Customer Reviews

Mounting Fears (Will Lee, No. 7)

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(25)

 

 

This book is not worth the price. It seemed like an outline to which Woods added a few sentences here and there. It did a disservice to Will Lee's story and also to Holly Barker, who now is a caricature of her former self and gets only a couple of pages in Woods' new books. I think the author needs to give up writing three not very good books a year, and return to one well-thought out, compellingly written book annually. Woods won't make that much more money with three, if the word gets out and people stop buying the books. Also, what's with his having multiple one-dimensional young women dropping in just to have sex with middle-aged male characters. It's really off-putting. C'mon, Stuart, stop phoning the books in and get back to writing books that used to grab the reader on page one.

Don't bother to purchase this book unless you have a real fondness for Mr. Woods. This was a thrown together plot that has so many pieces to it that you have to imagine Mr. Woods 1. was trying to meet a deadline; 2. was creating multiple plots for further sequels; or 3. needed the money quickly. The story opens with a horrific terrorist plot, mixes in with the President's reelection, some cursory sex scenes, a completely unrelated CIA killing, etc. Save your money for a better book by Mr. Woods.

The author failed to deliver his usual lighthearted romp instead servingup a tedious progression of improbabilities and inane plot constructions. this book is thoroughly worth skipping.

I agree with others who are disappointed in this book. It sounds like it was written quickly with no thought of developing the characters or plot. And this book's Holly Barker and Lance Cabot were not strong characters (I don't think any of them were very strong). And, of course, the ending leaves a lot to be desired - actually it leaves room for a sequel to hopefully bring the plot with Teddy Fey to a conclusion. I have read a number of Stuart Woods' books and the last few (Shoot Him if He Runs, Hot Mahogany for example) do not compare to the earlier Stone Barrington and Will Lee books. I will not be reading any more of them.

Woods' starts the story with a presidential nightmare--a nuclear nightmare. Perhaps the nightmare has something to do with Kate's (his wife) rushed departure for Langley in the early morning hours after receiving an urgent phone call. Kate is the director of the CIA. Will Lee, President of the United States, is preparing for the Democratic convention where he expects to be selected as the parties candidate for a second term. A few hours later, Will Lee is giving his staff a pep talk when he is notified that the DCI and DDO are waiting for him in the Oval Office. Trouble in Pakistan--nuclear trouble. Al-Qaeda has been naughty. The story is off to a very good beginning.

Will Lee has a second problem. His vice president is ill, cancer, and he must quickly find a replacement before the convention. A short list is prepared and quickly pared down to Martin Stanton, the governor of California. Ah, but, in our politically correct world where candidates are scrutinized under an electron microscope, can Stanton pass the "smell" test? There are two problems: his place of birth and women.

Where was Governor Stanton born? Everyone agrees it was near the Mexican-U.S. border, but on which side? Governor Stanton can't say for sure, for he was a little too young to remember. An old radio show began with, "Only the Shadow knows." In the story, only the chauffeur knows, because Stanton was born in the back seat of a Cadillac on the way from his parents home in Tijuana to a hospital in San Diego. A nefarious person coaches the chauffeur on what to say. Will the opposition find out? Stuart Woods has hit a major nerve, one that can be described as "grabbed for the headlines." For those who don't know, President-elect Obama's place of birth is in question. Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court heard a second case behind closed doors. Several more lawsuits challenging Obama's eligibility to meet Constitutional eligibility requirements are working their way toward the Supreme Court. Stanton's place of birth story line had great possibilities, however, Woods let it die at this point. Did Woods know about the bending Obama birth certificate issue when he wrote the book? Woods had to have completed Mounting Fears in 2007, because we discussed the nuclear detonation at a book sighing in January 2008.

Governor Stanton is getting a divorce, and so far there is no other woman on the radar screens. But, is there a second woman? If so, how would she be discovered. This part of the story is well plotted with interesting characters.

Teddy Fay returns, and his adventures provide a good element of the story. Will Teddy always lurking in the shadows of Will Lee's world?

While Will Lee and his staff cope with Stanton's growing problems, al-Qaeda is busy in Pakistan. Two Pakistani missile site with nuclear warheads are attacked and things get interesting. Lee has to decide whether or not to intervene.

Woods is not a military thriller author, so one should overlook a couple of minor errors. I am pointing them out to note the correct facts for readers, not as criticism. The Hiroshima atomic bomb had a yield of 12-15 KT. It did not reach its design yield of 20 KT. This means that the Pakistani nuclear warhead was about 75 % of the Hiroshima bomb, not 50%. And, SEALS would be armed with a Javelin missile, not a Hellfire, which is a missile launched from an aircraft. All are minor details important only to fans of military fiction.

My problem with Mounting Fears, and the reason for four stars, is that the ending appeared to be rushed, cut off in order to meet a deadline. All of the subplots were very good, and deserved to be better developed. Writing three books a year, even for a master like Stuart Woods, is a very daunting task. Writing three excellent books even more so.

The book kept me interested, even though the plot was incredibly unbelievable and full of holes. I'll give that much to the author... he can write well. He just can't structure a plot. And without giving away the ending, I'll tell you it felt like he just stopped in the middle of the storyline. I know these characters are from a series of books, but it didn't leave me wanting more, it left me wondering why I wasted my time.

This was the worst book I've read all year! It begs the question, "Who is the ghost writer for Stuart Woods?" The characters were despicable without saving graces, except for POTUS who was a cardboard caricature and didn't know what was going on around him! Who picks a VP running mate in 3 minutes flat?! Come on! As a librarian I will steer people away from this nonsense. Please Mr. Woods, if you are truly writing this trash, start writing like you did when you published your first novels. If you can't do that, stop writing and put us out of your misery!

no real suspense. no character development. i am a stuart woods fan an usually like his light style but i think he wrote this one in about two days. i hate it when authors write weak books seemingly to fill out a contract

Thanks to the reader, Carrington MacDuffie, I was unable to get very far into the audio book. Her idea of a southern accent had the President of the U.S. sounding like Goofy and another character of southern extraction sounding like Huckleberry Hound

Stuart Woods has written some great novels. This isn't one of them. He seems to be running out of gas. There was a time when you were whisked along at a spellbinding pace. But lately, his books come across tired and listless.