Customer Reviews

Last Passage to Santiago

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"Last Passage to Santiago" is written with excellent local detail. It follows an American couple on a dream holiday in South America, but they take a good deal of baggage with them emotionally. The husband is a faithless, unpleasant misogynist, and the wife ... has her own problems.

She works for the NSA, but not as a spy. The author avoids the temptation to glamourise her work, which helps a lot in terms of keeping the book believable. This helps the credibility a good deal.

The novel follows a steady progression towards a dramatic event that we know is to come. The author foreshadows this well.

The description works to present a clear and interesting picture, and touches of the writer's wit add enjoyment to the novel. The best part, for me, was the vivid depiction of Santiago. Recommended.

Sherlock Holmes and the Flying Zombie Death Monkeys

Last Passage to Santiago by John F. Rooney is a whirlwood of a book! All I can say is WOW. The book is like a magnet that grabs your attention and you cannot put it down.

Stephie and her husband, Ben, go to Buenos Aires and you feel like you are right there with them sightseeing. Her husband is cheating on her while they are on vacation! When Stephanie and her husband split up to do their own thing on vacation--he goes and meets his girlfriend Ann.

A little later Stephie confides to Kim, a newfound friend, about her relationship with Ben.

People, including a dwarf, are following Stephie and she is aware of it some of the time. Your curiosity gets you throughout the book, wondering who is after her.

Following the couples Buenos Aires trip, a cruise ship vacation unfolds with a lot of action. The romantic and sexy tango takes part of the stage as it did on the first trip.

Last Passage to Santiago is a smooth read that would make an excellent movie.

As a fan of John Rooney's books, I was elated to get my hands on his newest book. It is exciting and just as readable as his previous writings.

I really enjoyed this book. I have been on several cruise ships and liked the nostalgia I felt during discussions of the surroundings and activities on the ship. I also related to the emotional discontinuity of being in a strange, yet familiar, place; almost like watching a movie.

The historical aspects of the story are integral to the story and not lectures. The excursion to the Malvinas opened my eyes to a different aspect of the British possession. The Duarte tomb was an inspired place to further the intrigue.

All these things are in addition to the primary question: Who kidnapped Stephanie and why?

Beth McKenzie
[...]

"Last Passage To Santiago" is a riveting novel of rapidly paced high adventure played out against a South American backdrop ranging from Argentina and Uruguay, to Chile and the Falkland islands. Stephie Ably-Ranier was an analyst for the National Security Agency and married to a philandering husband. Apparently she is a target to some rather unpleasant characters. Still, there is the unexpected emergence of passion introduced amidst her faltering marriage. Author John F. Rooney has a positive knack as a gifted and original storyteller. "Last Passage To Santiago" is a highly recommended novel that will leave the reader looking eagerly toward Rooney's next literary effort.

This story takes place between Buenos Aires, a cruise ship around the southern tip of South America, and the convention center in Chile where the passengers were to board a flight back to the states. The story is centered around a couple who take a cruise aboard the Global Quest. The Rainers take tours while in Chile waiting to board their cruise. Stephanie often walks in the morning to see the sights and to get exercise. Stephanie is being followed and photographed by a dwarfish man and two men in a blue van. Ben has secretly paid for the travel of Ms. Ann Gliden. During the morning walks that his wife takes, he goes to the floor above him to have sexual encounters with Ann.



Aboard the cruise, Stephie keeps with the same routine of walking and touring the islands when they pull into the port. Ben rarely goes to see the sights because he uses the opportunity to be with Ann. Stephie begins to have interest in the naturalist aboard the ship named Mike (penguin man). They begin to talk privately and she sees in him, what a real man should be. Stephie gets stuck on the inland during a tour when her boat could not board the ship due to the rocky waves one night. Stephie did not know if it was right, but she made her bond with Mike complete when they shared a bed in the hotel.



Ann begins to tire from being the little stored away freak show. Ann starts to live for herself and decide that this is not for her. Aboard the ship, Ann and Stephie begin to befriend one another without knowing the ties that bind them together.



When the cruise has ended, they are at the convention center waiting for the shuttle to take them to the airport. To beat the long lines, they decide to take a taxi. The taxi takes a short cut but is met by the van that she has seen throughout her whole vacation and she is kidnapped. She held in a warehouse but is never abused or mistreated. The conclusion is that she is finally let go, and she has a feeling that her husband has something to do with it.



Her boss who clues her in on the reason for her abduction meets Stephie. The reason for her abduction stems around two men with no connection to her. They are both being held by the other's country. She was abducted because with her position, they figured that she knew something. She is allowed to go when the two men are released. She is also clued in on her husband's actions aboard the whole trip. She is devastated and frees herself from the agony of being married to Ben. She returned to be with Mike, which is what her heart desired. Ben was killed, September 11 aboard one of the flights headed towards New York City.



While the story may appear, by summary, to have an action packed and deep story line, it was very dry. The story focused immensely on the details and structure of the many buildings and sights of their trip. The author was very descriptive of the many things seen on the trip. The book appears to have been carried by the descriptions as a way to make up for the lack of a structured and captivating story line. I was very confused and somewhat disappointed with the book and the unrelated conclusion to the reason of Stephie's kidnapping. If you are looking to take a trip to any of the locations in the book, then this is for you. If you are looking to be taken in by a great book then this is not it. I gave the book a rating of 3 out of 5.

Luv2read
Reviewer, I Pen Designs/I Pen Books
6/09

Last Passage to Santiago opens with a daring kidnapping, and continues with a tantalizing tale through the historic streets of Buenos Aires and beyond.

Stephanie Ably-Ranier and her husband Ben are on a three week vacation. After spending a week at a beautiful hotel in Argentina, they are booked for a two-week luxury cruise heading around South America visiting Uruguay, the Falklands, and ending up in Santiago.

Stephie is excited to walk the vibrant streets of Buenos Aires, visiting the many historic sites, feasting on the local restaurant fare, and immersing herself in the enticing beat of the tango-loving city. Ben, however, has other ideas. Unbeknownst to his wife, he has brought his mistress along, daringly ensconcing her in the same hotel and later on the cruise ship so that he can visit her anytime he wishes.

As Stephie finds that she is increasingly alone, she begins to realize someone is following her on her daily walks. She senses the movements of a dwarf who seems to appear where ever she goes. Due to her position with the ultra-secret National Security Agency, she begins to wonder if the apparent stalker is job-related.

During their visit in the South American city, they run into an eclectic group of fellow passengers headed for the same cruise. As they prepare to board the ocean liner for the next portion of their trip, Ben realizes his passions now rest elsewhere as Stephie senses the breakdown of their marriage.

On the cruise ship, Stephie attends a talk given by the ship's naturalist, Mike Lambert, and finds herself increasingly drawn to the region's penguin rookeries. While unexpectedly stranded in the Falkland Islands while her husband and the rest of the passengers continue their journey, she finds herself spending time getting to know the handsome Lambert. It does not take her long to realize what is missing from her life.

Last Passage to Santiago is a riveting story of love and betrayal, trust and deceit. Stephanie and Ben never expected their three-week vacation would threaten their very existence and change their lives forever.

John F. Rooney has created vivid characters and beautiful scenic locales bringing the story to life with ever increasing speed. Last Passage to Santiago simmers with passion and lust, and proves difficult to put down as it heads toward an ending the reader suspects, but is still surprised by the unexpected.

This book is a must read for anyone who enjoys passionate love stories intertwined with international intrigue, seductive secrets, and gripping hot, tropical romance.


Last Passage to Santiago

I have read all of Jack Rooney's mystery novels and this one is by far the best. His page by page description of the surroundings of each stage of the developing mystery are delightfully visual and sometimes alarming for wife/CIA agent Stephanie. From the opening chapters, you are teased to read forward to find out the looming answers to everyone's behavior especially husband Ben. This is a five star book and I recommend it to all mystery lovers and also anyone who wants to travel to South America. I highly recommend you read it!

Set for the most part on a South American cruise sailing South from Buenos Aires, Last Passage to Santiago centres on Stephie and Ben Ranier, a young married couple feeling somewhat out of place amidst their generally much older travelling companions; although Ben has already made prior plans to avoid any possible tedium by ensconcing his young mistress Ann aboard the cruise ship. The story opens however as the travellers are about to make the return flight home from Santiago following the cruise, whereupon Stephie is kidnapped; the story then takes us back to Buenos Aires some days prior to embarkation for the cruise and to all that leads up to the kidnapping.

We get to meet some of their unusual fellow passengers as well as learn more of Ben and Stephie and their background. Ben it appears has been unfaithful in the past, and seems intent on continuing his philandering. Stephie works for a highly secret US National Security Agency, and even during this voyage she remains in contact with her boss. Is her kidnapping related to her work or is it some hair brain scheme of her husband's to get her out of the way? And what will come of the new interests she discovers on the voyage, assuming she survives her ordeal?

While the underlying theme of the book builds up to the kidnapping, it seems to play a relatively minor part for much of the story; yes there are secrets and mysterious happenings, but for the major part of the story could be better described as a travelogue. We are given guided tours of a number of the sites included in their itinerary, and many interesting facts and even figures relating to these; penguins too feature quite prominently along with an enthusiastic and handsome young exponent on the subject.

Last Passage to Santiago is perhaps a better travel guide than mystery, more a leisurely read than an edge of the seat thriller; for me it was at its best when offering detailed descriptions and providing historical facts about the various places visited by the cruise.

I finished Last Passage to Santiago in three sittings, which proves it is a real page-turner - in the best sense. It is easily the most entertaining work of fiction I've read in a long time. The eleven-year "gestation period" certainly worked to the author's advantage because it is a much more "rounded" novel than his last effort Clawed Back from the Dead. The characters are more three-dimensional , the action more flowing, and the descriptions of the backgrounds satisfyingly detailed. I feel that I now know much more about South America -and penguins!

When I read Clawed Back From The Dead, I was much impressed by Rooney's intimate knowledge of New York. Now I must credit him with learning a lot about South America from a two-week cruise and a week in Buenos Aires. He must have either a fantastic memory or an ability to take notes (like his heroine, Stephie). The integration of the local color derived from the exotic settings into the plot line was very well handled. Using the Falkland Islands as a setting for a romance was a highly original touch. And the involvement of the leading characters in secretive government agencies gives the story a feeling of coming out of today's headlines. All in all quite an achievement.