Bestselling author Stephen Coonts took fans by surprise with the phenomenal and heart-pounding tale of Saucer . Now Rip Cantrell and Charley Pine are back for seconds with Saucer: The Conquest . Rip Cantrell is brought back to give the saucer one last flight. Charley Pine has started flying for a rich French tycoon, and there is believed to be another downed saucer somewhere in the area. Rip can't quite get over the fact that Charley has dumped him. But when push comes to shove Rip and the United States Government are going to go head to head with this crazy Frenchman in trying to be the first to the saucer. As Stephen Coonts proved in his last outing, there is a great deal of high-flying adventure to be found in the Saucer series. And this one not only promises all the excitement of the last one, but it delivers with much, much more. This felicitous, lightweight combination of thriller and sf is the second adventure of Rip Cantrell and Charley Pine involving flying table settings (the first: Saucer , 2002). To begin things, Coonts introduces the original 1947 Roswell, New Mexico, saucer (the saucer of Saucer was a Saharan denizen) and a scientist who, if not mad at first, is driven mad by the need to keep its discovery secret. Jumping to the present, Coonts gives us Rip at loose ends while Charley flies a French space plane to the Moon. (How the French developed that particular piece of hardware remains unexplained, as does quite a lot else in the book.) Charley soon encounters a mad French brewer and his definitely evil wife, who plan to use stolen saucer technology to conquer the world. Charley makes an excellent whistle-blower, however, and although the rest of the yarn is fast-paced (featuring superb flying sequences, among other exciting things), its issue is never really in doubt. Coonts' tongue is in cheek for much of the story, as it has been in some of his later Jake Grafton books, but this is not likely to raise the hackles of anyone except the humor-impaired. Readers: enjoy. Libraries: provide. Roland Green Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved “Coonts knows how to write and build suspense.” ― The New York Times Book Review “Tough to put down.” ― Publishers Weekly “A comic, feel-good sf adventure.” ― Kirkus Reviews “Coonts is a natural storyteller.” ― USA Today Praise for the novels of Stephen Coonts America "The master of the techno-thriller spins a bone-chilling worst-case scenario involving international spies, military heroics, conniving politicians, devious agencies, a hijacked nuclear sub, lethal computer hackers, currency speculators, maniac moguls and greedy mercenaries that rivals Clancy for fiction-as-realism and Cussler for spirited action... [Coonts] never lets up with heart-racing jet/missile combat, suspenseful submarine maneuvers and doomsday scenarios that feel only too real, providing real food for thought in his dramatization of the missile-shield debate." - Publishers Weekly (starred review) "Fans of Coonts and his hero Grafton will love it. Great fun." - Library Journal "Coonts's action and the techno-talk are as gripping as ever." - Kirkus Reviews "Thrilling roller-coaster action. Give a hearty welcome back to Adm. Jake Grafton." - The Philadelphia Inquirer Hong Kong "The author gives us superior suspense with a great cast of made-up characters...But the best thing about this book is Coonts's scenario for turning China into a democracy." - Liz Smith, The New York Post "A high-octane blend of techno-wizardry [and] ultraviolence...[Coonts] skillfully captures the postmodern flavor of Hong Kong, where a cell phone is as apt as an AK-47 to be a revolutionary weapon." - USA Today "Entertaining...intriguing." - Booklist "Will be enjoyed by Coonts's many fans...Coonts has perfected the art of the high-tech adventure story." - Library Journal "Coonts does a remarkable job of capturing the mood of clashing cultures in Hong Kong." - Publishers Weekly "Filled with action, intrigue, and humanity." - San Jose Mercury News "Move over Clancy, readers know they can count on Coonts." - Midwest Book Review Cuba "Enough Tomahawk missiles, stealth bombers, and staccato action to satisfy [Coonts's] most demanding fans." - USA Today "[A] gripping and intelligent thriller." - Publishers Weekly (starred review) "Perhaps the best of Stephen Coonts's six novels about modern warfare." - Austin American-Statesman "Coonts delivers some of his best gung-ho suspense writing yet." - Kirkus Reviews "Dramatic, diverting action...Coonts delivers." - Booklist Fortunes of War "[Coonts] is a natural storyteller [with] a rare gift...Fortunes of War is crammed with a action, suspense, and characters with more than the usual one dimension found in these books." - USA Today "A stirring examination of courage, compassion, and profound nobility of military professionals under fire. Coonts's best yet." - Kirkus Reviews (starred review) "Full of action