Douglas L. Edwards

I am a fan of this author and have read and enjoyed all the books in this series. FNG takes readers back to the beginning. Back to when Sgt. Holt decided to join the military. The author provides readers with a picture of what it was like to enter the military and participate in the training in preparation for going to Vietnam. Once in-country, Holt is assigned to the Wolfhounds of the 25th Division. This is the same unit I served with during my infantry tour in Vietnam. I recall patrolling through the same jungles and rubber plantations mentioned herein and found this story to be very close to my tour.

Holt is referred to as an FNG which is a term along with CHERRIES that defines all new arrivals in-country. They retain the moniker until they can prove themselves worthy to those who have been there for a while. Holt doesn't waste time and gets involved during his first firefight, attacking a bunker and killing three enemy soldiers inside. Thus saving those soldiers in his squad.

The platoon soon runs short of troops, Holt is promoted to squad leader and then shortly thereafter, platoon sergeant. One thing he is known for is that he takes care of his people and usually walks point himself.

FNG tells Holt's story and follows him through his one-year tour of duty - including his stays in the hospital; a booby trap should have killed him, but he survived with multiple injuries. As a result, he should have been sent home, but he is not in the mood to spend 18 months on stateside duty. So he volunteers to spend another year in Vietnam on the condition he remains with his current unit.

FNG is an excellent read where readers will share in the laughter, fear, camaraderie, and brotherhood of a bunch of guys who are fighting together to survive and return home. I did note some typos in the book, many of them should have been picked up by an editor. FNG is highly recommended as part of a great series.… (plus d'informations)

I thoroughly enjoyed reading ABANDONED: A NOVEL OF THE VIETNAM WAR by Douglas Edwards. The incursion into Cambodia was before my time in Vietnam; I arrived just a couple of short months afterwards.
Sgt. Holt was on his 3rd tour in the war, having spent the first two as a platoon sergeant with the 25th Infantry Division. He was drafted by the CIA and assigned to a Green Beret unit in Cambodia. Things were beginning to go sour and trust became an issue with the leaders.
Holt and his team managed to escape and returned to Vietnam. Unfortunately, their exit coincided with the incursion into Cambodia. NVA soldiers were driving deeper into Cambodia and leaving behind tons of supplies during their retreat. The leadership was in turmoil and confusion existed everywhere.
The team is sent deep into Cambodia – ahead of the incursion - by a major to report on enemy movement on a suspected enemy highway. Unfortunately, this major was the only person privy to their mission and he was medevaced to the hospital the following morning. When the Army decided to change radio frequencies, Holt’s team was not in the loop. They were abandoned without communications, food, water, and in the midst of thousands of enemy soldiers.
The story is one of despair, trust, hope and brotherhood. The author does an excellent job in developing the characters and shares his sense of humor in the form of quarreling between two of the team members. At times, I found myself laughing out loud. To survive, these men have to depend upon their training and do things thought to be humanly impossible.
This is an edge of your seat story. It is captivating, engaging, and difficult to put down. Be a witness to what they have to contend with. Will they all survive or give up? Highly recommended for those interested in the Vietnam War and its Warriors.… (plus d'informations)

This is a review of the newest corrected version of Holt's War.

SSGT. Holt spent two years in Vietnam with the Wolfhounds of the 25th Infantry Division and contemplated a third tour. His body was wrecked from injury and many of the Vietnamese were afraid of him – referring to him as a “Demon.” He had quite a reputation and was recruited by Special Forces to complete in-country training to become a “Shake-n-Bake” Green Beret. He loved the Montagnard people and relished the opportunity to work with them. I enjoyed reading about the special training that SSGT Holt participated in and the friends he made along the way.

Now a Green Beret, Holt is assigned to a Bru Montagnard group to conduct top-secret missions in Laos and Cambodia. He was amazed by the stealth and fierceness of those assigned to him. True fighters with nowhere to go after the war ends.

SOG teams are disappearing during missions and are presumed dead. Holt and his team are sent into Laos on one mission to rescue a team that was taken prisoner. Their ranks are diminishing as ARVNs leave unexpectedly along with some of the Bru tribesmen.

Finally, Holt is recruited by the CIA to locate a Bru contingency that relocated to Laos to escape future persecution from the Vietnamese. They were needed by Thailand to help protect their borders. It’ll be like trying to locate a needle in several haystacks.

Does Holt make it through his third tour? Is his last mission successful?

I thoroughly enjoyed this captivating story. It was engaging and held my interest until the very end, which did, btw, seem to abruptly end. Perhaps, the author is contemplating another installment for readers to find out what happened after the end of this story. Nevertheless, it is a great read and one that should not be missed by those interested in the Vietnam War or SOG missions. As a side note, the author’s other two books featuring SSGT Holt: The Iron Triangle and The Hobo Woods are noteworthy and shouldn't be missed. Great job Mr. Edwards!… (plus d'informations)

"The Iron Triangle" by Douglas Edwards is one of the most remarkable books I've read about the Vietnam War. The story follows a squad of Infantry soldiers who are assigned to the Wolfhounds of the 25th Infantry Division and patrol the area between Saigon and the Cambodian border during a two-month period after the 1968 TET Offensive. This part of the country is extremely volatile as it's an enemy staging area and corridor for attacks against Saigon and its neighboring towns. The author's style of writing allows the story to flow easily and makes readers feel as if they are right there in the scenes with the soldiers.

Although fiction, the storyline must follow along the lines of Mr. Edwards' personal experiences of his first tour of duty. The descriptions of scenery, patrols, firefights, life in bases and villages, and other insanities he writes about are just too real and can't be made up. He writes about body counts and the officer's constant obsession with getting them at all costs to further their careers; generally inflating the numbers as the after action reports make their way up the chain of command. The protagonists (squad and platoon leaders) do everything possible to ensure the safety of their fellow soldiers; often questioning their orders when the men are at risk. New officers arriving in Vietnam were a hazard to both themselves and the men - practical experience far outweighed book smarts and it was up to the sergeants to keep the men safe; both have covered up wounds after a firefight so they wouldn't be pulled from the field.

As the story progressed, I got to know the soldiers within the squad and developed a fondness to them. Unfortunately, as this is a war story, some of them are horribly wounded or killed which bummed me out. The author also has a special talent for the dialog and banter between the troops themselves. - many times, I found myself laughing out loud - then remembering back to many of those same type of sarcastic discussions we had ourselves back then.

I highly recommend "The Iron Triangle" to anyone interested in learning about the day-to-day hardships and sacrifices that many of our infantry soldiers experienced during the war. The complaints, bantering, and teasing between the troops is alone worth the cost of admission. And at the current price there's no excuse to pass this by.

Great job Mr. Edwards! Thank you for your service and sacrifice...welcome home, brother!… (plus d'informations)