dailyBooks - 2034--A Novel of the Next World War by Elliot Ackerman & Admiral James Stavridis, USN--Conversation Starters

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2034

Elliot Ackerman & Admiral James Stavridis, USN

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Introducing 2034

2034 : A Novel of the Next World War is a political speculative fiction by two awarded former military officers, Elliott Ackerman and James Stavridis. The story opens with US Navy Captain Sarah Hunt, also called by her comrades as the Lion Queen, voyaging in the Mischief Reef. Shes navigating Arleigh Burke-class destroyers across the South China Sea, a move that is meant to mock the Chinese for claiming this body of water. Hunt is commanding three of these destroyers, all of which are outfitted with computerized weapons systems.

The mission called freedom of navigation starts to go wrong when they see a smaller vessel in the distance emitting smoke. Hunt orders her squadron to stray from their course to investigate the anomalous sight. What they find is a ship full of electronic surveillance equipment, and they dont think twice about seizing it.

While Hunt is dealing with her discovery, US Marine pilot, Captain Chris Wedge'' Mitchell is on the other side of the world flying his F-35. He is on a risky test flight over the Strait of Hormuz, carefully skirting the Iranian airspace. Mitchell is astounded when he loses control of the aircraft for no apparent dysfunction. Soon enough, he realizes what is happening. Someone else has taken control of it, and as his plane descends into the Bandar Abbas military base in Iran, it becomes painfully clear who the culprit is.

US Deputy National Security Adviser Sandeep Choudhury assumed too quickly that these events were unrelated. Along with an unnamed female commander-in-chief from an independent party, he is caught off guard by the revelation that these are the results of a Chinese-Iranian alliance. The South China Sea and the Iranian airspace attack were the brainchild of Chinas Central Military Commission, and the United States did not uncover this soon enough to prevent what turned out to be the beginning of World War III.

2034 features a diverse list of characters whose actions are pivotal in the wars development. Some of the most notable ones include General Chiang, the Chinese Defense Minister, and Brigadier General Qassem Farshad, leader of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Quds Force. Theres also U.S. Navy Rear Admiral John Hendrickson, Russian Navy corvette Reskiy Lieutenant Commander Vasily Kolchak, and Military attache in Washington, DC, Admiral Lin Bao. Last but not least is the former second in command in the Indian Navy, Vice Admiral Anand Patel. They represent India, China, Russia, Iran, and the United States, whose participation in the war would change the world forever.

As chaos starts, Russia takes the opportunity to invade Poland in an effort to connect Russia with Kaliningrad. China destroys two American aircraft carriers along with 37 other ships, resulting in the death of over ten thousand sailors. Their victorious attack is succeeded by their invasion of Taiwan, which they easily conquer. In their next assault on the Americans, the Chinese commissioned Russia with the task of cutting underwater wires that would slow down the internet across the United States. Russia agrees but does more than that: it destroys most of the wires, cutting off the internet connection in nearly all American states. China then realizes that Russia has betrayed it and has set them on the path to a full-blown war against America.

America retaliates by firing a tactical nuclear weapon on a Chinese port and results in the death of millions. China, in turn, fires a nuclear weapon on US cities to achieve the same death toll. The continuous firing of nukes creates interference with the global weather patterns, and this impacts Russias surprise attack on Iran. They suffer from miscalculations due to the unpredictable weather and the Russian troops land on the water.

The Americans are decided on fighting the war not with more technology, but with less of it. Hunt tells her superiors that their overreliance on technology would be the end of them, which is why they have to begin retaliating the old-fashioned way. The superior cyber weapons of the Chinese force America to fire more nukes and switch to traditional aircraft. They forgo their SLBM and ICBM missiles and send out their F-18 aircraft minus the electronics. This forces the pilots to operate manually using compasses and maps.

In a surprising turn of events, the Indians join the war with technology that is at par with the Chinese. They sink a Chinese aircraft carrier and proceed to shoot down the F-18 aircraft of the Americans. The only pilot to survive the Indian ambush manages to arrive at Shanghai in time to detonate its nuclear weapon and kill around 30 million people.

At the end of the book, almost all nations are economically wrecked, and India comes out at the top. The war is far from reaching its conclusion, but the forces that were unleashed in the third world war promise that nothing will be the same again.