Honor Bound is the best novel I have read in quite a while. The story features memorable characters, straight-ahead storytelling and informed me about world events/politics from a point of view I hadn't experienced. The book kept taking surprising turns and ventured into nooks and crannies that revealed some interesting (to say the least) information about America and its releationship with the rest of the world. The author is quite a plot writer, right down to the unexpected way he ended the story. A very good story and well-told!

I read this book in early October 2001 and was astonished how current the story is. John Ratti begins his novel with the words. "One day, some of this fiction will be fact." I don't see how he could have had any idea how right he would be. Mixing fact with fiction to the degree that I couldn't tell which was which, Honor Bound is the story of American as apple pie heroine Captain Kasey Lawrence, an American icon if there ever was one, right down to the words, "America, One Nation, One Destiny" stitched into the lining of her coat (the same words stitched inside Lincoln's on the day of his assassination). With unfettered precision, he details her journey through the paradoxical conundrums of the Mideast, taking us out of that tunnel into an abyss of personal turmoil in Kasey's sad heart. This book reminded me, is lateral manner, of everything from the Gulf War, the Lebanon hostage crisis, Iran-Contra, even the Lewinsky affair, not to metion the events of September 11, 2001. And when he reveals the big secret driving the story, it left me chilled -- because one day, it will be fact. A very, very good book.

John Ratti's novel couldn't have been more timely. In some ways, it seems almost prophetic. In the shadow of recent tragic events, the intricate plot development of this impressive novel brings current events into sharp focus. Throughout the story's settings and within the development of the major characters, particularly Captain Casey Lawrence, we are led into the very complex relationships that make up our modern world. The novel also helps people from both the western world and the Middle East to have a better understanding of each other's history and culture, as well as the many differing beliefs, ideas and ambitions within those regions. Showing good and evil on both sides, we are given a fair and believable assessment of those who are "players" as well as those who are "played" -- often reversing roles. There must have been an incredible amount of time and effort taken in research for this book. I was very impressed.

I lost some sleep while reading this book because I found it almost impossible to put down. My personal opinion is that this book is well worth reading. It offers very valuable insight into what is happening in our world today, which might help to encourage us to become more aware of what is going on both at home and overseas and how we might be involved. This is an excellent book!