Weber, Joe 1945-

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WEBER, Joe 1945-

PERSONAL: Born February 9, 1945, in Enid, OK; married; wife's name Jeannie. Education: Received M.S. (aviation management). Hobbies and other interests: Travel, sailing.

ADDRESSES: Home—PMB 352, 2172 West Nine Mile Rd., Pensacola, FL 32534. Agent—c/o Putnam Publishing Group, 200 Madison Ave., New York, NY 10016. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER: Commercial pilot, 1975-89; writer, 1987—. Military service: U.S. Marine Corps, 1970-75, carrierqualified fighter/attack trained pilot.

WRITINGS:

Defcon One, Presidio Press (Novato, CA), 1989.

Shadow Flight, Presidio Press (Novato, CA), 1990.

Rules of Engagement, Lyford Books (Novato, CA), 1991.

Targets of Opportunity, Putnam (New York, NY), 1993.

Honorable Enemies, Putnam (New York, NY), 1994.

Primary Target, Berkley Books (New York, NY), 1999.

Dancing with the Dragon, Presidio Press (Novato, CA), 2002.

ADAPTATIONS: Audiotape versions of Honorable Enemies and Defcon One have been recorded.

WORK IN PROGRESS: An eighth novel (tentatively titled A Short Response), based on events of September 11, 2001, and bringing back the character Khaliq Farkas.

SIDELIGHTS: Joe Weber is known for his military techno-thrillers, some of which center on post-Cold War antagonisms. His seven novels have sold millions of copies, appearing on major bestseller lists throughout the United States. They have been translated into some seven languages, and most have been recorded on audiocassette or compact disc. Weber draws on his experience as a U.S. Marine fighter pilot during the Vietnam War, his military training, his commercial flight experience, and constant research into current events and military procedure, in writing his novels.

Weber began writing his first novel, Defcon One, on a yellow legal pad with pencils he packed in his flight bag while working as a commercial pilot in 1987. In it he depicts a post-Perestroika (the period of "openness" decreed by Soviet Union premier Mikhail Gorbachev) Soviet system nearing chaos. When the Soviet premier is suddenly assassinated the nation's military powers scheme to deceive American forces into preparing for war. If American forces amass as anticipated, the Soviets will then, presumably, have justification for launching their own attack. U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) agent Steve Wickham, stationed in Moscow, must elude Soviet agents and other dangerous foes while endeavoring to thwart this plot. A reviewer for Publishers Weekly described Defcon One as "gripping" and appraised Weber's story as "frighteningly credible."

Weber followed Defcon One with Shadow Flight. In this novel, Soviet agents hijack an American stealth bomber, the Shadow 37, and land it in Cuba. Angered by American efforts to recover the plane, Cuban leader Fidel Castro promptly declares war on the United States, whereupon the Americans undertake a daring raid on Cuban military locations. Agent Steve Wickham returns in this novel, with the mission of recovering the Shadow. A Publishers Weekly contributor praised Weber for his realistic portrayals of technology, stating that the author "is at his best describing details of modern carrier operations."

In Weber's third novel, Rules of Engagement, Marine pilot Brad Austin must contend with America's outdated rules of war while flying his missions into North Vietnam during the Vietnam War. Austin eventually runs afoul of American leaders after he is filmed while pursuing and destroying a Soviet fighter over unsanctioned territory. He then finds himself forced to justify his actions before his superiors. Weber published a fourth thriller, Targets of Opportunity, in 1993. Brad Austin returns in this novel to pilot an American-acquired Soviet fighter plane, a MiG-17, behind enemy lines. His success could save the United States—but failure would mean certain death. In Honorable Enemies, CIA agent Steve Wickham and FBI agent Susan Nakamura uncover a deadly conspiracy involving the United States and Japanese governments after a helicopter fires on a Hawaiian cruise ship, killing Japanese tourists, and then attacks Pearl Harbor. Retaliation against American tourists in Osaka, Japan, threatens to bring the two nations to the brink of war.

Primary Target, Weber's next thriller, revolves around an all-out terrorist attack on America by an alliance of former-Soviet Communists and Middle Eastern extremists. After a military display by both sides and a plot by the terrorists to create a world oil shortage, U.S. President Cord Macklin becomes a target for assassination. Led by Iranian terrorist Khaliq Farkas, terrorists attack commercial airlines and make attempts on Air Force One, causing panic throughout the country. However, the United States retaliates with heavy bombings of Middle Eastern and Soviet civilian and military targets. Although published in 1999, the plot of the novel bears uncanny resemblances to events surrounding the terrorist attacks on the United States of September 11, 2001. Frequent e-mails from readers asking how he so closely predicted this type of scenario led Weber to respond on his Web site, Joe Weber Novels: "When I developed the plot I asked myself—if I were a terrorist, who did not have access to hightech weapons, how would I attack the 'infidels'? The answer seemed obvious. I would attack the airlines, striking fear in the hearts of all Americans, and destabilizing their economy." A Publishers Weekly contributor called Primary Target "a frighteningly real story of international terrorism in America" that is enhanced by many subplots and admirable character development. Weber's "knowledge of weapons, military aircraft and terrorist tactics is superior," the contributor added. Kenneth Shouler, in an interview with Weber for Book Page, felt the same. He commented that Weber's "grasp of technical details—from G-forces, to types of fighter planes, to military code—is sure. The reader knows that he knows."

In Dancing with the Dragon Weber continues to follow his technique of researching world events occurring in the present and projecting them into the future. This novel is about the threat of a U.S. conflict with China, which creates a new cold war. While the United States is occupied with the war on terrorism, China, which has acquired advanced laser missile technology, establishes military bases on the Pacific coasts of Central and South America in an attempt to exert dominance over the Pacific. When the Chinese threaten Taiwan and block U.S. naval reinforcements from the Panama Canal, the United States enters the conflict full force. The government sends pilots-turnedintelligence-specialists Scott Dalton and Jackie Sullivan, characters introduced in Primary Target, to China to eliminate the scientist who created China's secret weapon. China retaliates by sending nuclear weapons toward Alaska and Hawaii. A Publishers Weekly contributor questioned the effectiveness of the Scott and Jackie characters, calling them "flavorless and stiff" and observing that they "compete over who can titter the most banalities." The contributor also thought the novel's plot lost its initial promise due to "hokey dialogue, exposition-heavy battle scenes and flagging suspense." However, Booklist reviewer Roland Green praised Weber's military expertise and "depiction of Chinese motives and methods well above the level of Yellow Peril fantasies." Frank Fogg, writing online in Fogg, called the book "a gripping and suspenseful espionage story."

Asked by readers about ways in which his military experience influenced his writing, Weber said on his Web site: "I don't think I could adequately bring the visceral feeling of flying off an aircraft carrier or airto-air combat to the reader if I hadn't been trained to do it. If you've never yanked and banked in a high performance military jet, it's hard to describe how it really feels. I hope my military background allows me to put my readers inside the cockpit with my characters." In the Book Page interview with Shouler, Weber explained that he "never considered [himself] a Steinbeck or a Hemingway." Without formal training in English or journalism, he said he "didn't know an adverb from a proverb." He said he simply knows where a book will begin and end, and from there it is like "paint by the numbers." Yet, said Shouler, Weber is a master at pacing the action in his novels. The author explained how he does it: "'You can't run full throttle the whole time or you blow the engine.'"

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, April 15, 2002, Roland Green, review of Dancing with the Dragon, p. 1384.

Kirkus Reviews, February 1, 1994, review of Honorable Enemies, p. 94.

Kliatt Young Adult Paperback Book Guide, May, 1994, review of Targets of Opportunity, p. 13.

Library Journal, June 15, 1994, review of HonorableEnemies (audio version), p. 108; September 15, 1994, review of Honorable Enemies (audio version), p. 104; May 15, 1995, review of Defcon One (audio version), p. 110.

Publishers Weekly, August 11, 1989, review of DefconOne, p. 441; August 10, 1990, review of Shadow Flight, p. 434; February 28, 1994, review of Honorable Enemies, p. 73; November 22, 1999, review of Primary Target, p. 46; March 25, 2002, review of Dancing with the Dragon, p. 42.

Wall Street Journal, December 1, 1989, p. A13.