PIPELINE

PIPELINE
Author: Peter Schechter
Copyright March 2010
Harper Collins
Paperback $ 7.99
ISBN: 978-0-06-168742-6
310 pages

Once in a while you read a book that has you concerned that the crisis in the book could really happen and are actually surprised that the disaster has not occurred. That is PIPELINE.

Following a massive blackout for the state of California, the Russian government schemes to be the only supplier of foreign oil to the United States making this country completely dependent upon them. This is definitely a possible twist to the Cold War in the future.

As a possible solution to prevent further blackouts, the United States looks for possibilities so as not to have a reoccurrence of the blackouts. One possibility is to look to South America as a source for natural gas rather than the Middle East. Another solution would be to connect Alaska to Russia via a pipeline between the nations having the U.S. more dependent upon their former enemy. Both would make the United States more dependent upon foreign sources for energy.

PIPELINE centers with an environmentalist, Blaise Ryan and a Special Assistant to the President, Tony Ruiz. Both are idealistic, hard-working, and usually ethical in their careers. Both think with their heart and quickly react with instantaneous decisions that can easily cause further complications later.

The action is results in a fast-paced page turner with characters that are smart and believable. Even though the topic is politically based, the book reads as a thrilling action adventure novel with constant near-death misses. The characters are also real people with sincere problems that make sense. Even though you are cheering for the protagonists, the reader is vividly aware of the naivety within each person.

Working as an international political and communications consultant, has definitely given Peter Schechter an advantage in turning the political ploys into a realistic action-adventure experience. He has also worked as a consultant to many Presidents while living in Washington, D.C. I look forward to more novels in the future from this intelligent and talented author.

Teri Davis March 14, 2010