Reviews of Perestroika Sunset
West Coast Review of Books--Five Stars--Top Rating
Worth every penny of its price, and worth every word written in its more than 400 pages.
This brilliant novelist takes us through the throes of Russia’s revolution, through the collapse of an Empire, the emergence of Communism, and makes us bear the torture of the times.
More than an historical novel, it’s the story of a wealthy ballerina, spoiled by love, the men who love her, the audiences who lavish their praise and applause, and we watch her slowly fall beneath the heels of revolution, stripped of her wealth, her fame--left only with her fight for survival.
This majestic novel gives us a look at the Russia that bred madness--that created fear, hate and destruction for its people, yet emerged as a world power to be reckoned with.
It’s the story of its peasants, its politicos, its soldiers, its nobility and those people who suffered brutality, betrayal, starvation, rape and revolution and managed to survive it all--by never giving up.
This is a great novel--it covers so much history, so much humanity and tells such a compelling story about so many characters, even a long review could not do it justice. The only solution is to attack its pages--voraciously.
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Los Angeles Herald-Examiner
It’s a story of people who suffer brutality, betrayal, starvation, rape--but never give up. That’s what Alan Stang reports in “The Highest Virtue.” Set in Russia during the revolution, this excellent book describes madness--the madness of fear, hate, hunger, and power.
Provocatively written, the book depicts accurately the period of history when the Communists took over Russia, adding just enough romance to underline the stark truth. As the story develops, Maria observed her mother in a state that seems “dead--dead but still walking, breathing and eating . . . “ talking, even reading, but with “her soul . . . gone . . . destroyed by real life.”
And Maria determines: She will never let that happen to herself.
The means by which the young heroine keeps herself alive physically and spiritually are interesting, innovative and inspirational. And Stang presents his story in a magnificently active manner, dramatically outlining his message of personal courage.
This is a book that should appeal to the history buff as well as to the lover of human drama, and one well worth the reading.--J.A.W.
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Los Angeles Times
“The Highest Virtue” is a tumultuous novel, big in scope and intent, dealing as it does with the blood-spattered canvas of the Russian Revolution, and the shattering of human lives and destinies that inevitably followed the long awaited “day of deliverance” when the downtrodden proletariat found themselves in positions of power and influence. The book is a searing chronicle of death, torture, privation, rape and degredation as the revolt against the Tsar proceeded on its inexorable way to “absolute, irrevocable and universal annihilation,” to quote one of the leading characters.--William Fadiman
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Santa Ana Register
. . . “The Highest Virtue,” which is a compelling novel, a love story about Russia in the days of the Communist Revolution, ought to make him world famous, put him into the heady financial brackets and enter his name on the list of credits of a major motion picture.
. . . But more than these, each a richly drawn character in his or her own right, this book is the story of the slow disintegration of the human spirit under the onslaught of terror and regimentation perpetrated by a bunch of thieves and brigands under the guise of political reform.
. . . Filling the pages of this epic length book is a colorful array of sycophants, weaklings, opportunists, sadists, and bewildered victims. All are caught up in the violent destruction of Russian society, and all deal with the problem in his or her own way. It is a devastating commentary on what pressure and terror can do to human beings.
There is a wealth of detail which suggests that Stang either lived in the Soviet Union, or has done considerable research into the times he writes about. . . .
Unless I miss my guess, this novel will eventually be made into a full-scale epic motion picture. All the elements of a good yarn are present, top Hollywood talent should be competing for the plums involved, absolutely scrumptious characterizations, all. . . .--Ann Terrill
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The story of a daughter’s lifelong search for her MIA father in Vietnam. A compelling story.--Alan Caruba, bookviews.com
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Perfect craftsmanship, precise attention to detail. Men and women faithful to their word--forever. Couldn’t put it down until midnight.--Franklin Sanders, Managing Editor, The Moneychanger, vol. 19, no. 9, December, 2000
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What’s the REAL Vietnam POW/MIA story?, November 1, 2001
Reviewer: Beverly J. Rowe, Reviewer for MyShelf.com from Kenai, Alaska USA
Alan Stang delivers a scathing denouncement of the United States Government and its part in the MIA/POW cover-up and related issues during the Vietnam war and the Communist plot to block efforts to search for these men. We have already heard rumors that such a plot existed, and at least one politician in this story has to be based on a real person. Read the book, you’ll recognize him. I came away with a whole new perspective of our involvement in Vietnam.
This was a very difficult book to read because of the subject matter and the psychological issues, but I couldn’t put it down. Alan Stang takes us relentlessly to the surprising conclusion. The story is about the men who were missing in action, but also about the women who waited at home and their years of frustration, and knowing that they have been the victims of lies. Gay Fawkes is the daughter of the main character, Jason Fawkes. She’s a college professor and Olympic gold medallist who lost her father at the age of eleven. This is the story of her heroic search for the father who was a prisoner of the VietCong for twenty-two years.
The battle scenes are realistic and bloody. The revenge scenes will have you cheering out loud. Stang’s craftsmanship and storytelling is awesome. The characters are well developed; you’ll feel their disappointments and pain. Stang has written ten books, mostly non-fiction dealing with scams and cover-ups. He’s an author to watch for.
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The plot for Mel Gibson’s next movie, November 8, 2000
Reviewer: A reader from Pasadena, CA USA
A book about prisoners of war is usually regarded as a man’s book; however, this is a woman’s book, too. For men, there is the grittiness of the Vietnam war - the dirt, heat, fear - I felt as if I were with those men in Vietnam before, during and after they were captured! For the women, there is the identification with the heroine, Gay, a college professor and Olympic gold medallist, who searches untiringly for her father. We can also identify with the women who were the mothers, wives, daughters and sweethearts of those lost in Vietnam; their unrequited love, their years of frustration working with stonewalling government bureaucrats and politicians, and their feeling that they have been lied to all along.
Alan Stang brilliantly weaves a story from threads of duty, honor, country, love, and history with those of political deception, treachery, and villainy. Perestroika Sunset brings out many of the reasons why America became involved in the Vietnam War and why it was never resolved.
I never mark a book while reading it; however, my copy of Perestroika Sunset is heavily marked in the margins with notes, key phrases, and Alan’s clever turns of phrases.
Perestroika Sunset alternately made me cry, laugh and be outraged over the government’s lack of regard for our servicemen and their families. I was on the edge of my seat and cheered when the villains received their just reward.
Perestroika Sunset will stay on my list of all-time favorites. In fact, I have purchased several copies already and given them to friends.
For those who liked Mel Gibson in “Braveheart” and “The Patriot”, you will agree with me that Perestroika Sunset should be his next movie.
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Stang nails Insider’s treason with a knockout plot., April 25, 2003
Reviewer: Tom Edmondson from Nokomis FL USA
Anybody who wonders how U.S. Domestic Duplicity might work under Patriot Act 1 and 11 guidelines will find a ‘how to’ outline guide in Perestroika Sunset, as concerns the Century Long Prisoner of War Abandonment Policy aptly and historically told in a blockbuster gut wrenching fiction plot by master story teller Alan Stang. Well read students of this subject matter will find all the factual details woven into a ‘can’t put it down yet’ book that angers and saddens as it unwraps the evil designs of which New World Order devotees are capable. Get this book, have ten friends read it, and you will have replaced another brick in the wall to rebuild the U.S. Constitution. A conspiracy cannot survive if enough free citizens are alerted and take effective action to see it exposed to the light of freedom.
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The Truth Through Fiction, March 29, 2003
Reviewer: Kevin Shannon from Glendora, Ca
Alan Stang has once again brought historical truth to the forefront through the format of a fictional novel. As one who has covered the POW topic for years as a talk radio host, I found the information in the book to be very believable and reliable. I am a Vietnam era veteran, having served the National Security Agency as a U.S. Naval Communications Technician. Our people used SIGINT, Signals Intelligence, COMINT, Communications Intelligence, and ELINT, Electronics Intelligence to monitor the movement of POWS from Vietnam to the Soviet Union and other locations.
Alan Stang has stirred up my emotions as I confronted once again the horrible fact that our government has intentionally left our POWS behind for political reasons.
I loved the reality of this emotional and intriguing novel.
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Sweet Fictional Revenge, August 8, 2001
Reviewer: Rev. John Stormer from Florissant, MO USA
In Perestroika Sunset Alan Stang has skillfully woven much of what longtime students of the Soviet communists’ system have known or suspected about the abilities and tactics they use to manipulate America’s government, its leaders, its media and its people to do their bidding. Against this factual background Stang has created a fascinating tale about attempts to locate and rescue POW’s left behind in Vietnam and how Soviet agents ruthlessly block those efforts. The efforts in America of patriots and the counter efforts of Red agents here are alternated with chapters set in Vietnam as the Soviets operating within the Vietnamese communists’ framework manipulated, tortured and sometimes successfully conditioned some POW’s to return and do their bidding. An astute reader will speculate on whether Stang modeled his fictional former POW who attains a high position in Congress on an actual political personage. Great reading with one bit of sweet fictional revenge by a Vietnam hero on those who sold us out will cheer the hearts of most patriots and cause them to say, “Oh, that it could be!”
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Literary Tour de Force!, December 18, 2000
Reviewer: Robert Rutger from Tampa, Fl USA
What a read! I have to admit to not being a big fan of fictional writing, but Mr. Stang so masterfully interweaves actual historic names, dates and events throughout a story so incredibly riveting, that I was absolutely swept away. Mr. Stang reveals the absolute and unconscionable betrayal of our nation’s military by self serving, opportunistic politicians whose only agenda is the promotion of their own careers. The reader is confronted with the absolute horrors of war, and the infinitely more horrific abandonment of those whose lives and families were intentionally sacrificed to promote the most Godless of all objectives. Thank you Alan Stang for a book that is as gutwrenchingly challenging and inspirational as it is entertaining.
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A thrilling, captivating historical novel, October 27, 2000
Reviewer: Robert Bingham from Graham, NC USA
This book is especially interesting for anyone familiar with the Vietnam conflict and its aftermath. The characters are every bit as enchanting as those in Les Miserables or A Tale of Two Cities. Alan Stang weaves together the POW/MIA issue and communist deception (perestroika) in a masterful way, illustrating the gangsterism and skullduggery that is so much a part of Washington D.C. power politics. An excellent companion volume is The Men We Left Behind, by Mark Sauter.
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American people need to know, October 18, 2000
Reviewer: A reader from Palm Springs, California
An excellent book for understanding the POW/MIA tragedy by our U.S. Government in leaving men behind in Vietnam. It is a real page turner and I couldn’t put it down.
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Stang wrote a dang good read!, October 7, 2000
Reviewer: Ramsay Devereux from Ventura, CA
Tears, frustration, excitement, disappointment, anticipation, and downright impatience at my slow reading speed were only some of the emotions I experienced while consuming this full course book. It is an awesome read. It will arouse the ‘right’ in you. In a day where the division between it and ‘wrong’ is purposely being blurred on all fronts it is refreshing to come up for air. Yes, the air is polluted with our shameful abandonment of our missing soldiers but it still feels good to breathe (and be entertained at the same time). If you know a vet who meant what they said, get ‘em this book.
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Perestroika Sunset
Reviewer: Jim Ewart from Seattle, WA USA
It’s sunset. You are in a quiet Georgetown neighborhood in Washington, D.C. Leaves rustle in a gentle summer breeze. Evening traffic murmurs. Nocturnal creatures serenade the oppressive humidity. Humans make dinner. But this is a Perestroika sunset, because a deep-cover Soviet GRU agent tries to kill the daughter of a US Marine Captain Missing In Action in Vietnam. Gay Fawkes is the leader of a POW/MIA group, and she’s beginning to uncover information certain politicians want to hide from the American people.
(By the time I got past Perestroika Sunset’s third chapter, I was so intensely involved in the story my hands kept doubling into fists, I could taste stomach acid, and I couldn’t take a deep breath.)
In the next several chapters you’ll hump through the boonies of Vietnam, carry an AK-47 or a shotgun, pull leeches out of your crotch, and, if you respond as I did, be physically and emotionally exhausted after your meetings with “Charley,” the Vietcong.
Then you’ll participate in a critically important, dangerous and illegal mission in North Vietnam, where NVA regulars wipe out most of your team and capture your leader, U.S. Marine Captain Jason Fawkes. His Soviet interrogator tortures him unspeakably, but he endures, beating his tormentors in a deadly, mental game. By now, he has lived in captivity, abandoned, for 22 years.
But Perestroika Sunset is not just another novel about combat. At home, Fawkes’s wife, valiantly trying to keep her truncated family together, is driven to despair, alcohol and worse. Their daughter, Gay, savagely abused, struggles against government corruption, Soviet cunning, public apathy and ignorance, compounded by the dominant media’s vulgar treatment of the POW/MIA issue.
All this is merely the start of probably the most exciting, ingenious, and realistic novel ever written about one of America’s most heartrending issues: the men we left behind in Vietnam.
Later, a Soviet-trained seductress sets her sights on a memorably sleazy Member of Congress, a literary character you will not soon forget. Then the Soviets shoot down a commercial 747. It ditches safely in the Sea of Japan, they capture its crew and passengers, including a U.S. Congressman - and claim that there were no survivors.
And a former Conscientious Objector becomes a savage, calculating combat operative dedicated to solving a mystery that threatens the Free World. First you join this ex-CO in an assassination assignment in Laos and North Vietnam. Then you join him and Gay Fawkes in high intrigue in Hanoi, and in the hills of western Vietnam and Cambodia, in firefights with Pathet Lao and Spetsnaz forces. Your travels then take you through a Hmong village, next through Bangkok, and finally back to Washington, D.C.
I think this book’s savvy - street, technical, especially political - tops Tom Clancy. The author’s understanding of international affairs, world history, and geography is immense. The subject is complicated. It is easy to see why it took so long to write. His knowledge of KGB, GRU and Politburo tactics is truly encyclopedic. (Caution: Because he describes these things in detail, this book should be considered unsuitable for children.)
But those things defer to the fact that Alan Stang is a masterful storyteller. Perestroika’s dialogue is a delight, the humor subtle and irreverent. It builds to a totally surprising climax unlike anything I have ever read. Women will love Perestroika Sunset because it shows how real men think. It will deepen every reader’s understanding and appreciation of the words duty, honor, and country. And Perestroika.
This book helped me in one special way. It reminded me of how blessed we Americans are to be Americans, living in the land of the free and the home of the brave. God bless America. Semper Fi.
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Perestroika Sunset, October 3, 2000
Reviewer: Bernie Kunkel from Walton, KY USA
Perestroika Sunset is a godsend for our beloved Country. This book will reinvigorate the patriotic devotion Americans hold for our soldiers and especially those who were left behind as Prisoners Of War or those listed as Missing In Action. Alan Stang presents a fascinating drama of a woman’s unrelenting and life long quest to free her Marine father from his North Vietnamese captors. Intertwined in the story line are powerful history lessons that I pray my countrymen will learn. When learning how cruelly our fighting men are treated and how the “leaders” of America betray and abandon them, one becomes flush with anger and shame and wonders what has become of the land of the free and the home of the brave. The book is so realistic that I wanted to go and help liberate these courageous soldiers. There are a lot of exciting twists and turns and the reader remains enthralled with the action in this book. The probability that some of our men are still being held and are undergoing torture is gut wrenching. My prayer is that Perestroika Sunset is read and discussed by freedom loving patriots all around the world. May God bless Alan Stang for this wonderful work!
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