Customer Reviews

Final Finesse

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

During a particularly wintry cold spell in Oklahoma, a natural-gas pipeline explodes leaving one person dead and thousands without heat. White House Deputy Director for Homeland Security Samantha Reid leads the investigation in determining the cause.

More explosions occur to the pipeline leaving many to wonder if terrorism is the root cause. When Reid meets the pipeline's company GeoGlobal Oil & Gas Vice President Tripp Adams, she immediately wants him. He appears to reciprocate. When he vanishes without a trace while on a business trip in Venezuela, Reid dumps her work and goes AWOL to rescue him.

This exciting political romantic suspense thriller takes off from the onset as the temperature in the home of a Sooner couple drops to 30 degrees and never slows down until the final energy segue in the State of the Union address. The story line is fast-paced especially when Reid and Tripp meet for the first time. Although readers will doubt a high ranking political appointee would abandon her post even for love and use her body to gain access on her quest to save Tripp, fans will appreciate this exhilarating tale as Karna Small Bodman once again combines strange bedfellows; romance and politics (see CHECKMATE and GAMBIT).

Harriet Klausner

I really wanted to like this novel. I had never heard of the author until she called in to the Rush Limbaugh radio show recently. She was funny, topical, on point and during the conversation mentioned she was an author. I checked her out. I bought her latest. I settled down yesterday to what I hoped would be a good read.

Folks...I'm sorry. But there is little to recommend this book. It is Soph Lit 101 writing. I couldn't even finish it. That doesn't happen very often to me when I select an author to read.

However, a long time ago when I started sharing my opinion on books, I decided I would tell it as I saw it. I see this one as a total waste of your time and money and I wish that were not so. But there it is.

Samantha Reid has been climbing the political ladder in Washington D.C., her wagon hitched to the star of the new Chief of Homeland Security, landing her the job of Deputy Assistant to the President for Homeland Security. But, when the country is wracked by a series of explosions in natural gas pipelines, she realizes that something serious is going on. Her boss does not believe that the explosions are anything but accidents, leaving Samantha to finesse the government into action.

When she meets GeoGlobal Oil & Gas VP Tripp Adams, she meets the love that she has been looking for. And when Tripp is kidnapped in Venezuela, Samantha cannot just stand by, but must get right into the action. This is going to tax her abilities to the utmost, but the stakes are too high to sit back. Sometimes you need a little finesse, and sometimes you need a LOT!

This is a very good thriller - I liked the peep into the inner workings of Washington D.C. that Karna Small Bodman (one-time Senior Director of the National Security Council!) gives the reader. I thought that the action was good, and that romance angle was excellently done, giving Samantha and Tripp a great chemistry.

Great book, exciting read. I highly recommend it!

(Review of Final Finesse by Karna Small Bodman)

OK - the plot ideas were interesting to me since I rarely see any novels specifically mention petrochemical plants or oil and gas operations - so that plus the White House stuff sucked me in and I thought I'd give it a read.

But I have to think James Patterson has taken this woman under his wing and taught her how to write the most unnatural dialogue I can recall since Robin Cook's sci fi attempt. And it's quite clear that characters are constantly explaining things to colleagues that they should already know is a device to explain things to readers that may not be familiar with certain technical terms or acronyms, but take a look at other GOOD writers who trust their readers enough to figure that if they're reading the book, then they'll be able to understand what's going on.

This is really bad writing.

If one tries the difficult task of assigning this book to a genre, it must first be recognized that Karna Bodman is building a bridge between action thrillers and the vast world of women readers. That makes "Final Finesse" action-thriller-chick-lit, a darn good idea, since women buy the majority of books these days. Couple that with the author's experience at high levels of government as a former Senior Director of the National Security Council, and you get a timely story of internationally-inspired domestic terrorism. The action centers around Samantha Reid, White House Deputy Director for Homeland Security, and a series of mysterious explosions that cripple the nation's natural gas pipeline infrastructure. The subplot is her growing romance with Trippe Adams, vice president of the pipeline company. For me, a career technocrat, the ingenious way the terrorists blow up the pipelines is fascinating. As an aside, it is sometimes argued that novelists should not suggest new ways for terrorists to attack us, but I take the view that those who might be affected--like the owners of our vulnerable gas pipeline systems--should either have anticipated the threat, or should learn from the novelist.

All that said, I admit the thing that fascinated me the most about this book was Bodman's description of what goes on in a woman's mind when she thinks she has found the man of her dreams. What does a woman think when the prospect of sex arises? What does she think DURING sex? (I know the male viewpoint.) This is the first Karna Small Bodman book I have read, and it will not be the last!
Chet Nagle is author of Iran Covenant

This book is a fast paced thriller about a group of terrorist intent on destroying America's energy resources, which has law enforcement racing against the clock to stop the potential damages. Lots of action and credible story.

Final Finesse

4-1/2 Stars

I had never heard of this author until two friends of mine recommended her to me, and I was lucky enough to snag a free copy of her latest book, "Final Finesse," for free. I had an idea I would enjoy it as I'd downloaded the sample chapters, but I was eagerly awaiting my copy in the mail and started it very late Saturday night, didn't read any during the day, and then finished it late Sunday night/Monday morning. That, to me, is a good thriller/page turner.

A little background on the author, from what I gathered: She has a background in national security and certainly knows her stuff when it comes to energy and natural resources. I haven't yet read her first two books, but I definitely plan to do so.

This book starts out with a natural gas pipeline explosion in Oklahoma, during the middle of winter, that leaves countless people without heat and some dead. The company that owns the pipeline, GeoGlobal, cannot figure out how this disaster occurred. One of the head honchos, Tripp Adams, is in Washington D.C. and working on the problem.

Cut to the White House, where Deputy Director for Homeland Security Samantha Reid works. She has a background in energy but spends much of her time writing talking points for her boss, who loves to go on TV but can't seem to speak for himself and is dependent on Samantha for, well, just about everything. I think many women can identify with a boss who has taken the credit for a job they've done, so can well imagine Samantha's situation (men can as well, I'm sure).

There is a lot of insider information about the White House, from how lunch is eaten to where offices are allocated, that makes it clear the author knows her stuff and gives the reader an interesting glimpse into what it would be like to work in that rarified world. You really need to read the book to get the feel for the atmosphere, but Ms. Bodman does a good job of writing about what she knows.

Back to the plot: Soon another gas line explodes, and while to me this would seem like a disaster (I admit I knew nothing about pipelines going into this story), Samantha quickly pieces together that a gasline does not "just explode." She tries to bring the matter to the attention of her boss, but he isn't interested. Still bothered, she sets up a meeting with someone from GeoGlobal. Little does she know that the man she meets will be Tripp Adams, a college crush.

Sparks fly between Samantha and Tripp, despite of (or maybe spurred on by) the situation they are in. As more gaslines explode, they both suspect this is sabotage, but cannot figure out if it is the work of terrorists or what reason there is behind the attacks. No one is taking credit for them, but the cost of gas and oil is going through the roof while people across the country are left without heat and are dying.

As readers know, however, the work actually is a plot by Venezuelen oil workers on orders by the dictator of that country's right-hand man. It seems he wants to not only nationalize the pipelines in Venezuela (including those owned by GeoGlobal), but cause massive destruction in America and drive up the price of fuel, which he succeeds in doing. This is part of a convuluted plot before elections in his country.

Without giving too much away, there is just enough romance in this to make it an enjoyable read for women without annoying male readers who want a good national security thriller. I love a good romance as much as anyone, but I've gotten tired of really explicit sex scenes and usually skip past them if there is not a good reason for them (moving the plot along). In this case, there was enough romance that I enjoyed it and it was balanced just right.

When Tripp gets in trouble in Venezeula, Samantha doesn't sit idly by either. She doesn't suddenly turn into a ninja (another device I'm getting tired of -- not every female heroine has to be a gun-toting warrior, not that I have anything against them; it's just nice to see a regular woman use her brains and not be superwoman). She is smart and savvy and tries to get the agencies she works with involved, to little avail. She finally takes matters into her own hands and uses her brain to get what needs to be done, done.

I won't give more away, but I highly recommend this exciting thriller. I loved the national security angle, finding out new information in an interesting way, and the dynamics between the hero and heroine. The Washington insider stuff was a plus. I'm excited to see what this author comes out with next, and to read her previous novels. Sorry Amazon that I got this one for free, but I'm glad I discovered Karna Small Bodman! Happy reading. Other authors you might enjoy: Brian Haig, Vince Flynn, Nelson DeMille, Marliss Melton (for romantic suspense).

Not just the Deputy Assistant to the President for Homeland Security, Samantha Reid knows something about the gas and oil business. And when a gas pipeline explodes in a completely new and unexpected way, she right away becomes suspicious. Her close work with corporate executive Tripp Adams leads to romance, and the pair attempt to get to the bottom of the increasing explosions. And when Tripp disappears on a visit to Venezuela, Samantha realizes that she must become personally involved. There's a sinister plot underway, and Samantha and Tripp are now right in the middle of it.

I tripped across this book, and I must say that I was pleasantly surprised. The author did a very good job of combining intrigue and suspense with romance to make an eminently readable book. I found the way that the government reacted to the sabotage to be interesting and very believable, and I really enjoyed how the story sped up and got quite suspenseful after the kidnapping of Tripp.

Well, I don't know, I guess you can't please all of the people with any one book, but I must say that I was pleased. I don't hesitate to recommend this book!