Damascus Countdown - Will Keep You Up At Night

It was my pleasure to read Joel Rosenberg’s newest novel Damascus Countdown.  This is the third book in his current series which included The Twelfth Imam and The Tehran Initiative. 

Damascus Countdown begins where The Tehran Initiative left off, with CIA NOC agent David Shirazi in Qom, Iran meeting with Javad Nouri, a personal aide to the Ayatollah and Twelfth Imam.  As the CIA’s plan is executed, suddenly flying overhead are four F16 fighter jets on a mission, a preemptive strike by Israel.  The war everyone feared had just begun.

This is a fast paced novel that will keep you up at night.  The storyline jumps between Iran, Israel, Washington DC, New York and Syria as characters, including the hero David Shirazi, do everything they can to prevent a nuclear holocaust against Israel, the United States’ ally and the only free and democratic nation in the Middle East.  The reader is taken behind the scenes with CIA operatives and their family and friends, top Iranian leaders and nuclear scientists, Israeli government officials, Mossad agents, and a genocidal Islamic messiah.  

One of my favorite elements of Joel Rosenberg’s novel is that he shows the development of faith in some of the characters.  As a Christian, faith impacts everything I do, so it’s interesting to see how the characters respond in their faith to the cataclysmic events they are involved in. 

Joel Rosenberg is a gifted writer and he seems to get better with each passing novel.  The characters are interesting, the good guys and even the despicable ones.  The storyline and scenes are gripping and I didn’t want to put the book down until I finished the last page.  The Christian message that salvation is found through faith in Jesus Christ alone is clearly presented, not in contrived manner, but is woven in to the experiences of his characters.  Joel has a good understanding of Biblical and Islamic prophesy which are woven throughout the novel. 

I highly recommend Joel Rosenberg’s novel Damascus Countdown.  I do warn you, you may have some circles under your eyes, from staying up late so you can find out what happens next. 

I thank Tyndale House Publishers for providing me a complimentary copy of the book to read and review.  I was under no obligation to provide a favorable review.