War Bird

I'm surprised by all the praise for this book. For me this was a run of the mill title. The thing that makes that a shame is that the author certainly has some wonderful ideas. Ideas should have resulted in a classic Bolan title. It's all there. We have a great plot idea with the dangerous, cutting edge fighter jet. We have a great female ally. The gang of villains are interesting. And yet, it falls flat somehow. While the great ideas are plentiful, they are rarely executed to the extent they should be. The BND agent is quite interesting and one of Bolan's more intriguing companions. In a series with so many titles, she definitely stood out to me, but something seems off. She doesn't feel complete. While she appears often, she still seems underused and doesn't get her due. The villains are touted as very dangerous, the fighter jet key to the success of their operation. And yet, after all the effort to build the jet, when threatened with its destruction we get a "Oh well, we really don't need the jet to carry out our plan!" Then why even bother building the jet? The second half of the book was definitely an improvement over the first. It sure did pick up the momentum. I particular enjoy the traitor in the CIA office. The conclusion of the novel where Bolan pays him a visit is a good note to end on. Overall, it was definitely an enjoyable title. It has a lot of great ideas, had they been executed better I think this would have been a much stronger title.

Well Jon Guenther's first title and I must admit I was looking forward to arriving to this title on my way through the books having read lots of favourable comments regarding his books. And I was certainly not disappointed at all. The capture of Mack and the description of his torture whilst being held captive is very well written. His subsequent escape was totally surprising the way it was done but fits in beautifully with the plot later on in the book. The female BND agent is a terrific character and some of the byplay between her and Mack or Jack is very witty stuff. Unfortunately we won't meet her again in a future title as she has succumbed to the seemingly eleventh commandment "any ally of Bolan must be killed off prior to the end of the title" <sigh>. The action scenes are very well done and yes I also enjoyed the flashbacks to reinstate the original character of Mack. Speaking of which I have failed to read a title in the series yet where I am told Mack has given up smoking, has become a tea-totaller or has taken a vow of chastity prior to entering a monastery. My we live in a very enlightened politically correct society these days. Very impressed with his first title and very much looking forward to reading more of his stuff. Recommended reading.

I really had to give some thought as to what rating to give this novel. In some ways it was good and in some ways it wasn't so good. I tried to enjoy this book, but it seemed to drag at times for me. The opening action scene was fantastic, it was written well, it was like putting on an old favorite pair of shoes, a throwback to the style of older stories by Pendleton and Newton. I also enjoyed the scene when Bolan discovers the jet in the underground hanger, the action there and his capture, and whole scene involving his escape. The addition of Grimaldi was a plus. Plenty of action and adventure in the book, but there were a few things that kind of raised questions about what I was reading. For example, when Kaufmann was told by her boss that he had no description of Grimaldi, later on the same page he gives her a card with a description of Grimaldi. And I didn't like the fact that Schleyer (the main villain) at one point let on that he wasn't too concerned if the jet were to be destroyed or be late in construction, stating he had other ways to pull off his assault on Hawaii. The whole idea of the project and all the money he was spending was centered around this jet working on time. I just didn't buy into the scene at the airport hanger when Bolan let Kaufmann be taken at gunpoint during the firefight. It seemed like a risk Bolan was counting on things working out just like he wanted too, without knowing the opposition and wether they wouldn't just shoot her in panic or get caught in all the crossfire. It was never explained why the gunmen were Chinese. And Bolan had jumped off the roof of the hanger. I can understand a house, but an airplane hanger? And at one point Bolan could have taken Schleyer prisoner during his escape, but he just left him there. He didn't know it was Shleyer at the time but still I think Bolan would have taken the guy with him to question him later at least. I didn't care for the one on one confrontation between Bolan and Linger at the end. It would have fit if it was Rafeal Encizo, but it didn't seem to me to be in Bolan's character to handle it that way. I liked the assault on the castle, although it was a cakewalk for Mack as he blasts the weak army to smithereens. But before I rag on this story too much, I did think for a debut Executioner story, it wasn't all that bad, obviously written by someone who knows the series well, and is better than some books by established writers, and indicated a budding talent and an asset for the series.

This is an outstanding Bolan book - the best I've read to date; good action and the plot keeps you guessing. The Big Guy takes some lumps and even gets captured at one point - it was good to see him have a bit of a tough time of it. In some books he gets through challenges a little too easyily. Grimaldi, who is always a welcome sidekick IMO, kicks some butt in this one. The BMD agent is also a good supporting charachter - the chemistry with her and Jack Grimaldi was well done. My only complaint on this book is the villians were a little cliche and there 'evil plan' was a kinda weak. However, they act in some unexpected ways, which minimized their trite background. If you come across this one - definately give it a read, it's well worth your time.

A great, well-rounded book that gets into characters as much as telling a great story. Nice work by Guenther.

This book started it all for me.I was hooked from the first page.

Excellent opening salvo from a new Bolan writer. More, please? :-) I did wonder about the motivations of the bad guy, but I was too busy loving the pacing and the characterizations to care overly much the first time around.

I cannot make up my mind as to whether or not I liked this story. It took me a little while to get into it, so perhaps that didn't help. The overall story was well written with some good action scenes and this time Bolan remembered things from the past. The part I liked best was Bolan making mistakes and getting captured. This time out he is not infalible. What I didn't like so much was the bad guys motives. Why did Edel Schleyer hate America so much? Why did he need such an aircraft? Why spend so much money on something when it would have been easier to buy a nuclear bomb to blow Hawaii out of the water? Not as much fun, granted, but where would he have launched such a plane and how would he have gotten the troops in place. The logistics of such an operation didn't make sense. Other than that, this book is a good read, so I guess I did like it.

Enjoyable, action-packed novel by this first time writer. The final assualt on the castle was a great one!

An awesome entry into the series by Guenther. A real 10 out of 10! This book had everything in it:

I've been reading Mack Bolan most of my life, just like Doug, and this is DEFINITELY a great first book by Guenther. As Duane says, he's familiar with the character and has restored a little bit of the human quality that made so many of the early Pendleton books a success! And why not? Guenther started out like so many of us, a fan, and he's now turned his love for the Executioner to more practical means. "War Bird" brings just the kind of fresh voice to the series that has been missing for so long. The other authors are very good, make no mistake, but this guy knows how to tell a great story and keep you turning the pages. I do wish we could have seen more of that jet fighter too, but it's obvious that everything must revolve around Mack Bolan. And it does in this case. I also thought the dialogue was very realistic. I know this isn't the first book ever that Guenther's written; but he has definitely shown that he can turn out a great story with the best of them and I really hope we see more of his work in the future. He's brought me home in so many ways and I can't wait to see other books from him! "War Bird" will probably go down as a classic.

I have to agree with Doug on this one. "War Bird" is ery, very good. Jon Guenther has captured the classic Bolan feel (interesting locales, fast and varied action) and has a good grasp of the character himself. One of the best things about "War Bird" was the refreshing lack of cardboard (and occasionally racist) ethnic stereotypes which too often are poor substitutes for characterization in the Bolan books. There were no mousse'-haired, cigarillo-smoking Gilbert Roland type drug dealers, no turban-wearing terrorists shrieking "Allah Akabar!" or overweight, smelly and seemingly retarded KGB agents. The villain Scheyler was interesting without any of the above moldy cliches' pasted onto him, and fairly fresh as far as Bolan enemies are concerned. It was also a change of pace to see Bolan captured and tortured--not too seriously, of course. Although the Iron Skull group was not specifically identified as neo-Nazis, it was pretty obvious their sympathies lay with the swastika. It's a shame GE editors can't coordinate the Bolan program so as make even a passing reference that the Order of Thule ("Devil's Guard") and Black Dawn ("Black Dawn Rising") and the Iron Skull had some kind of loose connection. That way it wouldn't seem like all unified Germany can produce is cars and goosestepper wanna-bes. I also wish we could have seen a bit more of the K-1 jet fighter in action, but hopefully the super-plane will make a reappearance in the near future. At any rate, "War Bird" is a top-notch initial outing for this writer.

I've read Bolan novels for a long time, about half of my life, so there are certain symbols and familiar turns of phrase that always ring in my ears not as a cliche, but as a part of the Executioner mythos. With this book, we have the references to the friendly ghosts, Bolan's family, and of course April Rose, even a recap of Jack Grimaldi's indoctrination into Bolan's war everlasting. It felt like pulling on a comfy old sweater. Not to say that Bolan doesn't kick more booty than Popeye on a spinach high. From the opening ass-kick to the final execution of a chump trying to get away with treason and murder, the only time Bolan takes off from pimp-slapping the bad guys is when HE'S in trouble. Jack and Juta made a fine team, and it was nice to see Grimaldi acting "solo." Someone's been listening to the fans. :)