Rum Runner

Extreme Violence With Sophomoric Sex Unnecessary!

Revisado: 07-09-24

I may return this. Started out to be a good listen until the fish fillet knife with hand job scene. Not why I participate in Audible.

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Best Offering Yet

Revisado: 03-13-24

I have listened to all of them, and some I did not like. This one had it all, for me anyway. Loved the recall of former characters!

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Cannot Enjoy The Reading

Revisado: 05-30-23

Who does not like James Earl Jones? I thought I would like his reading of the New Testament. However I did not. He spoke too fast for his deep voice to be understood and internalized. I will search for another, less booming voice so that I might enjoy a narration of the King James version. Sorry.

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6 Hours Ain't Enough!!

Revisado: 11-19-22

This work has hidden gems everywhere. I was an Army pilot in Vietnam, 1966, and a true believer as most country song writers were. Country Joe and the Fish came along later and wrote quite differently about the war. That said, it took me 20 years to come to my senses about the tragic futility of "my war" and the ravaging of a beautiful land. I am quite sure Mr. Hall also saw it in another light as time passed. From Joel Bernstein in an article for Country Standard Time:

"In 1965, Hall still seemed to accept the government line about the need to save the world from Communism. But even in these early songs, Hall humanized the war. Both songs were sung from the soldier's perspective; it was "Good-bye sweetheart, hello Vietnam" and "Mama, please tell them what we're fighting for."

"These were a far cry from the strident jingoistic stance of many other songwriters. In fact, Hall says even "Hello Vietnam" was written with a degree of irony. "I wrote it with the idea of 'Hello, another war.'"

"A few years later, Hall wrote "Mama Bake A Pie." This too was sung from the soldier's perspective, but now he's returning home as a cripple. Hall never directly criticized the war effort in this song, but the horrible picture of war he painted spoke for itself."

As I continued my Army career as a flight instructor stateside, Tom T Hall became my WWII Submarine veteran Dad's favorite recording artist. Oh my how the memories of my father are flowing tonight . . . . a camp fire somewhere in Baja, rot gut tequila (is there any better kind) and singing "Old Dogs, Children and Water Melon Wine" or his grandkid's favorite . . . "Sneaky Snake".

I probably can't convince the Millennial generation to read this book, but every Boomer and Gen X traveler should. Wow, just wow!! And the best part is at my age, in 6 months the book will seem brand new again!

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Among the Very Best in the Genre.

Revisado: 05-25-22

If someone is fairly well versed in reading legal thrillers, I believe it becomes obvious that the best storytellers are active or former judges and lawyers. That is surely the case here. When Michael Stagg gave up the law to write full time, the courtroom lost a most articulate and talented attorney. However the bright side is that the bar's loss is our gain as devoted readers of the genre. His 5th book is out on the shelves but as an audio book addict I'm holding out for that as George Newbern does a stellar job not often heard. He is in the same rarified air as Dennis Boutsikaris, Edward Herrmann, and Ed Sala. As one reads through his first 4 books, it is good to enjoy the familiarity that comes with taking them in order however they are perfectly fine as stand-alone enjoyment. The twists and turns towards the end are very well crafted and the author ties up loose ends to my satisfaction anyway. Michael Stagg is an excellent legal wordsmith and I highly recommend his offerings.

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Well Crafted All The Way Around

Revisado: 05-10-22

It's always a pleasant surprise when fishing in the pond of a pond of legal thriller authors to come up with an excellent catch. So it was with this work. I found it entertaining, gripping, and in this layman's opinion very well done. The narration was also stellar along the lines of Dennis Boutsikaris, Herrmann and and Scott Brick. I'm happy to be moving on to his next novel.

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Destined to be a classic

Revisado: 04-14-22

Is this novel can carry you away to another time. So many great reviews here already so I'll just say well done, very engaging.

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Narration Was Total Mismatch With This Title

Revisado: 02-11-22

I know I cannot complain about the price, Audible Plus is always free, but always a roll of the proverbial dice. Narrator Peter Berkrot is well suited for "Lives of the Rich and Famous" TV series or "Top Ten Mega Yachts of the World", just not a historical work like "Mission". The first half of the book, the author pours on phrases like "Jimmy bagged such and such starlet" and many other tawdry lines. I realize that James Stewart is not deity but hey . . . . almost, and this kind of kiss, sex and tell writing belongs in the National Enquirer. I wanted to embrace this title as much or more than others like "Masters of the Air: America’s Bomber Boys Who Fought the Air War Against Nazi Germany" or "Target Tokyo: Jimmy Doolittle and the Raid That Avenged Pearl Harbor" however I was not able to do that.

I am no prude. I simply think that Mr Matzen mixed way too much of one ingredient, and way too little of the main ingredient thereby ending up with Hollywood smut. As a former Army pilot in Vietnam, I did find Jimmy's exploits in Europe fascinating and new to me. Around my house, we watch "It's A Wonderful Life" several times a year and I now can see where James Stewart found the deep emotion he used to so successfully act out several dramatic scenes in the film, scenes that leave my heart and soul aching for his character. This author could have done much better with the subject of his work. You all decide for yourselves. I was very disappointed.

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So This Is John Steinbeck . . . .

Revisado: 10-18-21

Yes, I know that this is an American Classic with hundreds of 5 star reviews here. The narration was indeed well done. But I am not going to spend any more time listening about pimps and whores or brothers beating on brothers. I cannot just pick op a book and read it solely because a great American author wrote it. I wanted Americana but there was only one Mark Twain after all. I didn't like "Of Mice and Men" either. "To Kill A Mockingbird" is an American Classic. "The Martian" will become an American classic. "Where The Crawdads Sing" will surely become an American classic! I simply was not engaged by this title.

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Too Much Action & Not Enough Character Development

Revisado: 08-16-21

I need a well rounded novel to include action for sure, but also side stories, character development, humor and a real hook. This gray man was not for me. The author didn't provide that for me. I just could not get into this work.

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