On Edge
A Novel
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
The United States draws down in Afghanistan amidst tension between the legitimate government and the Taliban
When a former Army buddy is murdered by an Afghan military colleague, U.S. Army Special Investigator Alex Klear is called back into action in Afghanistan to investigate what is thought to be a classic "green-on-blue" killing. Alex finds Kabul in a state of chaos, partly under government control, partly controlled by the Taliban.
From the beginning, he suspects that the Army has identified the wrong man as the killer, and that an innocent Afghan soldier has become the victim of a complex frame-up. His suspicions are solidified when he discovers that his friend had been investigating a massive fraud at Kabul Bank. As Alex is drawn into the epicenter of the biggest bank fraud in history, he finds his efforts systematically thwarted by both the American and the Afghanistan governments.
In the lawless streets of Kabul and into the far outreaches of Afghanistan, Alex relentlessly hunts his friend's killer―and uncovers the truth. In real-life, an incident kept mostly out of the media―a monumental embarrassment to both countries.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Fans of both military and mystery fiction will relish Ashforth's impressive sequel to 2012's The Rendition. In early 2013, Alex Klear, a retired U.S. Army intelligence officer, once again gives in to a demand to perform one more job for his country, this time in Afghanistan, where an old friend of his, Col. Peter Hansen, was the victim of an apparent "green-on-blue" killing (an Afghan soldier murdering an American soldier). In Kabul, Alex unearths evidence suggesting that the soldier accused of the crime was set up, and he concludes that the murder is connected to Pete's investigation of the collapse of the Kabul Bank, which went bankrupt in 2010. Meanwhile, with the date of U.S. withdrawal approaching, officials seem content to let circumstantial evidence close the case and ignore the conspiracy. Alex, stalwart and principled, pursues it to the shocking end. Ashforth, an Army veteran and former military contractor, skillfully conveys an insider's familiarity with the Afghan people and terrain, but he should abandon the "just one more mission" conceit and put Alex officially back into uniform for his next outing.
