Rating: 
Summary: The Short Forever
Review: "The Short Forever" is the eighth book in the Stone Barrington series by Stuart Woods. I found this novel to be the most complex of the Barrington books to date. Stone is hired by a client of Woodman & Weld, the law firm for whom Stone does certain miscellaneous jobs. The client's name is John Bartholomew who wants Stone to go to London to break up the relationship of his neice, Erica Burroughs, and her boyfriend, Lance Cabot who Bartholomew says is a cocaine smuggler. He asks Stone to bring Erica back to New York with him, and make sure Lance Cabot is sent to prison. When Stone gets to London, he learns that Erica Burroughs is not Bartholomew's neice. Lance Cabot is not a cocaine smuggler. He also learns that Bartholomew isn't whom he says he is, but is in fact a CIA operative working in London. No Stone Barrington novel would be complete without Stone's bedding a beautiful woman. This time he sleeps with former flame, Sarah Buckminster, who has moved back to England. He also meets with his true love, Arrington Calder, but once again their wires get crossed and she returns to the States before anything can happen. I found "The Short Forever" fast-paced and entertaining.
Rating: 
Summary: Like Chinese dinner, you're hungry agin
Review: First of all, it's not a bad read. The 3 stars-4 stars-5 stars rating system removes a lot of wiggle room. So reading a Stone Barrington novel is enjoyable albeit Stone is pretty whorish, wears $300 Thomas Pink shirts, signs checks with $500 pens and flies the Concorde ("Is there another way of crossing the Atlantic?") It's just that it's so formula-driven.
The beginnings are the same. A girlfriend/fiance who was both a magnificent lover and kind to animals and . . . was going to settle Stone down (read monogamy) totally unexpectedly breaks up with him. This is at Elaine's, the fabulous New York bistro where the usual suspects gather to mock him with derisive jokes dripping with sarcasm.
What's not to like? I don't want to make fun of Stone. I want to hang out with him. Every woman wants to sleep with him. Even the ones that used to sleep with him. He has great relations with ex-lovers and future lovers. He has all the money in the world. He has status. Cool friends. He's heroic. Funny. Did I mention every woman wants to sleep with him?
Anyhow, it's all very predictable. He's James Bond without the title and with a New York attitude. He's like Jack Molloy in Mike Lupica's books, goofy but at a very, very high level.
A pleasant read but don't expect any angst, riveting dialogue or moral Hobson's choices. Light. Airy. Not substantive. 3 stars. Larry Scantlebury
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Summary: Enjoyable light read mystery/suspense novel
Review: I came across this author as a member of an online book club, and was hooked on Woods' main character of Stone Barrington after reading his latest ("Dirty Work"). This book, "The Short Forever", is a very fast-paced story that manages to keep you intrigued and guessing for all of its 300+ pages. Let me tell you a few things that may help you make up your own mind about "The Short Forever" (NO SPOILERS):Though I think this is seventh book in a series with his main character Stone Barrington, I did not feel at a loss at all for not having read any of his previous books. That alone impressed me, but then add on top of that a story that grabs you and does let go until the thrilling (and surprising) conclusion. Woods combines characters that are cops, ex-cops, lawyers, British & US intelligence, and international smugglers and does it all masterfully. Pick this book up and you likely won't be able to put it back down until its over. For a light read, its very entertaining.
Rating: 
Summary: Pretty [bad]
Review: I don't know what book these other reviewers were reading, but I found this to be a very [bad] effort. I read a lot of books in this genre, and I'm not usually very critical, but this mess is an exception. The whole style of writing, not just the locale, is very upper-crust British, annoyingly so. I don't really care exactly what Stone (what kind of name is Stone, anyway?) had for lunch at the Connaught grill, or how many suits his tailor made for him, ad nauseum. The plot is bad, and gets worse as it goes along. I stuck it out till the end, hoping for some kind of surprise, but it never climaxes, just fizzles out. But the biggest problems for me are the characters and the dialogue. Characters are extremely one-dimensional, and even the lead is never flushed out. And really, PEOPLE DON"T TALK LIKE THIS, and if they do, I don't care to read about them. The dialogue is simply terrible. I've given this some thought, and I came up with this comparison (maybe it's the British setting that did it). IF Roger Moore is your favorite James Bond, then you will probably like this book. Woods' writing is on a par with Moore's acting. But if you have any taste, and you like Connery or even Brosnan better, or you want something with more meat than any Bond flick, then skip this fluff, and go get some Parker (Robert or T Jeff) or LeHane, or SJ Rozan, or Connelly, or anybody, really.
Rating: 
Summary: Stone Barrington, at it again!
Review: I greatly anticipated the release of this book for quite some time, and I was not let down! This next Stone Barrington book lives up tp the standards! In this book, Stone ends up overseas in London, working for a man whom he finds out he knows very little about. John Bartholomew, or if that is even his real name, has sent Stone to convince his "neice" to return home to the states. Stone's job is to separate her from her lover, Lance Cabot, who is involved in some "illegal matters". John and Lance Cabot are always one step ahead of Stone, keeping him guessing as to the truth of what they really are after. Are they really working together in some secret intelligence agency? Or are the rival enemies, both hoping to nail the other? This is what Stone must figure out. And of course, what book would it be without the appearances of Stone's old time flame Arrington and old NYPD partner Dino Bachetti. I greatly enjoyed this novel and cannot wait for the next one already! Stuart Woods cannot write them fast enough! Enjoy!
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Summary: Stone is back, but hard to follow meandering plot
Review: Prolific Stuart Woods is back with his 8th Stone Barrington novel, of his 24 fictional works to date. If he had accidentally called Stone "James Bond" it would have been just as believable, as Barrington sleuths in espionage and intrigue during the day, and drinks and bed hops during the night. Traveling to London via the Concorde on an unlimited expense account, much of this book seems devoted to the lifestyles of the rich (even if not famous). Two of Stone's old girlfriends dominate much of the proceedings, even Arrington Calder herself -- the running gag being that she and Stone will never marry (they came close once before) 'cause she won't go through life as Arrington Barrington! There was quite a degree of suspense in the 300+ pages, although to me it was as much caused by "what's going on here" than the story per se. Even when it ended, ..., we weren't sure what they did or why it mattered, despite a couple of murders, almost unconnected, along the way. In fact, it was like leaving a movie you thought was pretty entertaining but you never did figure out the fundamental plot. Even Stone didn't know whom he was working for half the time. We'd no doubt fail the quiz at the end on who did what to whom. Moreover, an appearance by Stone's old police partner Dino (still on active duty, but apparently able to travel at will to bail this guy out time after time) did little to advance the story line and thus seemed somehow irrelevant. Thinking it might be time to let Stone "die off", we note from the author's web site two more Barrington books are in the works, as well as another featuring his newer female lead, Holly Barker. Woods claims he's writing two books per year for the foreseeable future; while still fans, we would like to see a little more substance, a little less sex, and a more cohesive plot. Woods has all the skills to pull that off and more. We're just not sure they are on display that well in the Short Forever.
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Summary: Stuart Woods is a master of mystery
Review: Stone Barrington is hired by an odd client previously unknown to him. He arrives in London on a mission he thinks he understands, but later realizes he has no idea. Stone is baffled by the behavior of his client and his quarry. His life is again complicated by two, possibly three, murders. When the intelligence agencies of several countries become involved he can only hang on for the crazy ride.
I loved this new book in the Stone Barrington Series. Stone is, as always, intelligent and quirky when he gets hired by his interesting client. This book is as enjoyable as the rest of this series.
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Summary: even more hijinks
Review: Stone Barrington just can't seem to keep himself out of trouble..or to find a situation that is really what it seems to be...curiousity is what gets him into trouble more than anything...especially when dealing with a job he can't say no to...and that goes for women as well...something that any veteran reader of the stone barrington novels already knows...
this book is alittle different in that it deals more with espionage type elements when compared to previous entries in the barrington series...
pretty good read...not as good as his best work, but still a fun read...
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Summary: The Short Forever Fo Sho
Review: The Short Forever by Stuart Woods is just one of the many books written by him with the character "Stone Barrington." Stone is an ex-cop turned investigator for a law firm. In this novel, a client, John Bartholemew, is sent to him by an acquaintance of Stone's. He tells Stone to go to London to bring back his neece and to have the man she wants to marry sent to jail for life. Turns out the woman is not his neece and the man is a former man in British military operations that used to work with Stone's client. It also turns up that John Bartholomew is not his real name. Stone, when arriving in london, is reacquainted with an old fling of his, who is now engaged. Stone also gets caught up with busines partners of the man he is supposed to have sent to jail. To Stone, the review of this book is as confuing as what he must go through to solve everything. I personally loved this book and plan on reading other novels in the series.
Rating: 
Summary: Much Ado about Nothing
Review: This isn't a mystery novel. That is the first thing one should understand if one chooses to read this book. It would barely qualify as a procedural in my opinion. The problems are many. First, the main character isn't described at all untill 3/4 of the way into the book and then the only feature I was able to discover is that he has blond hair. Second, the main guy runs around a lot and has a lot of apparently great meals but that is all. He solves nothing, it is all solved for him. The only "murder" is solved in a way that would be kind of like playing a guessing game and at the end someone saying "oh it was number 13." without you even trying to guess. Needless to say, I was terribly dissapointed.
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