Customer Reviews

Men in Blue (Badge of Honor)

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I had never read any of Griffin's books before picking up this one to see what it might be like. Having retired as a police Inspector after 25 years service I found I could not put it down. I don't see how anyone who has never served could have written this entire series. This series brought back memories from my first days on the street until my retirement. Once I finished this book I bought the series and read them straight though This really is the way things are within a major city Police Department.

I agree with some of the other reviewers who have stated that this first book in the Badge of Honor series serves mainly to introduce characters with minimal storyline. Having read and enjoyed all of Griffin's military series books, this began my final experience with his series, at least until he publishes new installments. I am currently over halfway through the second book of this series, Special Operations, and am enjoying it much more than this one. So my advice to those who are not excited about Men in Blue is to get through it quickly and move on to the next one. I'm glad that I did.

These books are so real to the real truth of what its like to be a policeman and of a special unit. I had retired, but while reading this series of books, I actually re-lived my career.

The blending of chartacters from different walks of lives brought together like family, friends and neighbors. You can sense the mood of each person as you weave your way though their lives. The City Brotherly Love has more then Liberty Square. This book and the follow five in the series are as good as any series I have ever read. W.E.B. Don't stop now, as long as the qaulity stays this high I will keep reading.

As a WEB Griffin fan of two years now, I own and have read many of his offerings. "Brotherhood of War" and "The Corps" were absolutely splendid. Since then his books have diminished into little action and many detail of the characters struggling to deal with an item that happened at the beginning of the book. In this book you read about individual policemen, who may have little impact on the story, but you are treated to three or four pages detailing each individual's background. All in all this was one of his lesser efforts. But I will probably read the rest anyway.

After reading the reviews posted here, and the synopis of the novel, I thought "Why not, I'll try it". Don't waste your time. The shooting of a police officer was merely a lame excuse of a plot used to publish a novel that is a complete waste of time. There is no investigation of the shooting, no real man hunt, and the only moment of suspense lasted approximately two pages. Real police work may be frequently dull and routine, but I don't read fiction for dull and routine. The book is about as interesting as watching paint dry.

Men in Blue is a rather vanilla account of the events surrounding the gunning down of Philadelphia Highway Patrol captain Richard "Dutch" Moffitt during an aborted robbery. The womanizing and off duty Moffitt was in the midst of a tryst with attractive TV news anchor Louise Dutton when he was shot while trying to thwart a stick up at the Waikiki diner. Immediately, the entire resources of the Philly P.D. is mobilized to hunt down one of the two robbers, as Moffitt while being shot killed one of the gunmen.

The cerebral, handsome and youthful Staff Inspector Peter Wohl is summoned to babysit Miss Dutton and to hush allegations of infidelity by Moffitt. It is through Wohl's eyes that we see the investigation of Moffitt's murder unfold. Wohl is the latest of many generations of law enforcement officers in his family as was his friend Moffitt. The families go way back and have previously known tragedy as Moffitt's brother was also killed in the line of duty.

The story proceeds both a predicatable and coincidental fashion as Wohl and Dutton, an illegitimate daughter of a wealthy newspaper man, fall for each other. Amazingly, Dutton's neighbor and friend, the gay son of another wealthy newspaper man, Jerome Nelson is brutally stabbed to death in his trendy apartment. Guess who discovers the body. None other than Louise Dutton!

Griffin does a nice job in comparing the differences between the depth and intensity of the separate murder investigations. One being for the Philly P.D.'s own. He however ends the story very abruptly and overall the book is less than riveting.

By a wonderful storyteller. I read The Corps series, and loved it, so could hardly wait to read Griffin's story about the Philadelphia Police Department. I found the same great, strong characters, and the same insider's look into the people that make up a big city's Police Department. I love Griffin's brand of storytelling that seems so real. And there is no shortage of action either in his books, and this book, the first in the Badge of Honor series, is no exception. The book starts with the killing of a senior Police Officer, and the action does not let up from there. I am sure there will be no end of heroics in the coming books either, and I can't wait to read them. Inspector Peter Wohl promises to be a strong and interesting character. Thanks Mr. Griffin for the hours of enjoyment that you provide for me.

I have all of WEB Griffins books and rate him along with Wilbur Smith as my all time favorite author. His sagas span several different action themes, but they are all either military, police or intelligence services. The author has residence both in Texas and Argentina and has spent a great deal of time with our military so he uses his familiarity with these settings and people to cast a very nice spell in his work. My wife also enjoys the books so I would say they are suitable for all readers.

This book was received in the condition described and ahead of schedult.
It is an honor to have this book in my collection
William Cody