Kingdom Come

Rating:
Summary: Where's his next novel?
Review: All I can say is - Jim Hougan, bring on the next novel, and do it fast! I've read a few of his non-fiction CIA books, and now wonder why he wasn't writing fiction sooner. I just happened to be reading Ludlum's latest, PROMETHEUS DECEPTION, when I started to get bored and picked this one up instead. Wow. Talk about a study in contrasts. Everything about Hougan's book topped Ludlum's tired old prose; this was a cerebral, suspenseful, well-told story. It took me just a day to finish it. The main hero, Jack Dunphy, is terrificaly written, and I love Hougan's sense of dialogue. My only real complaint is the lack of a satisfying ending. I don't know what I was expecting, but that wasn't it.

But I also have to say no author has ever used the "Freedom of Information Act" as such a clever plot-point. When I realized what Hougan was up to, the astonished smile never left my face.

What's REALLY interesting about this book though, is reading between the lines. Based on Hougan's past investigations of the intelligence community, one has to seriously wonder if the inspiration for this novel doesn't have some basis in real-life. If I were Hougan, my first fiction book would be about some cool tidbit I picked up during my research, and tucked away for the day I wrote the novel. (Makes you go, "hmmm....")

If I was a betting man, I'd wager that's exactly what KINGDOM COME is -- fiction veiling some larger truth or rumor Hougan heard about. If so, what a truly weird world we live in!

Rating:
Summary: Hypnotically chilling
Review: CIA operative Jack Dunphy works in London laundering money for individuals who cannot afford to use the legal methods to move money. He does other assignments for the agency. Currently, he is wire tapping the phone of Professor Leo Schindolof, an expert in Jungian philosophy. When the professor is mutilated and the tap discovered, Jack is ordered home. Upon arrival, he is debriefed and assigned a tedious desk job.

Jack believes his unofficial demotion is designed to force him into resigning. He has no idea why his superiors want him to leave the agency except perhaps the link to the deceased professor. He begins some discreet checking, but his activities are noticed. Soon, attempts are made on Jack's life. As he gets closer to uncovering the truth about an internationally powerful cartel, his chances of survival geometrically drop by the hour.

Conspiracy buffs will name the publishing date of KINGDOM COME as a national holiday. Jim Hougan answers the questions about the paranormal and extraterrestrial forces at work in today's world. The global conspiracy has religious undertones, headed by a wealthy organization that hides in plain sight. Readers will cheer on the likable lead protagonist who is an every person fighting a Quixote-like quest that has no boundaries. Though the tale is filled with many surprises, Mr. Hougan never loses sight of his main theme: the truth is right here not out there.

Harriet Klausner

Rating:
Summary: Poorer Man's DaVinci Code
Review: Whether writting under his psuedonym John Case with his wife, or going solo, Jim Hougan has a definite gift for creating likeable characters who get caught up in the unexpected while carrying out seemingly dronelike yet out of the ordinary jobs. Hougan's main man in "Kingdom Come", Jack Dunphy has been relegated to glorified information gopher at Langley after having been pulled off an undercover assignment in London after the death of an Oxford Professor of Jungian psychology whom he had under surveillance. Dunphy's annoyance at being yanked from his cozy nest with British sweetie Clementine enhanced by the frustratingly endless grunt work of public information gathering lead him to buck the system and uncover the relevance of the professor's death. What he discovers is a Gordian knot of intrigue that eventually threatens his life and the lives of anyone with whom he comes into contact.

As Dunphy plows through clues that take him all over Europe, the reader breathlessly turns page after page, liking Dunphy and his cohorts immediately. The facts that he uncovers make for fascinating reading---puzzlers will enjoy being thrown information seemingly straight out of left field. Unfortunately, as the story leads into its ultimate denouement, it becomes choppy, the ending sequences beginning at the estate within the Swiss National Park and the ending voyage at sea seem rushed and not fully thought out, as if the author had run out of steam and simply wanted to finish the story under 400 pages. The last paragraph leads the reader to believe some sort of transference has taken place, but obviously this is certainly not developed and there seems no hint of a part two where the reader can stretch his imagination further.

Kingdom Come utilizes themes that have become familiar territory after the publication of the very popular "DaVinci Code". But in as much as that novel also rushes the reader in and out of intriguing snippets of history replete with secret societies, it does come to a fairly complete, if not predictable, conclusion--not so with "Kingdom Come"---the protoganists accomplish their missions, but the ending seems to grasp at something not quite touched upon in the main body of the work. I would have liked to have read more information regarding the gentleman introduced at the tail end of the novel, perhaps even a concurrent historical story running parallel to the actual action tale. Perhaps then, I would have felt that the ending had some meaning in terms of this gentleman's characterization and overall fit into the overall scheme of things. The focus should have been on him and not the Pound/Dulles affair showcased by the author. As with the "John Case" selections, Hougan again seems to fall into the trap of simply using his book to over-instruct his readers on trivia that while fun has little to do with the overall outcome of the story. Providing a reading guide at the back of the book would definitely be a plus for those readers who want more information and do wish to read further.

Nevertheless Hougan presents a great page-turner for at least 7/8's of the book's journey and I will recommend it with some reluctance to anyone who likes a quick read with some fun historical mysteries thrown in.