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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
pulse pumping thriller, July 1, 2010
This review is from: The Last Operative (Paperback)
For the past two decades, Jordan Kettering has worked as an NSA field analyst. His job made him a stranger to his wife, daughter and son. To make up for his neglect when the kids were growing up, Jordan arranges to meet his spouse at Heathrow Airport for a European vacation. Before Jordon goes to the airport, he meets with author Stanley Stewart, who insists there are MIGs in a Quonset hut brought there by al Qaeda to use them to attack the United States after missiles are smuggled into the country.
At Heathrow, a sniper opens fires on Jordan wife and the man she is talking to killing many bystanders. While being debriefed in DC, Jordan meets with his former handler Chuck Wallington. He learns that Stanley was murdered too. Irate and grieving Jordon hides at his Uncle Denton's house. Wallington conceives a plan to stop the missiles from being loaded on a ship in Ecuador, but the enemy is one step ahead of the American counteragents. Kettering ponders whether NSA has a mole working for the enemy as time is running out to prevent the worst attack on American soil since 9/11.
The Last Operative is a rewriting of Jerry B. Jenkins' first stand-alone The Operative written two decades ago and freshened with a revision of the political situations since the original publication. The story line is a pulse pumping thriller starring a fascinating patriot who goes about his dangerous mission with no time to stop to mourn his loss; yet consequently he remains in the early stages of grief compounded by remorse and regret as he for the first time questions the personal cost. Nathan Hale stated that his only regret was he could only give one life for his country, but that was comparatively easy as Hale bravely gave his own. Loaded with action, this is a character driven taut thriller as the hero faces personal demons he puts on hold while he confronts those killers who claim God on their side while murdering his children.
Harriet Klausner
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Jerry Jenkins' Best to Date!, July 7, 2010
This review is from: The Last Operative (Paperback)
Jerry Jenkins has written some excellent books over the years, but this one just zoomed to the top of my favorites list! I read a lot of books, most sent to me by authors wanting reviews/recommendations, and some (like this one) that I purchase because of the author's reputation as an excellent writer. I can easily say that Jenkins lived up to and even surpassed his reputation in the writing of The Last Operative, which is the best novel I've read in a very long time. It's gripping, exciting, and even believable in a setting/lifestyle that is unimaginable to most readers. This is a book you do NOT want to miss!
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Fresh Take on Jenkins' First Stand Alone Novel, July 2, 2010
P. Gaston Blanc was at Heathrow when he became the witness of a violent terrorist attack. Shocking, disturbing, perhaps even life-altering. But the fact of the matter is that he isn't P. Gaston Blanc. He is Jordan Kirkwood and while he finds the terrorist attack frightening, even more frightening is that he knows it was directed towards him. He was the one they meant to kill. They wanted to get rid of The Last Operative.
Jordan has long been a member of a special program within the NSA that has put him in some very dangerous situations and made him some very dangerous enemies. His job is so classified that few within the NSA - not even the director - know the exact nature of his assignments. Now someone within the agency might be a part of the terrorist attack that tried to kill him, and Jordan doesn't know who can be trusted. He doesn't know who wants him dead, but he does know why - He's the only one who knows that Al-Qaeda has gone nuclear and has made plans to attack.
In The Last Operative, New York Times bestselling author Jerry Jenkins paints an all-too-real scenario about an al-Qaeda plot that would make 9/11 look like child's play. The action is gripping, the characters appealing, and the relationship dynamics intense. Jenkins takes the reader on a roller coaster journey where nothing is at it seems and tricky reversals and subtle deceptions make the story wild, unpredictable, and exciting.
The life of a spy is cryptic and exciting, and superspy Jordan Kirkwood is one of the best. Jenkins portrays the character in a very real and three-dimensional way, throwing him into adversity not only on the job but from within his own family. One of the most entertaining aspects of this character for me was the depiction of Jordan's rigorous training regimen to stay in top physical condition. The flashbacks to his days of training not only fleshed out the character but brought some levity and lightness to an otherwise dark and intense story. Such well-roundedness is what makes this a truly enjoyable novel.
A thorough rewrite of Jenkins' first standalone novel, The Operative (published by Harper & Row in 1987), the novel reflects not only an update of twenty years in the sense of the book's history but also twenty years in Jenkins writing history. The result is a labor of love that has turned a solid debut thriller into a masterpiece. In the eyes of a reader, it's a fun and exciting read that will leave you breathless. In the eyes of the writer, one can learn a lot about the art of story by considering the stylistic changes and differences between this and Jenkins' original novel. It's a powerful story, masterfully written by one of the greats in the Christian market.
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