An entertaining novel with lots of action. It started a bit slow for me with not much info on what was happening and why but it soon developed into a well versed story. Would recommend

Congo Nightfall by Jason Kasper
Shadow Strike #8

Cats have nine lives and if this team were cats they would have blown through several cats’ lives of luck! Action packed thrill ride from beginning to end ~ Couldn’t put it down.

What I Liked:
* The team: five intrepid, highly skilled, lethal, dedicated, admirable, and intriguing men that worked together seamlessly
* The bond between the team members, the synchronicity of their actions, the use of their skillsets and their uncanny way of reading one another as well as the situation
* Learning about two of the team who are considering a life beyond and the idea of family and what their future might hold had me wondering if the team might resign together or if some would stay no matter what – wouldn’t mind seeing them develop their own business together in the future
* Reading a bit about the Congo and being glad I was NOT on the run with the team
* Glimpses of the Op Cen back in the USA and how they scrambled on their end
* Thinking about what it would take to be a “local asset” in one’s country assisting a covert operations team ~ and the impact the local asset in this story had on the overall story
* The plot, pacing, setting and writing
* That the mission was successful though it left the door open for another one and a book to tell us what will happen next
* Thinking about what the team will do if and when they disband
* Knowing that there is at least one more book in this series to look forward to

What I didn’t like:
* Who and what I was meant not to like
* Thinking about how being on the “right side” doesn’t always mean your hands are clean

Did I like this book? Yes
Would I read more in this series/by this author? Yes

Thank you to NetGalley and Severn River Publishing for the ARC ~ This is my honest review.

4-5 Stars

Huge thanks to @netgalley , Severn River Publishing, and Jason Kasper for the advanced reader copy of this book! This was such an action-packed story. While it’s technically the 8th installment of a series (Shadow Strike), it’s easily read as a stand-alone as well. You can absolutely tell that the author is a former Green Beret: the spec ops mission that serves as the main plot line is way too detailed to be faked. I feel like it’s akin to The Martian in how specific, accurate, and comprehensive it is to read. If you enjoy movies like Zero Dark Thirty and Black Hawk Down, you’ll really enjoy reading this book!


𝗦𝘆𝗻𝗼𝗽𝘀𝗶𝘀: David Rivers leads a squad of CIA special operations agents with a myriad of personalities that they’ve honed into an elite weapon against those terrorist insurgents targeted by our government. En route to their latest assignment, the elimination of Congolese warlord Chijioke Mubenga before he cements himself as the controlling force in the region, their helicopter goes down in the deep jungle. As they fight to get their mission back on track, they face fully-armed enemy guards, heavily-patrolled diamond mines, armored vehicles, physical exhaustion, and an unforgiving jungle. And in the Congo, the line between hunter and hunted is just a blur.

Well, what can I say? Mr. Kasper does it again :)

We are now on the 8th book in the series and this book was another winner for those of us who have been with David Rivers and his team from the very beginning.

This storyline has the team being inserted into the African Congo for a mission to "take care of" a small time (well, a "smaller" time) bad guy. Unfortunately, NOTHING seems to go right, and the team is running nonstop from the moment they jump out of their low flying CIA plane. The group doesn't have a minute to take a breather as they seem to be running around the Congo, coming under attack several times, and being ambushed while trying to salvage the mission.

But, in true Rivers fashion, it is THROUGH their mistakes that they stumble onto something that is MUCH bigger than anyone expected. We still have the fabulous Ms. Chen as their handler (yes, that was sarcasm), but she is quite a bit more subdued during this mission. She is still pretty unlikeable to me, but what are you gonna do?

While I think this could probably be read as a stand alone, it really shouldn't be. There are many, many nuances, back story and history that readers might miss if they were to jump in at this point. And trust me, you do not want to miss any of it.

While it doesn't end in a cliffhanger 'per se," it definitely sets up the next book. So now I guess we wait for book 9. :)

Thank you to NetGalley and to Severn River Publishing for the opportunity to read and review this ARC. The opinions above are mine and mine alone. This book will be out for publication on September 24 2024.

The book opens with the team on a plane over the Congo which was supposed to be an ordinary parachute drop until the aircraft began taking fire and the team decided to jump. From there you follow them from their descent to the meeting point to first go after the men that were shooting at the plane then proceed with the original plane, which gets sidetracked along the way because they have to fight their way out of skirmishes until they can find the person who is betraying them. It is a very fast-paced story from beginning to end and has excellent characters.

I didn’t realize this was part of an established series which now makes sense. It really wasn’t what I was expecting. It think many folks will like this one, it just wasn’t for me. Thanks to NetGalley for a chance to read and review this book.

David Rivers and his team are in the Congo to dispatch of yet another bad guy, but shit goes sideways on their infil and continues throughout the mission. Facing big obstacles(ambushes) as they try to complete their mission, they kill a lot of bad people along the way.
Great visual scene descriptions of the Congo as they race from one objective to another with a ton of action and witty banter among the team members.
I would like to thank Severn River Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC and I would recommend reading this book and/or series.

Another outstanding story of David Rivers and his black ops team.
Sent to the Congo, to eliminate an African terrorist warlord,Mubenga, David and his
team find themselves enmeshed in combat with his combatants, when their plane
in comes under attack and they are forced to jump before they had planned to.
Trekking through the Congolese jungle and staying alive is a mission itself.
Much suspense, thrills and the usual interesting and entertaining repertoire among
the team makes it a fast story and a page turner.
A little too much of the jungle in and out for ne.
But still, David Rivers is at his usual fighting best with Wortjy, Ian and
the others.

Another fast paced fun read by Jason Kasper. David and his team find themselves on a mission that does not go as expected... which is almost expected now. The story follows the team through their new mission which starts out poorly and continues to have issues.

A fun read with good continued development of the main characters, especially if you have read the earlier stories in the series.. Could only give it a 4 out of 5 because there was not much plot build up. Lots of action and a fast paced story.

David Rivers and his off the books team are sent to the Congo to dispatch Chijioke Mebenga, the notorious terrorist. As the team is approaching the insertion point their plan is fired upon from an antiaircraft battery that apparently knew they were coming. The team has to hot foot it up the side of a mountain in order to locate and take this battery out before proceeding on their quest. At each and every turn of the story there are lies, deceit, and treachery. Troubles so large that they threaten to swallow the team and all that it represents, alive.
No one seems to want the team to succeed, including his own management.
There’s no one left to trust so David Rivers and the team take matters into their own hands in order to successfully complete their mission.
There is no room for failure.

Review: If you want detailed processes and procedures related to infil/exfil situations with highly trained personnel, then this is for you. Was it for me? I think so. The author blends character development with intense movement to create amazing visuals. You're not dropping off the cliff of sleep when procedural details are setting up the next exchange. It combines brevity and ribald exchanges of people putting themselves in harms way that feels grounded in truth.

I looked forward to riding the various POVs. Usually I do not, yet the author imbues each person with distinct personalities and perspectives which, btw, makes you give a shjt what happens to them. The guns and ammo descrips are spot on. No more "he was using a silencer" bs.

I am late to the party on this series, so perhaps the author can send me the prior ones.

4.5/5