Seal Team 666

This cleverly titled "military supernatural thriller" seems to be aimed at capitalizing on the popularity of the real-life SEAL Team Six, the U.S. commando team that raided Osama bin Laden's hideout in May of 2011. Ochse, winner of the Horror Writer Association's 2005 Bram Stoker Award for First Novel (Scarecrow Gods), spins a tale of an even more secret commando team, which deals with supernatural threats to the United States and the world. The author, a military intelligence officer, is clearly familiar with military terminology and enjoys describing the disciplined chaos of a commando raid against a formidable and mysterious target. Unfortunately, the characterization of the protagonist and his teammates is not up to the standard of Ochse's award-winning first novel, and the story lacks the sardonic wit of Charles Stross's similarly-themed "Laundry Files" series (The Atrocity Archives) or the strongly-defined personalities of John Ringo's "Special Circumstances" series (Princess of Wands). A murky subplot involving one character's personal history with demonic possession remains unresolved, presumably to be dealt with in a sequel.