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Book Review By Walid Khalid
Splinter Cell by David Michaels

   A new terrorist group has been attacking various parts of the world, including America, and Europe. The group is known as the Shadows, and they are America's next priority.
   Third Echelon, a secret spy unit, who have single men operatives called Splinter Cells, has come up with a plan to stop the Shadows. They are planning to stop the weapon suppliers of the terrorists. The weapon suppliers call themselves "The Shop." The Shadows are their best consumers and if they are stopped, then The Shop will suffer a huge loss. Third Echelon's plan had come to the supplier's attention, when one of their weapon shipments was caught in Iran by the help of Splinter Cell operatives. The Shop comes up with a plan of their own which is to flush out every one of these spies, in order for their business to have no obstacles.
   So far, three of five Splinter Cells have been killed, and the fourth marked man is Sam Fisher, who is supposedly the best in this profession. He has the right to spy, steal, destroy and assasinate, in order to protect American freedoms. His mission is to go to the Middle East, and stop the Shadows and The Shop, so the balance of power will not be threatened in the Middle East.
   The Shop hires two Russian men, Vlad and Yuri, to kill Sam Fisher, by kidnapping his 20 year old daughter, and using her as bait. However, before Sam can rescue his daughter, he must complete his mission in Israel.
   He eventually discovers that the man behind the Shadows is Namik Basaran, leader of a charity organization, who is using this as a cover for his terrorist activities. When Third Echelon investigates more about him, they find out that this man's real name is Nasir Tarighian, a man who was the most active warrior in the Iran/Iraq war. His objective is to attack Iraq because his wife and daughters were killed during the war. Nasir is creating a shopping mall, which is a cover for his actual project. The project is rumoured to be a weapon of mass destruction, which will be used to demolish Iraq. Sam Fisher has to infiltrate many locales, in order to find out the weapons capabilities, and prevent a possible nuclear strike, and at the same time, worry about his kidnapped daughter. Will Sam Fisher do his duty by sabotaging Nasir Tarighian's plan, or will he do his duty as a father by saving his daughter?


Plot & Themes
Tone of story - very upbeat
Time/era of story:
Spying/Terrorism Thriller Yes
Cloak & Dagger Plotlets:
Kid or adult book? - Adult or Young Adult Book
descript. of violence and chases - 20 %
Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 20 %
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 20 %
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 40 %
Who's the terrorist enemy here?

Main Character
Gender - Male
Profession/status:
Age: - 40's-50's
Ethnicity/Race

Main Adversary
Identity: - an organization
Age: - 40's-50's
Profession/status:
Eccentric: Yes
Motive of antagonist - revenge
The antagonists are: - Islamic Fundamentalists
How sensitive is this character?
Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence - Average intelligence

Setting
United States Yes
The US: - Pacific NW
Asia/Pacific Yes
Asian country: - Israel
Mountains/Cliffs Yes
Misc setting - fort/military installation

Writing Style
Accounts of torture and death? - very gorey descriptions deaths/dead bodies
Explicit sex in book? Yes
What kind of sex: - descript of kissing - actual description of sex
Amount of dialog - significantly more descript than dialog
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