About the Book:
In 1971, Bill Mann, a pilot who sought to make aerial combat his guiding star, is already lost whether he knows it or not. Although he’s at the top of his Air Force class and married to a beautiful woman, his life is centered on drinking and partying—perhaps a way to escape a haunting memory. As a ten-year-old, Bill killed the two white men who beat his black mother to death.
In 1972, Mann is in Vietnam, flying his aircraft, The Cool Woman, in combat environs that have been called the most hazardous in air warfare history. He remains confident and considers himself “the envied of the envied” until the moment his beautiful wife says she wants a divorce, and the downward spiral of Mann’s life and his survival odds begins.
About the Author:
John Aubrey Anderson was growing up in Mississippi cotton country when he saw John Wayne starring in Flying Tigers and knew he wanted to be a pilot. After graduating from Mississippi State University, he joined the Air Force, served three tours in Southeast Asia, and went on to fly planes for Delta Air Lines for twenty-eight years. Now retired from the cockpit, he writes novels, including the acclaimed Black or White Chronicles trilogy, and lives with his wife in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area of Texas
My Review:
Typically, I don’t read military genre books, unless of course, the review book I am reading at the time has a secondary military theme woven in. I was raised a military brat so I had my share of all the military terminology and happenings, and new what would happen in a strictly military novel…or so I thought. I was a little leery when I started The Cool Woman…..I heard so many mixed reviews about this book. Upon starting this novel, I realized the saying ‘to each his own’ is true, for I really enjoyed this novel. Now, that’s not saying it’s my favorite. Far from my favorite,in fact. It’s just one that captured me and took me for a ride through Nam and the life of a military pilot.
Bill Mann is a character an author can be proud of. He’s strong, he’s handsome and he’s fighting for his country in Vietnam. But, there is something missing in his life, and it’s not the wife who’s divorcing him. He’s lacking a faith in his Father .But, through, am unfortunate circumstance, can he overcome his lack of faith and believe in the Heavenly Father, and gain everything back???
I really enjoyed Pip Mann. She fit the role of the military wife perfectly. She really tugged at my heart and reminded me of stateside life of a military family, always wondering what was happening to her husband, and, she too, had a lack of faith in God.
Bill and Pip Mann aren’t the only reasons I liked this book. John Aubrey Anderson, being a retired military man himself and having first hand knowledge, used the touchy subject of whites befriending blacks and blacks in the military and war. Through his words, we are able to see the struggle of race issues in the military, and how they are overcome. But, through it all, he showed God working in the hearts of his characters. He showed, through God, that to a full life, no matter the skin color, no matter the war, it must be through a faith in God.
A story full of military talk (there’s a glossary in the back for the terminology used!), action, and hard lessons(the war we really battle the most is within ourselves if we don’t have faith in our hearts), The Cool Woman is a 4 star book that shouldn’t be over looked. Definitely take the time to read this true-to-life fiction novel and be prepared to serve in Vietnam along side some pretty awesome characters and learn some lessons along the way.
You can purchase your copy here.
*This book was provided for review by B&H Publishing*
