CAVEAT GAMES
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ISBN: 978-1-4116-0877-1
Publisher: Lulu.com
Rights Owner: Lulu Press, Inc.
Copyright:
© 2005 by Michael Wegman Standard Copyright License
Language: English
Country: United States
Edition: 2nd
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Printed: 285 pages, 6" x 9", perfect binding, black and white interior ink Description:When the world’s wealthiest Internet gambling company loses a courier jet somewhere in the Caribbean, the navy is tasked with search operations. At Guantanamo Bay, Lieutenant Jill Sinclair, a savvy underwater acoustics specialist, is given the assignment. After locating the plane, Jill scuba dives the wreckage and finds a mysterious black box containing scandalous trade secrets sure to send shock waves through the world of professional sports. Caught in an accelerating storm of deception, Jill Sinclair battles government corruption that seeks to silence her and discovers the truth about where gambling profits are being funneled. Betrayed by those she trusts, she finds herself fighting to save her life and the lives of thousands of unsuspecting American Citizens embarked in the world's newest and largest cruise ship--trapped in the crosshairs of a September 11th magnitude terrorist plot. Keywords:Listed in: |
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K.A.Breen
Plantation, FL
You write in a way that captures the reader's interest
and keeps their attention from the start to the exciting finish. It is a captivating story and I'm glad I took the time out of my hectic schedule to sit down and read it.
You made me wish I was that LT at GITMO diving for answers. Bravo Zulu to you -- You are an amazing writer Commander Wegman and I look forward to reading the next book in your series. I simply can't wait for the movie and the sequel.
Very respectfully and with warmest regards,
LCDR Sharon Chan, Public Affairs Officer, US Navy Reserve.
I am looking forward to the second novel from this new talent and hope to learn more about the underworkings of the navy, the us military, divers and stock brokers--the stuff that has made Caveat Games such a worthwhile read.
MICHEAL WEGMAN IS AS GOOD OR BETTER THAN TOM CLANCY'S NOVELS. IT WOULD MAKE A GREAT MOVIE THRILLER!
Dick Goodley
Kinston, NC
of every kind abounds in this taut, adrenalin-laced thriller. Author Michael
Wegman draws upon his experiences as a career naval reserve officer and
investment advisor to spin a contemporary tale of international intrigue.
Lieutenant Jill Sinclair is onboard the destroyer USS Admiral De Grasse, bound
for conducting refresher training at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, little knowing what
lies in store for her. When assigned the mission of searching for a lost courier
jet in the Caribbean, she unwittingly stumbles upon a highly dangerous
operation. After locating the sunken aircraft, Jill disobeys orders and scuba
dives to verify the identity of the wreckage. While exploring, she discovers a
briefcase handcuffed to a drowned man's body inside the passenger cabin.
The mysterious box reveals a computer hard-drive consisting of scandalous
information about the aircraft owner David Choi and his billion-dollar company
Global Advertising, Incorporated (GLAD). It divulges David's numerous unethical
and illegal activities, including Internet gambling, extortion, payoffs to
professional athletes for throwing matches, brutal killings, and arms dealing.
The data also contains evidence to show payments to foreign nationals for
enormous amounts of high explosives, and the involvement of several government
agents in all these questionable deeds.
David stops at nothing to recover the incriminating information. He invests
millions of dollars with Jill's stockbroker husband Ross Sinclair in order to
use him to his own advantage. The scheming villain sets up Ross and uses
photographs of his in various compromising positions to blackmail him into
cooperating and retrieving the hard-drive from his wife. Subsequently, he
kidnaps Ross and holds him prisoner on his personal explosives-laden ship.
Heedless of the risks to her career and reputation, Jill relentlessly endeavors
to expose the Internet-based sports betting scandal, and innovatively creates
the CAVEAT GAMES Website to get worldwide media attention. She fiercely battles
to save her own life, and the lives of almost four thousand passengers embarked
on the maiden voyage of the world's largest cruise ship American Patriot - from
a terrorist attack ruthlessly masterminded by David.
"Caveat Games" has all the ingredients to make it a bestseller as well as a
blockbuster movie - highly believable characters, sensational plot, topical
situations, and edge-of-the-seat suspense. This outstanding debut novel clearly
announces the arrival of a major new talent.
BookWire Review
May 31, 2005
The Review
The narrative opens as Naval Lt. Jill Sinclair is jolted awake by the sound of the telephone. On board a warship moving toward Cuba she was loathe to give up the dream she had been enjoying. As yet Jill is unaware that her life and that of NFL Quarterback Terry Jackson will be caught up in the same dangerous scheme. Terry and his wife Patty live in Pensacola. Jill a skilled underwater acoustics specialist is an enlisted sailor now commissioned. A plane crash, dives to recover the black box, gambling and danger all are part of the developing tale. Jill struggles against government venality, stumbles upon secrets sure to stun the world of professional sports and finds herself facing an increasing fume of mendacity. Jill receives an intriguing email from her husband. Ross warns Jill to watch her back and she is more than a little puzzled why he might be worried. Jill disobeys an order, battles makes a discovery that could lead to more danger than she had bargained for and finds herself confined to quarters. A kidnapping aboard a ship loaded with explosives, Jill worries while confined in the Guantanamo Bay Brig and terrorists willing to sacrifice themselves for their cause all move the narrative toward the conclusion.
Writer Wegman is a career naval reserve officer who calls upon his knowledge of the military to produce a meritorious work filled with esotericism, excellent dialogue and zestful action. Fans of fast paced suspense thrillers are offered plenty of each from this rousing chiller. I enjoyed the character Jill Sinclair. She is a strong woman with firm ideas as to right and wrong and what to do. Sinclair doesn’t back down when she thinks she is right. Wegman deftly capture the essential quality of mystification in this well written work. Enough red herrings are tossed into the mix to keep the reader on their toes as the story line continues. While easily read Caveat Games is not a formula work with the ending discerned by the end of the first few pages. Wegman’s exquisitely masterminded plot is set against a tapestry of engaging characters, powerful circumstances and compelling situations in this keenly focused tale. Reader interest is piqued from the opening lines as we are drawn into Jill Sinclair’s tantalizing dream and is held fast as the reader moves from sea to land and back again.
Good book for a long afternoon spent lazing while reading in the shade of a tree on a summer afternoon. Caveat Games is a good addition to the home library pleasure reading shelf, the home school high school level reading program and for those who simply enjoy a well written, good thriller.
Caveat Games is available as both eBook download and paper versions. I was sent a soft cover print edition for review. I do not keep all books I receive for review; Caveat Games is one that I will be keeping.
Enjoyed the read, happy to recommend.
Reviewed by: molly martin
http://www.angelfire.com/ok4/mollymartin
http://www.AuthorsDen.com/mjhollingshead
Genre: Political Thriller
Readership: mid teens - adults
The story opens with an NFL quarterback finding himself in the awkward position of having to throw a game in order to avoid having his most damaging secrets exposed. In return for throwing the game he will receive an enormous cash payoff deposited in a private offshore account. The game doesn’t go as planned thus the quarterback becomes yet another unfortunate athlete who meets up with an untimely end.
David Choi loves the power that massive amounts of cash give a man and as a man with an impressive personal agenda, David has no qualms about using it to buy and sell people as freely as cars. His staff includes a stable of FBI agents ready and willing to do his bidding at any time so when one of his private aircraft is lost carrying some very sensitive company records David has the infrastructure in place to aid in the recovery of that information. Unfortunately someone has beaten him to it, someone with principles and a conscience who is also a member of the armed services.
Lieutenant Jill Sinclair loves her tour of duty on board the USS Admiral De Grasse now bound for refresher training at Guantanamo Bay. When requested to assist in locating a missing aircraft, Jill remembers the sheen of oil on the water while making for harbor and makes an educated guess where to begin the search. Within short order the downed plane is discovered and making a fateful decision to buck orders, Jill decides to dive the wreck to be certain it’s the missing aircraft. In the wreck Jill discovers a case still handcuffed to one of the victims. Recovered from the case is a mysterious black box that is later found to contain reams of incriminating information regarding the assorted business dealings of David Choi and his crooked internet gambling organization. Worse, there is a file named Ordnance with information that could only mean something really big was in the works.
Inadvertently Jill sets into motion a complicated series of events that put several lives in extreme danger as David will stop at nothing to retrieve the sensitive information and plow ahead with a diabolical terrorist attack aimed at the U.S.
Overall this was a great read, fast paced with enough technical information to be interesting without bogging the story down. The characters are well developed and believable showing the author has a nice grasp of human behavior. My main complaint is with the author’s tendency to end many of the chapters and subchapters with cryptic one liners such as “In a matter of hours, she would tempt fate as a crewman of a different type…” After the first few times it became repetitive and unnecessary. The other main complaint regards the ending, which while gratifying also left considerable doubt as to how it happened. Don’t let this dissuade you from getting a copy of this thoroughly engrossing book and be warned, don’t read at bedtime and expect to go to sleep!
-Sandy Amazeen
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Reviewed by Rick Mohr
Forewordreviews
A political thriller is never easy to write, especially one that is such an engrossing and captivating read that it is difficult to put down. The characters must be engaging with a clear hero and villain, and the plot must be both plausible and topical. Wegman's debut novel, Caveat Games, meets all of these criteria and more.
When the world’s wealthiest Internet gambling company loses a courier jet in the Caribbean, Naval Lieutenant Jill Sinclair is sent on a search and recovery mission. Against orders, she pulls a briefcase from the sea, and inside is a black box that ties businessman David Choi to a litany of crimes from terrorism and extortion to organized crime and murder. It all seemed like a bad dream. The scandal was unthinkable yet there it was, she thinks. In the meantime, her husband Ross has unknowingly agreed to do business with Choi who not only owns the airplane, but will do anything to recover the incriminating information inside. Wegman foreshadows the ever tightening and frightening connection between Choi and the Sinclair’s in this email from Ross to Jill: my client David Choi thinks you have located his aircraft. This guy has given me millions to invest for him and has promised to invest millions more. We certainly could use the income, especially with you getting out of the navy, but quite frankly this guy scares me. What ensues is Jill’s race to stop Choi before his terrorist plot becomes a reality.
Wegman, a career naval officer, has fashioned a nonstop thrill ride that includes government corruption, an on-line gambling empire that expands across all national boundaries, and Anti-American terrorism lead by Choi, a truly evil character. Choi is one of the most refreshingly despicable villains to appear on the printed page since the creation of Hannibal Lecter. Choi has no remorse over his actions, and uses people as an end to his own means. He has no problem when it comes to pitting governments, institutions, and even religious followers against one another. Jill is also a strong and believable character, but a champion is only as good as their opposition, and with Choi, Wegman has created a winner.
Throughout the book Wegman avoids inundating his readers with techno babble. His use of weapon descriptions, even anagrams are presented in a straightforward manner with enough free flowing explanation to neither slow down the story, or cause the reader to lose interest.
The author keeps the reader completely engaged, and unexpected plot twists make this a fresh and entrancing novel.
This thriller is the real deal.
Superb storyline...dialogue is fun. Writer has a sense of humor along with a stong understanding of things technical. I am a cheapscate and buy only downloadable novels these days. For $3.95...they don't get much better to me than this one. Best of Luck, Mr. Wegman, and PLEASE WRITE MORE! Mike Raper, Phoenix, AZ
Bree Green,
Miami, FL
Jill Sinclair is not your typical Naval Officer, but rather is one who has pulled herself out of a tough background as an enlisted navy diver to lead in the male dominated world of surface ship warfare. If you’ve read the synopsis, you already know the plot, but what you should know is that Michael Wegman is a writer to watch!
After reading CAVEAT GAMES, his first novel-and loving it, I bought six copies and gave them to my mystery/adventure loving friends. This guy can really write! The characters are fully written and believable, the setting is wonderfully portrayed, and the action is non-stop.
But wait…there's more! The plot has more twists and turns than I was ready for, and best of all, I was totally unprepared for the surprise ending. In my typical way of trying to predict the ending, I figured it wrong! How's that for a recommendation?
Terri Crisp, Atlanta Georgia (Go Dawgs)!
Frederick MD
Cindy VanKempen, Cumming, GA
First, the characters are just plain BELIEVABLE! I like that! They are the people we live and work with every day--ordinary folks, yet their personnas are strong enough to propel them and motivations clear enough to support their extraordinary actions. Examples:
Jill Sinclair...haven't we all met her? And don't we all purpose in our hearts to be like her. She's fallible for all the right reasons.
Pilot Ray Connell...he was your quarterback in high school. A nice guy, and very confident carrying himself with knowledge that he can perform in the best AND worst circumstances.
David Choi...a guy you love to hate, like Saddam, Castro, Bin Laden, Kerry (oops)...his motivation is also not forced: HE HATES AMERICANS, and what more should a billionaire be doing with his bucks besides trying to kill as many as possible.
Finally, I really liked how the author surrounded the main plot with relevant subplots requiring me to think and keep up. I did, and it all came together nicely into one finale' that should really be reproduced in cinema for the entire world to see, feel, and hear.
Ross Sinclair's band was not a diversion, but a handy tool the author used to help us get to know him a bit better to understand HIS motivations. And that was a Great chase scene through Tidewater Virginia. I too have always LOVED Ferrari’s!
Rarely does a novel captivate like CAVEAT GAMES did. I'm a speed reader, but I was enjoying this story so much, I felt myself slowing down to savor and enjoy it better! STRONG READ RECOMMENDATION from New York City! I'm ready for the sequel...Mike Bennett, NYC
Gerry West, Kings Bay, Georgia
--M2, Greensboro, North Carolina
Characters are masterful--their relationships skillfully interwoven and motivations very clear and unforced. References to New York, Virginia Beach, Miami, and numerous Caribbean Islands seem accurate and give the work authenticity.
CAVEAT GAMES passes my "title test" admirably, as I kept looking for the point at which the meaning would be revealed. Once it appeared, it seemed logical and well placed within the scope of the novel.
Nice job, Michael! Maggie Hines, Baltimore
Mike Jenkins, Charleston, SC
Tandy McCall, Jacksonville, FL
Bill Fisher, Portland, Maine
GSMCS (SW) Frank Roberts, USN-Ret
Megan Sanders, Dallas TX
Mark Myers, San Diego CA
Lee Dean, Gaithersburg MD
Kris Satterfield, Cambridge MA
John Crenshaw - Washington, DC
Ben Finch, Phoenix Arizona.
Willie Ray Starling
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