Rating: 
Summary: Not a complete waste of time, but close
Review: It usually takes me at least a week to read a novel, but it took me just one afternoon to read this one. This is the first Sidney Sheldon book I've read and judging from the reviews here I would have been happier with his earlier work.The plot seems intriguing enough at first, what with the secret group of men buying mysterious "packages" in increments of billions of dollars. But as soon as Russia and military equipment was mentioned I immediately knew what the whole thing was about. And that's pretty much the major failing of the novel: predictability. Every single character is so one dimensional, polarized to be the stereotypical representative of a personality type. It gets to the point where even dialogue becomes forced, such as those rediculously deliberate slang words spoken by Kemal. The plot developments were so unimaginative, about what you'd expect from a low-budget action movie. Men in black suits and walkie-talkies guarding entrances, sexy secretaries acting as spies, generals that bark orders at everybody everywhere,... etc. Oh and the rich well-off family that has a string of family tragedies, scandals, and are described as the American royal family. I wonder if the Kennedys minded. Other issues include inconsistencies and loose ends that I would never expect to find in a New York Times best seller. Some thing would happen out of the blue for no good reason that completely solves a problem and the reader is supposed to just go "hmmm, I guess that could happen". Some parts I've gone back and re-read to confirm that I remembered them correctly. I also had a hard time believing the pace of the story. It seemed as if Dana was traveling for about three weeks. In the mean time a character in the story has enough time to find cancer, have an operation, complete chemotherapy and even get the results of a "new treatment". The fizzle finish at the end looked like the author write it in 20 minutes. No closure, I kept expecting another chapter. I read the book so quickly becuase each page presented very little information. About 400 pages of large font doesn't tell a whole lot when they are written this way. It would be a good book to have if someone is really tired, say after taking their final exams, and have an afternoon to kill.
Rating: 
Summary: Sheldon is Slipping
Review: I'm not sure if it's age or what, but Sheldon is definitely slipping. I was appalled when I read this book. If it wasn't Sheldon who wrote it, it probably would've never got published. As the earlier reviewers said, the plot is thin and predictable. When I look back on my experience reading this book, I remember going through a series of disjointed paragraphs, as the scenarios are incredibly short. I've read all of Sheldon's books and have observed this gradual decline of the quality of his stories. Looks like it started with "Nothing Lasts Forever" and went downhill from there. So don't judge Sheldon by the quality of this book, or you'll miss out on incredible fiction. I highly recommend "Master of the Game," "If Tomorrow Comes," "Rage of Angels," "Windmills of the Gods," and "Doomsday Conspiracy." A good rule of thumb will be to stick to the books he wrote before "Nothing Lasts Forever." I guarantee you won't be disappointed.
Rating: 
Summary: A Page-turning read
Review: I highly recommend this book. The story was fast-pasing, you'll never get bored!
Rating:
Summary: Those Were The Days.......
Review: It use to be that I would read Sheldon's novels in one day.... fast paced, filled with intrique, twists and turns, characters that made you either love them or hate them or question them.... and when I was finished reading I was not only fulfilled but anxious for Sheldon's next novel. Those were the days.... Now, I still can read his novels in one day, but.... this book (as many of his books in the past 7 years) are just not fulfilling. The character development is lacking, the story has no intrique and when I finished, I wondered one more time...why do I still buy his books. (The answer is because I remember those that I really loved, like Master of the Game, Rage of Angels, Windmills of the Gods, and I keep hoping he'll have another one that reaches the same heights of enjoyment.) After this book, I'll read more Amazon reviews before I rush out to purchase the book on its first day of sale. The book is just not worth it... if you are a fan of Sheldon...wait for the paperpack. If you have never read him before....buy any of the books I mentioned and you will truly enjoy his writing ability.
Rating: 
Summary: Another Sidney Sheldon Glimpse of Celebrity
Review: My fellow reviewers are brutal in their attacks on this, the 17th novel, that best-selling author Sidney Sheldon has offered to a more than accepting (judging by his book sales) public. Let's face it Sheldon isn't pretending to be Tolstoy here; the only reason that one of his earlier books, say "The Other Side of Midnight" or "The Master of the Game", seems more acceptable than "The Sky is Falling" is because it was written during the Harold Robbins/Jaqueline Suzanne blitz where such fictional characters clearly reflecting their wealthy Hollywood/Washington/Eurotrash/Captains-of-Industry prototypes in all their tinsely glory were considered fresh and honest representations of the ruthless moguls that ran the world and ate in the finest and trendiest restaurants. Such honesty had not been depicted in such a blatant fashion before . . . and readers loved it. Hunkering down with such a book on the subway, on the beach or in bed on a rainy day was akin to eating forbidden fruit. Mention of the sex scenes alone most likely turned the hair of the members of the Legion of Catholic Decency gray and for those of us who grew up during this time period, so much the better. This sinless bird's eye look into a world I was never going to see first-hand, began a whole new genre that has been cloned the world over. Sheldon hasn't become a tired writer, we, the readers, constantly barraged by this type of escapism, have become almost immune. But not quite . . .
I found the further adventures of Dana Evans, television journalist extraordinaire introduced in Sheldon's earlier novel, "The Best Laid Plans", entertaining, there is too much action in too many different world cities to be that predictable. But I wasn't expecting Tolstoy, I was expecting Sheldon. I purchased the book on tape to listen to while I exercised and I got what I paid for---a great campfire story that was easy to listen to and with enough excitement to extend my exercise time to yet another mile. Yes, some of novel's conclusions are reached by the reader before they are reached by the protagonist and some of the international scenes are unnecessary and are clearly set up to give the reader a second-hand look at the globe. But again, this is why a Sheldon novel is purchased: its quick, its fun and it doesn't take place on your grandmother's farm. The characters are drapped in Harry Winston and D&G, not last year's dungarees.
Bottom line: If you want a breeze of a read from a reknowned storyteller or need a great book on tape to get your mind off the pain of your long-distance run, this tale of investigative reporting intermingled with the realities of adopting a disabled child from war-torn Bosnia while dealing with a boyfriend's dedication to his ex-wife, just might fill the bill. Just don't expect Booker prize literature.
Rating:
Summary: I beg to differ . . .
Review: I beg to differ with the reviewer that described this work of fiction as being written on a third grade level - that is just plain mean-spirited. It was actually written on a fifth-grade level! I actually laughed aloud at the implausiblity of some of the situations - the one-dimensional characters, the coincidences and the fact that none of the other law enforcement agencies investigated any of the "accidents" incurred by the Winthrops is just ludicrous! And Dana's globetrotting at what must have been enormous expense when most of the questions could have been answered through a phone call. Earlier Sheldon works were so entertaining - he should probably hang it up if this is all he can manage at this stage in his life.
Rating:
Summary: Puh leez
Review: The review by Andrea says it best. The was one of the most far fetched adventures I've read in awhile. It always loses it's credibilty when our heroine jumps on plane after plane at a moment's notice and flies all over the world. Granted she was a war reporter, but give me a break don't these trips have to be planned? Also she must have kept a safe at the office or at home to leave town constantly and always have an endless supply of cash for shoddy hotels, taxis,etc. Why was she so surprised her Russian contact was silenced? she gave all the information over the phone that anyone could have monitored. What intrigue? I only paid [money] for this book and I am glad that's all, I'm just sorry I wasted my time reading it.
Rating:
Summary: Quick, Predictable and Dissapointing
Review: "Rage of Angels" was one of my favorite books and when I seen this one also written my Sidney Sheldon I decided to read it. I found it a very quick book to read, but I was extremely dissapointed with it. The storyline was flat, I didn't care about any of the character (with the exception of Kemal) and most of the plot twist were predictable. The main character Dana Evans travels to all ends of the earth to investigate the "accidental deaths of all 5 members of the Winthrop family. Meanwhile she leaves her troubled son for long periods of time with anyone she can hire and she never even questions why he is sleeping all the time. Nor does she ever question why so many people that she has just met are extremely helpful to her. Plus I don't know any woman who would just let her boyfriend take care of his ailing supermodel ex-wife, when the ex-wife probaly had enough money to hire a whole nursing staff. The better story would have been the relationship between Dana and Kemal. Kemal is an 11 year old orphan who lost his arm during the war and Dana decides to adopt him. He is always afraid that she will send him back and I can not blame him for thinking that because she never spends any time with him. If you want to read a 5 star book from Sidney Sheldon pick up "Rage of Angels" and skip this one.
Rating:
Summary: Stupidly told fairy story
Review: Dana, the goody two shoes reporter is back in from "Best Laid Plans." She's a goody-goody who adopts a boy with one arm and ends up in a relationship you could see from chapter 1. Naturally she rises in the journalism field and naturally she wins at everything. From feeding orphans in Eastern Europe to battling Russian officials in an underground Russian village, goody-goody Dana wins every time as everybody knows she would. Boo to this book!
Rating:
Summary: Keep looking
Review: This is a good book for sitting on the beach, a weekend alone, or any time you don't want to use any brain power......what so ever......yea....a good book for the brain dead. This little paperback uses such cheesy devices I think it might have been Sidney's first book, shockingly it isn't. Sidney Sheldon is a good writer, and I have nothing against mass production, BUT WHAT HAPPENED MAN!
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