Reviewed by Grant Leishman for Readers' Favorite

The Standoff by Grant Cole is a fast-paced action thriller that answers the question: what can the average American do when the government goes too far in trying to control its citizenry? Alex is living the quiet life in Dalton County, Texas, after years of serving his country in the military. He is concerned about what is happening when a new law is proposed to slowly strip Americans of their Constitutional right to bear arms. Convinced the federal government has an underlying motive for the proposed law and certain that it is almost time to make a stand against this fundamental usurping of the citizens’ rights, he has been preparing for this day and quickly calls his old comrades to join him to fight against the creeping bureaucracy. Ultimately, Alex, a collection of former soldiers, intelligence experts, out-and-out fighters, and a rag-tag collection of Alex’s neighbors will make their stand against the federal government. They may well be faced down by the might of the U.S. federal law enforcement as well as the U.S. military, but Alex and his team have a few surprises of their own up their sleeves.

The Standoff is a story that seems so likely and so possible that readers will automatically be drawing comparisons to David Koresh and the Waco standoff, also in Texas. The clear and defining difference here is that where Koresh was a spiritual cult leader, Alex and his crew are driven by the fundamental philosophy of adherence to the Constitution that founded their republic. The story is incredibly fast-paced and features a wide variety of colorful characters who will easily endear themselves to readers, even the most notorious and volatile of them. I particularly appreciated that despite the relatively short length of the novel, Grant Cole was still invested in developing the characters holed up in Alex’s house and did not sacrifice that for out-and-out action. I did enjoy the thoughtful and cogent conversations that illuminated why this disparate group was prepared to stand up to the might of the federal government and demand their rights guaranteed under the Constitution. For them, it was a hill they were prepared to die on. Conspiracy theorists will relish the underlying themes that there is a secret cabal actually running the government from behind closed doors and pulling the strings of the politicians to increase their own wealth and power. Given the levels of corruption we are currently seeing in the U.S. Government, out in the open, with little or no shame, this story may be a timely reminder that whatever we can see, what we cannot see is probably ten times worse. This is a relatable book that I thoroughly enjoyed. I highly recommend it.