Category Five

Rating:
Summary: Refreshing, exciting, unpredictable
Review: Category Five is a well researched and well written book. The interesting and unpredicatble twists and turns hold the reader's interest on every page. The character interaction, interesting settings and ever intriguing plots and sub-plots make this read hard to put down. The author includes weather phenomena, aviation and love as the primary ingedients in this refreshingly different novel. Category Five includes the elements of mystery, excitement, danger romance and intrigue overlayed with interesting and exotic settings and situations.
This novel begs to be adapted to the big screen. I can't wait.
Congratulations to the author on such a fantastic first book.
I hope there are many, many more.


Rating:
Summary: Superbly written adventure thriller of man vs. nature
Review: Category Five is Philip S. Donlay debut novel. This superbly written adventure thriller of man vs. nature follows the efforts of a rescue mission to extract key government people who have been studying hurricane Helena, the most powerful storm in recorded history. A routine effort begins to go wrong when an assassination attempt is made on the life of a lead scientist, and protagonist Donovan Nash must risk everything - his life, his hidden secrets, and his future - to combat human intrigue and natural disaster alike, and save the woman he loves. A gripping, tension-filled saga that entangles the reader's attention and does not let go.


Rating:
Summary: Donlay owes me a nights sleep!
Review: Donlay owes me a nights sleep! After seeing Donlay on television, I was intrigued enough by the premise of a pilot writing about a giant hurricane to purchase his novel Category Five. I was hooked from chapter one and the story unfolded wonderfully and delivered until the last page. The plot is certainly compelling and the drama was taut, and at times unrelenting, but my favorite part was the well written female protagonist Dr. Lauren McKenna. Donlay has crafted a wonderfully complex thriller that works for both female and male readers alike. Well done! I truly hope there are more Donovan Nash/Eco-Watch thrillers in the future, but rest assured, I learned my lesson and will start the next book far earlier in the day!


Rating:
Summary: Donlay is the Next Big Thing
Review: I picked up this novel when a couple of friends recommended it. Usually I am wary of first-time authors that I have not heard of, especially when you are paying for the hardcover!

It ended up being the best money I've spent towards entertainment lately. Philip Donlay's fully formed characters and plot meshed together to create a debut that is certain to make other authors in the genre very nervous.

I would compare this book to works by Michael Crichton. It is full of interesting science and aviation details that adds to a unique and credible story line. The last few chapters were extremely intense - don't pick this book up late at night.

Rating:
Summary: Seems like I've read this before
Review: Let me just start out by saying that Mr. Donlay has potential. I also believe he must be a great fan of Author,Clive Cussler, especially of Mr. Cussler's Dirk Pitt series. This is really more of a buddy/action/thriller story and less about a hurricane. If you're looking for the typical disaster and destruction story, keep looking as this isn't it.

The story starts off running. We are introduced to Dr. Lauren McKenna, a meteorological scientist with the Defense Intelligence Agency. Her job is to oversee the deployment and tracking of a Doppler Imager that detects global weather patterns that could affect military operations. The story begins in Bermuda where Lauren and her team are trying to evacuate the Island before a potential "Super Hurricane" hits.

Lauren is in constant peril and must be saved by the story's hero, Donavan Nash with whom Lauren has a somewhat torrid past. Donavan Nash is a pilot who owns EcoWatch, a privately funded Rescue and Recover operation. Mr. Nash has several secrets of his own and they are quickly revealed as the story unwinds.

This story is good. It is basically non-stop action. I would enjoy reading more about the adventures of Donavan Nash and his team at Ecowatch, but then again, I don't know if that's because I really like these characters or if I'm just missing the great stories about Cussler's Dirk Pitt.



Rating:
Summary: Anticipation
Review: Mr. Donlay's debut effort is an enthralling introduction to the dynamic character of Donovan Nash. Each chapter leaves you in anticipation of the next. Donlay's detailed descriptions pull the reader into the lives and personalities of Category Five's characters with the illustrative science of aviation and meteorology he provides developing Hurricane Helena as one of those characters. I eagerly anticipate the next installment to see what happens with Donovan Nash after Category Five!

Rating:
Summary: Category Five
Review: Philip Donlay's writing created a fascinating movie inside my head! This book is one you just cannot lay down! Believable characters, intrigue, romance and mystery keep readers on their toes. I loved this story and it leaves me wanting to read more of these characters in a sequel.

Rating:
Summary: An average story...cliche ending.
Review: The story opens well and hooks the reader. However, the ending is a disappointment and comes across as cliche and predictable. I gave it two stars because there was not a category for a 1 and a half.

Rating:
Summary: Breathtaking In More Ways Than One
Review: Weeks after reading Category Five, my throat is still choked with seawater, my fingertips remain shriveled, and my skin stings from the scratch of ocean salt. Or so Philip Donlay, with his astonishing debut novel, has made me feel. Donlay posseses an ability -- more frequently seen in far more seasoned authors -- to fully engage his reader in the lives of his characters while deftly fashioning a labyrinthical, well-researched, often fascinating plot. From the first pulsing beats of this perfectly-paced novel to its orchestral and surprising conclusion, the ordinary world falls away. That, to me, is the truest measure of a fine book, and a wonderful excuse to spend a weekend doing nothing but enjoying it. I enthusiastically recommend Donlay's rookie effort, and happily anticipate his next work.


Rating:
Summary: What a great book, I couldn't put it down.
Review: What a great book, I read it in two days. Donlay's characters are very exciting people that have amazing things happen to them. With a sharp plot and a wonderful supporting cast Donovan Nash had a wild ride that leaves you gasping for air. This book is a true page-turner, starting at the first page and not slowing down until the last. The action scenes have such detail that I felt as I was in the middle of a storm myself. This book establishes Donlay as the next big thing. I can't wait for his next book.