Customer Reviews

Lords of Corruption (Thorndike Core)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I am a big fan of Kyle Mills and I am very happy to report that Lord of Corruptions is another winner!!! for this great author.

There seems to be a trend, among some of the thriller writers, to set their storylines in countries that, in my case anyway, I know very little about. This novel is almost entirely based in Africa.

Indeed, we meet our main character Josh Hagarty as he applies for a position with NewAfrica. Josh is quite bright and even has an MBA, but he also has an unsavory past that makes his difficult to "employ". Yet, NewAfrica has definitely shown an interest in Josh and while this may not be the ideal job for him (he does not really want to travel and work in Africa) he does take the position because, basically, it pays extremely well and with this money, he will be able to ensure that his sister gets out of her current situation and there might even be some leftover to send her to a good school.

Armed with these thoughts and the best of intentions, Josh decides that he will do the best he can while he is in Africa and will try to help the people there become self-sufficient. Almost immediately upon Josh's arrival, he realizes that NewAfrica is but a front - there is no working equipment, the villagers are basically clueless and uninterested in the project and more importantly NewAfrica does not care about its own projects. What Josh does find is a corrupt, but all powerful leader of the country, a homicidal "right away man", a journalist who has seen it all and loves to drink and a aid worker who believes she can make a difference.

As Josh becomes acquainted with some of the villagers, he becomes frustrated at the whole sham and in the process of trying to do something for them he starts to uncover a huge cover up - that could end up getting him killed. Surprisingly help comes from the weary journalist, JB Flannery, who finally decides that he has seen enough and its take to grow a conscience. Together, Josh, JB and Annika set a plan in motion that is both daring and extremely, extremely dangerous. Not all of them will come out of it alive.

I have not really been able to do justice to the description of the plotline. This book is just one action packed moment after the next. There is something happening at every turn and you can feel the tension throughout the entire storyline. I feared for all of their lives and at the same time, I could not believe that this type of thing could actually still be going on in the 21st century - yet I am certain that it is.

Mills is wonderful at describing the desolate, yet scary African environment - he made me feel as though I was standing right there, in the thick of the action. In Josh, he created a strong character that is deeply flawed and I thought that this just added to the overall comlexity of the book. I also thought the addition of the JB character was a great touch - his complete lack of compassion in the earlier part of the book was a great lead into the type of character JB turned out to be and I think this was my favorite character.

I have to say that there is alot of violence in this book and that this read is not for the faint of heart. But if you are looking for non-stop action and an ending that you will not be able to predict, then this is the book for you.

You can't make this stuff up, for sure, if you bother to read the back page articles about small African states ruled by dictators, states very often grown powerful from American and international aid. These are states whose rulers claim to be motivated by wanting economic prosperity and democracy. The truth lies far from the stated ideals and Kyle Mills has captured the essence of the disappearance of governmental and private donor funds into nefarious schemes and dictator hands in this genuinely thrilling novel!

Josh Hogarty is having a tough time finding a job after completing graduate school in engineering. He's got a checkered past that merits an instant rejection from all who check their sources. But after being again refused a coveted interview, he's about to drown his sorrows in a local bar when he is approached by someone actually seeking an interview. The bells of alarm should be clanging but the opportunity to get a job and earn enough to pay for his sister's college degree and pay off his own debt loom larger than concerns for something awry in such a supposedly generous offer.

Invited to New York City for a second interview with the New Africa firm, Josh realizes he is being courted in a way that indicates the job is his for the taking. New Africa is an NGO, an organization dedicated to creating agricultural self-sustaining farms for the poor. It's a charity, to put it quite simply. Since he has nothing but a very troubled family situation, Josh figures this is even better than sitting behind a desk in an un-adventurous job anyway.

Soon enough after Josh lands in hot, steamy Africa and begins to meet the people with whom he will work, he realizes something is wrong and he is expected to quietly accept it all. But the same qualities that got him employed have a surprising twist for his new employers; Josh does have a very active conscience which is about to be sorely tested and severely threatened.

First he meets Gideon, the brother-in-law of Mtiti, the dictatorial President of this African state trying desperately to keep foreign support and keep control over civil warfare between the tribes. Gideon's not very helpful; in fact he's downright hostile. Then there's an older, drunken reporter named Flannary who comes to trust Josh and helps him discover some very unsavory political and financial realities. There's a Norwegian nun-like lady whose altruistic work is refreshingly honest, albeit naive. If the mounting violence and sabotage aren't enough, Josh's sister Laura is facing danger from a scheming step-sister and her boyfriend back in America, a situation being watched by Josh's employers as well.

Behind the scenes are other shady characters and gruesome events that help make these pages turn faster than a spinning top! Kyle Mills is a master of the thriller, who knows how to create a credible, solid story surrounding a tightly plotted adventure.

Lords of Corruption is a terrific read you won't want to miss!!!

Reviewed by Viviane Crystal on March 20, 2009

I enjoyed Mills' FBI novel series and I thought Fade was a brilliant thriller.

However, this novel disappointed me terribly. In fact, I put it aside with 80 pages left because I didn't care at all what happened. I would have quit before then, but I kept hoping for better.

The primary problem with the novel is that the protagonist makes stupid decisions that would have easily been rectified. I felt as if the author was a new author who had read "you must increase the stakes for your protagonist at every chance, put him in a tighter and tighter box." And while that's true, when there are a dozen solutions to the tightening of the box, the protagonist simply comes off as rather stupid and unlikeable. His alleged great love for his sister certainly didn't help him make logical decisions about phoning police, Child Protection, her school, or any other potential help for her. I was reminded of the lead character in the movie Kitten With a Whip who merely needed to phone the police to solve the "threat" at any point. Eventually, I start wishing for the protagonist to die, and painfully, for being so very very stupid.

This aspect of the novel was, in fact, so badly handled that I came to suspect that this isn't his newest novel but some piece of juvenilia that got trotted out to take advantage of his success. Or perhaps he is losing it already (though he seems terribly young to suffer that). Whichever, I won't be hunting for his next novel, and I won't be buying it but using a library so I don't risk money on this author again.

I'll give it above one star because it is certainly literate (and not all popular novels are) and the setting is interesting.

I have read all of Kyle Mills' previous works. This one disappointed me immensely. The plot was too predictable and the characters were out of a cookie cutter. I think one of the professional review services said it best: "Lackluster". Hard to believe that this book and Fade, one of his previous works, came from the same author.

If one wants to read about Africa and its problems give some of Wilbur Smiths works a look.

Ex-con Josh Hagarty is proud of how far he has come from being a convict; his growth is symbolized by earning an MBA. However, prison taught Josh the acceptance of reality so he knows being an-con limits his employee pool as that is not a good item on a résumé.

When the NewAfrica charity offers him a job to manage a farming project, he grabs the opportunity to prove him self though he knows nothing about the continent. Not long after he settles in, Josh learns the local leader of New Africa Gideon is related the country's brutal unpopular president and a goon. The impoverished nation is filled with civil dissension and his predecessor was apparently murdered for doing his job. As Hagarty begins to dig into the philanthropy he works for, he finds ugly truths and no allies except for Scandinavian aid worker Annika Gritdal and journalist J.B. Flannary. Someone is prepared to silence the trio as they have done so before, but Hagarty and Flannary see a chance for redeeming their unworthy souls and Gritdal is too dedicated to slink back to the safety of Europe.

This is an exhilarating thriller in spite of the obvious stereotyping of the lead trio and their goon opponents. The story line is fast-paced with the hero pulling off Peril of Pauline type escapes. Readers who suspend plausibility and not mind two dimensional characterizations will appreciate this action-packed diversion as LORDS OF CORRUPTION is a fun read.

Harriet Klausner

Kyle Mills has taken on one of the most difficult topics to address - the real face of Africa, as opposed to the politically-correct version - and done so with style and panache.

Protagonist Josh Haggarty is a young man with a blemished past who has made huge strides in redeeming himself through education, but that same past keeps him from finding gainful and appropriate employment. In desperation, he accepts a position with a charitable organization at their showplace mission in an African country ruled by a despot.

But soon, the veils of naiveté fall from Josh's eyes as he sees the depth of the corruption surrounding him and the organization for which he works, and his life - as well as the lives of those near and dear to him - is endangered by powerful and evil men intent on preserving the spoils of their debased conspiracy.

Full of tense action and surprising twists, the characterizations are also fully realized, with sympathetic good guys, really evil bad guys, and some people caught in the moral purgatory in between.

The real face of Africa is starting to become more prevalent in modern literature as it becomes more apparent that it's a continent with many countries that simply can't seem to conform to modern ethical norms (to say the least), and the depth and rampant nature of the problem becomes more apparent.

As the saying goes, "it's only Africa". And Mills takes us on a journey that makes it clear why that saying is so ubiquitous.

Another five star review. Kudos.

See numerous story lines on this page.
Wow, Kyle Mills has really out done himself this time around in what is his best novel to date. A fascinating and thrilling ride through the heart of Africa with all it's corruption and evil leaders.
Filled with breathtaking escapes and a 'pull you in' writing style, this thriller rocks.

Not the best offering that I have read from Kyle Mills. The story plods along and than the last fifty pages gets your blood flowing with excitement and suspence.

Not as good as his last one. A quick almost summer read where nothing really unexpected happens. Set in Africa where truth is almost certainly worse than fiction, for the most part I think I can leave that continent off my travel itinerary.

Kyle Mills of late seems to be prescient in his selection of novel plots. His previous work, DARKNESS FALLS, dealt with a virulent attack on oil reserves and was published just as gas prices were rising to $100 a barrel --- approximately one year after it was written. His new novel, LORDS OF CORRUPTION, is set in Africa and deals with a dictator who is engaged in a genocidal policy against a resident tribe --- just as there is renewed interest in and attention paid towards human rights violations in Sudan. Fortunately for his readers, Mills's prosaic talents are every bit as sharp and clear as his apparent visions into the future.

LORDS OF CORRUPTION is a stand-alone work seen primarily through the eyes of Josh Hagarty, an interesting study in contrasts who refuses to let an impoverished background, bad luck and worse decisions get him down. The resident of an area that seems to be a kissing cousin to Appalachia, if not a full-shirted relative, Hagarty in his youth often let poor judgment get the better of him, resulting in some prison time that got in the way of his academic career. Putting his past behind him and both shoulders to a very tough wheel, he has more than redeemed himself, earning a master's degree with hard work, which he is more than willing and able to transfer to the service of an employer. Part of Hagarty's motivation is inspired by his younger sister, who shows similar academic promise but who needs to get out of the home environment that dragged Hagarty down. He soon finds, though, that employers uniformly balk at his history of incarceration.

It is almost too good to be true when Hagarty is approached by Stephen Trent and offered a position that seemingly will solve all of his problems. Trent represents NewAfrica, a small charity that oversees self-help projects in Africa. While the salary is relatively small, Hagarty's room, board and expenses will be covered, and, more importantly, the charity will pay for his sister's tuition and expenses at an Ivy League university. Yet, almost from the moment that Hagarty lands in Africa, he is astounded by the degrees of poverty, corruption and casual brutality he encounters there, which seems to be aided and abetted by NewAfrica itself. Hagarty is warned against digging too deeply into anything or impeding the flow of how things "work" there.

However, when he stumbles upon the results of a horrible, government-sponsored atrocity, he has no choice but to fight back. Assisted by an aid worker who has selflessly worked in Africa for years, he nonetheless seems to be swimming against a current that will drag him down and endanger his sister back in the United States. First and foremost, he is a quick study and did not waste his time in prison. Possessed of a quiet cunning that is buried beneath a deceptively peaceful demeanor, Hagarty, almost alone in a nation that is as strange to him as he is to it, begins to fight back against seemingly insurmountable odds, while his fate --- along with his sister's and that of a nation --- hangs in the balance.

Mills knows Africa well, having spent a significant amount of time living there over the last several years. Thus, he infuses his narrative with a real-world vision of the continent and its seemingly insurmountable problems. LORDS OF CORRUPTION comes at a particularly important time, and while it wisely does not attempt to promulgate any particular message, there is much food for thought --- subtle and otherwise --- presented here.