(5) = Best; (4) = Better; (3) = Good; (2) = Fair; (1) = OK
These abstracts serve as reminders to myself; they serve to "jog" my memory on what a book was all about. That's all. This is not a literary critique, not a social commentary, and certainly nothing profound to warrant further discussion.
(5) = means that I really enjoyed this book; (1) = means I finished reading it but wonder if my time could have been better spent elsewhere.
I enjoyed this novel very much. Here is what the jacket says. “Allan Pinkerton’s story opens in Chicago on the eve of the American Civil War. After battling con men, train robbers, and vicious gunmen, Pinkerton senses that change is in the air. Already committed to the abolitionist cause and the Underground Railroad, he allies himself with John Brown’s radical antislavery crusade. Upholding the law with one hand, he unapologetically breaks it with the others.” “Kate Warne joins the Pinkerton Agency – its first female detective – and quickly takes her place as Allan’s closest confidante. He asks Kate to join him, and she embraces his cause in all its contradictions and extremes. Comrades-in-arms, they begin a romance that becomes the most combustible and irresistible kind, the mutual affirmation of a world of two. Together they save the life of Abraham Lincoln on his inaugural journey to Washington, root out Confederate spies with the Union government, and establish the nation’s first Secret Service…"(5)
I spent an hour entering an abstract of this book, and for unknown reasons lost my connection and lost everything I wrote…frustrating. Didn’t save it on time… So here goes another entry only its going to be much abbreviated and not very original.
Book jacket: The story involves the President of the United States, the First Lady, the President’s Aides and key men around the President. On the 4th of July, Ron Boyle, a Presidential Aide is killed; another Aide, Wes Holloway, is disfigured by shrapnel, and the adventure begins. The story is told by Wes, our hero. Rogo, his long time friend, is lawyer, and he enters the picture when the FBI threatens Wes for the killing of Boyle. Boyle, believed dead, is spotted in Malaysia eight years later.
We learn of a plot by three key figures in the FBI, CIA and Secret Service: mysteriously known as the Group of Three. They are involved in a scam to steal money by faking the exposure of impending attacks by terrorist organizations, and collecting reward money when the terrorist group is foiled. Of course, they need a few genuine exposures to gain some credibility since they are key figures in the FBI, CIA and Secret Service, but the big money is expected when tips are given and demands are made for huge ransoms. When threats occur each of the three agencies are consulted. Their research are conducted independently of one another, and comparisons are made among the three agencies. If they all validate and confirm the threat, it is taken seriously. The Group of Three realize they have a good thing going. Each can validate the other in a fake scam.
They will need someone high up the food chain whose support behind a huge demand for millions of dollars will be taken seriously in a threat against the United States, and that will be someone associated with the President. So, why was Boyle killed? Was he approached by the Group of 3, and did he turn them down? We don’t know… Who did the killing? (5)
I liked Black Cross so much I decided to try another Greg Iles book. This one is wierd. The author even says this novel is a wild one. The story is complicated. I’ll focus on key characters: John - the main character in the story; his wife, Lily, who has had a couple of miscarriages. Their sex life is zero now. There is Eve, a realtor who sleeps with whoever she wants, and she seduces John easily. Finally, there is Mallory, a former beauty queen who was once John’s lover when they were college students. Mallory died a long time ago, but here is where the author goes wild. Mallory’s Spirit is still alive and she “takes over” Eve’s body and helps to seduce John. So John is seduced by the real Evie and by Mallory in Evie’s body. Lucky guy! But, there is a twist in the novel, cause Evie dies and John is the last person seen with her. He becomes a suspect in her murder. John, of course, is fiercely loyal to Lily. Mallory takes over Lily’s body and has unbelievably wild sex with John one night. This, of course, is completely out of character for Lily and John knows that Mallory is yet alive. He cannot convince Mallory to leave Lily alone. John tells his lawyer friend about Mallory, but he does not believe him. Lily would not believe John either until he decides to secretly tape a love making session which he has with Mallory (Lily), and shows her the tape. Lily is convinced and decides on their future together. You'’ll have to read the book to find out what happens at the end! (4).
This is my first Greg Iles book and he did not disappointment me.
Here is a brief summary in the jacket of the book: “At the command of Winton Churchill…four strangers are brought together in a place…beyond imagination. It is a small SS-run concentration camp serving as the incubator for a weapon of staggering lethality – a weapon US General Omar Bradley later admitted could have wiped out the D-day invasion force on Omaha Beach. What they are forced to do in the name of victory - and survival - demonstrates with terrible clarity that in a world where all is at stake, war has no rules. Black Cross explodes the myth of WWII as “the good war.” It is a novel of transforming power, in which healer must become destroyer and a young killer is tempered by love into a savior.”
In this book Himmler has developed a poisonous gas that is so powerful and effective the Allies have nothing to neutralize it. A pacifist American chemist and a young Israeli assassin are sent to steal the gas, use it to kill everyone in this camp and escape with samples to the Baltic Sea where a submarine will pick them up on a specific timetable. The hope is that Himmler will be too embarrassed to tell Hitler his project was stolen and that he was a victim of an Israeli attack which freed the prisoners under his command. We jump ahead in the story : the attack team of two is successful and Himmler decides to destroy the camp and level everything so that nothing exists to this day.
Love is about to be played out…when the grandson of the hero American chemist drives up to Westchester to see Dr. Anna Hastings to tell her that his grandfather has just died. “Is Mac dead?” “Yes, ma’am. He died three days ago. The old woman nodded slowly, then stepped away…she stopped in front of me. I wanted to be polite, but my gaze kept wandering to the eyes of the younger woman nearby , who was staring at me with a strange intensity. Anna Hastings reached out and laid her hand against my cheek. “You could be him,” she said softly. “I almost can’t bear to look at you.” “She could be you,” I said, nodding toward the young woman. Although, now that I had time to study her, I saw subtle differences. “Katarina,” said Anna Hastings. “My granddaughter.” …
“Your grandfather was a great man,” she said. “A brave and a loyal man. … there is plenty of time to talk about the past. Go make the coffee. Please.” Katarina took my hand and pulled me out of the room….there’s no denying the young woman’s beauty, or the intelligence behind her bright eyes. “I’ve never seen her that upset,” Katarina said as she poured bottled water into the coffeemaker. “I think it might help her to talk to you. Even though she tries to pretend the past is dead, it haunts her. Were you planning to stay the night in New York? You have a hotel?” “No. I really planned to fly back tonight.” “Tonight? But that’s crazy. You can stay here with us –” Suddenly, she blushed, as if realizing she had overstepped some invisible line. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I know how it is in medicine, I’m sure you’ve got to get back right away.” “Katarina,” I said softly. “I’m not really sure why I came up here. I really don’t have any plans at all.” She looked at me very openly then, directly into my eyes. “Call me Kat,” she said. “That’s what everyone calls me.” “Kat,” I said, “testing the name on my tongue. “Kat, I would really love to stay. If you have room, of course.” She smiled.
And that’s the end of the story.
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