Review of The Patriot Game

The Patriot Game                                    

By Ron Culley

Reviewed by R. Murry

An intriguing thriller, The Patriot Game, firstly, is an impelling suspenseful journey into the background of Ireland during World War II.  The twists and turns of the main plot and sub-plots are brought to endings that one would not anticipate.  The reader will have no problem following them to their conclusion, as I did.

Secondly, the novel purposes an underlining theme – Who is a patriot?  The soldier who pulls the trigger to kill the enemy, the one receiving the lethal bullet, or both?  Having been an intelligence specialist in Vietnam, I once pondered this question to my own conclusion as Mr. Culley questions in a number of demonstrative ways.

The soldier in waiting to kill his prey; the assassin who is creative in his assaults; the woman beaten to unconsciousness for information; and the spy who intrudes into the lives of non-combatants are a few of Mr. Culley’s ways of portraying some of his characters as their countries’ patriots.  He does it so well; the reader will understand the portrayal of either side of their lethal actions.

For you romantics, Ron has also interwoven interludes of compassion between some of the main characters that leads to unlikely conclusions.  These emotions offset the seriousness of the conflicts of a world in turmoil.  In his writings, he portrays his characters as humans, not stereo typed combatants.

Mr. Culley has put together an interesting tale worth reading for one who enjoys reading plausible historical adventures.  I enjoyed it immensely.  I hope you’ll enjoy it too.

Mr. Culley’s web site, www.ronculley.com where The Patriot Game and all of his other books are exhibited.