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Duty to Investigate: A Novel
Duty to Investigate: A Novel
Duty to Investigate: A Novel
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Duty to Investigate: A Novel

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As a successful trial lawyer, Mike Beck uses his personality and his skill with the letter of the law to win in a courtroom. As a Marine Reservist ordered to Iraq on an unexpected deployment, he finds himself in a different world where the law of war often conflicts with common sense and his own feel for what’s right and what’s wrong.


When an embedded female correspondent reveals what appears to be an illegal killing of Iraqi civilians by a U.S. Marine during the battle for Fallujah, Beck finds himself faced with a case that challenges both his legal skills and his conviction that something is very wrong with what seems to be a clear violation of the law of land warfare. Devoted to finding the truth about an ugly incident and keeping an innocent Marine from being convicted in a court-martial, Mike Beck defies orders, purloins evidence, and leads a combat team that must fight their way through a fanatical enemy force to investigate the scene of the alleged crime.


Along the way as he battles his conscience, command influence, and a media giant clamoring for his head, Mike Beck finds a lot of truth about the case, about the brutal enemy in Iraq, about the nature of a very nasty war, about the Marines risking their lives in a confusing combat situation—and about himself as a Marine, a lawyer, and a man.  


“A timely page-turner about war, honor, love, and Iraq justice told by a true Marine—Hooah!”


Eugene Sullivan, Chief Judge (ret), U.S. Court of Appeals (Armed Forces)


Author of The Majority Rules and The Report to the Judiciary



Stone, a former Marine himself, blurs the lines between the good guys and the bad guys and shows us that in war, not everything and everyone is as they seem at first glance. His battle scenes are written from the perspective of a true soldier and are gripping and at times heart-breaking. Stone’s story is intriguing, action-packed—and hints at more to come.

LanguageEnglish
Release dateJun 20, 2013
ISBN9781944353049
Duty to Investigate: A Novel

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  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    A family is executed in a schoolroom in Fallujah. Who is responsible? The Marine found with his pistol pointed at the victims? Or was someone else responsible? An investigation is needed and Beck, a Marine reservist, serving as a legal adviser/investigator must find out what has happened before an embedded reporter submits her article and photographs of the crime. The writer approaches this story from a variety of angles. He writes about the lead characters and their actions leading up to the atrocity and making the point that what seems obvious is not always true. The book presents the bravery of our troops in battle and in helping to find the truth about the slaughter of civilians. It also presents some insight into the motivation-or lack there of- that drove some of the insurgents. I have not been compensated in any way (other than being given a copy of this book to review) and my opinion on the book is entirely my own.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Duty to Investigate is a military crime thriller set in 2004 at the lead up to the Iraq War. I believe it is an authentic depiction of events and of the effects the war has on those involved, and the repercussions of misinterpretation of events and actions taken. It is a story in narrative form from several perspectives, the military, the interaction of troops with civilians and the enemy, and personal relationships.The protagonist Lieutenant Colonel Mike Beck (USMC reserve) is good looking, highly intelligent with chauvinistic tendencies. He treats women as an R'n'R activity, to be used and discarded, but he is also compassionate, with a great deal of integrity and a strong sense of morality and totally dedicated to his work. Beck is a successful lawyer who is appointed as the 4th Division's Staff Judge Advocate. Anne Merrill is a highly motivated newspaper journalist who also works for a tv corporation. She is beautiful, independent, headstrong and totally driven to get to where, and get what she wants on her own terms with no compromise. After an incident with fatalities taken in an ambush in Fallujah she is determined to provide coverage of the war in Iraq and has no qualms about using her positions to get her there.Anne stumbles across an 'incident' and takes photographs. She is convinced that she knows what occurred and is determined to report what she has witnessed. Mike however wants to investigate further but will he jeopardise his integrity in the process to get to the truth.Haitham Rasheed and his cousin, Ahmed are teenagers wanting to do anything to help their family and make the difficulties of everyday life in a war torn country more bearable. Their actions have disastrous repercussions for all involved.I particularly enjoyed reading about these characters and genuinely felt empathy, and concern for them. They were well drawn out, highly credible with flawed and complex traits, and I'm sure that some of the events and tragic circumstances will not sit well with some readers. However, I did not fully believe in the relationship between Beck and Anne towards the end as it appeared out of character and rather rushed. But then again, maybe being in an intense war zone where the threat of death is a possibility, perhaps people do act out of character during that period. I don't know, but the author does, so I asked him if Beck and Anne were based on real people but as yet I've had no response. I had hoped his reply would give credibility to his characters actions.'Duty to Investigate' is a thrilling military tale which at times has some harrowing scenes. It humanises the Iraqi civilians instead of demonising them as a nation. 'DTI' should appeal to anyone interested in military thrillers, and about the Iraq War.I look forward to reading more from JW Stone.I received an e-copy from the publisher for an unbiased review. I should like to thank them for the opportunity to review this title.

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Duty to Investigate - J.W. Stone

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