Continuing with one of my favorite authors, I recently finished Battle Born by Dale Brown.  Brown writes stories of near-future geopolitical conflicts with an emphasis on air-power.  What's not to love?  Battle Born continues the McLanahan storyline again as second in command of the secret research facility Dreamland.

The conflict this time is Korea.  North Korea has finally exhausted most of its resources, the economy is in a death-spiral and the people are starving and threatening revolt.  Much like modern NK, if sources are to be believed.  As NK threatens to invade South Korea, an all out assault is swiftly conducted by the south, toppling the government and unifying Korea for the first time in modern history.  Of course, life isn't that simple as rogue elements of the communist military try to exact revenge, China plays dirty again, and American politics is, well, American politics as usual.

In order for this book to work, Brown has to through nukes around.  A lot.  The technology fronted in this book deals with anti-ballistic systems.  As such, the plot is a bit unrealistic.  Not terribly, but it made me scratch my head a bit.  Unfortunately, I did not feel that this was one of Browns better books.  In fact, if I had read it before the others, it's unlikely that I would read any more of him.  I don't think Brown has lost it yet, but I am concerned.  This is one for the fans, and little else.