DREAM OF A FALLING EAGLE: A Mongo Mystery [Hardcover]

George Chesbro (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 7, 1996

Mongo, a dwarf private detective, investigates the CIA's role in Haiti and discovers that some of Haiti's most prominent citizens have become the victims of voodoo sacrifices in the United States. 10,000 first printing.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

When did that shrill, self-righteous note creep into the Mongo series, which started off with such a bang? Now, with the 14th entry (after Bleeding in the Eye of a Brainstorm, 1995), Chesbro's once-fascinating mix of action, mysticism and liberal politics seems to have veered into self-parody. It always took a leap of faith to accept a hero like Dr. Robert "Mongo" Frederickson?a dwarf whose formidable intellect and physical skills carried him through some fantastic adventures. But Chesbro worked hard to keep Mongo as believable as possible as he and his full-size brother, Garth, wandered across an often magical landscape in search of some truly outlandish villains. This time out, the bad guys are the CIA: not just a few rogues but apparently the entire outfit. The Company is afraid that the brothers Frederickson's investigation into some tangled Haitian political murders will derail its plot to assassinate the liberal U.S. president and veep and install the right-wing Speaker of the House in the Oval Office. Said Speaker is described as having risen to power on "a poisonous, rushing tsunami of homophobia, antifeminism, and an entire devil's thesaurus of hysterical code words." Even this familiar premise might have been swallowable if Chesbro didn't stop every few pages to decry everything from the Aldrich Ames case to assault weapons. Readers who agree politically with Mongo will find the hysteria and vivisection tough going here; others will probably give up early.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Many of Chesbro's popular Mongo novels have featured megalomaniacs so ludicrously implausible that they might have emerged from a Batman comic book. This time out, the estimable dwarf--who also happens to be a former circus aerialist, martial artist, and world-renowned Ph.D. criminologist--is only battling the CIA, neo-Nazis, and Haitian voodoo terrorists, and the enhanced plausibility of the opposition makes the tale even more fun than usual. The premise is that Haiti has long been a wholly owned "asset" of a group of renegade CIA crazies who are plotting the assassination of the president and vice-president so that the right-wing Speaker of the House (a thinly veiled caricature of Newt Gingrich) will ascend to the Oval Office and will promptly put gays, people of color, pro-choice activists, and sundry others in their places--at the back of the bus, or under it. Even those faithful Mongo fans who may prefer Batman villains to almost-real-life bad guys will enjoy the ride. Thomas Gaughan

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 208 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster; First Edition edition (October 7, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684830531
• ISBN-13: 978-0684830537
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.8 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,568,631 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Mongo, voodoo, CIA and Republicans: They're all in this book, April 3, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: DREAM OF A FALLING EAGLE: A Mongo Mystery (Hardcover)

Not Chesbro's best Mongo book, but any Mongo adventure is a good read (at least for me). Substitute 1997 U.S. Congress and its majority leader into the political references, add recent headlines of dubious CIA activities, mix in voodoo, violent, gory deaths, and stir with Mongo and bother Garth in some near-death experiences. The result is paranoia, politics and adventure (not necessarily in that order).

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars mongo is always worth visiting, March 27, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: DREAM OF A FALLING EAGLE: A Mongo Mystery (Hardcover)

Mongo is one of those few characters who never wears thin. Chesbro's plots are always on the goofy-paranoid side, and this one is no exception. Don't get me wrong, the plot moves along and holds together, but one has to suspend disbelief immediately upon opening the book. But don't read this or any Mongo mystery for the plot, as fun and fantastic as it may be. Read it for the character, Mongo, and his brother and friends. There is no more likable character, detective or otherwise, in fiction. Chesbro's narrative voice is always pitched perfectly, and even if you don't buy his politics, you can't help but like him. Read it. Then go back and read them all

3.0 out of 5 stars Mongo, voodoo, CIA and Republicans: They're all in this book, April 3, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: DREAM OF A FALLING EAGLE: A Mongo Mystery (Hardcover)

Not Chesbro's best Mongo book, but any Mongo adventure is a good read (at least for me). Substitute 1997 U.S. Congress and its majority leader into the political references, add recent headlines of dubious CIA activities, mix in voodoo, violent, gory deaths, and stir with Mongo and brother Garth in some near-death experiences. The result is paranoia, politics and adventure (not necessarily in that order).