Rating: 
Summary: Solid FBI Thriller
Review: "You know I don't have that kind of information," he said. "That's the way it is on the wet side. Shadows, suggestions, denial. Only the cash is real." -- Christopher Whitcomb, Black
"Black ops" are counter-terrorist intelligence operations that, officially, don't exist. You will never see their successes in the papers or their failures on the nightly news broadcast. Nor will current employees really even admit to their existence. The closest thing we'll come is by reading books and watching movies that, of course, only offer a filtered -- and often fictionalized -- version of actual events. Though, as Black author -- and former FBI agent on the Hostage Rescue Team -- Christopher Whitcomb stated in a recent interview, the FBI isn't entirely against this because "secrecy has its place, but there is also benefit in a fair representation of the people, agencies and events wrapped up in it."
The four protagonists in Black have their lives and actions intersect in ways that the beginning of the novel doesn't even begin to foreshadow. Jordan Mitchell is introduced during a hearing held by Senator Elizabeth Beechum where Mitchell's company Borders Atlantic's new telecommunications encryption method is being touted as dangerous to national security: if the enemy has encrypted cellular lines, how can we listen in? When Senator Beechum is subsequently attacked in her home, "blaming the victim" is taken to a whole new level. (Mitchell mostly comes across merely as a walking description, offering little in the way of the charisma the character supposedly has, while Beechum invites immediate empathy due to her situation.)
Meanwhile, Jeremy Waller is the FNG ("f-----g new guy") on the elite Hostage Rescue Team, just beginning his career with covert operations. One of these ops is so covert that no one else seems to have any information about it, and it doesn't involve "rescue" at all. Elsewhere, resident "Mata Hari" Sirad Malneaux doesn't hesitate to use her best attributes to obtain classified information from various sources. (Though it was difficult to keep track of the total number of double-crosses taking place, it certainly kept me on my toes.)
Whitcomb does break Orson Scott Card's first rule about naming characters: that no two characters' names begin with the same letter. In fact, he takes it a step further and gives Jeremy and Jordan the same number of letters. For a quick reader like myself, this was made confusing read as my mind kept switching from one to the other. A minor complaint, but one that made a difference in my perception of the book. Other flaws are that Mitchell's subsequent storyline was never quite as interesting as the others, a lack of suspense about the survival of a character based on the author, and almost no epilogue, but perhaps the consequences of these events are planned to be detailed in the proposed followup.
All in all, Black was an engrossing read. It was detailed enough to feel real, and fast-paced enough to be purely entertaining. None of those Tom Clancy-esque digressions for Whitcomb. The surprise twist ending was completely satisfying, though I would have liked more wrap-up, but Whitcomb makes Black a very suspenseful read with a surprisingly even-handed view of Saudi Arabians and Yemenis. The fact that Waller is having many of the same experiences that Whitcomb himself had -- his memoir, Cold Zero, covers his years on the FBI in different guises -- makes that character the most interesting. Whitcomb is not afraid to make Waller fallible when confronted with continually surprising information. We can only hope that Whitcomb's successors are as good at their job as Waller is at his own -- and as Whitcomb is at writing about it.
Rating: 
Summary: A cellular plan to die for
Review: A cellular plan to die for
BLACK is a conspiracy thriller in which the perps, and even the Machiavellian intent, aren't immediately obvious. As a matter of fact, the reader doesn't have a glimmer of understanding until page 327 of 362. Until then, four subplots proceed on more or less separate paths. One must have faith that they eventually coalesce.
Jordan Mitchell is CEO of Borders Atlantic, a communications company on the verge of marketing a system for cellular phone message encryption that will stymie even the electronic eavesdroppers at the National Security Agency.
Senator Elizabeth Beechum chairs the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. Fearing Mitchell's new technology will give terrorists the upper hand, she's determined to stop it cold. Beechum is also likely to be the nominee for president to come out of the Democratic National Convention being held in a couple weeks. Unfortunately, she gets derailed when she's attacked by an unknown assailant and rendered unconscious in her Georgetown home. When she comes to, the room is awash in blood - not hers. Though there's no body, circumstantial evidence leads her to be charged with murder.
Jeremy Waller is the FNG on the FBI's elite Hostage Rescue Team, assigned as a sniper. After a successful first mission in Puerto Rico to free the kidnapped daughter of the island's governor, Waller finds himself seconded to a mysterious two-man operation in Yemen so hush-hush that even his HRT bosses don't know about it. What's the FBI doing in an overseas gig, anyway?
Sirad Malneaux, a fast-rising executive in Borders Atlantic, finds herself hand-picked by Mitchell, apparently on the basis of her ability to convincingly lie, for an important assignment. Does he know she really works for the CIA?
Then, to make things interesting, an obscure American techno-firm has devised a new way to kill - with concentrated sounds waves that blow out the victim's skull. (In the movie version, wouldn't that make a great special effect?)
The twist to the story, revealed in the last thirty-five pages, should be clever enough to lift BLACK above standard fare. But that's counter-balanced by two-dimensional main characters, none of whom I particularly cared about. To be fair, author Christopher Whitcomb faced a dilemma in the evolution of his plot. By the story's end, the reader realizes why he couldn't demonize any one of his players. Yet, in order to keep the reader guessing, he couldn't make any one of them too sympathetic. After all, there has to be both a Protagonist and Antagonist in any story, right? Perhaps only Beechum is blameless from the start. (But is any politician truly innocent in the mind of the Body Politic?)
Since BLACK was a birthday gift, I wanted to like it more than I do, and I feel guilty that I don't.
Rating:
Summary: A Novel with the Ring of Reality
Review: A new recruit to the FBI's Hostage Rescue Team thought he understood what he was joining. Instead, he finds himself plunged deep into an Alice in Wonderland World of lack operations. In Black, Christopher Whitcomb, a fifteen-year veteran of the FBI and a Hostage Rescue Team member, has written a troubling novel about the shadowy world in which this recruit unexpectedly finds himself. It is a world dominated by black-box technology, gorgeous females with hidden agendas and mercenaries with shifting loyalties. Whitcomb infuses current sense of reality into the genre. It is obvious he has experienced the interplay between intelligence organizations and international corporations. He also includes timely references to the war on Iraq and Al-Qaeda. The novel is an easy read. Were it not for several instances of poor editing (he confuses Lincoln Center in New York with the Kennedy Center in Washington) it novel would rate five stars.
Rating: 
Summary: Decidedly disappointing
Review: A tiresome read and one in desperate need of an editor. The ending is absurd and the characters as flat at the dialogue. Definitely not recommended.
Rating: 
Summary: BLACK: a timely adventure.
Review: As a fan of W.E.B. Griffin and Tom Clancy's style of writing, I found BLACK engrossing, fast paced, and unpredictable. I am always drawn to stories where I feel I am being brought alongside the adventures of the characters, and not told of them.
The main characters in BLACK kept me looking forward to the next page and next stage of adventure. If you have read "Cold Zero", by this author, you will feel right at home with the FBI'S Hostage Rescue Team, and associated personnel. Jeremy Waller is a new member of "HRT" and is faced with many twists and turns on a professional level as well as trying to cope with the emotional toll his new assignment brings. The plot takes us from the political intrigue of Washington, to the deserts of Yemen. You will need your own passport to keep up with the contents of this book!
Rating:
Summary: Far below standard
Review: Cold Zero, Whitcombs autobiography showed signs of real writing talent. "Black" shows none of that talent. The characters are one dimensional and un-interesting. The plot is hopelessly confused. At just 360 pages, is a short book, but he seems to have had to work hard to stretch it that far. If it had been published as a short story it might have been better. As it is, it lacks reality, creativity and gravitas. Unlike Whitcomb, Andy Mcnabb was a REAL soldier in the war on terror, and knows how to write a taught, interesting book.
Rating:
Summary: Exciting war-on-terror action with a twist
Review: FBI Agent Jeremy Waller is living his dreams. Promoted into the elite FBI Hostage Rescue Team (HRT), he gets to play with the big boys. But war on terror is a different kind of law enforcement and Jeremy finds himself in a situation where he doesn't know the rules and where he can't tell who are his allies or enemies. Senator Elizabeth Beechum is set to be the next Presidential nominee when she's attacked in her home--and then accused of murder. Those who were once her friends pull away from her, her nomination vanishes into thin air, and even loyal constituents back in South Carolina start to question their votes. CIA agent Sirad Malneax has infiltrated one of the largest, most secretive, and dangerous companies in the world. Now, though, her cover is compromised. Because the owners of Borders Atlantic will stop at nothing, certainly not murder, to keep their secrets and push their own agenda.
In a suspenseful thriller, author Christopher Whitcomb brings the war on terror to life. Morals, laws, and decency are sacrificed in the bloody war to prevent a financial catastrophy--but there are always some who are willing to sell themselves, their secrets, and their country's security to the highest bidder. When Borders Atlantic launches a super-secure phone system--one that even NSA computers cannot crack, the terrorists prepare to have a field day against a prostrate U.S.
Whitcomb weaves elements of his story together letting the reader scurry to catch up. Senator Beechum, in particular, is an interesting and well dimensioned character (Malneaux and Waller are perhaps a bit perfect). The exciting conclusion has a bit of a John Le Carre feel--which is definitely a compliment. I do wonder about Beechum's reaction at the end. Surely more heads would roll.
Rating:
Summary: Completely engrossing, thrilling, explosive read!!!
Review: From the first page, the the very last, I found myself consumed by this book. The main characters were spun together in a huge, complex plot that keeps you guessing until the last few paragraphs of the novel. I think this is one of the best books based on real world situations in a long time. I look forward to the next thrill ride from Chris Whitcomb. A superbly written book.
Rating:
Summary: A Very timely Novel
Review: I bought this book because I had read Cold Zero and after watching Christopher Whitcomb on CNBC's nightly program Checkpoint for a year I really listened to what he had to say. The characters all have there own adgenda and everything comes together at the end. This book gives insight to how our country really works and a lot of information about terrorists and how they work. Very timely in the world we live in. It is great to read a book that you do not want to put down. I did for a day since I did not want it to end. Can't wait until New White hits the bookstores.
Rating:
Summary: The Dark Side of War, Money, and Politics
Review: I have to say, I was thoroughly surprised by this book. Most special forces/thriller type novels you read from ex-operator people are just weak in every aspect. The dialogue is forced, the characters are ridiculous, and the story goes no where. While Chris Whitcomb hardly seems like a mental lightweight when he makes his TV appearances, you never know. Well, I have to say that Black was a pleasant exception to the rule. This book was excellent, and it hits some great points you don't usually read in current thrillers. It's well scripted and the pacing is break neck, it's a hard edge page turner that really flies. It's characters are hardly cardboard cut outs, they breath in their desperation and action. The ins and outs of really, really secret and black ops is something Whitcomb apparently knows pretty well, and this novel of his dances pretty well through that dark world hidden to most of us.
Black does a great job in juggling three major story lines, each headed by some engaging characters. The most prominent storyline is that of Jeremy Waller, a young recruit to the FBI's elite Hostage Rescue Team. A brilliant and effective young operator, Waller is determined to build a role for himself in the team. He trains hard, and does everything he can to succeed. Only later, when he is approached by a colleague to leave the country on a black mission, does his simple world of right and wrong go out the window. Decisions have to be made, with horrifically violent results. Another storyline surrounds Senator Beechum, a hard nosed US senator who is desperately trying to halt the expansion of a new encrypted communication device for the civilian market. Then, she is thrust into a nightmare of crime and accusation that threatens to forever ruin her life. The other female protagonist is Sirad Malneaux, a beautiful young executive for the massive Borders Atlantic Corporation, who is put in charge of distributing the new encrypted cell phone technology developed by corporate goliath Jordan Mitchell, a man of massive resources and power. Sirad is on her way to the top, but she has her own agenda, that set by some shadowy puppet masters. Mitchell is motivated by murky forces as well, and his path to global communication dominance is a brutal one. Take all these stories with the development of a fearsome new weapon technology, and you've got a quality thriller.
Since the body of the book is so good, really the only controversial thing is the ending. I felt better about it early on, but the more I thought about it, the more I didn't really like it. I guess it was neccessary to continue the various storylines into another book, but still.....it was a little strange. That said, I do have to say I really didn't see it coming, so it was very surprising, I just question whether the whole thing really fit together. Other than that, Black is a startling good read, chock full of action and excitement. Good stuff, hope for more from from Whitcomb with these same characters.
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