"Night of the Bear" by Alan Cockrell and Richard Hess is a suspenseful tale of revenge and military aggression, reminiscent of Tom Clancy’s earliest Cold War thrillers. A covert meeting off the coast of Long Island between Russian Intelligence and a highly placed asset, with links to the highest levels of the U.S. government, discusses a planned attack on the United States with the potential of decapitating the leadership of Russia’s traditional adversary.

The Reverend Bobby Chatman is a popular and influential television preacher. His friendship with President Andrew Phillips grants him unprecedented access to the White House and other corridors of power in Washington, D.C. His Russian lineage is known to his many followers, but his intense hatred for America is carefully masked. Chatman lost his father and brother in Middle East battles where the shadow of the US loomed. When Chatman proposes the operation, dubbed “Lucifer/Inblue,” his Russian boss, Victor Darginsky, is intrigued but knows he will need to convince the volatile Russian leader to sign off on this daring plan.

The opportunity for a decisive tactical strike appeals to Russian President Nikolai Kozlov. His leadership is in a precarious state, and the success of Lucifer/Inblue could ensure the solvency of his regime. Convinced the risk of retaliation is low enough, Kozlov gives the go-ahead for the mission to proceed, but subtly hints to Darginsky how failure could lead to grave consequences.

Using its vast disinformation engine, the Russian government informs the US Government that small portable nuclear weapons have gone missing from Russia and are presumed to be in terrorist hands. The possibility of the nuclear devices being detonated on American soil has the FBI and other agencies on high alert. FBI Agent Darryl McCormick, who has been suspicious of Chatman’s relationship with the President, remains vigilant, especially as the president is set to address a joint session of Congress. However, she is a maverick, and her boss doesn’t take her warnings seriously. By the time they realize her suspicions are accurate, it may be too late for them to halt the catastrophic attack.

The continuing hostility between the US and Russia is an excellent plot device for this story. Whereas Darginsky’s and Kozlov’s motives relate to power, Chatman is motivated by his insatiable need for retribution. His desperation in achieving his plan is equaled by the frantic attempts of the federal agents to find the alleged bombs.

The plan conceived by Chatman and Darginsky relies on deception, misinformation and exploitation of the unprepared U.S. civil air route traffic control system. It allows Russian military aircraft to gain unopposed access to United States airspace. This scenario, conceived by the authors, is ingenious. The tempo of action in the sky climaxes in a wild aerial melee over a sleeping America as the bombers and their fighter escort penetrate the defenses of the United States and masquerade as civil aircraft. The drama inside the cockpit of the Russian aircraft as the countdown commences is riveting.

Authors Alan Cockrell and Richard Hess possess a boundless amount of knowledge about aviation and military matters, and it is apparent in this exceptional work. Their ability to put the reader into the cockpit of an F-15 or a TU-95 is astonishing.

The characters — whether they be entrenched bureaucrats, a traitorous pastor, hard-flying American interceptor pilots, or skilled and determined Russian crewmembers — possess enough emotional complexity to render them captivating. The pacing of the suspense novel is smooth. The timeline tightens as the story progresses, and the tempo rises to page-turning fervor.

"Night of the Bear" evokes thoughts of sleeper cells and skullduggery witnessed in TV programs such as "Homeland," "The Americans" and "24" while being equally inspiring and compelling. The dramatic novel shines with intelligent and crisp dialogue, while also providing plenty of nail-biting tension as the plot progresses towards its surprising conclusion.