If you’re looking for a book that tells you how devastating, an all out nuclear war will be, this is the book for you. Humphrey Hawksley has a brilliantly plotted and an extremely well scripted book to boast about. It also showcases the technical capabilities of various nations. This book is clearly a product of a lot of background research. The author has exploited his connections with various sources within governments to the maximum. This book provides the closest scenario to a possible real life situation.The plot is set along the lines of the American war on terrorism. It focusses along terrorist elements attempting to create a new nation and how this attempt results as a series of chain-reactions into a nuclear spectre. Remarkably though, it shows India as a rising superpower, contrary to the pro-Pakistani views shown by most western authors. There are almost no complexities in the book and even a layman can understand it quite easily. Tom Clancy sure has a new competitior. A must read.