Wildfire (Kelly Turnbull/PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC Book 3)

“Wildfire” is another excellent entry in Kurt Schlichter’s dystopian (or is it now utopian?), vision of a split United States. The story is gripping and sucks the reader in; I enjoyed it very much (though Schlichter should invest in a copy editor to get rid of typos; I bet he could find one for cheap on Fiverr). I had quite a bit to say about the philosophy and mechanics of the “Split” in my reviews of the two earlier books in the series, “People’s Republic” and “Indian Country,” so I won’t repeat what I said here.I will note, however, that people who look around and say that we’re far from the future Schlichter portrays, and thus this is merely amusing fantasy, are wrong. First, as the author himself points out, since he started writing these books, many of the behaviors he intended as satire have become real, as progressive evil spreads its poison ever further. Second, and less obviously, just because we seem rich and not a “s—thole country” doesn’t mean we’re going to stay that way. Venezuela could easily be a first world country; now it’s a hellhole where people are actually starving, much as Schlichter portrays the People’s Republic (the progressive states) in these books. Yes, it can happen here. Why not? Reality has a way of asserting itself. And collapse is often a step function, not a smooth decline. Enough stupidity, coupled with some external shocks, could easily bring about some variation on the future Schlichter outlines. So let’s not get too comfortable.

In the third “People’s Republic” story, Kelly Turnbull goes undercover to cooperate with his nemesis - People’s Republic secret police chief Martin Rios-Parkinson - to pursue a common threat: a bioweapon that could take out both the United States and the People’s Republic.Turnbull, who previously has smuggled people out of California and helped launch a border insurrection in southern Indiana, now sees the havoc the politically correct regime has caused in Washington, D.C. People are starving. Large parts of it are no-go areas ruled by warlords. There’s cannibalism. The government rations everything according to privilege levels, based on your level of victimhood - while saving the best, naturally, for themselves. The secret police are preoccupied with gender crimes. It’s a nightmare nation, infected by 21st century Maoism.Turnbull hilariously tries to blend in in an environment with about 30 different gender pronouns as he races against the clock to find those importing Marburg virus into the People’s Republic. This is like Dirty Harry going to East Germany and pretending he works for the Stasi. His partner is a young federal agent, a highly indoctrinated woman with little tactical experience. Will his racist and patriarchal sensibilities lead her to feel unsafe? Will his hegemony encroach upon her? And will she get him killed? Meanwhile, the PR's bigs all plot against each other.It’s a tall order, especially when they slip into Germany to go to the plot’s source. All Turnbull has going for him are his wits and his trusty .45. You don’t really want to screw around with a .38 or 9 mm if a bad guy needs wasting. He does get his hands on a vintage MAC-10, lovingly restored and customized by the last regular guy in the People's Republic, a former gunny who's the armorer for the People's Bureau of Investigation. (Where J. Edgar Hoover, long a left-wing bugaboo, has been restored to a place of honor because of his cross-dressing.)

"Gangs?" Rios-Parkinson said. "Inspector Cooley, 'gangs' is a racist term applied to organic collections of oppressed individuals banding together to defend their rights against a heteronormative white supremacy paradigm."Cooley swallowed. "Sorry, Director. I am still fighting residual racist programming from my upbringing. It is a constant struggle to validate my allyship.""This guy forgets to fill his tank before he picks you up and you're pissed that he called gangs 'gangs'? said Turnbull.Cooley's black-lined eyes were wide with horror. No one spoke to the director that way.Passages like these are why readers loved "People's Republic" and "Indian Country". Or maybe they loved the plausible descriptions of life in the two Americas, divided along ideological lines: Blue America (The People's Republic) is a lunatic asylum of political correctness where the leadership lives in luxury and gets real coffee, while everyone else deals with poverty and gas rationing, and has to drink "responsible coffee" (coffee made from previously-used grounds). Readers definitely love Kelly Turnbull's readiness to do what's right, such as speaking truth to the Director of The People's Republic."Wildfire" is only going to make readers want yet another installment. I hope he's already started on it!

This is Kurt Schlichter at his best. Wildfire is a cautionary tale of "what could be". Full of action, intrigue and laugh out loud humor, Wildfire shows us why Schlichter is regarded by many to be a leading voice of reason and a defender of our freedoms, in a world on the edge of madness.

Kelly is in the thick of it as usual. A good read with plenty of action and some humour. As usual, his predilection for firing on automatic works out for him, although reality might be otherwise:-)

As the third in this series I wondered as to how it would compare to “People’s Republic.” Now Kelly Trumbull has to work closely with his old enemies in the People’s Republic, and that adds to the drama. I especially liked the young PBI agent Kristina Carter, who is paired to work with him. Yeah Kristina is a brainwashed SJW, but she is rather likeable, and one can respect her for her dedication and her eagerness to learn. She develops a good chemistry and a working relationship with Kelly. Along with the terrorist plot, and the infighting within the PR Government, it is a nail bitting question as to just how will it work out between Kelly and Kristina? Loved every page of it!

A good read, well written, but do be aware the novel is topically political and intended to be. If you don't want current USA politics and warnings of where things might go, don't read. If you don't mind or want to see a contrarian viewpoint highly recommended.If you have read Schlicter's previous fiction and enjoyed it, read this one too. I enjoyed "Indian Country" more, but this is probably a stronger novel. Without spoilers, one of the characters is sincerely scary.

This is a ripping yarn, an international adventure that gives a serious satirical look at Europe along with Blue America. Lots of guns and shoot'em ups. If you like Tom Clancy novels but tend to skim over the talky technical bits, you'll find this very satisfying.

Kurt Schlicter has once again hit a home run with Wildfire. A fanatically paced and solid romp, with good character developments and even *gasp* some continuity with his previous works!Kelly Turnbull is definitely my favorite modern day action hero , and I cant wait to see him again in Crisis. Highly recommended if your a fan of People's Republic and Indian Country