You’ve all seen these scenes before in movies. Armageddon has one of the best ones. The Mighty Ducks 2 has a good one too. Oceans Eleven. Major League. I don’t know if they have a specific name for this type of scene, I’d call it the “getting the team together” scene. And it’s always been a favorite of mine.
I’ve never read the literary equivalent of the “getting the team together” scene until I picked up The Warrior Retreat by John Lynch. While the scenes mentioned above are usually on the lighthearted side, there isn’t much about the Warriors Retreat that I’d consider light-hearted, but man did I love the “getting the team together” scene in the middle of this book.
I don’t want to give too much plot away on this one because I always think it’s better to go into books without knowing much. I will tell you this is a book about PTSD and what it’s like for soldiers coming back from war. I’ve done a good amount of reading on this subject but John Lynch has lived it and he hits every note and beat perfectly. The book is violent and heartbreaking but what makes it for me is the characters. From the very first page, Lynch knows and understands his characters and they come off the page and feel like real people. Each character in this book feels like someone you could meet in your every day life at the grocery store or sitting at the bar (or at a strip club).
There is definitely subject matter in this book could difficult for some readers to get through. There is a lot of death and a lot of sorrow but if you can get through it, this book is well worth the read. I wish I could have spent more time with some of the characters, but I have a feeling that is exactly the emotion Lynch was hoping to evoke when he wrote this.
Strong 4/5 on this one for me. Well worth your time.
