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On July 1, 2001, Hesh Whitman and his new bride, Shoshanna, are relaxing on a beach at the Gulf of Aqaba, near Eliat, close to the Jordanian border, when terrorists open fire and spray the beach with bullets, killing all in their path, including Shoshanna. Hesh manages to escape, but the incident festers like the flesh around a splinter that’s left in the skin for far too long.
Dan Halevi, a former U.S. Army Green Beret, still hasn’t forgotten that he could have stopped the attack on 9/11 if he’d just figured out the clues fast enough. Now word of another plan to strike a tremendous blow to the United States reaches intelligence agencies ears and is well under way. As an Israeli Mossad officer, Halevi fights to bring the plot to a screeching halt before disaster strikes. He simply cannot allow it to happen again—he needs redemption for 9/11.
As Hesh loses himself in grief and almost becomes what he hates, Dan struggles to keep his friend on the right side of sanity while assuring him that those responsible for Shoshanna’s death will pay—but not with the blood of innocents.
Spyder Hole is a suspenseful military thriller, but I couldn’t really get a feel for the characters. Dan seems to be too much of a hard-ass who has no real concern for the innocent; he just wants to prove that he can stop a major terrorist attack. And Hesh is a bit too much of a cry-baby for a soldier—even though it’s understandable after he lost his wife. However, the two characters contrast each other well against the backdrop of the plot.
At the same time, some of the scenes come off sounding unrealistic. It seems unlikely that the Secretary of State would threaten the presidents of hostile countries with the total annihilation of their people if they didn’t cooperate in stopping a terrorist threat. Instead, it just feels like the author’s wishful thinking. Of course, the plot point makes for great entertainment—even though it’s hardly diplomatic.
Still, with its riveting plot and hold-your-breath tension, Spyder Hole is a well-written and entertaining thriller. I just wish that the characters had been a little more engaging.
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