I enjoyed all the WW III books, but and this one of no exception. THe characters are interesting, like Aussie and the Brentwood Brothers, and technology is very accurate and in-depth. However, I noticed that Slater has a tendency to counter items he has written before and ignore information in previous books. I was constantly looking back to earlier chapters and earlier books because i could have sworn that that character had died already (Sonarman Rogers dies like four different times). Over looking these minor problems, the books are very interesting and engrossing.

I think this book is a masterpiece. It is the incredible story of a war between the USA backed UN force and China. The characters are excellent such as General Freeman and Aussie Lewis. I highly suggest you buy it.

I've read all of the WWIII books, as well as all of the USA vs. Militia books, and they have great characters, which draw you into a sense of being able to somehow understand them to a T. As for the previous review dealing with a harpoon anti-ship missle being used as a surface to air missle, it is factual since the design is based on radar tracking technology, and comes equipped with its own radar to guide it to its target. If you read a lot into the technicalities of the books, and understand the dynamics of the weapons, you can see that the author has quite the grasp on technology, and the ingenious uses for armaments. Good book, but not the best in the series.

By most standards, this series should be horrible. There are glaring factual errors (such as, in one previous book, using a Harpoon anti-ship missile as a surface-to-air missile), little attention paid to time and continuity, and relatively rough characterization.

However, it's cool.

I've read the entire series of the Freeman universe, from the WW3 books to the USA vs. Militia books. They're fun, exciting, and just plain entertaining books, and are written so the problems I highlighted at the beginning are treated as advantages, not disadvantages. This novel is no exception.

In previous novels, a great deal of the United States Militia Corps' (which I will not refer to as USMC, not wishing to taint Marines with the perversions of rebel traitors) manpower was captured and incarcerated in a detention camp at Fairchild AFB. The driving plot of this novel is Lucky McBride, the militia's greatest warrior, and his attempt to force the government into releasing those prisoners. This develops into a series of disastrous encounters for both the government and the militia, requiring the intervention of General Douglas Freeman.

One of the striking features about this series is that the fog of war affects both sides equally; rarely does any plan go off without a hitch, and neither side is favored. Also, while the characterization is rough, it's often very good...particularly, in this book, Maddin. And, finally, there is a great deal of humor in the series, the intention of which I'm not sure about (though you should see Force 10 for the best examples of that).

All in all, this was another enjoyable book of a good series.

You can't compare Ian Slater to Orwell, but in this case, Mr. Slater does a fair job at writing and gives credit to Mr. Orwell. Better than his other books.

A good read - if you are not a massive military buff and don'tgive a rat's how much a Sparrow missile weighs, then you should findit entertaining enough. Freeman is a bit shallow though as a main character - Slater tends to play too much on his "un-PC" behaviour, I feel. As far as a series goes, it is quite good so far (the first 3). The atmosphere of a World War raging in Europe for an extended period is captured well in the shifts to England, and the plight of the average citizen and the masses of refugees is sometimes quite disturbing. It is also good (in a typically male, gung ho type of way) to finally have a nuclear exchange, instead of it being "stopped in the nick of time" as in many other novels. I am now living in trepidation, though, as I start the rest of the series, due to the scathing reviews referring to ships and people "coming back from the dead" - we'll see...

This is one of the best modern war fictions that I've ever read. It rivals Tom Clancy's Red Storm Rising, and inspired me to become an author myself. I love its realism, solid plotline, and-most importantly-its timeless plausibility!

This book is a absolute page turner. Great characters, awesome plot. What makes this series so great is the reality of it all, I can easily see the events as Ian described them taking place. The minor insignificant little 'Technical' errors dont bother me at all....not that picky over things that dont effect the quality of the read. Great book, you wont be disapointed just make sure you start the series from the begining.

two thumbs up Ian!

As books go it is probobly not bad. however ian slater is up against some tough competition with clancy and bond. the book was enjoyable but a little dry. the combat often lacks description and is handled more in a factual way. which i found a little tedious. the biggest problem of this book is it's technical problems that a small amount of research would have fixed. that lack of research has to be my biggest complaint. the info he errs on is easily obtained and i think that is what i found so annoying. however the book is still and interesting read. i don't hold the way the war started as being believeable , yet it does hold a certin interest when reading it. i will be reading the next to see how it progresses. if you like the genre then give it a read. but do not expected it to on larry bonds or the earlier tom clancy level.

I picked up this book after reading about it here at Amazon with some suspicion (hearing about the inaccuracies, but I was immediately hooked. I found Slater's text easy to read and quick paced with plenty of litterary style. Normally the gros inaccuracies would have turned me off but the story and the characters were just too interesting!

My reccomendations to the author would be a little reading up on military technology and equipment, but I am forced (rather reluctantly considering the level of mistakes) to forgive him. Of course it IS fiction after all and that allows room for the technical and political inconsistancies.

Anyone who wants to read WWIII should, it is a great book, but be aware of mistakes, but don't get hooked up on them, just sit back and enjoy.

I think this was a pretty good book. Not as good as Clancy's Red Storm Rising, but still a lot of action. I am only 13 and have recently started reading military novels and of all I've read this is probably in my top 5

"The story started in "Showdown: USA vs. Militia" continues in this thrilling war novel from the author of "WW III" series."

I would hardly call any of Slater's works a "War Novel". His works are pure fiction and nothing less. I have read as much of his WWIII series as I could stand and his "USA vs Milita" series also. It is obvious that he has not done his homework properly as other authors of his type have. His numerous errors not only detract from the story line but also add to a sense of ignorance to the overall storyline. I have read Ian Slater's works in the past and probably will in the future if I cannot find anything else worth reading at the local 1/2 priced book store.

The Ian Slater books are fantastic. I have read them all, many times, and find they are at the fore front of their genre'. Slater's technical as well as injected materials ar eright on the mark. As war books go this author knows what to type and how to keep serious readers in his corner.

Ian Slater pulls you into the action in the greatest war book ever. You take part of both sides. The Militia, a secret army with the power that will try to take over the country. The Federals, armed and ready fighting for the US. You will never want to put this book down wanting to know who will win the next battle. This is the greatest book on war ever written. I didn't find one flaw with this book. I can't wait to buy more books from Slater. If you don't read Battle Front, you will miss the time of your life!

I am sick and tired of all the people complaining about Ian Slater's errors for units or weapons names or weight! Who cares? The names have nothing to do with the plot!

Now to Arctic Front, it was a interesting well thought out book but lacked action. I also didn't get why one division(31st) would attack Freeman's army? Anyhow I thought the book was good enough to read and I plan to read the sequels

WWIII: Artic Front has many glaring error. For instance, in the previous book there was a nuclear exchange near the end but in this book they are already launching subs from a base that took a direct hit by a nuclear missle. In addition, General Freeman found time to fight in the Gulf War when he was leading the army in korea and europe. He was also able to lead the fighting in Minsk and lead the russian surrender precedings as he was being held captive by the chinese. If you can let go of those error the book is still enjoyable to read.

WW III: Arctic Front, The fourth installment in Ian Slater's WW III series, was sub-average in many areas, including plot, action, and military accuracy (if you've read my reviews of previous books in the WW III series, you'd have guessed this by now). For example, there was a nuclear exchange between the U.S. and the USSR in the author's previous book, WW III: World in Flames, but it seems totally forgotten in Arctic Front. There were some problems regarding equipment names such as the AGM-86B cruise missile (Slater called it the 86-B), and in the text for some reason Slater decided to spell "M1A1" as "M-1 A-1". And what's this? It seems that Ian Slater is under the impression that F-15E Strike Eagles can be launched from aircraft carriers!! @#%&*!!!! How such a glaring error made it past the editor (I sometimes wondered if there IS any for this book) is beyond me. But if you don't mind these defects and errors, and you're a fan of the WW III series (despite all I've just said, I still am to some degree), then read Arctic Front

In WWIII: Warshot, the Reagan was sunk! Along with it's crew! How the did they suddenly ressurect themselves? I dislike this book for that one reason. Everything else is fine. END

this book told an exciting story of men in combat. Even though some things seemed impossible it is well worth someones time.

I have to say I had a hard time putting this book down. There's a lot of action and the pace is furious. However, the pace is also a weakness of the book. It is written in the style of a TV movie: everything happens quickly, seemlessly, and often unrealistically. The author makes it seem as though you can cross China in a few hours in a tank (fat chance). In one scene, a battlefield commander radios in a request for a cruise missile attack, and, within half an hour, the missiles arrive, on target, courtesy of a sub cruising in the Pacific. Nice, but highly unlikely.

On the whole I enjoyed the book. But, given the lack of realism and paper-thin characters, I'm not sure I would read another in this series.

This is Slater's worst book ever!!! He portrays the militias as an organized fighting unit that could give the airborne guys an good fight!!! Hah! Slater, obviously do not know anything about the militia movement in America. They could never fight a convential battle with American military units because they would have been smashed. And I knew that he would portray the real Americans as the baby killers and those stupid militia guys as heroes. It seems that Slater's vast military knowledge vanished while writing this book. Stick to the WWIII series if you want to continue writing good books, Mr. Slater.

A book that I found deserved to be read. When I found this book I had been waiting for a plot like this, and Ian Slater did not dissapoint me one bit. This book is great for first time Ian Slater readers. It might take awhile to get caught up with the characters as a first time reader, but it doesnt ruin the story. One thing I like about this book is that it isnt USM wins, USM wins, USM wins, end or book. In some points the militia come out strong and actually push back the USM and kill a government official with a cell phone bomb (liked that part). Following the guy that blew up the official as he traveled up to the militias with a guy he picked up I found to be exciting. There were many surprises to me that I didnt necessarily guess I would find, but I did. I also like the part about the bridge and the parachutes proving, the United States Military isnt perfect. If you are a first time reader of Ian Slater, this is a good book, if your not, still should be a good read.

Beginning with a story pulled from today's headlines Ian Slater brings us a story from tomorrow's. In yet another action filled "what if" Slater now asks, "What if the militia were able to launch an organized attack on the US government." Along the way Slater is actually very even handed with both the militia and the federals. Some militia members are depicted as racist rednecks but others are shown as patriotic Americans striking a blow for freedom. Likewise, not all the federal forces are portrayed as angels in khaki. All the characters have their faults and often the reader is not sure which side to root for. In typical Slater fashion the storyline is carried on the wings of action packed sequences filled with enough detail to keep the reader informed and interested but not so much that the story drags or becomes boring. If you like seat of the pants reading, non-stop action and realistic fiction then pick up a copy of Showdown today

After reading the entire WW III series I read this book and I must say unlike the other seven great books this one was no good. I only liked three charachters in South China Sea. Those being Marte Price, The oil rigg worker I forgot his name, and General Freeman.Freeman was carried over from the first set of books. This book had nothing to do with the series at all and the publisher who didn't tell Slater to keep in the theme of the original series is probably out of a job. I loved the other WW III novels and I like the USA VS Militia series so far but don't waste your money on South China Sea

This last installment of the WWIII series by Ian Slater took a very different approach than the others, much to my chagrin. Gone was the saga of the Brentwood family, replaced by Gen. Freeman roaming around Vietnam and often losing the confidence of his superiors. Oil rigs drilling for petroleum in the South China Sea near the Spratly Islands which are claimed by both China and Vietnam are blown up and the survivors are taken hostage by the PLA and forced to work. Chinese shock troops cross the border and begin a war with Vietnam over the oil leases. Washington makes a decision to support our former enemy Vietnam to keep China from trying to claim all of the resources of the South Pacific for itself. Most of the war is rather one-sided with the U.S., Vietnam, and the U.N. force being routed in the jungle. The conclusion is rather less than conclusive and you are left with the feeling of "that's it?" The subplots of the book are resolved on the last page and in very little detail. It's really a shame that such a fine series had to end this way.

I may be missing the point here, but I get the impression that Mr Slater's books are seperate entities. A trilogy is where each book leads on to the next - just because he writes a number of books with the same theme, and loosely based around a similar character, doesn't neccessarily mean it's a trilogy. With that aside - I was a little disappointed with this novel. The blurb describes an all-out war in the South China Sea and in Vietnam. What actually happens is a couple of isolated and relatively minor naval scraps, and what can only be described as an extended (although admittedly brutal) land battle. That's it. Not (quote) "...the Pacific Rim is ablaze in a hell called WWIII South China Sea". The battle scenes are quite exciting, though, and graphic. Not a lot of characterisation, but not everybody wants that in a war novel anyway. In short, it left me feeling "is that it?". Let's just say early Tom Clancy didn't leave me with that feeling.