Between the devil and the deep blue sea A novel

Cesar Alvarez needs to get out of Orlando quick after being tricked into squealing on local gang boss Mr. Mike. It's the fall of 1971, and the Vietnam War is in full swing, so Cesar takes the only surefire exit available, the local navy recruiting office. Soon he's on his way to basic training, a new career, and a new way of life. But Mr. Mike is offered a way out of his legal difficulties and ends up at the same destination. Carter's debut novel crackles with intensity as it describes Cesar's struggles and triumphs surviving the punishing cacophony of boot camp, the thrill of life aboard an aircraft carrier, his nagging terror and guilt over his history with Mr. Mike, and the treacherous racial dynamics of the civil-rights-era military. An Afro-Cuban, Cesar makes white friends for the first time and, despite several racist encounters, comes to believe that "the only color that matters is blue," until his posting aboard the USS Kitty Hawk reveals just how segregated the navy actually is. Skillfully blending his fictional hero's coming-of-age story with a real-life racial confrontation aboard ship, Carter's tale is a winning combination of military procedural, suspense, and Black history.

Carter's salty debut follows a U.S. Navy recruit who confronts racial division on his search for deliverance. In 1971, Cesar Alvarez, a 19-year-old Afro-Cuban growing up in Orlando, runs afoul of his boss, a vicious drug runner known as Mr. Mike, and decides his only ticket out is to join the Navy. In basic training, Cesar experiences prejudice within the ranks, and after he's stationed in San Diego for signalman training, he begins a relationship with a female sailor, biracial Aida Hachi. Upon graduation, Cesar flies to Manila to await the arrival of the aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk on its way home from Vietnam. On board, Cesar notes that racial tensions are high, exacerbated by the fact that the carrier has received orders to return to Vietnam. To make matters worse, the long arm of Mr. Mike reaches out to take revenge on Cesar. A Navy veteran, the author displays intimate knowledge of the various signaling modes Cesar picks up, such as Morse code and flag semaphore. There's some contrived plotting involving Mr. Mike, but Cesar makes for a durable hero. Overall, this is one of the most empathetic depictions of navy lifers since The Last Detail. (Jan.)

Which is more challenging, coming of age in the Navy or on the crime-ridden streets? November 1971. Orlando teenager César Alvarez succumbs to the hard sell of a gritty petty officer named Segar and joins the Navy. The Afro-Cuban César is hopeful of making a new life off the streets, where he works for the villainous Mr. Mike, a coldblooded killer and drug dealer who regularly calls him the N-word. The Navy is a whole new eye-opening world for César, who nevertheless can't shake the fear that Mr. Mike will exact revenge. A casual meeting with fellow recruit Aida paves the way for romance. While there are welcome opportunities for advancement, like extensive travel and signalman school, César also finds the everyday dangers of his neighborhood replaced by the subtler racism of the Navy. The measured plot takes the hero from Orlando to San Diego to Manila, where he's stationed aboard the Kitty Hawk, as the specter of the Vietnam War lurks ominously in the background and Mr. Mike hatches an elaborate plan to destroy César. The strength of Carter's lean, straightforward prose, which mirrors César's earnest, ethical nature and urges readers to root for him, and the authority of detail in his debut override some triteness of incident and character. A naval adventure thriller from recent history, told in a fresh, straightforward new voice. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.