and corruption ranging from Vietnam to the present. The book's hero is Sandy Craine, a young army captain bent on clearing his father's name. But what begins as Craine's personal journey soon gets politicalAand treacherousAas he and his ally at the Washington Chronicle begin uncovering a decades-old conspiracy. Hackworth tells a story that is both exciting and raw, even brutal, with a high body count. And although his dialog is often painfully terse, in the end this is a strong story by an author whose reputation and expertise guarantee a wide readership among those who enjoy modern military fiction.
-ARobert Conroy, Warren, MI
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
The ghost of the Vietnam War figures prominently in this action-packed novel of betrayal, greed, and ambition. Army Special Forces Captain Sandy Caine is from a long line of military men and war heroes. Sandy is haunted by his deceased father's service in Vietnam. And Sandy's issue is not just the regular attempts to decipher that war and what it did to the men who fought it but a very personal search for the secret behind a botched mission that branded his father a coward and another man a hero. The hero, closer to Sandy than his father, is Senator Jeff Taylor, a promising presidential candidate and a man with a sterling reputation that is threatened by Sandy's search for the truth. Sandy leads a multiethnic, testosterone-pumped Special Forces team on covert missions from Mogadishu to Bosnia, running into an ambitious reporter out to prove her mettle and make a name for herself as a correspondent. Abigail Mancini has the investigative skills Sandy needs for his personal mission and just the right charm to fill the emotional void in his life. Sandy and Abigail team up to uncover a plot between ambitious politicians and ruthless defense contractors to protect a lucrative aircraft deal and a long-buried secret. The covert operation is headed by the mysterious Mad Max, who communicates surreptitiously via the Internet and commands a secret force of ex-military men. Hackworth, a retired army colonel, delivers a cynical tale for lovers of the action novel and conspiracy theories. Vanessa Bush

Customer Reviews

The Price of Honor is a MUST READ
Every military officer who is stationed at the Pentagon or going to be stationed at the Pentagon must read this book. David Hackworth presents the reader with an exciting and sobering view of the weapons acquisition process "inside the Beltway." Hack is able to blend his considerable military experience, forged through three wars, with his incredible feats as a "front-line journalist" to give the reader a realistic view of how America fights its wars and the power struggles behind the weapon systems America uses. Hack takes the reader on a journey to the places he himself has been and allows the reader to feel the raw terror of being at a Special Forces Firebase being overrun by North Vietnamese; being on the ground, outgunned and out-generaled in Somalia; trying to figure out who is the worst of two evils in Bosnia; and fighting the funding battles inside the Pentagon. Hack is able to do this with incredible realism, because he has been to all those places and done all those things. Hack makes the reader part of the plot. He draws you in and makes you love and/or hate the principal characters. This is one of those books, you do not want to end. If you want to find out what life is like behind the scenes in the weapons systems acquisition business, read this book. If you want a snapshot of what Vietnam was like, read this book. If you want see what Somalia and Bosnia looked like during the latter part of the last Century, read this book. If you are a military officer, fighting the endless budgetary wars within the Pentagon, read this book.

This book has it all...action, sex, politics and mystery. Well written and accurately presented. This is a good book. Read It.

Sandy Mangold Colonel, USAF (Retired)

Roger That
As a former Special Forces senior NCO and a fan of David Hackworth personally and his writings, I was intrigued about what he could do with fiction. Colonel, ya did good! Some say the ending is not believable. I say, so what? It is a work of fiction, after all. It isn't supposed to be believable. It is pure escapism and a darn good read. I really could not put the book down until I was finished in two days. Hack's characters were believable as were their actions of men molded in combat and bound together like brothers. Men who would back each other up no matter the cost. Hack's descriptions of the movers and shakers operating in our government today is more than plausable, given the snakes crawling around in D.C. these days. You have a winner, Colonel. A sequel, perhaps?

The Price of Honor
I normally stay away from non-fiction authors who write fiction because their fiction usually is rarely as good as their non-fiction (the Late Carl Sagan comes to mind.) However, I made an exception for David Hackworth's first novel.

This exception was well worth it. I enjoyed the book as a good, well done read. The plot about the Military Industrial Complex (MIC) and greed is well thought out. I had a problem with some of the climax because some of it turned into stuff from a really bad conspiracy movie. This is a good solid adventure to be enjoyed.

Finally, I would like to make a comment about Hackworth being an SF groupie. That's total BS. He led the equivalent of a Ranger unit in Korea, and his actions in Vietnam from My Canh to his quest to improve small unit training showed that he walked the walk. I really believe that he respects those who live, not speak, the warrior spirit. And if they happen to be SF types, so be it.