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Start giftingSpirit Mission
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Learn moreAn MH-47G Chinook helicopter departs formation in the Iraqi night. The mission is unauthorized. The objective is reckless. But to save a friend, Sam Avery and his crew of Night Stalkers have prepared for one last flight.
ISIS operatives in Tal Afar, Iraq, have captured American aid worker Henry Stillmont. Avery knows Stillmont as “the Guru,” the West Point squad leader who taught him about brotherhood, loyalty, and when to break the rules as a young cadet twenty-five years ago. Sam will risk his career and his life to save him.
As they near their target, Sam reflects on his time in the crucible of the United States Military Academy. West Point made Sam the leader he is. But his fellow cadets made him the man that he is. The ideals of duty, honor, and country have echoed throughout his life and drive him and his comrades as they undertake their final and most audacious spirit mission.
Ted Russ is a graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point. He served as an officer and a helicopter pilot and eventually was with the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment. After leaving the army in 2000, he earned an MBA from Emory University and now lives in Atlanta with his wife, Anna, and their dog, Henry. Spirit Mission is his first novel.
Tom Taylorson is an Earphones Award–winning narrator and Chicago-based actor with over a decade of stage experience. In that time he also built a voice-over career and now primarily works as a voice actor. Tom is an adjunct faculty member at Columbia College Chicago, teaching voice-over for interactive media.
Reviews
“The account of cadet life at West Point is absolutely fascinating in every respect. One really learns properly how the place is run and why it has the reputation it does. The story of action taking place against all the rules is riveting also, and for a first novel he has managed superbly the technique of moving backwards and forwards over the years in this story of how cadets put themselves into action.”
“The suspense crescendos into a satisfying surprise ending. Character development is sufficiently accomplished via the emotions, thoughts, and struggles of the main characters as their loyalty and honor are challenged both at West Point and in Iraq. This first novel is a good choice for military fiction buffs, especially for readers interested in learning more about life in a military academy. The authors’s experience as a West Point graduate makes this half of the book an accurate portrayal of cadet life from day one to graduation.”
“Exciting, cleverly constructed…A spirit mission…against seriously deadly odds.”
“Russ, a West Point graduate and helicopter pilot, brings great authenticity to his account of military life.”
“Russ proves adept at spinning a fast-moving yarn with believable, three-dimensional characters.”
“There’s a common denominator in Ted Russ’ experience as a West Point cadet and a pilot with the US Army’s elite Special Operations Aviation Regiment—the bonds that develop among soldiers who share hardships. Here, in crackling prose that brings readers scenes that are full of both intense action and heartfelt emotion, Russ explores themes that have been with us since Homer’s epics.”
“Ted Russ has written a wonderful book on West Point. Spirit Mission does a marvelous job of dealing with the humor, stress, and dilemmas of cadet life. It is a story of war and character, duty and honor, and stealing the Navy goat.”
“Ted Russ has crafted a masterful thriller torn from today’s headlines, yet what’s more is he has written a book with an enormous soul, a novel about brotherhood, conflicted loyalties, and some of the finest writing I can remember on the topic of flying.”
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