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mrsfligs's review against another edition
4.0
John Corey—Nelson DeMille’s smart-ass, wise-cracking, ex-cop turned Anti-Terrorist Task Force agent—is one of my all-time favorite fictional action heroes. From the first time I met him in Plum Island, I knew that Corey had everything I look for: courage, fallibility and (most importantly) a sarcastic sense of humor. I’ve followed Corey’s exploits through all six of his books. By this point, I know what to expect: a fast-paced thrill ride focused on some type of government cover-up or terrorist activity. So I was thrilled when I saw The Panther featured not just John Corey but also Paul Brenner (who made appearances in two other DeMille books, The General’s Daughter and Up Country). What a kick to see two of DeMille’s fictional creations go mano-a-mano!
The plot, as usual, is very topical. Corey and his wife, FBI agent Kate Mayfield, are sent to Yemen to track down an Al Qaeda leader named The Panther, who is believed to be the mastermind behind the USS Cole bombing. The Yemen setting is a huge part of the book, and DeMille obviously did his homework. The week after I finished the book, Time magazine had a story on Yemen that touched on many of the things mentioned in the book—including the pervasiveness of khat, the political situation, the landscape and Al Qaeda’s presence. It was like seeing the book come to life.
The book is essentially your basic “cat and mouse” story. This is both a help and a hindrance. On the plus side, DeMille ratchets up the tension by keeping Corey on the perpetual edge of death in one of the most dangerous countries in the Middle East. On the con side, a cat and mouse story ends when the cat gets the mouse (or vice versa) so there was certain amount of repetitiveness and stalling as we waited for our two adversaries to finally meet. DeMille throws in plenty of other machinations (you just never know who to trust … including Corey), but I began to feel like things got a bit repetitive. The saving grace, as always, is Corey himself. With a constant stream of sarcasm and smart-assery flowing from his mouth, you’re never bored with Corey along. (Though I imagine he would be a pain in real life.) Still, I felt this book stalled out in the middle as we waited for the denouement.
All that being said, I enjoyed the book and will continue reading Corey books as long DeMille wants to write them. If you’re new to John Corey, I suggest starting from the beginning (Plum Island) and working your way through the rest. The series is always engaging and humorous—though you might find yourself turning into a bit of a conspiracy theorist. If you’re already a Corey fan, know that this isn’t the strongest Corey book but our guy is still his wonderful sarcastic self.
The plot, as usual, is very topical. Corey and his wife, FBI agent Kate Mayfield, are sent to Yemen to track down an Al Qaeda leader named The Panther, who is believed to be the mastermind behind the USS Cole bombing. The Yemen setting is a huge part of the book, and DeMille obviously did his homework. The week after I finished the book, Time magazine had a story on Yemen that touched on many of the things mentioned in the book—including the pervasiveness of khat, the political situation, the landscape and Al Qaeda’s presence. It was like seeing the book come to life.
The book is essentially your basic “cat and mouse” story. This is both a help and a hindrance. On the plus side, DeMille ratchets up the tension by keeping Corey on the perpetual edge of death in one of the most dangerous countries in the Middle East. On the con side, a cat and mouse story ends when the cat gets the mouse (or vice versa) so there was certain amount of repetitiveness and stalling as we waited for our two adversaries to finally meet. DeMille throws in plenty of other machinations (you just never know who to trust … including Corey), but I began to feel like things got a bit repetitive. The saving grace, as always, is Corey himself. With a constant stream of sarcasm and smart-assery flowing from his mouth, you’re never bored with Corey along. (Though I imagine he would be a pain in real life.) Still, I felt this book stalled out in the middle as we waited for the denouement.
All that being said, I enjoyed the book and will continue reading Corey books as long DeMille wants to write them. If you’re new to John Corey, I suggest starting from the beginning (Plum Island) and working your way through the rest. The series is always engaging and humorous—though you might find yourself turning into a bit of a conspiracy theorist. If you’re already a Corey fan, know that this isn’t the strongest Corey book but our guy is still his wonderful sarcastic self.
holly_gilbreath's review against another edition
4.0
I am a huge DeMille fan and this one did not disappoint. I finished in the middle of the night last night. Suspense built until the end. Was impossible to put down.
orygunn's review against another edition
4.0
I like that the book got Corey out of the states. I like that there were many twists and turns along the way. But the jump from part 8 to part 9, I wanted to know how they got out of Yemen, how they proved that the original strike hit a decoy, and the reaction of the higher ups when they were still alive.
swajoed's review against another edition
2.0
Corey’s snarky inner dialogue, which was entertaining in the previous books, got old in a hurry. It seemed like 1/3 of the book was just his smart-ass comments. The story was good and I enjoyed the intrigue/subterfuge, but it was kind of slow.
7th and 8th books in the series aren’t rated above 4 stars, so I probably won’t bother reading them.
7th and 8th books in the series aren’t rated above 4 stars, so I probably won’t bother reading them.
sianemilyyy's review against another edition
4.0
Slow to begin with but really loved reading this book. Unpredictable and enjoyable
mad_about_books's review against another edition
5.0
Historians and journalists write the facts as they see them, (now) often slanted to one point of view or another. Fiction writers can take these facts and give them flavor that goes beyond opinion. In a work of fiction, it is possible to provide both sides equally and allow the tensions to build organically. I do believe if you want to get a feel for people, places, and events, read fiction. I keep reminding myself that this book was written ten years ago and that hindsight is 20/20, yet the relevance remains fresh.
John Corey and Kate Mayfield (AKA Mrs. Corey) have a reputation, and the United States government has decided to use and abuse it… in Yemen. The alphabets (FBI, CIA, et al) use not so subtle coercion to send them into harm's way. The ever-cynical NYPD retiree Corey uses his smarts learned as a homicide detective to suss out the more nefarious side of their assignment.
As I binge my way through this series, I find that what was written a decade or more ago as timely thrillers is just a microcosm of the politically fractured world in which we are now living. I would recommend the John Corey series to anyone with an interest in both history and current events.
John Corey and Kate Mayfield (AKA Mrs. Corey) have a reputation, and the United States government has decided to use and abuse it… in Yemen. The alphabets (FBI, CIA, et al) use not so subtle coercion to send them into harm's way. The ever-cynical NYPD retiree Corey uses his smarts learned as a homicide detective to suss out the more nefarious side of their assignment.
As I binge my way through this series, I find that what was written a decade or more ago as timely thrillers is just a microcosm of the politically fractured world in which we are now living. I would recommend the John Corey series to anyone with an interest in both history and current events.
lisaeirene's review against another edition
5.0
I love Nelson DeMille--he's one of my favorite writers. This book did not disappoint. It was a big book but I was hooked and finished it in less than a week. John Corey is a great, spunky character and that was the same with the latest book.
I loved the story and the espionage in The Panther. The new characters that were part of their mission were well-written and I liked them as well. What I thought was weird was that Kate--his wife and kind of a main character--felt more like furniture in this book than a strong character.
One thing that annoyed me: about half-way through the book I noticed he says "right" a lot...like 3-4 times in one page. Once you notice how much it's used, it gets annoying and it was all I saw. Where was his editor on this??
I loved the story and the espionage in The Panther. The new characters that were part of their mission were well-written and I liked them as well. What I thought was weird was that Kate--his wife and kind of a main character--felt more like furniture in this book than a strong character.
One thing that annoyed me: about half-way through the book I noticed he says "right" a lot...like 3-4 times in one page. Once you notice how much it's used, it gets annoying and it was all I saw. Where was his editor on this??
jrobbinsnyc's review against another edition
4.0
DeMille's recurring character John Corey is such a great one--a wiseass and goes-against-authority guy. The story was compelling and even the locale of Yemen was intesteting. The book was a bit too long at 625 pages, but it was still an entertaining read.