Alice

Good, fast-paced read, very enjoyable. This is a pretty good twist on the meglomaniac scenario, but as someone else mentioned, this really doesn't take place in the Arctic Circle as much as it does in several Scandavian-region locations. I don't always enjoy Chuck Rogers's work, but this is definitely one of his better ones.

This is typical Mike Newton stuff, which I usually like, but this could've been way better. The characters were too interchangeable with someone else, and I didn't buy Mack and David's attitudes towards Katz. Heck, I didn't buy Katz as Katz! Mr. Newton did better with the same trio of characters in the Red Dragon Trilogy, did them better justice. I felt cheated by the way the story ended, even knowing it was to be continued in the SuperBolan, "Retaliation". The good: Mr. Newton still knows how to write an action sequence and keep the pace going. The bad: I could and did put the book down a few times; I was far more excited by reading Andy Boot's MB#299 than this book.

I think I've nearly worn out my copy. Great way to tie up this era in Bolan's Everlasting War, with some stand-out scenes. Probably better if you're familiar with the history, but I think it could stand well on its own. Love the final battle!!

This is a damned good conclusion to the trilogy, despite the fact that COMCON deserved to be played out over a few more books at least, and it loses a point for that (it's clear some threads didn't get the development they deserved.) A conspiracy this big doesn't get squashed that easily. Still, I was cheering Mack on -- hell, I was even rooting for *Barbara* -- and I look forward to seeing more of Gerry's work. :-) This is kick-ass action, with Bolan in high gear as he goes for the jungular.

A very satisfying conclusion. :-)

Major spoiler below. Don't read this unless you want to be really, really spoiled. S P O I L E R S P A C E You know you're in for a good time when the opening paragraph has Mack and Able Team together, and the book is written by Michael Kasner. Once again, Kasner demonstrates his attention to detail and his ability to really make the characters come alive. McCarter is his sardonic self, Manning shows off his ability for the well-placed insult (and shows off his talent!), Pol inflitrates more than just a cult, and in one of the story's surprises, Barbara is more than just April's poor substitute. Edge of Night is the first book in The Fall of the West trilogy. A plague of mutated anthrax has spread from the Western embassies in the Arab world to the U.S. While Bolan searches for the plague's mastermind, Phoenix Force races to defuse a nuclear war in India, and Able Team takes on an Armageddon cult. Even with all the characterization, and the introduction of J.R. Rust as the CIA spook with a knowledge of the Mideast, the action remains explosive, and I do mean explosive. To give you a hint: when asked by Hal if PF can handle the mission, McCarter replies: "Piece of cake. We jump out of an airplane no one can see, blow up some nuclear missile warheads, walk across half of Pakistan, blow up some bomb racks, then swim home." As with any good trilogy, the first book is primarily setup for the rest of the story. Still, this book is one fun ride. The only quibble is that I can't see McCarter willingly saying, "We five are Phoenix Force, and the other action team is Able Team." That would be a major security violation, IMO, even if Rust has been cleared to be on site and help with the mission.

I disagree with Joel on this one...I *liked* the bench pressing contest scene, as it showed some long-forgotten character focus for a change (thank you!). That alone made me keep reading. Mack's not a huge player on this one, but if you're a Phoenix Force or Able Team fan, you'll probably enjoy the attention they get in this one.

This audio is (surprise!) still available through Amazon.com and is worth the money. Although it's an edited version of the book, George Maharis does a really good job of reading the material and making it seem like one contigious, unedited story. My only complaint is that some of what was edited out were (admittedly, not critical to the plot) parts I liked in the book, but that's a minor quibble.

I read two-thirds of the trilogy in one day, so it's probably more my fault that I think that the trilogy was incredibly long. I wasn't entirely sure the third book was necessary, especially considering the way the bad guys were dealt with. On the whole, the book (and the trilogy) had several good spots, but if I read the trilogy again, I'll probably read #65 before I read the other two.

All I can say about this is...Wow. I felt like I was reading the novel all over again, and it's definitely worth getting...

The image posted here is actually one of at least two different covers...but the content is still the same. Again, Florea's work is excellent, and the scripting from Don and Linda is...well, WOW!! Again, worth checking out.

I'm a fan of Mike Newton's work, but this was not one of his better novels. It had the feel of wanting to be a good, knockout, old-style Mafia novel...but somewhere along the way, it lost something. The action is fairly sparse, and a lot of time is spent in narrative. I found myself skimming through just to find the action scenes. Petrov wasn't someone I cared about, and Baklanov (the Russian mobster) was so remote as a character through most of the book he could've been left out entirely. Ugh. If the time it takes me to read a Bolan novel is any indication of how well I like it, this one took nearly a month (my average is about an hour), and I finished it only because I kept hoping it got better at the end.

This is cool. I normally don't care for the neo-Nazi plotlines, but this takes it and ties it back to a previous Phoenix Force mission (now that's *really* going back in time!!!), which was pretty darn cool. I enjoyed this one a lot.

I liked #246 more than I liked #245. The plot ties back to the Skylance mission, and guest stars PF plus Gadgets and Ironman, though only Gadgets hangs around the longest. This book showcases a besieged Mack, forced to deal with the conditions at hand with somewhat limited resources (though I found the sudden incursion of help into what was previously a solo mission to be a bit odd.) I had the sense that this one wanted to be a Stony Man novel, but didn't quite make it. Still, the action is good, and I wasn't expecting the way the story ended, especially the actions of the French.

A suspenseful, action-packed story that takes the VR game idea and gives it a classic Fieldhouse twist. Lots of character background, tie-ins to past events and enemies, plus an ally from the past returns. Excellent!!

The Executioner legend continues....this has the feel of a classic Mafia War book. Lots of explosions, lots of Mafia, along with some media-bashing....

There's a lot of character depth to the villian in this one, and the attention to detail is refreshing. (And yes, all the locations mentioned in Tampa are real -- except for Deveroux's buildings.) I also liked the fact that Mark Ellis treats Bolan well -- he doesn't make it seem like Bolan's forgotten everything he's ever been through and not learned anything from the experience, which sometimes happens in the series. I also liked the fact that Stony Man's involvement is limited and it's mostly Bolan's play all the way through. The plot twists at the end are worth the wait, and although the action's fairly run of the mill, I liked this one. Grade: B

A disappointing end to an otherwise great trilogy, as a lot of the threads that were left hanging at the end of the second book aren't resolved in a way that left me wanting to cheer the demise of the enemy. What happened to Mack's recovery time? What happened to that female assassin? You get the idea. As a stand-alone book, this reads well. As part of a trilogy, I'd forget it existed.

I love the tight focus in this story, the way the streets' grittiness and the Boston weather seems to come alive in this book to form a vivid backdrop to the action and plot. One of my favorites, and on my short list of "Best of #200 - Present". Vivid descriptions, strong characterizations, well-crafted plot, delivered with good timing, add up to a standout entry in the series.

Avoid this one. The plot drags, the action is contrived, the setup is poor, the resolution lacking... Best part to this one is the info on the development of the Chunnel, which anyone can get out of any old newsmagazine...

This one should have been #100 -- it would have been a fitting way to celebrate the 100th book. That aside, this is one of my favorites. The scene with April Rose gave me goosebumps the first time I read it...

Not what I expected, either, for the 100th entry. I would have rather seen #101 be the centennial book, but oh well. This one is still a good read, with a lot of character background on Hal and his family.

::wailing:: Why did they have to kill April Rose?!?! I miss her! Barb Price is no April!! ::deep breath:: Okay, so this one's a tearjerker, and a pivotal novel in the series. Gripping from start to finish, though there are a few threads that make more sense when you've read Terminal Velocity and Dead Man Running as well. I love and I hate this book. Bottom line: Buy it. Read it. This is a classic and is as important to the series as War Against the Mafia, for it changes Mack's life and the lives of everyone at Stony Man -- forever.

The image shown is a later edition of the book. The original cover is plain red with a pair of black hands on it with white lettering. Content-wise, this is where we're introduced to Gadgets, Pol, Lyons, Hal, and several other characters who will appear in later novels. If you can find it, grab it and hold on for the ride. The mini-convoy scene is one of my favorites.