Ulterior Motives

by Mark Andrew Olsen

Book Overview

A suspense novel that explores themes of truth vs deception and reconciliation in the tradition of Peretti and Dekker. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0764202758
• ISBN13: 9780764202759
• Release Date: March 2009
• Publisher: Bethany House Publishers
• Length: 317 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.5" x 8.4"

Customer Reviews

Good Motives! I Think I'll Keep Reading Olsen

Ok, is everydbody getting sick and tired of all the al-Qaeda novels that constantly stack the shelves? Maybe. But just suppose there is one out there, that has a catchy title. Should you go for it? Well, I did! And I'm glad I did. It gave me the opportunity to praise the skills of Mark Andrew Olsen. This took a little time getting into, and the ending was somewhat obvious, but it was still worth telling. It is always us against them, and we always have to win. When Saddam was hanged, people were rushing to YOUTUBE to see if they could witness the execution before the video was blocked! Hey, I was one of them, and I loved it. That's sick, isn't it? I mean, we don't want to have anything to do with letting these guys get away with any more than they can. An attack set for New Years is found out about. But when Omar Nirubi, a big-time leader is captured, and interrogation is pushed to the limit, they resort to one other option. And Greg Cahill is brought in. What we learn about Greg is that he is a man with a past, and not a very honorable one either. But he has come to know Christ, and he knows something about forgiveness. And he finds that he has things in common with Omar as the days go by. What can he learn from Omar? Better yet, can they learn anything from each other? Mark Andrew Olsen is a stud this time around. And he had the guts to go for broke with this one. This is one novel where the message might not be so popular, yet almost reluctantly appropriate. Too many people still harbor hatred in ways that are unacceptable, and that isn't right! Tough love, forgiveness. Sound like too much? Well, too bad, because that's what is interlaced throughout this one! And I sure enjoyed it the whole way through. Thanks, Mark!

Challenges Your Thinking

There is a LOT in the news right now about the use of various forms of torture to get viable information from terrorists. What if our government decided to not use physical torture, but decided to use spiritual "torture"? To friend and ultimately sway terrorists into changing their religion to Christianity as a way to find information. This book delved into just that possibility! It was scarily possible scenario that truly will make you think about the possibilities for our future or what possibly could be going on right now!

Loved this story. It's my kind of read!

Maybe I am a bit biased because I live in Sierra Vista and know people who work in psy-ops and intel on Ft. Huachuca. All of the details regarding the setting rang true for me. He had the facts down perfectly except for in one place. The one time it did snow here in the past six years it was more like one to two inches, tops. But that's forgiveable because my guess is he needed it for the plot. After all, it is fiction. I love the psychology behind these types of stories, probably because that's the subject I majored in when I got my Bachelor's degree. Anyway, I found the story fascinating, especially the techniques used by the military to deal with highly classified situations. It reminded me of the Bourne Identity that way. Were the good guys always good guys? Or was it just until they got what they wanted and then they turned on you... I loved the implied messages, too. The media messes up things sometimes when they give out information prematurely and sometimes because of the security breach, people die. So true. Then they blame the military, who, of course, must pick a fall guy, at least that's how it's presented here. I found it very believable. For me the best part of this story was the spiritual content. It's so true that people know when we are sincere and when we are not. People who don't know Christ are in search of the very thing we claim to have, but don't always show in our behavior. And, of course, God can use anyone and anything to change us for the better. Bottom line...you have to forgive yourself for others to see the forgiveness Christ has given you. Very well done! The only weakness I saw in this book was the six year old's thinking and speech. A few times he sounded more like a ten year hold than a six year old. But that wasn't significant enough to taint the story for me. I'd highly recommend this to anyone who wants to be inspired by a story with a deep faith element. I love stories that make me think and make me want to share my faith more with people who seem "unreachable."

deep inspirational supernatural thriller

He is an American blond haired blue eyes scientist working at Cal Tech; but at his heart he is a fervent Muslim fundamentalist who believes violence is the only answer the United States understands. He invented a potent toxic nerve gas that could wipe out husbands perhaps millions with a small dose. He calls himself Azzam the Younger named for Al-Qaeda's patron saint. The successor to Bin Laden is Omar Niburi, who is in Pakistan when he is captured and taken by Americans. They hope to torture the truth out of him as to where and when the gas will be released, but Niburi resists the efforts relying on his religious beliefs to comfort him. When the agents realize he is not going to break, they bring in civilian Greg Cahill, forced out of the FBI for killing a child. He became an evangelist minister preaching at prisons. The Feds hope he can reach Niraub's soul and convert him to Christianity. If they succeed they believe he will tell them all. Greg detests the politics but wants to save this man's soul; miraculously they connect. However a betrayal leads to the pair fleeing while trying to prevent the nerve gas tragedy from occurring. Greg Cahill has done many ugly things in his life, but his conversion seems real and people like Niburi sense that he is a true believer now. He feels blessed to hear the voice of God and to witness angels taking a killer to heaven while protecting him and Niburi. This is also a psychological thriller where the protagonist, unaware who to trust turns to the one he can always trust Jesus, enabling him to forgive his transgressions. Mark Andrew Olson provides a deep inspirational supernatural thriller filled with messages without preaching. Harriet Klausner

Another Winner

Greg Cahill has faced his share of turmoil and despair, much of it of his own making. After a mission gone horribly wrong and a failed marriage, Greg finally hits rock bottom and turns his life over to Christ. Greg longs to win back the love and trust of his family that he has hurt. In the meantime he has dedicated his life to ministering to prisoners. After Greg brings a convicted death row murderer to Christ he is approached by the U.S. government. Osama Bin Laden's successor, Omar Nirubi, has been captured and is the only link to an imminent terrorist attack on the U.S. All interrogation attempts have failed to bring any answers and the government has turned to an unorthodox interrogation protocol that has all but been forgotten. The plan involves convincing Nirubi to renounce his Islamic faith, and the powers that be believe Greg Cahill is just the man for the job. Time is running out as Greg attempts to convert the world's most hated man who is the only one that can save millions of American lives. Mark Andrew Olsen delivers another winner with this intriguing and controversial premise. Olsen's brilliant storytelling is on full display here with a frenetic pace, well crafted characters, and enough tension to keep you churning the pages. What really carries this story is Olsen's willingness to tackle controversial subject matter. Indeed Olsen takes questionable interrogation tactics to a whole new level with the idea of using religion to gain a terrorist's allegiance. While Ulterior Motives is not as action packed as Olsen's latest works we are still treated so some full throttle sequences that will leave you breathless. Much of the story revolves around the relationship between Greg Cahill and Omar Nirubi. I love what Olsen does with these characters and how he takes this relationship to a level many will not anticipate. This is a challenging and engrossing story that is sure to have people talking. Olsen has yet to let me down and I truly can't wait to see where he takes us next.