PASHTUN

Set in Afghanistan, PASHTUN reads like Generation Kill crossed with Tinker, Taylor, Soldier Spy; it will leave you breathless. PASHTUN brims with the challenges of military special operations in a lunar landscape, told with rare compassion for those asked to walk point in the madness.

The Phoenix Program recruit soldiers into the CIA to assassinate suspected Taliban and Al Qaeda terrorists in the thin air of Afghanistan. The real targets become blurred as our damaged hero discovers that in fact it's oil, opium and greed that drive many of the missions he is sent to carry out, risking his own life, and his buddies' lives, and innocent "collaterals." He's been given the name Frank Morgan because he so closely resembles a legendary Vietnam assassin deployed by the Phoenix Program in then 1960s — he has nearly supernatural abilities as a sniper and tracker. His knowledge and skill take him to Germany and throughout Afghanistan, becoming closely acquainted with the opium business and its trade routes. One of his sidekicks is an indestructible Irishman with a cutting sense of humor, and a glass of whiskey never far from his hand. The second mate is a giant who quotes poetry and rap songs while he tortures others — and himself. They rescue a beautiful, veiled woman, barely escape the vengeance of their bosses at the CIA, and live for rare quiet moments in a horrific, criminally-insane war that is run by corrupt officials and wastes millions of innocent lives. Pashtun depicts the challenges of military special operations in a boulder-filled landscape and is told with a compassion for those asked to fight the battles. Ron Lealos, in his own words: "Could be you're stuck in the events of the sixties like me and that prompted your stopping by. Or you're stuck in a Midwest snow storm and want to sweat even if it comes through the pages of a book. Whatever, thanks and hello. My one book is an attempt to capture the madness of a war despised at home by many and hated in-country by not a lot fewer. My attempts at writing spring from days as a journalist, but more so because of the flowers I placed in policemen's rifle barrels. I've tried to move on and failed miserably, continually teased back by dreams and memories. I hope you have enjoyed the journey as much as I have." Ron Lealos graduated from Western Washington University and studied fiction under Tom Spanbauer for several years as part of the Dangerous Writing group in Portland, Oregon. In his nonwriting life, he has developed, manufactured, and marketed a rapid home test for the detection of HIV antibodies. Pashtun is his first book. He resides in Vancouver, Washington.