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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Ride the TROJAN HORSE, February 27, 2006
Franchise books -- novels based on popular television and/or movie series -- are a hard sell. In one respect, readers want a return to the characters that make these franchises work, but, in another respect, readers want to be taken to a realm of imagination perhaps just beyond the reach of the franchise, being delivered a product that fits within the established continuity of the program BUT pushes the limits to show them something further.
The world of 24 has an even greater challenge, given that the premise of the show -- the real time ticking clock -- gets a touch lost in translation. The adrenaline drive fueling Jack Bauer and his efforts on behalf of the United States' Counter Terrorist Unit kicks back a bit as novels tend to provide a greater backstory and filler details than one would get in a 24 episode season. This isn't to say that the book format is inferior to the show; it only assures one that the books will have to always work a bit harder at sustaining the level of tension fans have come to expect from Jack.
That said, TROJAN HORSE is a pretty solid yarn involving a terrorist plot that could cripple the World Wide Web, certainly taking the CTU adventures well beyond the boundaries of Los Angeles (where Bauer and his companions are located). In a story that's set outside the scope of the television events (the setting is, in fact, before Season 1 of the hit Fox series), author Marc Cerasini has taken some creative license at exploring not only a much different Jack, but he also fleshes out Teri Bauer (Jack's wife), Tony Almeida, Nina Myers, and even Ryan Chapelle. While some of the events that take place do come off a bit out of character for what we've come to expect on the television show, Cerasini has the perfect explanation: these folks hadn't quite yet become who they were about to be when Season 1 began. So -- though I had some reservations about some behaviors, especially Tony's -- it was easy to dismiss.
TROJAN HORSE is a good read. It doesn't stray too far from the popular formula of the show, but it does explore the ramifications of other forms of terror in the modern world. And, on most accounts, it delivers some more great Jack Bauer moments for fans to enjoy ... while they're watching their own clocks waiting for the next episode on television to premiere.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
24... at it's finest, February 19, 2006
Of the three 24: Declassified novels, this one is by far the best. Jack gets involved, then uninvolved, then involed once again. Tony has his own undercover assignment, and Nina, Jamey, and Milo all play key roles. Even Edgar Stiles, introduced in season 4 has a cameo appearance.
There are many threads, but they all come together. A dead Hollywood producer. An assualt on a drug lab supposedly producing a new meth called Karma. A modelling agency. A Hollywood awards ceremoney Teri Bauer gets an invitation to attend. A techno-terrorist, a papparazii photographer who discovers something strange about a pregnant actress, and a cult loyal only to a man named Hasan.
This is 24... always action packed, and a lot of fun, even if there are plot flaws or big coicindences.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Jack Bauer's Day of the Locust, February 12, 2006
The new "24" tie-in novel comes through as a satisfying action-packed techno thriller, but also contains a scathing indictment of the Hollywood scene, making "Trojan Horse" sort of a pulp fiction version of "Day of the Locust." This motif is established at the outset, when authorites raid a drug lab housed in an abandoned studio once used by a bottom-feeding producer of direct-to-DVD features. Entertainment industry big shots as well as small fry move through a plot that centers on a terrorist assault on a glitzy Tinsil Town awards ceremony. Scenes in which Jack Bauer and his CTU colleagues risk their lives in total anonymity, rooting out rat's nests of terrorists, stand in contrast to preparations for yet another awards telecast staged for the aggrandizement of already well-rewarded Hollywood elite. The awards show collapses into horror and chaos when the terrorists begin their attack, recalling the climactic movie premiere riot in "Locust."
The villain who confronts Jack and CTU is a formidable foe who models himself on "The Old Man of the Mountain" --the world's first terrorist, an 11th Century Muslim holy man who brainwashed and manipulated a legion of suicidal murderers, the original "assassins." The original Old Man of the Mountain first became known to the west through the writings of Marco Polo. A summary of his career is given in "Trojan Horse." Readers interested in a more detailed account can find one in either of two books by Colin Wilson, "The Mammoth Book of True Crime" or "The Mammoth Book of The History of Murder." Both are currently available from Carrol and Graf, and can be found in the true crime section at the book store.
Fans of the character Nina Myers will enjoy the way "Trojan Horse" gets Nina out of CTU headquarters and into action in the field. The dark turn Nina takes on the show is foreshadowed here. One of the show's popular newer characters, Edgar Stiles, is also seen briefly, during his early days at CTU.
In closing, it is worth mentioning that the scope of the action in "Trojan Horse" is movie-feature BIG. The DEA, the Secret Service, the LAPD, the FBI, SWAT, and the National Guard all get into the act. If they ever do "24: The Motion Picture," this would not be a bad model.
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