Thy Kingdom Come-Don Helin

Thy Kingdom Come
Don Helin
Medallion, Mar 2009, $7.95
ISBN: 9781933836973

Although he retired from the army four months ago, his former superior officer General Paul Gerber persuaded Colonel (R) Sam Thorpe to accept a position with a conglomerate that supplied weapons and training to militias. The US government is targeting the Patriots who have ties to a Canadian terrorist organization. The leader of the Patriots has a mission to accomplish so Sam’s “boss” Aly Kassim sends him to train the troops of self anointed General Quentin Oliver.

Sam’s real job is to find out what that mission is and prevent it from happening. The foreign link involves the Quebec Separatist Movement, who want weapons of mass destruction that chemist Sidney Kramor will create; Sam smuggles him over the border. Coming to collect the weapons is the head of the Separatist Movement Marc Dubois. Sam knows he is playing a game in which a tiny error could result in many deaths including his own as construction of cesium-137 dirty bombs is underway.

Readers obtains a good look at how a militia acts and its leaders think as they are true believers in their quest; in this case they accept as divine truth that they are Jesus’ crusading soldiers who must right the wrong that minorities have caused to white people. Sam is a double agent who gets deep inside the concentric circles that make up the militia, but is not privy to the innermost leadership so is unaware of the actual mission, but knows whatever it is will cause widespread death and destruction. Don Helin has written a stirring thriller that hooks the audience who wonder if Sam can save the day.

Harriet Klausner