Active Measures by Marc Cameron is a suspenseful thriller.  With the Cuban regime as a backdrop this novel reminds Americans how Cuba has overwhelming poverty, is a police state, and a violator of human rights. The plot has a rogue general, Zayda de la Guardia, wanting to enact revenge on America by firing off a nuclear weapon left over from the Cold War. 

Cameron describes where he got the idea for the story, “I read somewhere where Robert McNamara heard a rumor that Russia left up to 100 nukes in Cuba that could hit Miami.  Although the Russians eventually removed them, as a storyteller, I started to think what if one was left behind. I decided to let my characters respond to what was actually happening. They were not very fond of socialism.”  

Hoping to stop him, Special Agent Jericho Quinn and his team have traveled undercover to Cuba. He is pursued by assassins, captured, thrown into a secret prison, and trapped on the island during one of the worst hurricanes.  Yet nothing can deter Quinn and his team from eliminating the threat to the US.

Using Cuba as a secondary character Cameron noted, “When I was in Florida after the hurricane, while still a US Marshal, I spoke with a lot of Cubans.  I kept notes about their culture and put that in the book.  The Cuban regime pitted neighbor against neighbor and family against family.  I did not want to write a political story, but a story about people.  The politics is in the background just like the setting.  Also, weather played a big role. As a Marshal weather influenced us how we pack gear, weapons, and how we would track bad guys.  I see weather as another character.  The hurricane and the buildings that are not built up to code allowed me to put problems on the antagonists/protagonists.  Hopefully it adds tension to the plot.”  

This plot has nail-biting action and very likeable protagonists as well as antagonists who are pure evil.  Readers will be on the edge of their seats as they turn the pages.

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