Customer Reviews:
Great Book.......2000-05-21
This book was one of the best books I have ever read on the subject of the martyrdom of the Prophet Joseph Smith and and his brother Hyrum. It was historical, it was unedited, and gave me a unique perspective into the events that lead to their death. I had no idea that the entire state of Illinois was virtually at war with the Mormons.
Average customer rating:
- Good, but with some problems
- Disappointing
- You won't be able to put this one down!
- Solid and Engaging
- Bad, BAD Last Line....
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Last Witness
Jilliane Hoffman
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Retribution
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Vanish - Large Print Edition
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Gone
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Faithless
ASIN: 042521074X |
Book Description
One by one, cops are being hunted and killed while on patrol. Agent Dominick Falconetti thinks the victims have more in common than a badge. His lover, C. J. Townsend, has her own theory--because now, she's among the hunted.
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"A riveting new novel from the internationally bestselling author of Retribution. Cops are dying. Hunted down while on patrol, they are being murdered while trying to protect the citizens of Miami from this very type of crime. Dominick Falconetti, an agent with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, is charged with heading a task force to investigate. Details at the crime scenes point to a drug connection, and when a highly-placed gang member disappears, it reinforces Dominick's suspicions that these cops were all involved in something unsavory. C. J. Townsend, the state prosecutor he has loved for the past three years-ever since they met on the infamous Cupid investigation-is getting the calls in the middle of the night as well. As the state attorney who put Florida's last serial killer behind bars, she's the logical choice to help stop this one. But before long, C.J. begins to suspect that she knows an even more terrible secret than Dominick does about why these cops are being murdered. A tense, gripping crime drama set against the richly detailed background of the Miami legal system and police department, Last Witness is an extraordinary novel."
Customer Reviews:
Good, but with some problems.......2007-08-06
I really enjoyed Hoffman's first book, Retribution, but like other readers, I found the repetition of that story to be annoying. Having said that, it was necessary to bring first time readers into the plot from the first book. What bothered me more was the big reveal at the end of who the second Cupid murderer was. I thought the link between the two killers was poorly developed and didn't make much sense to me. Plus at some point, and I find this with so many of these thrillers, you start to wonder - how many evil murderers will target this one DA or policeman? The suspense over whether or not C.J. Townsend is going to survive another attack is very minimal, since we know she is the heroine and this is a suspense series. I tend to enjoy the stand alone books, because they can kill off characters more easily and therefore create more suspense.
Also, the sheer number of times now that C.J. Townsend has compromised her legal integrity and withheld information makes me dislike her. Sure, Bantling is worse and needs to remain in prison, but in my mind she is far from sympathetic. Her responses are also becoming predictable. I can already predict the third installment - C.J. keeps Dominick at a distance during the re-trial of Bantling, has bags under her eyes from all the stress, guilt for her legal indiscretions...In the third installment, I wish Hoffman would mix it up a little!
Disappointing.......2007-06-01
Jilliane Hoffman rightly shot to fame following the publication of her first novel RETRIBUTION. The Last Witness is not only her second work, but it follows the same storyline and employs the same characters. The problem for me is that while Retribution seemed to have been written from the heart, the follow-up has been written almost entirely from the head.
We're back in Miami serial-killer territory again, only this time the victims are police officers who were involved in the arrest, trial and conviction of "Cupid" from the first book. We've moved on 3 years, which is how long Cupid has been on Death Row. Central character CJ Townsend, an Assistant State Attorney just as the author herself was, inevitably but reluctantly becomes involved in the hunt for a killer nicknamed the 'Black Jacket'. She's assisted by her (mostly) live-in lover Dominick Falconetti, a Special Agent from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
There is never any doubt about Ms Hoffman's knowledge of her subject matter. She is almost relentless in her descriptions of investigative methodology and cross-agency politics. She's been there herself, and it leaves me wondering how much of the story lines have been adapted from real-life experiences. Some will find this attention to detail impressive, but to me there was just too much of it and there wasn't enough passion - something that Redemption did not lack.
I was really looking forward to reading this book, my expectations were sky-high but unfortunately it turned out to be less than special, bordering on a by-the-numbers crime thriller. We already know that the writer can do better than this, let's hope she does next time round.
You won't be able to put this one down!.......2007-01-10
SUPERB storyline and loved Ms. Hoffman's style. This book is an excellent followup to her 1st (Contribution). Both books have been riveting and I couldn't put them down. She weaves a scenario that has you on the edge of your chaise! I hope there are additional books in progress.
Solid and Engaging.......2007-01-04
Hoffman's 2nd book featuring CJ Townsend is a step down in quality from her initial outing, but is still a strong thriller. There are fewer courtroom scenes, and the plot itself seems highly contrived, but Hoffman's use of short chapters and her style of cutting back and forth between differing POV's serves the novel well and keeps the pages turning.
I enjoyed this book, but did not enjoy the contrivances.
Bad, BAD Last Line...........2006-12-11
Although I thought both this book and the first one, Retribution, were very well-written and suspenseful, the very last line in this book left me extremely disappointed and NOT looking forward to a third book.
==SPOILER=== Hoffman should absolutely not ended the book with the 'new trial' line, but with an execution, and then moved her two primary characters off to a new plotline in a new locale. I so would not want to read and endure another Bantling scenario regardless of its conclusion: that conclusion should have come HERE and not in the manner it was.
I would have given the book 4 stars if this had not been the case.
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Reluctant Witness: Memoirs from the Last Year of the European Air War 1944-45
Brian H. Mahoney
Manufacturer: Trafford Publishing
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32 CoPilots
ASIN: 155212875X
Release Date: 2006-07-06 |
Book Description
The late James Mahoney went overseas in the spring of 1944 as the leader of one of the four bomb squadrons in a B-24 bomb group (the original 492nd) which endured extraordinary losses for 89 days of operation before being disbanded. The enduring mystery of why such an exceptionally well qualified and prepared group suffered so singularly is one of many significant themes he addresses in his 52 vignettes. Mahoney was reassigned to a bomb group with much better luck (the 467th), and finished the war as their Deputy Commander.
As both a 'man among men' and a recognized natural leader, he was positioned to note character and ability, and took it as his charge to develop both of these in the course of administering to the technical and demanding business of a combat organization comprising 3,000 souls.
Later in life, wanting to make sense of what he experienced and to record the terrific sacrifice of his peers, he distilled and organized his memories. Overcoming his natural reticence to show his hand emotionally, and fearful that grisly accounts might register as sensational horror instead of sobering lesson, he labored carefully to build for his readers a rich context for his 'war stories'.
These memoirs take the reader through the methodology and equipment of aviation and strategic bombing in the era before stand-off weaponry, when hundreds of planes at a time, each with ten-man crews, flew in unpressurized planes through flak and fighter filled skies for hours at a time at 40 degrees below zero, to bomb targets in Hitler-occupied Europe.
He introduces the reader to his acquaintances and friends, commanders and charges - a range of memorable rascals, unforgettable heroes, and ordinary mortals showing their true mettle and courage under dire circumstances.
Jim Mahoney's account of his 13 months in combat is an engaging mix of timeless morals and enduring humor. The big themes are laid out with common sense, while the practical joke, the stroke of genius, or personal quirk are offered as clear windows to the host of characters and their relationships. These certainly capture the fact and flavor of the daylight bombing campaign over northern Europe and make a contribution to the historical record, but they also transcend that specific time and place, drawing the readers in any era into human drama, played out in all of its variety in the pressure-cooker of wartime.
The son's contribution has been to document some of the more unusual aspects of his father's account, so that these can be received as more than just precious memoir - as contributions to the historical record. This has entailed many interviews, travel to remnants of his father's Rackheath and North Pickenham bases in East Anglia, and contemplation of the horrible effectiveness of aerial bombardment on several of the Mighty Eighth Air Force's 'ground zeros' in Germany.
Additionally, the son supplies the reader with a variety of material designed to make the dated technology of aviation in its 20th century adolescence more understandable, and to put into broader contexts the struggles to control European airspace and weaken the foe through costly strategic bombardment. Tables and an extensive WW II timeline give a framework for understanding American involvement and the role of air power. A comprehensive glossary of terms makes the aviation and military lingo clear, and his bibliography will equip the motivated reader to delve deeper.
Photographs from 'then' and 'now' bring the reader along on the son's odyssey, retracing the father's steps and honoring the sacrifices of survivors and the fallen alike.
A foreword by Brigadier General Robin Olds, USAF (Ret.), fighter leader in three wars and a WW II ace, adds important insight to the riddle of why survivors of grisly combat action are typically so tight-lipped about their experience.
Reluctant Witness is the combined effort of a pragmatic realist and a hardened optimist. This rich account of one witness's experience is offered to a general audience of conscientious citizens everywhere, with encouragements to never let their guard down and enable the tyrant, or ever despair of their ability, when committed to what is just and fair, to set things right. Widespread appreciation of the waste and senselessness of war impells practical efforts to 'wage peace'.
Reviews "These highly-detailed memoirs of the CO of the 788th Bomb Squadron, flying B-24 Liberators from Rackheath at much the same time as our very 'own' Crew 5294. The account was completed by Lt Col Mahoney's son, Brian H. Mahoney and is a fine testament to both man and era."
- as reviewed in Fly Past, Britain's Top-Selling Aviation Monthly
January 2002 edition
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"At last, a book that tells what war in the air in WW II flying from England in American bombers was really like. Reluctant Witness is a brilliant and wholly appropriate title, describing as it does the brutality of war seen from very close quarters, in the cockpit and from the ground. James J. Mahoney saw death and destruction all around him but the everlasting impression of the book is the wonderful detail and the vivid picture of incidents and events, some seemingly inconsequential at first, and the impact of war on ordinary men thrust into active service against an implacable foe. The descriptions and unfolding tales of the aerial endeavours of the 492nd and 467th Bomb Groups amid flak, fear, and fighters draws comparison with such writings as "I Saw Regensburg Destroyed". My particular favourites are 'Threes' and 'Ticket Punchers'. The first details the incredible coincidence/fate "call it what you will " that befell those with the 28-type Parachute. The latter tells of the sky pilots the chaplains, and the effect one had on the group when Al Shower tried to impose his strict discipline to remedy the soaring VD rate. Ironically, for a group that led in bombing accuracy and adhered to saluting and disciplinary regimes imposed by the iron will of the CO, the 467th led the tables in VD! The chapter explains why Shower's attempts to limit the spread were undermined. At the other end of the scale chapters such as Zero/Zero and Ferguson's Crew reveal starkly the grim and grisly reality behind bland statistics. The whole thrust of this book is directed towards man's inhumanity to man, not dull statistics and meaningless PR. We have both Messrs. James and Brian Mahoney to thank for the opportunity to enrich our understanding and education of the US Army Air Forces in WW2."
-Martin W. Bowman, renowned British author of over 60 military and aviation titles ----------------------------------
"... I just could not put your book down; you and father have written what I consider one of the finest records ever seen. Just finished it this morning and will start all over as I enjoyed it so much. We could almost feel your father in the room with us. Just wish we had talked with him a lot, lot more."
-David Hastings, Chair, Board of Governors of the Second Air Division Memorial Trust ----------------------------------
"... After two readings through of RELUCTANT WITNESS I find it to be an excellent accounting of that war and location. Of particular interest to me were the stories concerning events which occurred, there, following my rotation back to the States, such as hauling gas to Patton in France. Also extremely interisting are the management techniques used to develop 'Lead Crews' and other means and strategies which gave the 467th BG the best bombing record in the 8th at the war's end... Both authors can feel justly proud of the book!"
-Dick Bastien, an original 492nd co-pilot ----------------------------------
"... I received the book from Trafford a few days ago and have finished first reading. I have ordered one for a son in Austin, TX. I am now revisiting parts to refresh my memory. I was very surprised that JJM remembered me as our crew had no difficulty or real memorable times... I wish you great success with the book and thank for doing this thing for a lot of us survivors of the 492nd an 467th."
-Sgt. "Andy " Anderson, radio operator on the Carl Johnson crew ----------------------------------
"...I got a copy of Reluctant Witness. What an awesome book!! Just to be able to read your Dad's memories and memoirs plus your added analysis and info is incredible. I carry it around with me all the time in my briefcase bag and read through it both at home and at work when I have time. Also find myself re-reading things again and again it's just so interesting! "
-Harry D. Greene, son of a 492nd BG veteran ----------------------------------
Book Description
Sixty years after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor and FDR's Order 9066 led to the incarceration of more than 110,000 Ameri-cans of Japanese descent (two-thirds of them American citizens), one question remains: 'Could it happen again?' To the writers in this book-novelists, memoirists, activists, scholars, students, professionals-the WWII internment of Japanese Americans in the detention camps of the West is an unfinished chapter of American history. Former internees and their children join with others in challenging readers to construct a better future by confronting the past. Last Witnesses is a fresh and timely look at a compelling story, told by some of the people who lived it, that continues to tarnish the American Dream.
Book Description
In the last months of the Second World War, Gerhardt Boldt, a young cavalry officer serving on the Russian Front, found himself seconded to Gehlen's military intelligence staff in Berlin. Summoned to daily briefing session with the Fuhrer, his Generals and closest associates - in particular Bormann, Goering and Goebbels - Boldt has a unique opportunity of observing at close quarters the leading members of the Nazi hierarchy.
His description of the atmosphere, first in the semi-ruined Chancellery and then in the claustrophobic surroundings of the Fuhrerbunker, conveys a chilling impression of destruction - of the collapse of the entire Nazi system no less than the disintegration of its creator's personality. This book was written immediately after the war and expanded for this edition.
Customer Reviews:
So Jean Hill is no John Dean.......2006-03-29
Just some thoughts on Jean Hill and her book.
The only book I've purchased and read so far regarding the JFK assassination that gives you an insight on how (in this case) one of the witnesses life was affected by being in Dealy Plaza on that fateful day.
She like most of the witnesses in Dealy Plaza said that she thought the shots came from the 'Grassy knoll'. She was man handled by so-called 'secret agents' 'Magic bullet man' also grilled her about her affair with a Dallas motorcycle Cop. He also goaded her about the `White dog she saw' which turned out to be White toy given to Jackie.
Jean and her young daughter were involved in a car crash, her Lover and a mechanic friend of his checked out the car and found that the track rod ends had come loose. They like any mechanical minded person came to the conclusion that the car had been tampered with. Track rod ends just don't come loose so easily, if they did cars by necessity would have radically different steering assemblies.
If you believe as I do that the witnesses in the Plaza were correct in their recollections of where the shots came from and also in their contact with (according to the official report NON EXISTANT) Dallas cops and Federal \ secret officials just minutes after the tragedy, then there must have been a conspiracy.
Some reviewers have described this book as nothing more than a novel, so I looked up the words definition in the 'Collins English dictionary'
Novel: An extended work in prose, either fictitious or partly so.
I see, it's a novel because some reviewers disagree with Jeans recollections or because her recollections changed over the years. SO WHAT. Most peoples recollections of their life experiences change over the years, does this mean all our memories can only be fit for a Novel rather than a autobiography No.
Now to why I titled this 'So Jean Hill is no John Dean' (I could have replaced John Dean with Harold Weisberg or Cyril Wecht)
During the Watergate scandal John Dean being Nixons Legal counsel was set up for a big fall however because he had a photographic memory he could recall incidents and conversations in great detail without wavering under cross examination he deflected the blame to Nixon's Front line and eventually to Nixon himself.
Most of us (including Jean) haven't got that type of memory or fortitude.
Jean Hill passed away in 2000, she was a primary school teacher. Whenever her young students asked her to tell her story of the assassination, which in their young eyes was a part of American social history, she was always struck by their reactions.
Her story will have left an indelible memory on a good percentage of them. I am sure some of the students will continue the search for the truth.
Jean Hill was just an ordinary mother and schoolteacher.
Arlen Specter is a Senator & highflying lawyer.
Only one of them is a great American in my book: Jean Hill R.I.P.
Good, but ULTIMATE SACRIFICE the best book ever .......2005-12-20
Good, but ULTIMATE SACRIFICE the best book ever
While I thought this book was worthwhile in many respects, ULTIMATE SACRIFICE is simply the best book ever on the JFK assassination.Still, worth your time.
Vince Palamara-JFK/ Secret Service expert (History Channel, author of two books, in over 30 other author's books, etc.)
Pittsburgh, PA
BEST JFK ASSASSINATION BOOK: ULTIMATE SACRIFICE
BEST JFK SECRET SERVICE BOOK: SURVIVOR'S GUILT BY YOURS TRULY :)
The Dust Jacket Is All You Need To Read In Order To Know This Book Is Full Of Pure Bunk!.......2005-10-19
"JFK: The Last Dissenting Witness", published in 1992, was co-authored by Jean Hill, the famous "lady in the red raincoat" who witnessed the last seconds of President John Kennedy's life as Lee Harvey Oswald was firing three rifle shots at the President from the Texas School Book Depository in downtown Dallas, Texas, which resulted in JFK's death.
Within this book is the following passage.....
"Hill saw the shadowy figure of a man fire at President Kennedy from behind a picket fence atop the now-famous grassy knoll."
Anyone who owns a lot of archival TV footage of those four bleak days following JFK's assassination in November of 1963 will easily be able to verify what I have verified via just such an archive of video material. And that is the fact that, on November 22nd, 1963 (the exact day of the event, within less than two hours of the assassination itself), Jean Hill appeared on television (via a WBAP-TV tape-recorded interview), where she explicitly says she never saw anyone firing any weapon at the President. .......
QUESTION: "Did you see the person who fired the weapon?"
JEAN HILL: "No, I didn't see any person fire the weapon."
QUESTION: "You only heard it?"
JEAN HILL: "I only heard it."
What is a person to make of this flip-flop in Hill's testimony regarding the events of 11-22-63? In my view, her EARLIEST account of the shooting (which has been recorded on videotape for all to watch and listen to over and over again) should be looked upon as the BEST account of what she saw that Friday afternoon back in '63.
But nearly thirty years later -- after having served just months earlier as an official (but uncredited) "technical adviser" to Oliver Stone during the making of Stone's 1991 film "JFK" (coincidence?) -- Hill came out with this book, which claims she "saw a man fire at President Kennedy from the grassy knoll".
Did Jean's memory suddenly improve greatly in the intervening years? Everyone reading this publication should at least pause for a few moments to consider that question.
Another major piece of Jean Hill-created "evidence" that is easily knocked down is her ridiculous claim of having seen Oswald's murderer, Jack Ruby, racing across the grassy knoll at the exact time of JFK's assassination.
Multiple witnesses can place Jack Ruby in the Dallas Morning News building at the precise time the President was being murdered. Ruby HIMSELF, in fact, admits to having been in the DMN building at the time of the assassination.
Below is a portion of the verbatim testimony given by Jack Ruby to the Warren Commission on June 7th, 1964 (from the Dallas County Jail, where Ruby was being held after having been convicted on March 14, 1964, of murdering JFK's assassin, Lee Oswald):
----------
"I picked up the brochure that Friday morning {November 22, 1963}, and I also had business at the {Dallas Morning} News Building on Friday, because that is the start of the weekend, which is very lucrative, the weekend.
"So I went down there Friday morning to Tony Zoppi's office, and they said he went to New Orleans for a couple of days. I picked up the brochure. I believe I got downtown there at 10:30 or 11 o'clock that morning. And I took the brochure and then went into the main room where we compose our ads. That is the sales room where we placed our ads. And I remained there for a while. I started to write the copy of my ad.
"Well, John Newnam comes in, and evidently he took it for granted I finished my ad, and I don't recall if he paid for his ad, and suddenly there is some milling around. I think it was 12, or 15 minutes after 12, I don't recall what, but John Newnam said someone had been shot. And I am sorry, I got carried away. It is the first time I got carried away, because I had been under pressure. And someone else came running over and he said a Secret Service man was shot, or something to that effect. And I am here in the middle with John Newnam, because Newnam isn't paying any attention to anyone else, and there is a lot of going back and forth. So someone must have made a statement that Governor Connally was shot. I don't recall what was said. And I was in a state of hysteria."
----------
Therefore, how is it even remotely possible for Jean Hill to have seen Jack Ruby on the grassy knoll in Dealey Plaza at 12:30 PM when President Kennedy was being shot? Quite obviously, this is not possible.
But Jean Hill and Oliver Stone (in his movie) would like to have people believe that Ruby was running around Dealey Plaza's grassy slopes at 12:30 PM on November 22, instead of where even Ruby himself admits he was at the time of the assassination (with gobs of witnesses to verify his story) -- and that's on the second floor of the Dallas Morning News building.
Since this book came out in 1992, Jean Hill has passed away. She died in Dallas on November 7, 2000, at the age of 69.
---------------------
This book's subject matter can get you to thinking about other eyewitness accounts of the events in Dallas' Dealey Plaza (and the shooting of police officer J.D. Tippit in nearby Oak Cliff, a suburb of Dallas, a mere 45 minutes after President Kennedy was gunned down).
I'm guessing that in a conspiracy theorist's fantasy world the only people with bad eyesight, or the only people capable of making an error, are those witnesses who gave testimony damning to "Saint Oswald" -- E.G.: Howard Brennan, Domingo Benavides, Helen Markham, Ted Callaway, Jack Tatum, Virginia Davis, Barbara Davis, William Scoggins, Johnny Brewer, Warren Reynolds, L.J. Lewis, Pat Patterson, Harold Russell, Robert Edwards, Ronald Fischer, etc.
But, if we're to believe the "CTers", those conspiracy-favoring witnesses like Jean Hill and S.M. Holland and Acquilla Clemmons, et al, were somehow born with unimpeachable "Conspiracy-Noticing" skills.
Acquilla Clemmons' account of the J.D. Tippit murder is taken as Gospel by many a-CTer, despite the wholly-ILLOGICAL "plot" that she supposedly witnessed on Tenth Street that day.....
I.E.:
Having TWO killers conspire to commit the Tippit murder, even though the conspirators' #1 goal here is to FRAME JUST ONE SINGLE "PATSY" FOR THIS MURDER (namely someone called "Lee Harvey Oswald").
Smart, huh?
Let's use TWO killers (needlessly, of course, for a practically point-blank killing of a policeman, who was just inches from the gun of the killer), instead of just using our trusty, present-at-every-murder-Oswald-supposedly-ever-committed-in-his-life "LHO Imposter" to do the job.
From what school for covert acts did these plotters graduate -- "The Academy For Brain-Dead Conspirators"?
Nobody could be as stupid and reckless as these November 22nd Plotters/Conspirators were said to have been (per CT-slanted versions of events). Not possible. And this recklessness extends far beyond just the Tippit murder scene as well. In fact, it applies ever more so to the JFK killing in Dealey Plaza.
Example:
WHY in the world would these professional killers even WANT to utilize THREE teams of assassins (as Oliver Stone claims in his movie), firing six bullets potentially into their one target (JFK) from a variety of different shooting locations, when the whole idea of this intricate, supposedly-well-planned "plot" is to frame just a single "Patsy" who is supposed to be located in the Book Depository? Did these conspirators deliberately TRY to make their assassination scheme as complicated and implausible as they possibly could? Seems like it.
And yet Oliver Stone actually has people buying this stuff. Kinda sad, huh? I think so anyway.
Well, anyhow, whatever you do, take the contents of this book with a very large-sized grain of salt. (That advice goes double, make that triple, for viewers of Oliver Stone's motion picture as well.)
See my article "Jean Hill - The Lady in Red" online.......2003-10-07
Since writing my review of JFK: THE LAST DISSENTING WITNESS in 1998, I have been able to have my 35-page article - "Jean Hill -The Lady in Red" - included in Clint Bradford's JFK Assassination website. The address is: http://www.jfk-info.com/sitemap1.htm (scroll down for title).
Excellent Book.......2003-09-02
This is a great eyewitness account of the events that day, and provides more proof that the assassination of JFK was an inside job. The objective reader can only conclude that our own government not only killed JFK, but also did everything possible to cover it up. Should be added to any JFK buff's library.
Book Description
The Final Witness is the terrifying conclusion to The Last Gentile Trilogy. Guided by their young leader, Elisha Kaufman, and his faithful companion Jasmine Hamar, a trail of people, miles long, exit Jerusalem as they run into an incredibly cold desert. Soon God's wrath will pour out on the already terminally ill world. Even now, meteorites are falling to the earth as fiery hail. The world is suffering from a nuclear winter, darkness is everywhere, but during the night a strange luminescent sky hauntingly lights the way. However, that will not last. Stars begin to shift in the heavens, drawing the sun nearer to earth, scorching the planet. What the cold did not kill, the heat will! One world power, one new god, much of the world's population dead or on the run, and the rest thrown into concentration camps, yet, as two witnesses appear from Heaven and call down the wrath of the Almighty God, things can only get worse!
Customer Reviews:
A Good Endtimes Series.......2005-09-19
The Last Gentile Trilogy was a pretty good read for anyone interested in any of the latest fiction works based on Revelations. I was impressed with the scientific explanations for many of the tragedies foretold in the Book of Revelations. While there was a lot of scientific explanations, this series was not lacking in supernatural happenings either. There were many instances of angel appearances and miracles in all of the books. The only drawback I saw in any of the books was the tendency for the storyline to drag a little in Book 3. Still, I recommend this series for anyone interested in Endtime events.
Awesome trilogy.......2005-05-14
Cary Bybee's "The Last Gentile Trilogy" is a must-read for anyone remotely interested in end times, Revelations-based fiction. The story is well-written and the characters are so real, identifiable, and believable. I found myself not being able to put the books down because of so much going on. The story line has something for everyone...action, suspense, drama, romance, and even comedy. The scientific approach to much of the subject matter is very refreshing as well. The way Mr. Bybee interprets end time phenomena through science is very impressive and well thought out. I've also read the entire "Left Behind" series and, in my opinion, Mr. Bybee's trilogy is much better. It moves along at a quicker pace and is not drawn out over 12 different books. Do yourself a big favor and pick up this trilogy: you will not be disappointed.
Moderately good series.......2004-06-03
Moderately good, but not as good as "The Christ Clone Trilogy". I found there were too many characters going in too many directions.
I did like this series better than "Left Behind" which I found at times to be a little bit tedious with all the dramatic rescues, etc.
I have read all three books in this series and while I enjoyed them I couldn't get as caught up in the writing as I did with "Christ Clone".
Trilogy finishes with a gallop.......2003-11-21
Strong writing right through to the end. Bybee's strength is his scientific postulating of how the Tribulation judgments will be manifested. Cause and effect were very interesting.
Bybee has storylines going all around the world and in orbit of all places. The gospel is preached. Some characters leave the scene without firm indication of what happened to them.... gets one to think.
Carlo the Antichrist and Simon are maybe a bit wooden and a little bit like Klink and Schultz of Hogan's Heroes at times. Still it was an exciting read. Just as good as Left Behind and certainly more intellectually challenging as nature self-destructs these last seven years.
Start another trilogy, Cary !!
Intelligent thriller;.......2003-06-19
I fell this is a very accomplished writer, we will read great books from him.This book The Final Witness is as good as the first. That is a relief so many series do not follow throw. I would never have believed that this is my kind of thriller, but i'm going to tell you something-the more I read, the more I had to read. In THe Final Witness Cary Bybee has built a world that is rich in fasinating detail, and I could not get enought of it. I am your fan.
Book Description
Heiress Terri Jackman was brutally murdered, and everyone-including Minneapolis Homicide detective "Mars" Bahr-believes that her abusive husband, basketball star Tayron "T-Jack" Jackman, did it. But he has an unshakeable alibi....T-Jack was with Terri's parents and lawyer signing divorce papers when the killing took place. Now, to add insult to injury, he's pocketing a $100 million settlement-the price Terri's desperate parents paid to get her out of the marriage. Mars feels a burning need for justice in this case. But he's transferring out of Homicide in just ten day and facing a family crisis that could cost him his son. Is there time to find the flaw in T-Jack's perfect crime?Soon Mars has hit the wall, which is broad and blue and looks like the new Chief of Police. Politics block his every shot....and so is a killer who has left no loose ends, just a path strewn with dead bodies. Because no one can squeal when they're as silent as the grave....
Customer Reviews:
Another great contribution from Erickson.......2005-03-07
A real page turner, this is Erickson's third novel about Mars Bahr. And it is good.
Terri Jackman, the wife of superstar basketball player "T-Jack" Jackman has been murdered and Mars and his team know Jackman is responsible for her death. Unfortunately, he has an air tight alibi, being with Terri's parents ironing out a $100 million dollar settlement: the price for his agreement to their divorce. Jackman is almost too despicable a villain and the frustration Mars and his team feel when they realize that he is going to get away with her murder is palpable.
As in the previous books of this series, Mars relationship with his young son, Chris, is delightful although in this one there is a looming separation between them with Denise, his ex-wife, planning to move to another state and take Chris with her. She is also intending to marry her live-in, Carl, who is far from an ideal candidate for good stepfather. This anxiety adds to Mars stress as he is taken off the Jackman case.
Ultimately, he solves the case with a stunning conclusion. Fast-paced and suspenseful, the story draws one along like a speeding train with surprising twists and revelations as it nears the conclusion. It was hard to put the book down as it wound towards the end.
A Nail-Biter and a Real Page Turner!.......2004-08-28
In this third novel in the Marshall "Mars" Bahr series, author K.J. Erickson has delivered a terrific plot, engaging characters, and a nail-biter finish that comes out of left field. Mars is in his final days as the lead detective assigned to a special unit created by the previous police chief. Because of a regime change in the department, Mars and his intelligent assistant Nettie are happy to be moving to the Cold Case Unit at the State's Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. But one last murder intervenes.
The wife of flashy basketball star, Tayron "T-Jack" Jackman has been viciously murdered in her home. Mars intuitively knows that Jackman must be responsible for Terri DuCain Jackman's death. He very quickly learns that T-Jack was obsessively controlling and brutal toward his wife, beating her regularly. Unfortunately, at the time of the murder, the cocky ball player was with Terri's wealthy parents wrapping up a one hundred million dollar deal in which he would divorce Terri and walk away. Not only does he get the hundred mil, but upon his wife's death, he also gets the five-year-old daughter whom he doesn't ever plan to let Terri's stricken parents see.
Everyone involved in the investigation believes Jackman arranged to kill his wife, but proving it is another matter. It doesn't help that the new chief of police is a nincompoop or that Mars is soon struggling with departmental politics of the worse kind. Dead bodies start surfacing, and simultaneously, issues with Mars' ex-wife and son, Chris, crop up and cause a very harried Mars to sweat the impending deadline to close the case.
With Erickson's dynamite cast of characters and an engrossing plot that won't quit, this book is a real page-turner. Erickson has herself a wonderful new franchise that could go on a long time in much the same way that John Sandford's Lucas Davenport series has. (...)
Average customer rating:
- Reasonably entertaining but highly forgettable
- Sequel Time: The Last Witness
- Mason's Back!
- entertaining, shockingly educational who-done-it
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The Last Witness
Joel Goldman
Manufacturer: Pinnacle
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ASIN: 0786014482 |
Customer Reviews:
Reasonably entertaining but highly forgettable.......2004-02-27
Kansas City trial attorney Lou Mason is asked to defend an old friend, ex-cop Wilson "Blues" Bluestone who is accused of murdering a local political bigwig, Jack Cullan. The police feel they have a slam dunk case and are no longer actively investigating it. Therefore, Mason must investigate it himself to set his friend free. Pursuing the truth, however, takes him into contact with some unsavory characters and Mason soon sees his own life in danger.
One of the problems any mystery writer who is writing a story about an amateur detective must overcome is the justification for their character's investigation. What must also be addressed is why should their investigation prove any more successful than the police investigation? Joel Goldman accomplishes this in two ways. First, the police feel they have the murderer and stop the investigation. However, more importantly, he makes the politics such that corruption is the true culprit behind Blue's arrest and the corrupt officials shut the investigation down. Joel Goldman is a trial lawyer. With his main character also a trial lawyer, I was expecting a good solid legal thriller. A strong courtroom scene can add impact and another layer to the story. Instead we have a reasonably well told amateur detective story of no real significant worth. The story appears padded and the competently created characters are a bit too numerous. (A character list at the beginning might have helped.) This is a reasonably entertaining but highly forgettable mystery novel and, in actuality, a disappointing Edgar nominee.
Sequel Time: The Last Witness.......2003-08-06
It is very hard for an author to duplicate the power of the first novel. Sometimes the author can, and on rare occasion, exceed the first book. Joel Goldman certainly has managed to do so in this new sequel to his very enjoyable first book, Motion To Kill. As always, I recommend that any interested readers read the first book, which is mentioned occasionally in this sequel. Kansas City trial lawyer Lou Mason as well as most of the other characters are back in this novel. This time Lou Mason has to defend his friend, mentor and landlord, Wilson "Blues" Bluestone who has been accused of murdering Jack Cullan.
Jack Cullan was the mayor's lawyer as well as the political fixer for the powers that be as well as anyone else with enough need and money in Kansas City. Rumor had it that he had files on everyone in town and could have taught J. Edgar Hoover a thing or two in that area. When Cullan is found dead after a violent conformation with Blues in the bar Blues' owns, suspicion naturally falls on Blues.
But suspicion had lots of help and Blue and Lou realize a complex frame is underway. Not only does Lou have to fight Blues' case in court, he also has to stay alive on the wintry streets of Kansas City as various forces, for their own clashing reasons, seek to stop him one way or the other.
Once again, Joel Goldman weaves an interesting complex tale of intrigue, deceit and murder with the occasional dry humorous comment about the world and the legal profession. Unlike John Grisham, Joel Goldmoon, does not ever mount the soap box to lecture the reader on the evils of the legal profession and does not allow the occasional side comment to interfere with the flow of a good story. Tight writing, plenty of action and a very good twisting mystery puzzle make this another great book of his to read. With two done and two more featuring Lou Mason on the way, he soon should supplant Grisham at his own game and does it by writing a simply better book.
Mason's Back!.......2003-03-20
If you liked the first one, you're gonna love this one! Mason is back in full force. He's wise-crackin', in danger, and taking you for the ride. I won't bother with a summary. You can get it all from this site. Read it and have a good time.
entertaining, shockingly educational who-done-it.......2003-03-01
Anyone who expects to make it in business or politics in Kansas City had to deal with Jack Cullan until someone killed him. The circumstantial evidence heavily points towards ex-cop and now bar owner Blues Bluestone. Last night Blues interceded and roughed up Jack when he was physically bullying Beth Harnell, Chairwoman of the Missouri Gaming Commission. During the one sided scuffle between the males, Jack scratched Blues' hands leaving the barkeep's skin (DNA) under the political fixer's fingernails.
Homicide Detectives Rymer and Zimmerman arrest Blues for murder; Blues retains Lou Mason as his attorney. No bail is granted because someone with strings wants the pressure of prison time to either break Jack into a confession or have him killed in jail. Either way the case closed. Knowing the system is already heavily rigged towards the prosecution and this case is perfect for the other side, Lou realizes he cannot win in court so he must find the real killer.
The second Mason legal thriller is an exciting tale that reads more like a private investigative novel. The legal aspects of the plot show how the game is fixed to overwhelmingly maximize the odds in favor of the government regardless of whether justice is served or even whether a convicted person did the act (Governor Ryan). Besides the eye opening look at the American legal system, Lou is a wishbone pulled in two directions by his friendship for the accused and his loving respect for the lead detective. All together this combo makes for an entertaining, shockingly educational who-done-it.
Harriet Klausner
Book Description
A moving coming-of-age story, written, possibly by one of the last of Southerners to grow up on a working sugar plantation in rural Louisiana. Told through the eyes and voice of the son of the white overseer, this is a unique portrait of a time and place on the cusp of dramatic change.
Customer Reviews:
Beyond Romance.......2007-10-01
In the American South after the Civil War -- so scarred as the culture was by fire and defeat -- it was two generations beyond Reconstruction before storytellers and writers managed to attain any objective distance from the events of seventy years previous. However, romantic notions of a glorious past had already spread, telling of a glorious place now "gone with the wind." There are no traces of that glorious South because it never existed -- but the romance of it persists, waving to this day atop more than one southern statehouse.
Mr. Hunt, on the other hand, ignores none of the uncomfortable truths of the past. Not that his book is without sentimental remembrance -- it certainly has plenty, and thank goodness. But hunt does not betray those precious remembrances by illustrating them for his readers through the gauzy web of selfish rationalizations. To be sure, Mr. Hunt has written a beautiful book -- not in spite of the truth because the ugly truths are here, too. Without them, the deception of their omission would ruin the book's ability to transform the pain into the possibility of redemption.
The Last Witness From a Dirt Road.......2006-08-09
The first chapter immediately had my attention due to a scene where you realize a journey to adulthood for a young boy is about to begin. I laughed, cried, and thoroughly enjoyed reading about an era that is now past, but not totally forgotten. It was enjoyable to read about an era where life was physically harder than today's world, but less stressful. An era where people generally helped each other, cared for each other, and knew the meaning of family. I would greatly enjoy reading more works from the author.
A touching story.......2006-08-08
"The Last Witness From A Dirt Road" is a wonderful read - heartfelt, warm, and thoughtful. Full of funny scenes and conversations, poignant descriptions of people and places, and touching portraits of the friends who filled his childhood, it is a true, complete, fulfilling tale of growth, with all its joys and pains. The book conveys with honesty and sensitivity the confusing emotional and intellectual chasm of growing up between the races in the southern United States in the mid-twentieth century. Sadly, the black and white worlds Mr. Hunt describes can't blend any more than allowed by the vision of a child's affectionate and colorblind eyes. Nonethteless, Mr. Hunt manages to capture a very real and tangible love between people; he is a solid storyteller and a talented dialogist who has given us a sweet, memorable tale. Months from reading it, I still carry the images with me - and some laughter, too.
Review by C. Arnouville.......2006-07-23
Through the eyes of a child, Bill Hunt allows his readers to relive the year 1946 on a southern plantation. Mr. Hunt's description of life on the plantation is not only informational but amusing as well. Several times I found myself laughing out loud at some of the situations in which he found himself. Besides being a book that supplies the reader with history of the time, the author also expresses feelings,that we can all relate to, as life around him changes. Also, being from the same parish in Louisiana as the book's setting, I found myself able to relate to many things Mr. Hunt wrote of. This book is a book you will not want to put down and also one you will not want to finish. We should all be able to express our cherished memories as well as Bill Hunt has.
"Coming of Age".......2006-06-22
What a great "coming of age" story! We all have childhood memories and experiences, but not all of us can share the tales as well as Bill Hunt does in this book. A great read, and a valuable history lesson!
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