"It's a matter of grave urgency that we replace those misleading reports as soon as possible."
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Final Curtain: Saigon by Thomas H. Lee Trafford Publishing
book review by L.A.Webb
The year is 1974. Terry Lawson, an Air Force Lieutenant Colonel and computer systems developer, has been sent to Thailand on a "one-year remote assignment in operations." He hopes to reacquaint himself with the venerable C-130 he flew during the '68 Tet Offensive. However, troubling reports of faulty intelligence have the U.S. concerned. Pivotal supply ships are not reaching their destination and the North Vietnamese Army is busy plotting their next deadly move. Lawson's computer prowess is needed much more than his flying abilities. Sent to Saigon, Lawson becomes entwined with the CIA and a French-Vietnamese analyst, Lan Le Ninh. His objective is to fix a severely flawed intelligence reporting system in short order, but as the Communists continue to advance and bureaucrats blunder, he finds himself in a race against time. The result of his mission becomes inevitable as Saigon prepares to fall into the hands of the enemy.
Lee intimately knows the U.S. military and proves it in this fast-paced novel. Drawing on his twenty years of military service, he has crafted an intriguing main character with Lawson. The story doesn't take place deep inside the treacherous Vietnamese jungles or focus on harrowing fire fights. Instead, readers are given a front row seat to the administrative and bureaucratic maneuverings that helped shape the conflict. Fully developed characters, with a touch of military jargon, draw readers deep into Lawson's world. At the end, readers will be holding their breath, just as Lawson does, while discovering the fate of his Saigon friends and co-workers.