Trojan Sea [Paperback]

Richard Herman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 5, 2001

Lieutenant Colonel Mike Stuart, a paper pushing Air Force plans officer in the Pentagon, is sailing the Caribbean when a monster hurricane drives his sailboat into safe harbour in Cuba. A harmless incident but when he returns to work, his life takes an exciting turn. In Dallas, Texas, LJ Ellis, the beautiful, charismatic president of a small oil company, discovers what may be the world's last large oil reserve and determines to possess it. And Stuart would seem to be a faceless obstacle in her way, barely worthy of her attention as she twists the world of international oil and politics in pursuit of her goal, reaching into the White House and the highest levels of government.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

How far would a Texas tycoon go to corner the market on the biggest undiscovered oil field in the world? Is there anything L.J. Ellis, the CEO of RayTex Oil, wouldn't do to get a jump start on the competition? Hardly anything, as it turns out, especially when the treasure's practically in her backyard. All it will take for the beautiful, sexy, ruthless petroleum queen to turn her company's fortunes around is a little revolution, just big enough to unseat Fidel Castro and turn Cuba's untapped reserves into liquid gold. That's the setup for this Clancy-like techno-thriller. But what might have been a tidy little mystery of international intrigue and corporate chicanery almost gets lost in all the other scenarios author Richard Herman lays out, especially the antics of a bunch of over-the-hill aviators who finally get a chance to relive their glory days and climb back into the cockpits of their fighter planes to save the day for Old Glory. One of them happens to be the father of Mike Stuart, a military bureaucrat charged with assessing the nation's petroleum reserves who notices an anomaly in the movement of oil tankers. Although Mike is ostensibly Herman's hero, he's too involved in a custody dispute with his ex-wife, a new love affair, and counting the days until he puts in his retirement papers to notice that there's a pattern behind all the seemingly random attacks on his life, and that they all tie in to RayTex. The author is at the top of his form when it comes to aeronautics and military strategy. Although he presents the reader with some interesting characters, many of whom will be familiar to fans of Herman's previous books (Warbirds, Against All Enemies, Edge of Honor), the real stars of this book are the airplanes. --Jane Adams --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

Like the Texas oil drillers at the heart of the story, Herman's latest military thriller is big and brawny and blustery--showing bulge around the middle, but still carrying its weight reasonably well. RayTex Oil, a small but feisty company out of Dallas, believes it has found a huge oil field off the Cuban coast. The company, however, knows the only way it can stake a claim and drill is if it can topple Fidel Castro and install a government that will cut a deal. Foiling RayTex's plans is Pentagon-based air force fuel expert Lt. Col. Michael Stuart, who gets suspicious after spotting unusual movements of oil exploration ships. He's nonetheless baffled--the Cuban coast has never been considered a potential oil site--until his boss tries to demote him, he is framed for murder and a hired killer tracks him down. He's got personal problems, too: his girlfriend thinks he's a wimp for not standing up to his ex-wife, and his father, hard-nosed former fighter pilot William "Shanker" Stuart, never misses an opportunity to imply how disappointed he is in his son. While Stuart struggles to understand what's happening, RayTex--led by sexy businesswoman L.J. Ellis--is busy fomenting revolution in Havana and deceiving the U.S. government about its intentions. Herman (Edge of Honor, etc.), a retired air force officer, juggles one too many subplots, yet rallies for an exciting finish on the ground and in the skies above Cuba. Both the behavior of Ellis (a tad too promiscuous for a business titan) and Stuart (a bit lily-livered) strain credibility, but Herman's latest has enough thrills and adventure to satisfy his fans.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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

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Product Details

• Paperback: 480 pages
• Publisher: Coronet (July 5, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0340738286
• ISBN-13: 978-0340738283
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,206,917 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars The least of his efforts, April 21, 2001

By 

John R. Linnell (New Gloucester, ME United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Trojan Sea: A Novel (Hardcover)

I have read and enjoyed all of Richard Herman's novels. I enjoyed this one the least. Perhaps it is because he is in to writing novels which have sequels. It has gotten to the point that in this one, when he refers to a characters past deeds that he puts a footnotnote to tell you where to go to find out about the history in a prior book. Here the story is labored and contrived to weave a web of interest about oil discovery in Cuba and behind the scenes attempts to over throw the Cuban government. Clearly a new fighter pilot is on the way for further novels (Eric) and I will probably buy the next effort, hoping that the magic of prior years will return. This novel is not worth the price.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not his best effort., June 19, 2001

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Trojan Sea: A Novel (Hardcover)

I've read all and enjoyed most of Herman's novels. Of all of them, this is my least favorite. C'mon Richard...we know you can do better. Give us characters we can care about.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good plot, good characters add up to a great read!, February 19, 2002

By 

nettiberry (Teaneck, New Jersey) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Trojan Sea: A Novel (Mass Market Paperback)

Lt.Mike Stuart is a very real,and great character. He is faced with a tough boss, and a seemingly inexplicable puzzle which threatens first his career, and later his life. He triumphs by showing his true courage and strength of spirit. His love interest is a very real person, and is not the usual 'perfect woman'. Oil politics, Cuban politics, and Washington politics add up to a really good read.