Show No Mercy

Finally doing a review of this one, as I re-read it and it's now fresh in my mind. Solid entry has the group after a Jim Jones like figure who's planning to use his massive army of followers to take over Central American countries. Along the way Barrabas utilizes the help of Communist rebels, but there is the delicate matter of a U.S. senator who is aiding Jeremiah and his minions. The action, once it got going was fast paced and bloody. And the climax with Jeremiah's followers is jaw dropping.

The first book in the series from Hardy, which is a different style of writing compared to the Philipson titles before it. While I much prefer the writing of Philipson, Hardy was able to tell a good action story, and the characterizations of the SOBs were accurate enough. The pacing of this book is slower, imagine watching a good action movie, that is slowed down a little from normal speed. This is really the only reason I'm rating this book a 7 rather than an 8, because the story is actually quite good. There are a variety of set pieces throughout the novel, mostly in Central America, with opening scenes rounding up the team and setting up plot elements, and the mission begins. I liked the infiltration of the ship with the stolen arms as it went through Panama Canal, and the action aboard the ships was some of the best in the story. The team was in situations after that where they seemed to be against insurmountable odds, yet the leadership of Barrabas and the skills of the team was able to overcome it and made for great and explosive reading. I liked the interesting plot element involving the cult leader, Jeremiah. One of the main villains in the story, he has developed a Jimmy Jones type of compound where the ending sequence takes place. The situation there is crazy, and made for a excellent ending to the book. There is plenty going on in this book to hold interest, and also a shocker as not all the SOBs make it through this mission alive. Note that this is the first book that introduces the ace helicopter pilot Bishop, who joins the team. If you like good helicopter action, this book has that too. All in all, a solid adventure, the series is looking good so far.

The fourth instalment of the series and by this time the reader is gaining a strong knowledge of the leader Nile Barrabas's character and also some of the original members of the original ten members. This time around a cult leader Jeremiah who has hundreds of followers is about to unleash his armies onto Central Europe and place himself as the head honcho. The SOB's have a dual mission this time with the first being the tracking of massive amounts of weapons on their way to Jeremiah's armies and the capture of same and then the destruction of said armies as well as taking down the leader himself. Once again many sections to like in this title especially the attack on his compound at the end, what happens to his followers was unexpected as was some of the action scene events which were exciting to read. The authors of this series are not backward in killing off any characters where in this only the fourth instalment the fourth original member doesn't make it through to the end. A new member Bishop is recruited to the team mainly for his piloting abilities and he excels with some of the helicopter scenes. All in all a good read perhaps a bit subdued from the frantic pace of the last couple of titles but well worth the time.