Customer Reviews

Angel of Death

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

Sean Dillon was once the most feared soldier in the Irish
Republican Army, until one day he had enough of the destruction.
Now he works for the other side, the most successful agent in the
British government's fight against terrorism. But when he is
rescued from an ambush by a member of "January 30," the newest
and most dangerous terrorist organization, he has to wonder who
his friends and enemies really are.

This is the nucleus of Jack Higgins' Angel of Death. And this
novel is as well done as all of Higgins' other works. It has
interesting characters, plenty of action, and well-written
dialog.

Part of the fascination in this particular book is the inside
view we get of "January 30." Instead of the typical politically
motivated fanatics, this group is composed of four persons - a
Russian spy, a member of the British government, a college
professor, and a young actress - united by the excitement of the
hunt. For the spy, the purpose of their activities is a chaos
that will ultimately yield the collapse of the British system,
but the others are much more interested in the action than in the
results.

When the group saves Dillon, therefore, it was not out of any
hidden loyalty to the government. When he becomes involved in the
government's attempt to achieve a stable peace in Northern
Ireland, they know he will have to die. The struggle between the
two is a major part of this novel, and Higgins is quite skilled
in showing us both points of view and yet maintaining suspense.

But there are a number of other plots intertwined. At one point,
for example, Dillon goes to the Middle East to deal with the arms
dealer who had set up the ambush that opens the novel. He is
there for only a few hours when he is recognized and captured by
one of the many factions that are at war there. You know he is
going to escape - it's much too early to kill of your main
character - but I think the way it's done will surprise you.

Higgins also involves the United States in the story. In order to
maintain the cease fire that is in existence in Ireland, the
British Prime Minister requests President Clinton to send Senator
Patrick Keogh (a modern JFK) to mediate between the two factions.
But extremists on both sides are determined to prevent any real
peace, so Dillon is selected to act as his body guard. And now
"January 30" comes back into the picture.

This is a true page turner; I began it one Saturday morning and
finished it before I went to bed that night. I had to know how it
turned out before I could go to sleep!

I did not believe the story of the characters at all, neither was well developed. The author also tried to go down the path of the "dark, brooding" lead that will alone save the world and he did not pull it off. I also did not like some of the writing; I found it a bit forced or dry. Not much between the covers. Sure the story sounds interesting, but somehow that does not translate to what is actually written. Overall, this is not that great of a book. There are many others out there that are better.

This was a fantastic story! The plot was able to change with little hints. This book like many of Jack Higgins' are great at charcter build up. It will make you want to keep reading till the very end. I would like to quote Tom Clancy, "JACK HIGGINS IS THE MASTER."

This Higgins book has a female assassin who uses a motorcycle
as her means of helping with her killings. In real life our
master assassin is Grace Browning an actress. She is in the services of a group called September 30. Their goal is to use the assassinations to create chaos and install a Communist state.
Her superior is an old KGB agent who is on Prime Minister John Major's staff. Of course it falls on our hero Sean Dillon to stop this group. He comes through as usual.While this is an

interesting book it is no where close to the caliber of "Eye of
The Storm".

This book became boring after the first 20 pages. Then it got interesting for a while and then boring again. Ups and downs, over and over again. Like other readers said - the story is rather ridiculous, the characters lack in depth. Some characters are not only not impressive in any way - it would be better if they were not a part of this book at all. This could be a good book - unfortunately Higgins did not take well to researching the topic in any way, apparently.

This is a classic. A superb and unique story that shows the reader just how great a book can be.

This thriller is a grabber! Higgins is in top- form. I give this book 4 stars out of five because it went a little slower to read than his others. Still packs a wallop. He just gets better.

Its not too divergent from the previous books-but there isn't anything new or fresh about it. I wanted to hold onto my seat and go for a ride, but I felt like I was at the old Disneyland, on one of the kiddy rides. I had the chance to pick up richard greenwald's spear of golgotha- this guy is the new kid on the block. Its no wonder the old guard wants to keep this aussie down under. I'd still buy another Higgins book though because he's great. But hey, make room for the new kids on the block

My expectations of the quality of Jack Higgins' novels have diminished to the point where I will never buy another one of his recycled hack-works. I happened to read Solo, an excellent short novel with spare writing and interesting plot twists, just before I read Angel of Death. A mistake that cost me any enjoyment that I could have taken from this book. Why? The similarities in the final scene are so obvious as to prove that Jack has lost what imagination he has left and is writing strictly for the money.

This is a relatively old book I came across, but thank goodness for that. The story has characters that you would have to force yourself to believe are in any sense of the word, real. Gun toting female actresses; an MP who is an assassin and homosexual and GRU and with a friend who is a professor, homosexual, Russian lover, GRU, with a plot that might meet the expectations of the illiterate. The author's knowledge of weapons seems to be something he gleened from the internet. A waste of time. The author's reputation has dropped with this book.