Silent Battleground By D.M. Ulmer

In Silent Battleground by D. M. Ulmer, the Cold War did go hot when the Soviet Union attacked the US Navy coastal installations and all but destroyed the American surface fleet. Ulmer moves the reader through tense combat events with skill and expertise using his 32 years of experience as a professional submariner to make this page-turner complete with intrigue and speculation. Reviewers are touting this naval-action thriller about submarine warfare as the next Hunt for Red October.

Wartime operations on board the nuclear submarine USS Denver take an unexpected turn as weapons officer, Lieutenant Brent Maddock, faces numerous challenges to his combat tactics skills from both an elusive enemy and a vindictive and ambitious skipper. While the complex war unfolds beneath the waves, Herculean efforts ashore restore a Washington west coast submarine facility to keep the war defense effort ongoing as the President of the United States resists powerful political advocates for surrender.

James H. Patton, CAPT USN (Ret) and technical advisor to the film Hunt for Red October states in his review, 'Captain Ulmer parlays his knowledge and experience gained from command of a US Navy Diesel-Electric submarine and earlier service as a Department Head on one of the first nuclear-powered Polaris ballistic missile submarines to craft a fascinating 'alternative history' in the early part of the last decade of the 20^th century … unusual in this “techno-thriller” genre, Silent Battleground absolutely reeks of both technical and tactical credibility … readers will find a delightful blend of elements from On the Beach, Incredible Victory, Thirteen Days and Hunt for Red October. Submariners will approve, non-submariners will learn, but all will enjoy Silent Battleground.'

Another reviewer, who once worked in the Office of Submarine Warfare (OP-31) in the Pentagon, The Late Donald S. Campbell Jr., CAPT USN (Ret) wrote 'Captain Ulmer's conjecture framed in his novel Silent Battleground envisions a realistic possibility of internal confrontations within the US submarine officer corps had the Cold War turned hot in 1987. In this regard, he provides interesting insight to a professional issue kept submerged within the Silent Service community.  Did the technical broom of nuclear propulsion sweep away a nucleus of officers, highly qualified  and needed to insure combat readiness of the Submarine Force? A revealing read for submariners and lay persons alike.'

'Silent Battleground is a powerful, compelling novel. Author, D. M. Ulmer, a Navyman of 32 years, moves the reader through tense events with skill and expertise using his professional savvy to lace the plot with intrigue and speculation that makes the book a page-turner. Ulmer's rare talent exposes torn loyalty and self discovery the characters endure. They serve with duty, fear, and vengeance but the human element of love and family challenges them. I found myself believing fiction to be fact possible.
JR Reynolds, author, Sustenance of Courage and Woman of Courage.

Dave Bartholomew, CAPT USN (Ret) and former commander of two US warships writes: 'Don Ulmer’s Silent Battleground leaves me breathless at the end of every chapter. Don brings us, realistically, into the shipboard world. His wardroom scenes are so realistic that I found myself there. Don shows us a scenario that very nearly happened. In doing so, he not only gives us a view of professional Navy officers, but opens a rare glimpse into the war-fighters’ personal lives – on both sides of a conflict we hope never happens.'

Silent Battleground is now available - published by Patriot Media, Inc. an independent publishing firm in Niceville, Florida. The 261-page novel can be purchased for $19.95, plus shipping and handling, online at www.patriotmediainc.com or by calling (850) 897-4204.