Wynne's War

“The book’s pacing is cinematic, and it echoes adrenalized silver-screen war stories likeThree Kings and The Hurt Locker.” — New York Times

“Gwyn controls the plot and its mounting suspense tightly . . . The novel conjures up an active-duty soldier’s world." —Chicago Tribune

“A work of narrative alchemy . . . A page-turning romp.” — Houston Chronicle

When Corporal Elijah Russell’s superb horsemanship is revealed during a firefight in northern Iraq, the young army Ranger is assigned to an elite Special Forces unit preparing to stage a secret mission in eastern Afghanistan. Russell’s task is to train the Green Berets — fiercely loyal to their enigmatic commander, Captain Wynne — to ride the horses they will use to execute this mission through treacherous mountain terrain. But as the team presses farther into enemy territory, the nature of the operation only becomes more mysterious and Wynne’s charismatic power takes on a darker cast. Ultimately, Russell finds himself forced to make a choice: on one side, his best friend and his most deeply held beliefs; on the other, a commanding officer driven by a messianic zeal for his mission. This taut, action-packed novel fuses the Western and the war story into a compellingly original tale.

AARON GWYN’s story collection Dog on the Cross was a finalist for the New York Public Library Young Lions Fiction Award. An associate professor of English at the University of North Carolina, he has been published in Esquire, McSweeney’s, Glimmer Train, and elsewhere.
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