Firewall [Hardcover]

R. J. Pineiro (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 20, 2002

The final words that Mortimer Fox whispered to ex CIA agent Bruce Tucker. Cryptic words said in a code coveted the world over, a code that could wipe all the world’s powers off the map and trigger Armageddon. The words are understood by a few, but are especially desirable to Vlad Jarkko, Tucker’s nemesis from his CIA days. And when Jarkko snatches Monica Fox, Mortimer’s daughter, Tucker must resume the blood feud and find Monica before she capitulates to her abductor’s unspeakable tortures.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Pineiro (Y2K; conspiracy.com) boosts the action level and goes international in this outing, in which North Korea hires a former East Geman agent to steal access codes to a U.S. military spy satellite with the capability to cause mass destruction. The code (aka the Ultimate Encryption) is guarded by an artificial intelligence clone of computer entrepreneur Mortimer Fox; Fox's daughter, Monica, has half the password and Fox's bodyguard, former CIA and NSA agent Bruce Tucker, has the other half. Bruce runs to his old CIA boss when his nemesis, Vlad Jarkko, kills Fox, but he is followed. Jarkko drugs him with a blow dart but bungles the kidnapping, kills Bruce's former boss and frames Bruce for the death. Labeled a rogue agent to be shot on sight, Bruce calls in some debts to get false IDs for himself and Monica and races to Capri to find her, ahead of Jarkko and the Feds. Donald Bane, the CIA's aging counterterrorism chief, is closing on Capri, and his team follows the spies until a trick lands Bane on his own with Raffaela, a gutsy Italian boat captain. The plot zooms from this point on, as Monica is abducted to North Korea and the NSA head wants Bruce dead. Pineiro has a knack for spinning cliffhanging twists into impossible situations resolved by explosively clever means. Too many of the book's almost 500 pages are wasted on long, descriptive passages, and an abundance of computer jargon will prove dull for nongeeks, but tech-heads should take notice. Agent, Matthew Bialer. National advertising.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Review

“The well executed plot twists keep you riveted until the end. Fiction of the first order.”—Clive Cussler

“Startingly authentic, Firewall offers an alarming vision of what might come to pass . . . written by an author equally at ease with complex software and superior storytelling.”—Ralph Peters, New York Times bestselling author of Traitor

“Pineiro boosts the action and goes international.”—Publishers Weekly

“Move over Tom Clancy, there is a new kid on the block.”—Library Journal

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 480 pages
• Publisher: Forge Books; 1st edition (March 20, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0765300605
• ISBN-13: 978-0765300607
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.5 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,491,502 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Top notch thriller, April 27, 2002

By 

Konrad Kern (OFallon, MO United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Firewall (Hardcover)

It's novels like this that keep R.J. Pineiro on top of my `must read' thriller list.

Bruce Tucker is ex-Navy Seal, ex-Secret Service and Ex-CIA operative. After losing his family to terrorists, which he also blames on the CIA, Tucker takes the job of protector/bodyguard to one of the richest computer gurus alive (think Gates) named Mortimer Fox. When Fox has a heart attack, after a failed attempt on his life, he passes on to Tucker a couple secrets and asks him to please protect his daughter. The same powerful forces that have been trying to kill him will now go after her. The big secret (Firewall) behind Mortimer Fox is a technology, which if discovered by another country, could trigger Armageddon. From launch codes to all the coded messages between intelligence agencies, nothing can be kept secret if the code to Firewall is acquired.

As much spy thriller as techno thriller. A better-rounded thriller you couldn't ask for. From computer technology to the possibilities of a North Korean invasion, all play a pivotal role in this non-stop thriller. At times it gets graphic (Cannibalism) and violent, but in the situations presented it's appropriate and not over done. This novel is very satisfying and should create some new fans for R.J. Pineiro.

Highly Recommended.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Firewall sizzles, September 24, 2003

By 

J. J Kamlani "jotuj" (Fairfield, Connecticut United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Firewall (Mass Market Paperback)

A very good book, full of action, some romance, and a bit of technical background. An ex-Navy Seal, turned spy, turned body guard loses his client to a heart attack, after an attempt on said client's life. The client's dying request is for the protector to find, and protect his daughter from harm, which of course the protector does(falling in love with her in the process).
The only thing that bothered me was the amount of Typos present in this book. "Would had" instead of would have, which I was taught was proper grammer. Males were referred to as she, and females, as he, in several spots throughout the book, to the point where it got confusing as to who the author was refering to. The publisher should have picked these mistakes up, and NOT published the uncorrected proof, to save time, and money.
Overall, though, it was an enjoyable book to read, by a talented author.
Read also; "Ultimatum", and "Retribution", two very good books, also by Pineiro.

4.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining, August 21, 2003

By 

ra2sky "ra2sky" (the left coast) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Firewall (Mass Market Paperback)

This book kept my attention and I enjoyed reading it. The plot was clever, the characters interesting, and the action moved quickly. The two drawbacks of this book were that there was some over-the-top violence that seemed a unnecessarily detailed, and some of the high-tech details of the plot were pretty farfetched. But it was definitely a fun read!