Customer Reviews

RUN BEFORE THE WIND

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

As many other reviewers here correctly point out, this one is not the usual Stuart Woods suspense yarn--it's a coming of age story that is definitely in the Conroy mode. As a Conroy fan, I don't find it so much a letdown as a change of pace that works well. Will Lee (later on in 2001 he's Presidential candidate Will Lee--but that's another story) is a bit of a stick-at-naught kid who according to his father Billy can't even finish model kits. So he decides to do the cliche "year abroad" thing after he gets his bachelors. He thinks of trying the "free man in Paris" number (you know, like that Joni Mitchell song) but he visits his mother's family in Ireland just in time to land in the middle of the 1960s era of the "troubles". One hell of a dilemma for a nice Georgia boy who just wants to find himself. As a real-life member of his generation, I was able to relate to that back then. As another reviewer points out, this is volume 2 of the Lee Family Saga ("Chiefs" before it--"Grass Roots" and "The Run" after), but when you look at all four books, I would have to say this is the opener of a Will Lee Trilogy, with "Chiefs" as a prequel. And it stands as proof that Woods can write about more than suspense. A good thing for a reader like me--Pat Conroy books are few and far between.

To really appreciate Run Before the Wind, you have to read Mr. Woods Memior, Blue Water Green Skipper first. He has taken a great deal of what took place during (and before)the 1976 OSTAR race and turned in into a stunning novel. I found myself unable and unwilling to put it down.

I admire Mr. Woods ability to put some of these more difficult events into such a gripping novel and wonder if maybe it had a cathartic effect for him. I had previously been a devoted Stone Barrington fan, but since reading many of his backlist, I am now an enthusiastic Stuart Woods fan!

I'm sure I'm in the minority of Woods' fans when I say that I like Will Lee as a character over Stone Barrington, the suave socialite who replaced Lee in later novels. Stone is okay in a movie-star kind of way, but Lee is much more intriguing, and RUN BEFORE THE WIND is where the reader sees Lee as a truly complex character.
That's largely because of the circumstances which Woods had created for Lee. College kid, screwing up in law school, son of a Georgia political bigtimer with his sights on Jimmy Carter, alright let's just say it. Lee comes from a rich and powerful family.
So his decision to shoot off to Europe for a summer to contemplate his college career is the sort of thing a rich kid would do. What happens over there is far from typical.
If you like boats, you might get more out of this story than I did, but in no way is that necessary. It adds an exotic nautical aspect to the suspense, though the suspense does fine on it's own.
Lee is growing up, and that's a big part of the story. Growing up means a lot of things. Taking responsibility where you once ignored it, seeing tasks to their completion, gaining independence, and, this being a Woods novel, some sex of course.
But the casual reader gets what they want. Intrigue, suspicion, and my personal favorite, anticipation. Mark, one of the primary players, is a bit of a mystery until the ultimate end, and I'm still trying to figure out if his resolution was complete.
Maybe that's a good thing. For once Woods slightly strays from convention, the ending not as happy as you might hope it to be and leaving you with a few questions. Questions you hope to be answered in a later novel. Not about Mark, but about Will Lee himself.

I would recommend this book to anyone interested in Stuart Woods, and Will Lee. Or Willie.

"Run Before the Wind" is part suspense novel and part adventure. Will Lee (a character also in "Grass Roots" and "The Run") is in Ireland to help Brits Mark and Annie Pemberton-Robinson build a boat that will sail in the race from England to Newport, RI. Mark's venture is funded by the mysterious Derek Thrasher. Robinson is hated by the IRA and there is a plot to kill him. This is one of Woods' earlier novels, and the writing is very clear, and "Run Before the Wind" is a very good book.

I really enjoyed this thriller book. I think that is is a little less suspense full than some of the other books written by Woods. This is my first time reading a Will Lee novel and greatly enjoyed this character. I think it had a good plot and good characters. This is a good book to read on the back porch during a nice night. I would reccommend it to anyone who enjoys this author.

I found this novel hard to get into but about half way through it does get better. I really enjoy the Stone Barrington novels so was expecting this one to be on a par with those. I didn't think this one measured up.

Run Before the Wind was the second book in the Lee series. At this time, Will Lee IV is in law school and not doing well scholarly. He decides to take a year off and travel England and Ireland. In the course of his travels, he meets up with a couple who sail and are in the process of building a boat for a reclusive businessman. He joins them on their adventure which includes problems with terrorist. I was disappointed in this book. It's not the suspenseful, can't put down this book that most of Woods work is, and the book is more of a disappointment after reading Chiefs, the first book in the Lee series.

This is a book that I had already read, so obviously I liked it. Like all of the Lee family novels it was a great read and one worth repeating. I have been a fan of the early Wood novels, and even enjoyed the early Stone Barrington and Holly Barker books. I would not recommend any of the later novels which seemed to be a hack imitating the work of a once good author.

A really good book. All of Stuart Woods books are the kind that keep your interest. I like to read them in order written.

I love finding a novel from "my author list" that I have overlooked since the kindle/iPad convenience/immediate gratification [read: I read books greedily]. when this one was available on kindle and I missed the debut, I couldn't have been happier! I really enjoyed it! Of course I can criticize the obvious--smart people, suspicious by plot/written development, let up their guard...not likely...but, okay...it's fiction!

Filling in the gaps of Will Lee's life leading to other books was great! I loved knowing the future while reading the past! I was so happy that while in the end "it" wasn't all roses, that other great things happen to the characters. I liked knowing that even a character that might disappear in other series books, returns!

Reading this out of order made me remember all the other books! What a great thing!