Rating: 
Summary: The Only Way To Tell The Truth, Is Fiction!
Review: A couple of guys with bad haircuts and cheap suits once flashed a plastic card at me and said - in effect - "you want to play cowboys and indians?" Intrigued, I spent the next eleven years in the intelligence ghetto - where nothing is wrong . . . as long as you don't get caught, and morality is considered to be a weakness.I was a true believer! In the concept, the beauty and the poetry of America. Its freedoms and possibilities. Unfortunately, the people I worked for weren't believers. I came to understand that they were narrow minded, self aggrandizing individuals who were more interested in getting a corner office suite, moving from Langley to the White House, or just making themselves look good around personnel evaluation time. Rather than protecting America - its people and ideals - I was being used to advance personal agendas. I left that netherworld where "How're you doing?" could be a greeting, a test of some kind or a direct threat; because I got really tired of risking my life for people trying to get promotions instead of preserving our concepts of liberty and democracy; I left because as wonderful as the government of the United States is, there are a great many within it - from all sides of the political spectrum - who see it merely as a game to be played in the abstract, with little or no care about the consequences of winning . . . or losing. THE FOUR PHASE MAN - much like my earlier novels (THE GEMINI MAN & NOBODY'S SAFE) - came from the fire that still burns within me to scream out into the darkness: "ENOUGH! REMEMBER WHO AND WHAT WE ARE, WHERE WE CAME FROM, AND WHAT WE MUST STAND FOR! " And, perhaps, to shine a little light on the never changing structure of the Intelligence Community's middle management. Gray men and women who risk nothing, challenge nothing, stand for nothing. Except themselves. THE FOUR PHASE MAN is my response to those who say that there are no great enemies in the world today, that we no longer need men and women to stand on walls to protect us. To those who would lead us . . . without ever truly having any real beliefs of their own. Remember, the most dangerous thing this country ever faced, is a leader with a smile, and nothing but hunger behind those perfectly white teeth. THE FOUR PHASE MAN - Because sometimes, you HAVE TO BELIEVE!
Rating: 
Summary: Be willing to suspend your disbelief...a little
Review: A difficult book to get started, it clearly improves as it goes along. As I read the book, I had to keep reminding myself that the author is a real life security expert. Hmmmm... Just how much is really possible? If you really want to read something scary, read Nobody's Safe by the same author. Speculate on how poor your security is, I did.
Rating:
Summary: Pleasing
Review: Although not as good as "The Brotherhood of the Rose", Steinberg has picked up where David Morrell has since fallen flat. There is a great sense of character development and some real originality with the novel's plot. What makes Steinberg work for me is that he is not bogged down with the egocentric flux of Tom Clancy's flawless and seemingly immortal characters. I thought I would read Morrell forever, but it looks like Steinberg from now on. Steinberg is in the business, so he knows what he is talking about. He is not someone who spent (or still spending) his whole life playing Dungeons and Dragons, suddenly an "expert" on writing thrillers.
Rating: 
Summary: In a word...WOW
Review: Both men are former black ops agents who left the government to forge destinies of their own. They are all that are left of the elite 4 phase men and know they are each other's equal in every way that counts to survive. Jerry "Xenos" Goldman lives in self-imposed exile on the Mediterranean Isle of Corsica. He struggles to find a way to live with the guilt caused by the fact that he is responsible for multitudes of deaths in government sanctioned activities. Colin "Canvas" Meadows has become a mercenary selling himself to the highest bidder, which this time happens to be the Peoples Republic of China. The Chinese government knows that their nation cannot be the dominant world power through overt acts of aggression. However, after a quarter of a century of patient planning, they believe they can not only neutralize but assimilate their most deadly opponent on the global scale. Nobody's Safe from this plot. They have recruited and turned a charismatic young American, highly placed in government circles, who wants their help in getting him elected President of the United States. Canvas must insure that the Chinese plan works flawlessly so that their Manchurian Candidate becomes the free world leader. Xenos must stop his former cohort and in turn destroy the plan. THE 4 PHASE MAN is a powerful chilling political thriller that modernizes the classic MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE with the impact of modern communications and information technology. The two protagonists participate in the ultimate cat and mouse game. Though they are mirror images of one another in almost every way, their motives are dramatically different. Richard Steinberg has written an appealing but chilling tale that will provide him many accolades and bestow grandmaster status on him. Harriet Klausner
Rating:
Summary: Richard Steinberg, each book better than the last!
Review: Excellent book. Started it on a Friday nite and finished early Saturday morning. Kept me glued to my seat. I have been looking for an author who keeps me interested like the early Robert Ludlum books (The Bourne Series) and I have found him. This is the 3rd book by Steinberg, and I would recommend all 3. Other great reads; Gemini Man & Nobody's Safe by Richard Steinberg and Domain by Steven Alten
Rating:
Summary: Make Room on the Bestseller List
Review: From GEMINI MAN to NOBODY'S SAFE and now THE 4PHASE MAN, Steinberg continues to grow and excel as a writer. With brilliant insight and the twist of a phrase, Steinberg introduces characters and plot lines that should make Tom Clancy and other bestseller fiction writers jealous. Hopefully Steinberg will treat us to many more books!
Rating:
Summary: THE BEST SPY THRILLER TO COME ALONG IN OVER TWO DECADES!!
Review: Gerald "Xenos" Goldman used to be a member of the DIA's legendary "4-Phase Man" program...a program designed to create the ultimate super spies who were capable of intelligence gathering, electronic warfare, counterintelligence and assassination. Only a handful of men ever made it through the program. Goldman was one of the few and one of the best. In time, however, he became disillusioned with the lies, the betrayals, and the killings. He walked away from his job and the intelligence community to start his life over again, and hopefully to make amends for the things he'd done. When Goldman's friend, Franco (a top member of the Corsican Mafia), asks him to search for his lost nephew in New York City, our reluctant hero unintentionally becomes the target of a Chinese "hit" team that is led by Colin Meadows, who's also a former member of the "4-Phase Man" program and has now become a mercenary. It seems that Communist China has a deep-cover mole planted within the highest echelons of the U.S. government, and this person could very well be in line for the Presidency. Franco's nephew accidentally saw something that he shouldn't have and was murdered because of it by the Chinese. Now, Colin Meadows and the "hit" team are after Goldman and will stop at nothing to prevent him from finding out about the conspiracy, even if it means killing the people closest to him. As the bloodbath begins and Goldman realizes what he's up against, he turns to Franco and the Corsican Mafia for help. Together, they strike back against the Chinese for revenge and honor, willing to die if necessary, determined to retaliate against those who'd dare attack their families. The real question, however, is whether Goldman can survive long enough to bring down the conspiracy and to stop his former comrade from the DIA? For me, THE 4-PHASE MAN by Richard Steinberg, is without a doubt the best spy thriller I've read in the last twenty years. Not only is it filled with unbelievable action and a hero who is a cross between James Bond and Rambo, but it's also a thinking man's novel. Many readers have even compared it to Richard Condon's classic, THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE. Steinberg, himself a former member of the DIA, knows the political scene and writes from knowledge and truth, elegantly capturing the intrigue and deceit that permeates the capital of our country. The author has seen firsthand the deception of other nations and how they try to gain control over the United States through the manipulation of our economy and by buying many of the politicians outright. Needless to say, this greatly adds to the authenticity of the novel, making it not only suspenseful and fast paced, but also thought provoking as well. In many ways THE 4 PHASE MAN reminded me of Robert Ludlum when he was at his best back during the seventies and early eighties. The character of Gerald Goldman is one that I thoroughly enjoyed and know the reader will enthusiastically root for. Let us hope that Mr. Steinberg will bring Gerald Goldman back in a future novels. Highly recommended!!! If I could, I'd give this novel 10-Star rating.
Rating: 
Summary: A Little Dissappointed
Review: I bought this book based on the prior reviews and while I basically enjoyed it I was a little dissappointed. There are two ptimary reasons. First. the author kept recycling the same literary style in moving the plot forward while keeping key players identites secret. And second, I was unhappy with the ending which I found pesdestrian after an otherwise good plot to that point.
Rating:
Summary: Couldn't put it down
Review: I wasn't sure at first that I even wanted to read this book, then once I started I couldn't put it down. This is one of the best stories I've read in a long time. I would compare it with a "Clice Cussler type" in that, the suspense never stops. The first chapter may seem a little slow setting up the background but after that -page after page becomes another action packed event. High scores for a really good book-I recommend it highly. LT
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Action; Excellent Character, Excellent Read
Review: It held my attention and kept my adrenaline high.
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