The action begins with a subplot - the shooting of an industrialist's bodyguard. The industrialist had been receiving threatening letters from extortionists. After the introduction of the 4 main adult characters - Haakon and Maria Sovant, Pamela and Sergio Molina - all bodyguards, all ex-CIA agents - we meet the young Amanda Molina and her two-year-old brother, Al.
The novel unfolds with narrative in the present and with a few flashbacks into the lives of the main characters.
'Amanda's War' is similar to Robert Altman's film '3 Women,' starring Sissy Spacek and Shelley Duvall, in the sense that both deal with the theme of people changing after traumatic incidents. At the end of 'Amanda's War' the reader is left to speculate if Haakon changed during and after a traumatic incident because of benevolent natural forces, or because of malevolent supernatural forces, or because of natural forces, or because of...

Now if the sweet intoxicating euphoria of the love affair is obtained by malevolent supernatural powers, by witchcraft, by powerful magic and evil sorcery, infernal enchantments, the dark arts etc., etc., well, that's the sort of sweet intoxicating euphoria that will cost a lot: you just know it will come at a hellish price.