William Lehman's Shadow War

(Welcome to Day Three of Jimbo's Memorial Day Weekend Extravaganza. We're honoring those lost by honoring their buddies who made it back and wrote a book in the Science Fiction or Fantasy genres. 

Today, we're honoring William Lehman. He has twenty years in the US Navy and another twenty as a civilian employee of the Navy. That's forty years in public service if you're keeping score at home. He started out his lifetime of service as a Sonar Technician, Submarines. Of course, he can't tell me where he was deployed because he was in subs and he was never in the places where he was, never did any of the things that he did and was given awards for reasons that have been redacted because the stuff he got them for never occurred.

Or sumfin'

Those awards include the Navy Expeditionary Medal, the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, the Arctic Service Medal and a Navy Commendation as well as "some other stuff." He once circumnavigated the globe in ten minutes while surfaced at the North Pole, except that he didn't because he was never there.

Capisce?

He served on the USS McKee, the USS Alabama (g) and the USS Florida (g), as well as the Trident refit facility where he was seconded to Base Security for the duration of Desert Storm and finished up as the Work Programs Director for Naval Brig Bangor. He can't tell me about any of the fun toys he played with because those don't exist, either.

He is married to Kitiara Lehman and his kids, Michael and Amanda, are both grown. He also has three grandchildren, Scarlet, Lillian and Gracie-Ray. Oh, and at some point he found time to dual class into policeman, serving with the Bremerton PD concurrent with his service both in the USN and as a Navy civilian.)

 

Okay, so there are some things that Jimbo just doesn’t do, like ever. Or at least since I was twelve and picked up a copy of L. Ron Hubbard’s Death Quest. Stop laughing! It’s a good book when you’re twelve!

Anyway, having read through the sixth book in the series FIRST, I then had to go back and read the first five. It was expensive (when your allowance in a dollar a week, a five dollar paperback takes a LONG time to get) and half of what was in the books was spoiled because I came in after they had been published. Nope, never gonna do that again.

Well, until I get a request from a vet to accept an Advance Reader’s Copy of his book that’ll be out sometime soon. Uhh…

He’s a vet, right? SO you kind of have to, because vet on Memorial Day, and offering to read the first one might work but uh…

Yeah.

All of that to say that I REALLY REALLY enjoyed William Lehman’s Shadow War and I can’t wait to read the first two, since it’s the third in the series. Seriously, this hero is a heroic hero that does, like, heroic stuff. I like that. He’s not afraid to fight when he needs to and he’s willing to use his brain when necessary as well. If he’s a master werecougar and an Asatru priest in a world where magic exists and he can go berserk (only he spells it baresark. I’m guessing that’s the Nordic spelling) and do magical stuff too, so much the better.

Although, honestly, this is one of a very few Urban Fantasy works that I’ve read that could have worked without the Fantasy part attached. Don’t get me wrong. I loved the fantasy elements. I just think that the basic plot of the novel is good enough to stand on its own without the magic if that’s the way that Lehman wanted to write it. I’m kinda glad he didn’t, because the only thing cooler than a detective novel/spy thriller mashup is a detective novel/spy thriller/fantasy story mashup. I just think he built his world well enough that it fantasy is a useful addition instead of the main attraction.

Of course, he used a couple of real world cities (Seattle and San Francisco) to set Shadow War in probably does help. He had like street maps and stuff, and being a retired sub vet there’s a good chance he spent some time in Washington State as there is a sub base in Bremerton, Washington. Actually, I think there’s one in San Fran too. Ok, so that probably saved him a bit of trouble with research, but hey, there is nothing wrong with being a SMART author.

Or sumfin’

It’s weird though, because although Lehman himself is a bubblehead, his main character is a Marine who was with Seal Team Twelve. Never heard of them? I guess that’s because they’re the preternatural SEALs and you’re not read in. Yup, that’s where they send all of the ‘Thropes (short for lycanthrope, get used to seeing it) vampires, etc. They’re the A Team, the guys you don’t want to mess with. He used to be one until he retired, joined the Park Police and went out to live the simple life.

Or sumfin’

Apparently he ended up with a life more complicated than what he anticipated, but he and his girlfriend, a Native American shaman with magic of her own, seem to do pretty well dealing with what they’re faced with. For the most part. I mean, it’s not easy but they get through it. Somehow.

I also really like the fact that Lehman, like another personal favorite Declan Finn, adds things in that make his work that much more realistic. Think about it this way: How many times have you ever seen Martin Riggs and Roger Murtaugh (think Lethal Weapon) have to fill out paperwork after a gun battle? Lehman doesn’t dwell on it, but it’s there. It adds a lot to the atmosphere of Shadow War and it makes it a lot more realistic. I like that.

But that’s not to say that this is a book all about paperwork. Shadow War is a work of art with plenty of action and intensity to keep the reader interested. Some of the specialized munitions in the book sound fun all by themselves and when you add in the real world firearms and missiles then toss in some hard fighting with edged weapons, well, it just works, especially if you’re already in the mood for some skull cracking to begin with.

There is plenty of political intrigue in the background as well. Actually, it’s not really in the background, it’s pretty much in your face during large chunks of the book. It makes sense though. Shadow War isn’t just the name of the book, it’s a good description of what happens in the book, at least in general terms and Lehman gets it: Wars aren’t fought just because of hate and a desire to kill the people we don’t like. They’re fought  to further political ambitions using actual force instead of political pressure and money. Alliances rise and fall because of the political goals of the allied nations. His story makes sense because he gets the way things work in the real world.

Lehman’s service to his country is obvious in his characters as well. These aren’t just people who have been stationed in the same part of the country. They’re not just friends, although they are that. They’re comrades, people who have been welded together through shared training and shared danger. I’m a historian because of the real life equivalent to the characters in Shadow War. Seriously, if Fisher actually existed I’d buy him a beer. He’s good people.

And I’ve already gone and downloaded the first book in the series, Harvest of Evil. Of course, I had to boot a book from my Kindle Unlimited queue to get it, and that’s all Lehman’s fault. I’ll have to stick my tongue at him if I ever meet the guy. It’s all his fault that I’ll never read…

Uhh…

Whatever that other book was.

Bottom Line: 5.0 out of 5 Severed Claws

Shadow War

William Lehman

Pymander Press, 2021