The Last Caliph is a thoughtful thriller whose cast is illuminating in its diversity.
T. L. Williams’s The Last Caliph is a realistic military adventure that reveals the intricacies of American involvement in the Middle East.
Logan is a former Navy SEAL who has military contacts all over the world and experience in many clandestine operations. He’s afraid that his wife’s brother may be being radicalized by ISIS, and he decides to get involved, making use of his unique skill sets. Pretending to be a disaffected soldier, Logan attempts to infiltrate ISIS and get close to their leader, all while dealing with a major family trauma that threatens his marriage.
Logan is a competent yet humble lead. Experienced and intelligent, his motivations and ability to carry out his plans are well established, and his military knowledge is expertly portrayed. He’s decidedly less adept at handling his emotions, though. He and his wife Zahir are struggling after a late term miscarriage. Zahir is the story’s emotional touchstone, though expressions of her grief and sadness often feel rushed. Logan seems disconnected from his home life; he makes some unseemly decisions that are never dealt with, and their relationship feels unresolved.
Supporting characters include both friends and enemies, many of whom are Muslim, and all of whom are thoughtfully rendered and easy to imagine, if they are somewhat dimensionless beyond their connections to Logan and Zahir. The novel avoids stereotyping; the Muslim cast is diverse, expressing a variety of opinions on politics and religion. Their dialogue often sounds contrived, though, as it imparts technical or religious information. Discrimination against Muslims, especially after 9/11, is explored.
The novel takes place all over the world with a focus on the Middle East. History is inserted in location descriptions, deepening understanding of places and cultural attitudes. Regional details make it easier to understand the characters’ motivations, and stories of war-torn cities and fallen family members elicit sympathy.
The writing is direct and accessible, if impeded by erratically used quotation marks and italics. Military details are believable and the novel successfully portrays the complexity of undercover operations. Information is frequently repeated, and this slows the pace. The ending resolves the book’s plot lines, but characters who initially shared the task of narrating the story are in some cases abandoned, with only hasty descriptions of their fates to sate curiosity.
The Last Caliph is a pragmatic thriller enlivened by a diverse cast of characters.
Logan Alexander and his team are best known (in intelligence circles) for thwarting China's Zero Day attack against the U.S. The in-depth cybersecurity effort that united all branches of the government was a satisfying end result of his achievement.
Now he's facing something equally dangerous just as he's in the process of questioning bureaucratic processes and barriers in the wake of this amazingly successful battle. Danger doesn't just come from external affairs, this time. He and his wife Zahir have lost a baby, possibly directly related to the consequences of his work, and they need a change.
T.L. Williams clearly outlines opening scenes in which Logan realizes the limitations of his job and the reasons why he's putting it on hold for a year of absence: "He knew himself well enough to realize what had really been gnawing at him for the last year was the recognition that he was at his best when he alone called the shots. He was used to having more autonomy than the CIA customarily gave its officers. In the field, operations officers saw themselves as the pointy end of the spear, and they had considerable leeway in making operational decisions on the spot as circumstances demand. Back in Washington though, you were just a cog in the wheel."
He also faces the process of grief, views it in those around him, and wonders if it will continue to erode his relationship years later: "Logan was struck by the melancholy expression on his father-in-law's face and the plaintive tone of his voice. It was apparent decades after his loss, the pain was as fresh and poignant as the day it happened. Was this his and Zahir's fate? Would bitterness and disparagement define their lives going forward or would love win out?"
With this background nicely detailed, The Last Caliph proceeds to meld personal with political adversity as Logan's personal year off for recovery turns into a deadly series of confrontations with forces both beyond and interconnected with his professional and personal life: "He was going to get to the bottom of Ali's contact with ISIS and blow the lid off of anything ISIS thought it could do in the U.S. And then he was going to get his family back."
From New York mosques in the crosshairs of terrorist activity to Logan's deteriorating relationship with Zahir, Logan struggles with ISIS activities and forces that create disruption and confrontation on all sides, immersed in a whirlwind of Middle East issues and a civil war's horrific aftermath.
Between his investigative efforts with enemy Azar, her ISIS contact Rifat, and his journey through areas replete with car bombs and danger, Logan experiences newfound hope in the middle of a crisis in a desert in a far-away land - just when he didn't expect it.
Readers will find themselves drawn into a changing plot of espionage and intelligence actions, cemented by Logan's personal life conundrums and the possibilities of disaster and redemption which run side by side through every dangerous moment.
The concurrent stories of grief, recovery, and new possibilities keeps the counterintelligence maneuvers lively and personal, creating a vivid plot that is both fast-paced and emotionally engaging.
Readers who seek a constant barrage of action paired with emotional twists and turns will find The Last Caliph satisfyingly unpredictable and nicely written: a gem of intrigue that will keep thriller enthusiasts on edge and wondering right up to a politically charged resolution which brings all situations and characters full circle.
