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Hawke: A Thriller | 
 enlarge | Author: Ted Bell
Publisher: Pocket Star
Category: Book
List Price: $9.99
Buy New: $5.57
You Save: $4.42 (44%)
New (9) Used (17) Collectible (1) from $4.85
Avg. Customer Rating:  90 reviews
Sales Rank: 4703
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 608
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.8
Dimensions (in): 7.3 x 4.1 x 1.4
ISBN: 1416537783
Dewey Decimal Number: 813
EAN: 9781416537786
ASIN: 1416537783
Publication Date: October 31, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: BRAND NEW
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Amazon.com Review
A James Bond for the 21st century, Alex Hawke is suave, sexy, smart, wealthy, and deadly. And he's got the bloodlines to prove it--the direct descendant of a famous English pirate, the British secret agent is back in the Caribbean where his ancestor once amassed a legendary fortune and where, decades ago, his own parents were brutally tortured and murdered for a secret Alex, to this day, doesn't know he has in his possession. What brings Alex back to the scene of a crime he only vaguely remembers witnessing as a child is a mission to find and recover a stealth submarine that's gone missing less than a hundred miles from the American mainland, complete with 40 nuclear warheads and a rogue terrorist's finger on the countdown button. It's a hoary premise, but Bell makes it work with skillful plotting, quick characterizations, and a lively hero who deserves a sequel, not to mention the big screen treatment. --Jane Adams
Product Description
While sailing in the Caribbean, young Alex Hawke witnesses an act of unspeakable horror as modern-day pirates brutally murder his parents. It is a tragedy that will haunt him forever, and shape his destiny....As a direct descendant of a legendary English privateer, Lord Alexander Hawke is skilled in the ways of sea combat -- and one of England's most decorated naval heroes. Now, Hawke returns to the Caribbean on a secret mission for the American government. A highly experimental stealth submarine is missing. She carries forty nuclear warheads, and is believed to be in the hands of an unstable government just ninety miles from the American mainland. In a race against time, Hawke must locate the sub before a strike can be launched against the U.S. -- and, after a lifetime of nightmares, finally avenge himself upon the men who slaughtered his family.... Featuring electrifying action, international intrigue, and a hero worthy of the finest adventure fiction, Hawke heralds the exciting debut of a bold new talent.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 85 more reviews...
 Not Bond or Bourne! September 16, 2008
This book began with much promise and blurbed comparisons to James Bond and the Clive Cussler novels had me anxious to delve into this swash-buckling adventure.
The prolouge, where 7-year old Alex Hawke witnesses the brutal murder of his parents aboard their yacht is gripping and the promise of a revenge saga filled with pirate adventures awaits.
Unfortunately, this nearly 600-page novel cannot hold up to the promise of the prolouge as it becomes another sodden espionage tale about a coup d'etat in Cuba that the now adult Alex Hawke is hired to stop. The group behind the coup turn out to be three Cuban brothers - the same trio that killed Hawke's parents many years earlier.
There is not one second of swash-buckling or piracy in this tale and the revenge is dealt with so quickly it is as if Ted Bell lost interest and just wanted to finish the book and move on with the Hawke series.
I sure hope the rest of the books in the Hawke series are superiour to this poorly constructed mess...
 Bond (and a few others) for the 21st century September 11, 2008
Alex Hawke is, like James Bond and a few others, an international superspy. He undertakes missions both for his native Great Britain and his mother's homeland, America. Like Bond (and others) he is handsome, charming, a sophisticated lady's man who is skilled in a variety of both martial arts and sports. Unlike Bond though, Hawke is independently wealthy (like the Saint, Derek Flint, the Phantom and others), making him able to buy his own fabulous toys - huge yachts, numerous planes, several houses. He is also haunted by the tragic deaths of his parents and had been raised by the family butler (like Batman).
As the novel opens a very young Hawke is sailing with his parents through the Caribbean when tragedy strikes. Pirates invade the yacht, and torture and kill the parents while their seven year old son watches from a hidden location. The action the jumps forward thirty years, Hawke is now a grown man on an assignment to save the world from a dastardly plot hatched by Cuban criminals. Before the final pages Hawke has saved the world (and his lady love) and avenged his parents.
This novel, which is the first of a series, is complete escapist fantasy. Bell has rewritten many of the Bond scenes and scenarios (in this one at least) which from time to time gives the reader a slight feeling of deja vu and woven the book with bits of the mythology from other stories. Part of the fun is identifying traces of not only Bond, Flint, and Templar but also the Phantom and Batman. I cannot wait to read the rest of the series and see who else turns up.
If you are looking for a serious spy thriller try Le Carre, this one is for fun.
I have a man-crush on Alex Hawke August 6, 2008
I want to be Alex Hawke. Boats, planes, gadgets, butlers I love it. this guy kicks commie butt. I can't wait to read the next in the series. Absolutely an ideal book for a vacation read.
Great Read June 7, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I really liked this book, so far it's my #1 favorite. I love adventure and this book had plenty including suspense, action and a little romance. It was well rounded and entertaining. I've bought and all of Ted Bell's books because of this book but this is still my favorite.
 Oh My! this one was REALLY bad! March 31, 2008
4 out of 6 found this review helpful
Where do i start? The first page had some potential . . . I think. The rest of it went downhill. My favorite part was the American Indian mercenary. At their special converted fort somewhere in the Caribbean, our fine Indian mercenary is wearing . . . you guessed it! Buckskin pants! Fringed even. Another Mercenary is only 5 feet tall. Right.
As mentioned is a few previous reviews, the lack of research in this book is comical. Hawke's seaplane gets hit with SAM and he's able to put out the fire . . . meanwhile a pig takes out the terrorist on the ground. Oh, and Hawke's girlfriend is of course an MD. Hawke is actually Lord Hawke, as well as a former F-14 aviator, British Special Forces, CIA, and also intimate with the heads of ALL of the important corporations in the world. And of course he is fabulously wealthy . . . not mention that his former girlfriend (who swoons at his very appearance) is the U.S. Secretary of State.
I am not going to bother reading any more from this author and I suggest the same to others. with so many good books out there and so little time in our lives, this kind of tripe is worthless. buy an Archie comic instead.
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