and too many others like him in the S.I.S., are over-awed by the C.I.A.'s use of technology (Sigint and satellite photography), and foolishly regard humint (human agents) as a thing of the past. In The Fist of God, Forsyth paints several comical scenes in which the C.I.A. and U.S. military realize that they have enough satellite photos and signal intercepts "to drown in," yet none of it offers any insight into the Iraqis' true intentions, and they begin searching desperately for a way to infiltrate Saddam Hussein's regime with a living agent. In his afterword to The Fist of God, Forsyth makes his point explicit, that HUMINT will always be a necessary part of espionage. Background Set against the backdrop of the Gulf War, the novel features several real-life characters central to the conflict. The assassination of Gerald Bull is central to the novel. Historical characters American: George Bush – U.S. President James Baker – Secretary of State Brent Scowcroft – head, National Security Council Norman Schwarzkopf – commander, Coalition Forces Chuck Horner – commander, Coalition air forces Canadian: Gerald Bull – Engineer of the supergun British: Margaret Thatcher – British Prime Minister Gen. Sir Peter de la Billière – commander, British Forces John Major – Chancellor of the Exchequer In the novel, a British Tornado aircraft is shot down while on a bombing mission. The pilot and navigator are named "Peter Johns" and "Nicky Tyne" - these are references to John Peters and John Nichol (from Tyneside), the crew of an actual Tornado raid which was downed over Iraq during the Gulf War. Iraqi: Saddam Hussein – President Tariq Aziz – Foreign Minister Izzat Ibrahim – Deputy President Taha Ramadam – Prime Minister Sadoun Hammadi – Deputy Premier Israeli: Yitzhak Shamir – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – Deputy Foreign Minister Critical reception The novel received good reviews. Kirkus Reviews cited the novel has enough material to satisfy espionage thriller fans with its believability about what may have happened behind the scenes of the Gulf War. People claimed the novel packs "derring-do entertainment with a political message." Publishers Weekly lauded the novel for fusing historical facts into a gripping what-if thriller. References Novels by Frederick Forsyth 1994 British novels Gulf War fiction Novels set in Iraq Novels set in Kuwait Novels set in Saudi Arabia Novels set in London Novels set in California Bantam Books books