Scan barcode
ja_hopkins's review
3.0
The drug cartels make billions a year in profits, whilst western governments impotently spend billions in an attempt to stop the misery it inflicts. In Colombia, the cartels live by the moto Silver or Lead – accept the money or be killed and have infiltrated the highest levels of government. The US president decides enough is enough – the gloves are off. Paul Devereux, ex-CIA operative, is given a simple task – end the cocaine trade. Given an unlimited budget and a free hand, Devereux comes up with a plan to take on the trade. The drug cartels have no idea the rules have changed.
The story is divided into two quite separate parts – the first is preparation. Devereux assembles his team and puts together the logistics in the first half and implements in the second. The plan is utterly unrealistic – it involves extrajudicial killings and a military cast of thousands – but it is quite good fun to read along as to how such an operation might be put together. There are a few bits that remind me of the Tom Clancy book, Clear and Present Danger, in terms of the willingness to play by different rules.
I enjoyed the technical aspects of the book and the concept, and Mr. Forsyth’s detailed, analytical style. However, I did not feel the characters were as good as in some of Mr. Forsyth’s book, and they lack a bit of depth. As a reviewer mentioned below, there is an unnecessary twist at the end which did not work for me. Not terrible, but not as good of some of his other works.
The story is divided into two quite separate parts – the first is preparation. Devereux assembles his team and puts together the logistics in the first half and implements in the second. The plan is utterly unrealistic – it involves extrajudicial killings and a military cast of thousands – but it is quite good fun to read along as to how such an operation might be put together. There are a few bits that remind me of the Tom Clancy book, Clear and Present Danger, in terms of the willingness to play by different rules.
I enjoyed the technical aspects of the book and the concept, and Mr. Forsyth’s detailed, analytical style. However, I did not feel the characters were as good as in some of Mr. Forsyth’s book, and they lack a bit of depth. As a reviewer mentioned below, there is an unnecessary twist at the end which did not work for me. Not terrible, but not as good of some of his other works.
More...