This book was okay, I enjoyed the action, however, as most action books the good guys always seem to do better then the expert military groups, where after the third impossible victory you are left with the feeling of.. “Right…. everybody is superman saving the day.” All in all, if you like action this book is still worth the read.As much as the author did a great job weaving the characters individual stories within the plot, and the constant action throughout the book, I was slightly disappointed, usually after taking a break from reading my mind starts going crazy thinking about what could happen next, how I think the book will end, and so on and so forth. This book, however, did not provide me with hours of speculations which was slightly disappointing.Even though, if you are an action-adventure book junkie, and you haven’t read this one, I do recommend it.Quote p.190: “The Surreal game of cat and mouse was played amid the folds of the earth and the rain-laden clouds of the tropical storm, two areas any sane pilot would avoid. Instead Carlson flew deeper into both, dogged by the Gazelle. Fifteen minutes further into the chase, with the canal another ten minutes away, submachine-gun fire was added to the equation.”
I first encountered Jack du Brul’s work in one of the novels he co-wrote with Clive Cussler, but it is in his stand-alone novels that he really excels. Mercer is a perfect lead character and in Harry White he has a perfect foil. The first few books in the series are great, though with a heavy reliance on cold war themes they feel a bit dated now so it is really from Medusa Stone onwards it really hits its stride; with River of Ruin one of my top two.The story leverages the unique make-up of each character to its fullest, there’s action, great character interplay, an exotic setting, and very little to complain about. Jack du Brul is top of my list when looking for new action/ adventure releases.
