Rating: 
Summary: Nothing in this book rings remotely true
Review: I've been entertained by Balducci's past books, most notably The Winner, and I can accept a certain amount of fantastic plotting as well as the next person. However, the magnitude of convoluted plotting and superhuman heroics dumped on the unsuspecting reader in Last Man Standing goes over the line. The hero, an improbably named Web London, is an FBI hostage rescue expert who lives with bordeline psychosis and the ability to heal from his repeated life-threatening wounds. He is the only man to survive an ambush and drags his survivor guilt thoughout the remainder of the book like the carcass of a moose. Balducci is clearly riding on his reputation in this maddening book.
Rating: 
Summary: Fun, need-to-take-your mind-off-life book!
Review: I grabbed this thinking I had read Baldacci before...I think I got my authors mixed up. I was not real thrilled to realize this was not a member of the mystery genre, but was actually and action thriller. Even though I've read plenty of Tom Clancy's books, I don't usually go looking for this type of book. The last few trips down this particular genre have not been that great. Clancy is mass producing books of this sort now, and that usually means the level of writing skill has gone down. Action-thrillers tend to be written by men and for men. That means the language is a little saltier then I like it in comparison to mysteries (especially mysteries written by the British).This book started out slow, but gained momentum quickly. I was pleasantly surprised to see the language was relatively good, and the writing was excellent (I did spot several typographical errors...don't publishers check for this stuff any more?). Another reader of this book stated that the plot was ridiculous. I don't think so...after 9/11 I don't think very many plots are impossible or improbable. I am sure many hold the same view as me. If you had asked me several years ago, whether we would have seen the things that occurred at Waco, in Oklahoma, the various men who have betrayed their countries and families, the ability of drug cartels to impact our society, and what happened in September of 2001...I would have said you are reading too much fictional garbage. Now, it is possible to believe the worst, not only of others, but of our society and the priorities we have. Baldacci seems to be a good writer. I qualify that as I am going to have to read more of his books to see if this is a typical literary excursion for him. His story about the FBI hostage rescue team is extremely interesting. I certainly have not read anything along this line before, and I enjoyed the new information. That he had to do research on much of the book is obvious from all the people he had to thank at the end. Men and women who enjoy thrillers, people with background in the horse breeding industry, anyone who enjoys good writing and needs a break from their everyday existence will find this an excellent book to take on a trip or to the beach. Karen Sadler
Rating: 
Summary: Starts ordinary, but gets better and better.
Review: Pity the poor FBI. They almost never get any positive press. Either it's the so-called true mess that the bureau has been in ever since J. Edgar Hoover, to the disdain shown for it in fiction such as "Silence of the Lambs" and "Hannibal". Everybody seems to have it in for these guys. Thus is starts in "Last Man Standing". We have the story of an FBI agent who is the only survivor of the massacre of his Hostage Rescue Team. There is big initial suspicion about him from the FBI, which at worse thinks he's part of the murders, and at best an incompetent who is responsible for getting people killed. The portrayal of the bureau as less than a great organization continues here, as well as what starts to be a routine novel about someone needing to clear himself of false charges. But it gets better, both as a more original story, and in it's treatment of the FBI. First of all, the hero, Web London, doesn't exactly know what happened to him, and this doesn't help his case. But as he eventually proves he's not to blame, his employers eventually become a bit more sympathetic. Part of what makes the novel interesting is the "treatment" he receives from a psychiatrist, a woman named Claire Daniels. That she not only helps find out what happened during the massacre, but also gets into some problems going back to boyhood make it more than the usual crime novel. I also like that they could have wound up the novel many pages before it does, but keeps it going, and keeps you guessing long after you think everything is wrapped up. Getting every last piece of information is worth the wait of reading the entire book.
Rating: 
Summary: Last Man Standing
Review: Having read all of Baldacci's book I was disappointed in the quality of this story. It was an unbelievable plot and insulting to the reader. Maybe the author needs to take a rest from "thrillers" and go back to writing books more like "Wish You Well"
Rating:
Summary: Bad Hollywood Movie
Review: I'll make this review short and to the point, unlike the book. It's totally cheesy. Hollywood will most likely get a hold of this one. Don't waste your time.
Rating:
Summary: a great read
Review: Although it really should have been a little shorter, I enjoyed the psychological aspects in the book. I had a little trouble getting into the book, but I kept going, and I anm glad I did.
Rating:
Summary: Unreadable
Review: I could not make it past 100 pgs. I liked his other books, but this one is not good.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointed
Review: FBI Agent Web London was a member of the FBI's Hostage Rescue Team Charlie. He is feeling survivor's guilt after his team was decimated in an ambush leaving him the sole survivor. Web is not sure why he survived or why he froze before the ambush took place. In order to be able to make sense of it all he hires psychiatrist Claire Daniels to help him understand what happened. They uncover a conspiracy involving many players as well as a personal vendetta by one of them. I read and enjoyed most of David Baldacci's novels except this one. The story dragged on for too long and I felt things could have resolved in fewer pages. There is too long a gap between characters and there were several setups in the novel which were a little too convenient. The book in itself has no ending. There is a conversation between Web and his psychiatrist in which he feels that he was betrayed. So he storms out. Will there be a sequel? Probably. Hopefully Baldacci's next work will be better and stronger. For anyone who has not read this author before I strongly recommend THE WINNER and THE SIMPLE TRUTH.
Rating:
Summary: Last Man Standing - W.London
Review: This book is a little disappointing for me. I've been a fan of Baldacci since a few years. I've read Total Control, Brethren, Wish you well and The Winner. If you're familiar with Baldacci and expect something out of the usual then this is the book but unfortunately I find the story to be illogical and the facts are being supplied and the explanation a little to "amazing" for me to believe in. If you're a big fan, pick the book with a discount as I did (20% off). If you're new with Baldacci definitely you should pick his early and better titles.
The Winner would rate 5 stars and Total Control as well. Brethren would be 4 stars and This last book would be around 2.5 to 3 stars. =)
Rating:
Summary: A Nice Return to the Genre
Review: After stepping out of the suspense genre with the remarkable "Wish You Well", Baldacci returns in good form with "Last Man Standing". After his hiatus writing "Wish..." he seems to find his stride again in suspense. A much stronger bok than "Saving Faith", it propels the reader through a story that seems to take a new twist at each turn of the plot.
| 
