Crisis: the action-packed Sunday Times No. 1 bestseller

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Crisis: the action-packed Sunday Times No. 1 bestseller

Crisis: the action-packed Sunday Times No. 1 bestseller

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Price: £4.995
£4.995 FREE Shipping

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This is the first of currently three books about Luke Carlton and I have to admit I really enjoyed it. In that context the idea that a Colombian drug lord, even one as moustache twirlingly irredeemable as Nelson Garcia, would go to all the expense, trouble and risk of mounting such an attack just doesn’t ring true. The only bit of the plot I didn’t find far fetched was the idea of smuggling a weapon of mass destruction into the UK. The writing style has a very solid British spy/espionage feel to it and more than a few times throughout the full-length novel I was reminded of a Bond sort of storyline or feel to the atmosphere.

This is a feat that would challenge the skipper of a Trident submarine, yet these two bozos manage it with ease - without any navigation equipment more sophisticated than a compass. Gardner needed to work far harder to create a more rounded, and complex lead character, rather than relying on lazy shortcuts. Drawing on his years of experience reporting on security matters, CRISIS is Frank Gardner's debut novel.

Awarded an OBE in 2005 for services to journalism, Frank Gardner was profiled in the BBC's television series, Who Do You Think You Are? Most of the bad guys are two dimensional and the good guys are stereotypes, not identifiable as real people. As an ex-Special Forces officer he would know about not taking unnecessary risks, but that is precisely what Gardner has him doing. He just needs to tighten up his plotting, take some more time in crafting his characters and find a ruthless editor who will cut out the narrative deadwood and keep his stories focused and moving forward.

He has written for the Economist, Sunday Times, Daily Telegraph and Time Out and has been published in The Best of Sunday Times Travel Writing.He has, in addition, used his considerable knowledge of security – being the BBC’s Security Correspondent – to produce a great, page-turning debut novel. What he uncovers not only puts his own life, and those close to him, at risk, but means that an entire nation is relying on his actions to discover the means and end of a highly-organised international plot against the UK. In 2009 he published Far Horizons, a much praised account of his life as an inveterate traveller and explorer.

The book is peppered with excessive detail, unnecessary exposition and minor characters who could be excised entirely. I felt a bit more of a connection with the setting of this novel as it is based in London and that is where I am living at the moment.It is from the Frederick Forsyth school of thriller writing – a brilliantly fashioned, but unlikely tale – executed by an adrenaline-fuelled cast of characters. Carlton (and his bosses) eventually discover a plan that is ingenious, cunning and poses a real threat to the UK. I’m not sure what I was expecting when I bought this book, but with the name of Frank Gardner attached I was probably expecting more.



  • Fruugo ID: 258392218-563234582
  • EAN: 764486781913
  • Sold by: Fruugo

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