He thought his deadliest enemy knelt across the line of scrimmage. He was wrong After a tour of duty in Afghanistan, Riley Covington is living his dream as a professional linebacker when he comes face to face with a radical terrorist group on his own home turf. Drawn into the nightmare around him, Riley returns to his former life as a member of a special ops team that crosses oceans in an attempt … in an attempt to stop the escalating attacks. But time is running out, and it soon becomes apparent that the terrorists are on the verge of achieving their goal–to strike at the very heart of America. This softcover edition also includes a teaser chapter of the next Riley Covington thriller.
Written by a member of the NFL; gives readers an insider look at the world of professional athletes and military intelligence. Examines the challenges of homeland security in large-venue events. Explores the tension between the desire for revenge and the constraints of the Christian faith, especially as it relates to Islam. Jason Elam has recently returned from Iraq, where he visited and supported the troops. You can read his journal at mondaynightjihad.blogspot.com
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I came across this book on Goodreads and saw an author I follow had read it, rated it 5 stars, and what not so I thought I’d give it a shot even though I know nothing about football and expected it to be a somewhat enjoyable but not great book. I was wrong. So wrong. If there is one word to describe what I found in this book it is genuine faith, real, living it out faith, strong faith, broken faith, but all the same faith.
Riley, oh, Riley, one of the characters I had no idea what to expect from, I thought maybe his faith would be lukewarm like the faith of other characters but no, he truly ‘lived’ out his beliefs in the pages of Monday Night Jihad. This suspense has a mix of humor, danger, friendship, and so much more. While there was too much violence for my taste it was okay, I suppose. Now for Scott, he’s a crazy guy, in a good way, but being him, well, that’s not a place anyone would want to be sometimes, Jim Hicks was another character that I liked though with him I had a love/hate feel.
With all of the characters, the settings, and the plot this story pulls together into a thoroughly enjoyable yet edge of your seat novel perfect for all suspense lovers. I do dislike seeing the bad guys POV but that’s just me.
First off, let me say that reading negative reviews of a book you’re about to rate 5 stars isn’t the greatest idea in the world. But that doesn’t mean I don’t still love the book.
Ack, it was so good.
First off, Riley was . . . fantabulous. A Christian that cared about others, yet still struggled with his faith when . . . well . . . spoilers, ya know. His relationship with his grandpa was so sweet. His bantering with his buddies—let’s not forget the teasing!
I laughed harder during this baby than I have while reading a book in a long, long time. “We will be experiencing some mild turbulence—that means Mr. Plane go bump bump.” It’s one of those things you have to take in context to fully appreciate, but still.
The football aspect was epic. I grew up playing football with my brothers and dad in the backyard, and I guess that could be the basis of my love for reading sports stories. The camaraderie of the team made me smile so much.
The way Christianity was brought out—UM, YES. It wasn’t the awkward ‘Lord, I can’t figure out what to wear today, put my hand on the right shirt’ kind, but the ‘Lord, I’ll trust You even when it hurts beyond belief’ kind. I ADORED it. It wasn’t preachy, but it was strong. Like stand-your-spoon-in-your-coffee strong. (Okay, not quite that strong but the analogy just popped into my head sooooo)
And then . . . then the unthinkable happened. If I was one to cry during a book, I would’ve. Rarely do I pause while reading, but . . . wow. Um. There were a couple of parts where I just had to wince, close my eyes, and take a deep breath. Because ouch. Needless to say, I’m not really okay. Now I’m going through the sequel (and I’m trying hard not to mix the two up while I’m writing this, haha), and it’s still painful. The descriptions in this book aren’t really . . . well . . . descriptive, but the events are still described in such a way that my imagination took off and made me feel it.
What didn’t I like? All the different POVs weren’t really my favorite, but nothing to really complain about. There was a major info-dump on an entire page once. But it didn’t last long, thank goodness. And, lastly, the story was kiiiiinda predictable? Like, I had the bad guy pegged almost from the beginning. But I was definitely questioning my guess multiple times.