Scimitar [Mass Market Paperback]

John Abbott (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 1993

While the NYPD attempts to solve the murders of two British nationals found with green swords tattooed on their chests, the Feds track down a Middle East death squad in the U.S. Reprint. NYT.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

The Bookcassette® format is a special recording technique developed as a means of condensing the full, unabridged audio text of a book to record it on fewer tapes. In order to listen to these tapes, you will need a cassette player with balance control to adjust left/right speaker output. Special adaptors to allow these tapes to be played on any cassette player are available through the publisher or some US retail electronics stores. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Evan Hunter, the real name of John Abbott, is also the author who as Ed McBain virtually invented the American police procedural with his gritty 87th Precinct series featuring an entire detective squad as its hero, died in 2005 at his home in Weston, Conn. He was 78.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback
• Publisher: Island Books (May 1, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0440215501
• ISBN-13: 978-0440215509
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 3.9 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,386,608 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Are you kidding me?, July 1, 2003

By 

Krystle (Little Rock) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Scimitar (Mass Market Paperback)

I thought this book was barely worth more than the paper it was written on. The "world-famous author who is using a fake name" could have done so much more with it. There was an interesting twist where the main character (who can have any woman he wants, of course) accidentally sleeps with both a mother and a daughter. I thought he could have taken that and ran with it. The main character is killed far too abruptly. We never find out exactly why he hates America so much. I thought the information on Sarin was interesting, if scary, and I thought it was uncanny that the book was about Bush and terrorism and religion. All in all, very flat read, but I have to admit, I finished it. Realistically, though, Sonny had a brickish personality and probably couldn't get any woman, no matter how attractive. So unrealistic it was distracting.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A pretty good read..., November 28, 2000

By 

LadyT - See all my reviews

This review is from: Scimitar (Bookcassette(r) Edition) (Audio Cassette)

I was pleasantly surprised by this book and expected it to be a dud since there are so few reviews. But I'm happy to say, I enjoyed the book (and I didn't waste my money purchasing it).

The book focuses on a planned terrorist act and the detective work that was geared towards stopping it. The story was told well and interestingly, and the characters were three dimensional. The "bad guy" was cold-blooded, but still had a human-side. In other words, he didn't kill everyone that crossed his path, and he had something of a "life" other than killing. The author gave just enough glimpses of that to contrast with what has to be a sick mind in order to passionlessly kill people.

The author threw in a few plot surprises which added to the suspense, and helped to paint a clearer picture of the terrorist. The dialog was appropriate and not boring, and the author's writing style is good. And to make things better, the audio book reader was very good and made the book even more enjoyable. This is a book I'd recommend.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Terrorists are out to get a major political leader, July 21, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Scimitar (Mass Market Paperback)

Yet another book about a band of terrorists out to assassinate a political leader, in this case President George Bush. The rationale is somewhat slow to develop, and the plot seems to borrow heavily from the Day of the Jackal. The story is filled with action, converging characters, and possibly too many dead bodies for reasons that are never totally clear. The "trained assassin" seems a little too easily distracted by women he uses and casts aside, but this villain comes to a surprising end and the hero and heroine survive, although emotionally damaged. The secret leader of the terroists leaves many tracks leading in his direction, but gets away clean. Are these final events setting the reader up for a sequel?