MWSA Review

Advance to Contact: 1980 is the flagship novel in the series of the same name.
It’s 1980.  The Shah may be falling in Iran, and President Carter and his staff are working tirelessly to keep this US ally in place in the volatile Middle East.  When the Soviets invade Afghanistan while at the same time Iranian fanatics storm the US Embassy, tensions flare.

The world knows what actually happened in the aftermath, but authors Alex Aaronson and James Rosone take us on a marvelous alternative history journey of what could have happened, and the realism is shocking.  Using in-depth knowledge of the historical military dispositions and political personalities, the two weave together an incredible story that shows just how bad things could have gotten, with CIA agent Fred Poole doing everything he can to avoid World War III.

This reviewer was continuously impressed with the military accuracy of the vast weapons platforms mentioned on both the east and west sides. At the same time, there are plenty of “raw grunt” moments that show that any soldier has more in common with his enemies than he thinks.  Fans of Dale Brown, the late Tom Clancy, or any military alternative history series will surely find this worth the effort.

Review by Rob Ballister (March 2023)

 

Author's Synopsis

The Cold War threatens to go hot…

…when American hostages are taken in Iran.

Where will this conflict lead?

The Soviets invade Afghanistan, and the governments of Jimmy Carter and Leonid Brezhnev jockey for position on the international stage. CIA operative Fred Poole races against the clock to decode the pieces of a Soviet puzzle that could lead to war.

Will he be too late?

US Marines and Soviet paratroopers advance to contact with the enemy on battlefields across the globe, from the jungles of Central America to the deserts of the Middle East.

Can Poole and his ragtag team untangle the Soviet plans?

Or will skirmishes turn into a global nightmare?

You’ll love this gripping opener of the Soviet Endgame alternate history series because the history you remember takes a turn you never expected.

Format(s) for review: Paper and Kindle

Review Genre: Fiction—Mystery/Thriller

Number of Pages: 329

Word Count: 119924