Customer Reviews

The Kill Zone

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

You may have noticed that I am in the distinct minority with my rating of this novel, but I call them like I see them and this is how I see this. I have loved the Kirk McGarvey novels by David Hagberg and I was really looking forward to this one. In this story, McGarvey has been nominated by the president to be head of the CIA (DCI). Some in the Senate Committee that hold hearings on his nomination are less than pleased with this turn of events, but someone else is even less enthusiastic and attempts are made on McGarvey's life as well as that of his wife, daughter and his trusted side kick Otto Rencke. It seems that long ago in Russia a plot was hatched to kill McGarvey if he was ever nominated to this position and trick is to find out who it is that is trying to kill him and how they are planning to do it. I found the plot to be very slow moving, the characters somewhat wooden and the whole story to be a huge disappointment. The mystery of who is trying to kill him doesn't turn out to be that much of a mystery either. I wish I could report otherwise, but that is how I see it.

After spending a quarter of the century spying in various hot spots, Kirk "Mac" McGarvey looks forward to spending the rest of his life in the arms of his wife and child. However, the President nominated Mac to replace recently retired CIA Director Roland Murphy, the dream culmination of a dedicated career man. Still Mac wonders if he wants the aggravation as teaching Voltaire seems more appropriate right now. Still Mac accepts the offer and his senate confirmation hearings will convene shortly, but in the interim he is the acting director.

The nomination triggers a brainwashed assassin to rise from sleep with the object to kill Mac. As someone stalks Mac and his family, the acting director begins his own inquiry. He concludes that an inner circle associate is obsessed with his death, but whom? Unbeknownst to Mac is that his deadliest Cold War foe General Baranov has left behind a legacy from his grave, an executioner who silently awaited the trigger to kill Mac.

When it comes to exciting Cold War and Post Cold War dramas, no one provides a more exhilarating and horrifying fiction than David Hagberg renders. His latest espionage thriller has been used before (Manchurian Candidate), but rarely at the level of gripping suspense as THE KILL ZONE contains. The story line is fast-paced while seizing the full attention of the audience because Mac, his wife and their daughter are a warm family that no one wants harmed except for an awakening sleeper agent and a dead Russian. This is a triumph for the Cold War espionage crowd.

Harriet Klausner

After 25 years of service to the CIA Kirk McGarvey had been nominated to be the Director of the spy service.His nomination triggers a plot to assassinate that was put into place by his old arch enemy General Baranov.Baranov is reaching from hi grave to gain vengance.The assassin was brainwashed by Baranov to kill McGarvey should he ever be nominated for the Director of the CIA.
Attempts are made on the life of McGarvey.his wife Katy and their daughter Elizabeth.The identity of the assassin is a shocker. This is another good book by David Hagberg.Be sure to read it.

Wallace Mahoney was Hagberg's wiley anti-hero, written many years ago under his pseudonym, Sean Flannery. Mahoney was a cold warrior who battled with his wits, not his brawn. I miss Wallace Mahoney...wish I could enjoy his type of intrigue again.

Hagberg attempts to create a Wallace Mahoney-like story in Kill Zone. He succeeds on some accounts but fails in others. The story does plod along...he spends the first 140 pages building up the relationship between the protagonist, Kirk McGarvey...recently nominated to head the CIA, and his wife, Kathleen, who rarely played a major role in the series before. McGarvey seems to be slowing down in this novel, not nearly as clairvoyant as in earlier installments. And there isn't much in the way of high tech or thrills. Its written competently enough, though and held my interest even though the plot was transparent.

If you are new to Hagberg, I certainly wouldn't start here. The book is much like the last installment in the Wallace Mahoney series...a bit of a greatest hits novel. But if you get hooked on his work (read Crossfire, Countdown, or Assassin and you will be), you'll likely end on this novel.

One of the MAIN reasons I have gravitated towards novels written by Hagberg is because he knows how to cut out the fat in his techno-thrillers, unlike Tom Clancy who never passes a chance to include reams of useless information in the majority of his otherwise great books. What is left over is a meaty, action-packed thrill ride. With the exception of just a couple of novels over the past 8 years or so, I believe Hagberg has become one of the best thriller authors working today.

After 'White House' and 'Joshua's Hammer', two of the best examples of techno-thrillers printed in the past decade, we see the next evolution in the roller-coaster career of CIA operative Kirk McGarvey. The President, who owes Kirk after having literally saved the lives of the First family, has appointed the controversial spy the interim Director of the CIA. This unwittingly sets in motion a series of events which become the central storyline of 'The Kill Zone'. Along the way, there are scenes which prepare us for the action which, unfortunately for some is not what fills the bulk of this particular tale. For those wanting and craving a 'thrills oriented' Hagberg novel, you may be a little disappointed (see many of the reviews), but if you approach this story from a different standpoint, I think it can and should be enjoyed.

For those not familiar with the endless amounts of political red tape in Washington, becoming appointed to a position such as CIA Director can certainly seem like the longest most incredibly boring series of events in all of human history -- which I am happy to say Hagberg handles rather well, all things considered. One other reviewer keenly noticed how Kirk was rather stumped by the ridiculous questions posed to him and felt quite strapped because normally he is so comfortable with solving his problems with whatever weapon is handy at the time.

Hagberg takes a lot longer than usual to get to the serious meat of this story, but that doesn't mean that the path we take to get there isn't an interesting one. On the contrary, after I began to see how he was setting the stage for a major confrontation later on, I began to enjoy the storyline even more. While not as all-out action-packed as the bulk of his Kirk McGarvey novels of the past, Hagberg has taken a slightly different path which allows for much greater character development and gave him a fantastic opportunity to set the stage for the outcome which will either catch you by surprise or it won't -- it depends who you are. I was mildly surprised I suppose, not a huge shock, but maybe I missed some clues others had caught. Overall, I am VERY excited about seeing the further adventures of Kirk McGarvey, and for those who would rather see Hagberg back in Action/Oriented fine form, grab 'By Dawn's Early Light' a truly spectacular submarine techno-thriller which may well be his best novel to date.

Long on character development and short on action or thrills. I was well past page 100 before anything happened and figured out the "villan" 2/3 into the book. Not as good as his other books. Just goes to prove that when hunters are hunted the story is not all that compelling.

This was my first time reading Hagberg and I found his style plodding. There were a few interesting twists, but overall a big snore.

The perfect example of a formula author ready to retire! As a past Hagberg fan I picked up this book expecting a lot more out of him. What I got was a lot of disappointment. The only suspense in this book was, when the main character, and you as the reader expected something to happen...nothing did!
As a reader, I'm going to thing thrice before buying another Hagberg book. My advice...skip this one, and go onto other, newer authors, that are trying to make a name for themselves.
His last really good book in this series was Critical Mass, which he has been rewriting for the past ten years!

Kirk McGarvey, well known to Hagberg's readers, is back as the President's nominee to lead the CIA. Against the backdrop of the mind-game battles with those in Congress who do not want to see McCarvey lead the CIA, McGarvey must wage a battle for his life (and the lives of his family members) as he tries to unravel a long-dormant contract on his life. The story moved along at a fast pace, with plenty action and suspense. The carryover of characters from previous books provides a sense of familiarity as the book progresses. Although perhaps not his best effort, The Kill Zone is clearly worth your time.

I've read most of the books in the series and I must say that it's a real joy to watch as Mac evolves. This is a story about trust. Mac realizes that he has erected barriers between himself and the world around him as a survival mechanism. Now that he has clocked 25 years in the service of his country, Mac is ready to lower the walls and reach out to his loved ones and friends. Unfortunately an old adversary's plan to strike from the grave sows seeds of distrust between Mac and those around him. As Mac and Otto struggle to figure out who is behind the attempts to kill Mac and his family, the reader gets the opportunity to see Mac from a different point of view. As the tension mounts, Mac starts to question the loyalty of his closest friends. In the past he always distanced himself from his loved ones to keep them out of harms way. Little did he know that his absence in the past would allow a foe to sows the seeds for his future distruction.

This book kept me guessing right up to the vary end even though I suspected who the real assassin was I was not able to confirm it to the very end......the book was a good pacing along with a taught plot makes this a worthwhile read.