Terrorists have unleashed a bacterial plague in small towns across America. In response to citizens' fear of this invisible enemy, the President declares marshal law and suspends civil liberties. But which will destroy America first - germ warfare or the emerging fascism? The race is on to unmask the real enemy before it's too late.

Frankly, it's hard to believe this little book was written 25 years ago!

This 1979 science fiction tale by Jack Chalker shows a world where lightening-fast computers, engineered germs, and sophisticated surveillance are a fact of life. But reading it today, it’s no longer a tale of terrifying technological and scientific marvels, but rather a fast-paced political thriller.

In a quick, yet gripping read, it shows how easy it is to give up personal liberties when you fear a nebulous enemy. And, how easy it is to create that fear, then divert its power for nefarious purposes.

For anyone who worries about how much freedom we’ve given up in the last few years and fears the ever encroaching suppression of our liberties, this is a must read.

Although out of print, “A War of Shadows” can be found at used book stores and on-line for less than the price of most new books.
favorites5 s Jacob Steckbeck173 3

Have you ever seen Mickey Mouse threaten the president with a live grenade? Because now I have. Quality book3 s1 comment Brian1 review

This book is one of my favorite reads. I keep an old tattered copy at my desk to reread passages now and then. The storyline has a solid intro and a neat twist that develops near the end. A novel of biological warfare, treachery, and courage. I recommend it to anyone. I have read several of Chalker's works, and this is my favorite. (I do his Dancing Gods series, at least the first few). Strix249 18

Terrorists use a plague as a cover to turn America into a fascist state, and along the way they hypnotize a woman into thinking she's four years old, because Chalker HAS to do a transformation thing in every book he writes. It was fascinating reading this woman escape them while thinking she's four and then it slowly wearing off, but I skimmed a lot of the rest because I didn't care.

Also TW for random rape. Offscreen but c'mon, no one needed that, she was already traumatized.thriller1 comment Bryan320 7

Two books in one - one is compelling, fast-paced, and exciting. And the other is numbingly boring and pointless.

The first 60-80 pages is great, and pulls you in. And, if you're not comatose or skimming crazy, the last 6-8 pages is also very good. To give credit where it's due, Chalker does come up with a unique resolution to a plot that seemed to be a fait accompli for the bad guys. (But I was skimming, so I wasn't sure at first and had to reread - I thought I had the bad guys mixed up.)

But the rest of the book is dreck. Characters that I don't care about, and whose actions I can't accept as ly, and plot devices that I find unly to take pace.

Be warned... Jack L. Chalker really only wrote a couple of decent books, and while this very early book is far, far superior to his later works, it's again a dismal reminder of the fact that the only Chalker you really need to read is the first few Well World books.

Interesting fact... every time I read a Chalker book, I always ask myself "which character will have their body altered this time?" Because every book Chalker writes, some character either ends up in a different body, or a surgically-altered (or drug-altered) body that affects the way they can function. And he didn't disappoint - I found the person in this book. So... it seems Chalker really knows only one basic story, and tells that story in every book he writes, and just dresses it up a bit differently.

I would have given this 2 stars, but I did enjoy the beginning and the very end. The rest is only worth skimming.sf J McEvoy78 5

A series of bio-terrorist attacks on small towns across America leads inevitably to martial law and deep paranoia - the people demand not only protection; they demand that their rights be taken away for fear strangers have the same rights. An FBI laboratory finds that the viruses were designed on their own computer systems, leading to a frantic confrontation with the ever-present shadow government.

Chalker piles incident upon incident to compensate for a rather haggard prose style, elevating the book in substance if not in style. The plotting is curiously old-fashioned, but the cynical view of government is very much post-Watergate; really it's an old 50s thriller infected with Nixon and the rest.

Enjoyable though. Kevin257 9

Mediocre fantasist Chalker does epidemiology thriller. Nothing to write home about.
Though I'm no fan of this sort of book, I must admit that Michael Crichton or whoever does it a lot better than this guy, who is better known for his pervy genre fiction (he's Piers Anthony, but blander). Crichton, for one, would at least know his shit, and his erudition would compensate for the obvious plotting and thin characterization.
I suspect that this was a cynical bid for a broader readership. SciFiOne2,015 32

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