The Ghost War by Alex Berenson (2011-12-06)

I enjoyed The Faithful Spy, however in this one I can really see the author developing his style. The Ghost War is very well researched and I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the books in the series.

Berenson's unusual perspective on heroism with John Wells is always enjoyable. I love the genre with authors such as Flynn, Thor, Silva, etc. Berenson adds another look into the dark world created by his contemporaries.

Berenson strikes again as this action thriller keeps you up at night. Just as in the best works of Le Carre, Wells and associated constantly struggle to figure out who is on their side. The problem is, much of the time you can't be sure, which can be deadly. Berenson's time in Irag for the the NY Times comes through as the fighting scenes come across particularly well.
buy the book!

Berenson strikes again as this action thriller keeps you up at night. Just as in the best works of Le Carre, Wells and associated constantly struggle to figure out who is on their side. The problem is, much of the time you can't be sure, which can be deadly. Berenson's time in Irag for the the NY Times comes through as the fighting scenes come across particularly well.
buy the book!

This is a fabulous read. His only problem so far is that he is not writing fast enough. I finished this book and immediately looked for the next one. If you want a well written complex story line with fully developed scenes that are well paced,this is it.

Berenson is a New York Times reporter, and as you may know, they are generally unable to write a story without injecting their liberal agenda into it. His first book, The Faithful Spy, managed to tell a compelling story with only a hint of political lecturing. As others have pointed out, in Ghost War, Berenson feels the need to stop the action and deliver a full-fledged diatribe about how America has become as bad as our enemies. This liberal lecturing is also quite common in the movie and television industry, so it was not really a shock. Just as I will no longer watch any of the "Law and Order" shows on TV, so will I not bother with any more of Berenson's books.

If this type of thing is your cup of tea, you may enjoy the story.

Following his heroics in stopping the terrorist attack on Times Square (The Faithful Spy), Wells is at loose ends. He finally gets an assignment to return to Afghanistan to squelch a mountain attack on American troops, where natives have been trained by foreign professionals. Political alliances are bringing the world to the brink of war: Russia and China in league with Iran, and China with North Korea. A mole at the Langley HQ has left the CIA without ears and eyes in China, which is stretching its muscle by baiting America into war. With double agents on both sides, who do you trust? In the most exciting section of the book, Wells is captured while trying to make contact with a Chinese mole. Despite the 2008 publication, this is another timely story from Berenson.

I reviewed Berenson's debut novel (The Faithful Spy) a few months ago by saying this was looking like a promising series. The Ghost War is the second entry in Berenson's John Wells series and it is a great read, almost on par with Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan books in their heyday.

The book concerns rising tensions and intricate behind-the-scenes political maneuvering between the US and China. Berenson deals with a large and very diverse cast of characters and covers a vast geographical spread as well (from North Korean waters to Chinese slums to the suburbs of Virginia).

Berenson successfully creates interesting characters (even the bit players are very well fleshed out) and puts them in really tricky situations. It is fascinating to watch these characters work their way out of their problems. In a book packed with exciting geopolitical scenarios, colorful and canny spies, shady arms dealers and desperate Chinese laborers, it is a real shame that the two nominal protagonists - Wells and Exley - are so generic and cliched. Their relationship, their dialogue, their interactions - everything feels to contrived and perfunctory. They lack any chemistry and at no point in the novel did I feel any empathy or sympathy or connection to either one of them.

I hope future entries in this series (I believe there is one more) correct this glaring flaw.

This is a classic spy novel story. Alex Berenson tosses John Wells into the lion’s den of al-Qaeda. In true from, John thrives and begins uncovering all kinds of information. This leads to a problem as his CIA handlers become suspicious and think that he has begun working for the enemy. The result is a really great story that shows the western distrust for anything Middle Eastern and this makes for a fantastic read. I really liked this book and it just shows how wonderful a writer Alex Berenson really is.

The Ghost War features CIA agent John Wells, who much like Vince Flynn's Mitch Rapp character, is the kind of agent that doesn't play nicely with others, but does manage to get things done when others can't. The novel starts off with a sequence of events that are seemingly unrelated. First is the killing of a North Korean scientist who is a mole for the US, along with a top CIA agent, a secret deal between a Chinese general and the Iranians, a double agent in the CIA feeding the Chinese sensitive information, and the training of Taliban fighters by Russians. Wells gets in the middle of the action trying to uncover the plot. He starts off the story reckless and nearly suicidal after foiling an al-Qaeda plot in Times Square, and needs to get back into the action. Focusing his energy against terrorists is a means of survival for him.
The action in this novel is very strong. There is a good deal of political intrigue, back door deals, and treachery. Wells has to go off the books to get things done. Although he kills when he has to, it's not something he takes lightly and haunts him afterward. Wells comes off as a believable character, as well as many of the villainous characters, who come off as more human than most bad guy characters. The novel finishes in a fiery conclusion that is satisfying.
Carl Alves - author of Blood Street

Alex Berenson continues to impress me. In "The Ghost War" he does an excellent job wea ving the Taliban, China and spookery into a plot CIA agent John Wells can somehow manage to be at the center of, with good up-to-the-minute detail.

Now a hero for the dramatic takedown of a nuclear terrorist in the first novel, Wells finds himself at loose ends after years undercover with the Taliban. He's living with CIA officer Jennifer Exley but his depression is taking a toll on their relationship. To shake off the cobwebs he accepts a mission into Afghanistan to track the source of foreign support for the Taliban.

Meanwhile, a CIA mole working for the Chinese suspects the gig is up when a high-ranking Chinese spy defects to the West. Exley and her brilliant but flaky boss start winnowing through the staff, trying to figure out who it is.

US-China tensions ratchet up after a naval accident takes civilian lives, and get even worse when the Chinese retailate militarily. With war looming and the CIA's China operation blown, the US is flying blind in defusing the crisis. What they don't know is the intrigue at the heart of China's response. But one big asset, long under cover, might be able to help the US. There's only one catch: Wells will have to go into Beijing - full of riots and near complete military lockdown - to meet him.

I liked Berenson's depiction of modern China, particularly the growing unrest of those whom the nation's new prosperity has not reached. The best thrillers lately seem to be written about China. (I'm particularly waiting for Larry Bond's next installment of "Red Dragon Rising".)

Now, for some quibbles: the Chinese leader manipulating tensions is also the one with the greatest resentment towards growing corruption, and the greatest sympathy to the wretched of the earth (of China, anyway). Does Berenson want us to see him as a good guy? If so, how can we want Wells to foil his plot?

Wells quotes Bruce Springsteen a little too much (he's the wrong generation, for starters), worries inwardly about the-rich-and-powerful-who-send-men-off-to-die a little too much for a war that has nothing to do with that, and generally seems to write for a Bush-lied crowd that probably wouldn't admit to reading CIA shoot-em-ups like this anyway. Springsteen? It just doesn't fit with a guy who was a devout Muslim, alienated from American culture, in the first book, only a few months before the events of this one. I liked him better then.

Anyway, it's all kind of silly considering Wells is a fearless CIA op who fought undercover for the Taliban, who here takes on dangerous missions in Afghanistan and China (and, well, OK, the Hamptons); who kills when he must, despite whatever overdrawn remorse Berenson seems to need him to feel before Wells decides invariably that he'll keep on doing it. Maybe he is writing for New York Times book reviewers? He wants to be the Tom Clancy of liberals? Berenson was traumatized over the "24" furor about Jack Bauer and torture? Beats me. The moral agonizing just doesn't fit in with the very-good rest of it.

Because in the real world, you know John Wells is a Republican.

This is one action packed spy novel. Listening to it from an audio book, I appreciated the reader's ability to go from one accent to another as characters in the book came from varied countries in the Far East and Russia, as well as the United States. This book is chock full of sub plots as evidenced by the fact that there are 10 cd's.

If you are taking a long car ride, a road trip somewhere, this is the book to take. It will keep your mind jumping from the constant suspense and yet the plot is realistic; there are plausible possibilities that something like this could actually occur if diabolical minds were intent on causing world catastrophes with the ultimate goal of gaining more power.

John Wells is the ultimate spymaster. Fearless and brave, he is nevertheless, an enigma. Will he prevent the crisis from bringing about a war or will he be the victim of his own courage and dedication to the cause of freedom.

China is joining forces with Iran, helping them to attain nuclear power while using North Korea to incite an incident with the United States so that an unscrupulous minister in China can ascend to the top of his party and become, in his mind, even better than MAO. Although his motives are to supposedly to help advance the cause of the Chinese people, his arrogance about his own worth propels him forward and poisons his efforts. The Chinese spy network seems far superior to ours as does their powers of logic and deduction in a crisis.

Even Russia is involved in this master plot, since they are represented immersed in the struggle for world domination, using North Korea and Iran to help China against the United States. Who will be the next superpower?

Actually, the United States seems woefully underrepresented in the smarts department, in this book. They seem like bunglers, so impressed with their own success and power that they make foolish decisions that don't seem well thought out and therefore end in failure. Of course it is a novel, so the author can write it anyway he wishes and in the end, his hero will win out regardless of whether or not his skills are superior.

As an audio book, to keep you awake and always guessing, this fills the bill. It is not rocket science, but it sure is entertaining.

This book delivers so much technical data about war materiel and message coding that I had to wonder if some of it had been invented, and I want to ask the author if that was so. On the other hand, perhaps it is best to leave the doubt alone if the suspension of disbelief when reading Berenson's thrillers is to remain unbroken. John Wells goes to Beijing this time (after a side trip to Afghanistan to fight an encampment of the Taliban and capturing a Russian to top it off) to meet a defector, a genuine one unlike the first one in the custody of British Intelligence. Back in Langley, the team Shafer/Exley provide their vital backup while Wells enters into a danger zone in China.

"The Ghost War" was better than Alex Berenson's first John Wells book "The Faithful Spy," which is quite a compliment. About the only issue I had with the first book was that it drug a bit in the middle once Wells returned from Afghanistan. "The Ghost War" had little in the way of back story on Wells' family issues, so it was more consistently fast-paced.

This one sees Wells return to Afghanistan to help take out some Taliban forces who are operating at clearly a more professional level. Meanwhile, we also see Li Ping, the Chinese defense minister, plotting a way to force America into submission. There are unseen connections at work and Wells must get to the bottom of it before both countries go to war.

My only disagreement with this book is not a unique one--Wells' "super human" ability to overcome some brutal physical activities. But then, that's what heros do, no?

I would encourage interested readers to start with "The Faithful Spy" although it's not mandatory. But since it's so good, you'll be glad you did. Now let's see if Berenson can make it three in a row with "The Silent Man."

Enjoying his first novel led me onto this one. It is well written and I can see parts of his personal feelings coming through in a fiction novel. We do and he explains live very close to the edge of War every day of our lives. He builds a very good knowledge of this in the book. He also closely with John Wells and others show what a certain breed of man goes deep into our operations of America to protect us all. These men are our true patriots. No politician can equal these men but they like to take all the credit for their accomplishments. Our deep operatives, middle and poor men and women in the military are what we have to count on to protect our country. No governmental people will risk their familys or themselves as our so called under class will. Even though it is fiction we that know honor them all and look down upon the lowly governmental slugs that take all the credit. Read it you will enjoy it.

John Wells might be some distant relation to Jack Ryan. The problem with these types of books is that however hard the author may try to give his character a challenging situation he also has to give him the ability to get out of it again. Hence the two or three times that Mr. Wells seems like he is in actual physical danger he never going to stay that way long. I read these kind of books and find myself rooting for the obligatory mole at the CIA. The only thing I really did not like about the book was that Berenson ruins the suspense immediately by giving away his identity to easily.

Overall-Its perfectly fine for what it is the hero saves the day and gets the girl, just never read a spy book expecting innovation audiences (and I include myself) don't want innovation they want the tried and true formula. If Tom Clancy were getting his start today he would also be forced to write books dealing with the Chinese situation.

If you enjoyed author Alex Berenson's first novel "The Faithful Spy" you won't be disappointed in this second John Wells thriller. A myriad of clandestine activities are taking place. A scientist is being smuggled out of North Korea; a power play in the upper echelon of the Chinese Communist Party is trying to push China into an alliance with the Taliban; Iran is pursuing its nuclear ambition; a mole in the CIA is giving up its secrets. All of this seems designed to push the United States into potentially disastrous confrontations. Once again, John Wells is thrust into the middle of all this intrigue.

What Berenson does so effectively is to take these events and make them seem somewhat plausible. The reader is able to identify with story as it relates to current events. Berenson deftly keeps the rhythm of the action constant and easy to follow without losing any of its gripping tension. For me, the book's 400 pages dissolved in the blink of an eye. "The Ghost War" is another great read.

Alex Berenson's premiere thriller, THE FAITHFUL SPY, introduced CIA agent John Wells, a character who truly stood out among fictional spies. He had been under cover for ten years, infiltrating Al Qaeda. Embedded, he became a practicing Muslim in deed and, intriguingly, thought.

THE GHOST WAR picks up Wells' story after he has been back in the U.S. for some time. Insomnia plagues his restless mind and body, so he speeds along largely empty interstates in the dead of night on his black Honda motorcycle, taking "joyless joyrides." He's become a re-Americanized guy, a guy who no longer prays five times a day, who is no longer Muslim (or "Moslem," the alternate spelling) and therein lies a loss of distinction. Suddenly, Alex Berenson's hero tends to blend into the crowd of fellow super-spies whose tales line the bookstore adventure shelves.

Once one has accustomed oneself to Wells' more generic identity, THE GHOST WAR is a solid (but not exceptional) read. He is a hero at loose ends, a man in need of a new mission, his loyal and loving girlfriend (and boss), Jennifer Exley, is sure. And since the world is never a static, uncomplicated place, one comes his way in short order.

The basic geopolitical premises the fuel the plot are credible. Certainly, China and the U.S. could flirt dangerously with war. Certainly, North Korea, Iran, Afghanistan, and other "hot spots" could play parts in exacerbating tensions between the current superpower and, according to some predictions, its presumed successor. And it goes without saying that the CIA sends spies to gather vital intelligence and extract foreign nationals who are vital assets. So, THE GHOST WAR is, in many ways, a believable techno-thriller. Perhaps, the machinations and motivations amongst the Chinese rulers are over-simplified, but overall, Berenson maintains a good pace, introduces characters skillfully, and pumps up the suspense level several times to fine effect.

John Wells is an American spy and man of action worth following through further adventures, but he would stand out in the genre better if he regained some of the unique outlook with which he was originally introduced.

I read Berenson's first book, "The Faithful Spy" and just finished "The Ghost War." John Wells is back in this book and the twists in the book kept me turning the pages.

China and Iran are becoming friendly. Too friendly for U.S. intelligence sources. Meanwhile, North Korea has a "mole" who has spied for the U.S. and needs to get out of North Korea. John Wells is involved in a great deal of the issues/plots in the book including his return to Afghanistan where he encounters paid mercenaries from the former Soviet Union.

The book never slows down and Berenson leaves a couple of doors open at the end of the book for future books since Wells is a hunted man by some bad guys and a man who will probably be hunting down some bad guys in future books. I thought the book almost had too many plots, but Berenson pulls off a great read. Do yourself a favor and read his first two books as they are well worth the time.

Berenson creates an interesting character in John Wells--hero, super-spy, and a man's man. Wells apparently saved the United States from certain destruction, at least he saved New York City, and is world reknowned because of his heroism.

Wells is a tactician, friend of few and a lover of one woman (admirable in this genre of books). However, Berenson could have added more depth to Wells' character, as well as that of the others he writes about.

The plot was good, make no mistake, but the rest of the book--everything leading up to the very climactic end--was a bit slow. I feel as though this character will continue to grow in the author's mind and become more well rounded as more novels are written, but this one wasn't of the league of Clancy or even Barry Eisler.

I don't mind recommending this book but I wouldn't run out with the sole intent of adding it to my collection.

Berenson's first book, The Faithful Spy, was amazing - crisp writing, well-thought-out action, fine character development. The loss that John Wells incurred by serving as the secret servant of the US for many years was staggeringly portrayed: the deaths of his parents, the loss of contact with his child, the sense of being out-of-step with what he thought of as his own culture, all of this should have made even the most cynical readers think about what deep-cover agents agree to give up. It's hard to imagine how Berenson could have upped the stakes in a second novel.

And he doesn't. He simply provides a compelling and realistic continuation of the narrative. What can Wells do to top saving the world in Times Square? Not much. But Berenson gives us another tale well worth reading, as well as a number if political zingers to wonder over.

The John Wells character continues to develop in The Ghost War, and unsurprisingly he is beset by doubts about how he can sustain the life he has fallen into back in the States. Berenson, realizing that his readers expect action, doesn't let this introspection go on too long, but it is a necessary preface to the main events of the novel; without that we would just have James Bond walking in the door and greeting Moneypenny, ready for the next adventure.

Jennifer Exley, the CIA handler who saves Wells in the first book, is back, but we see less of her than I had hoped. There are some passages about her choice of a professional life over the young children she has, but these all have a slightly formulaic ring. Yes, Exley avoids stereotypes, but that's about the best that we can say for her in this book. Even her out-of-the-box solution for getting Wells back is given only the briefest brush of ink. More next time?

The other important characters - Li, Cao, and the mole - are believable, but the American character's motivation is given much, much more ink, something of a problem, I think. Cao's thinking is at least as important, but we don't get enough of it.

These are quibbles. The settings - the coast of North Korea, Afghanistan, China -- are vividly described, the action is practically non-stop, and the day is saved by human cleverness and perseverance, not by techno-interventions. The DC in-fighting has the sad ring of truth, while the recognition of China as a threat moves beyond head-line ripping and into political commentary. This is a terrific read.

Berenson's 2nd novel is another OK read, but sets a good trend for his writing style. I enjoyed "The Faithful Spy", although the Hollywood shoot-em-up, Bruce Willis/Die Harder scenes had me gagging.

In "The Ghost War" Berenson continues from his first novel in addressing current events/issues in a plausible way. Here, though, Berenson uses a more deliberate style which I found more appealing. Unlike his first novel, Berenson does not maintain a sharp focus; he introduces a lot of moving parts as the money and political dealings cross borders again and again, then he inserts John Wells into completely implausible scenarios to bring the loose ends together.

So, not a schlocky "Hollywood" ending, but this book unravels in a different way. Still, I like the trend in style, and will read his third book.

With just his second book, Alex Berenson, in my opinion has joined the ranks of today's elite spy thriller writers. The Ghost War, like its predecessor featuring CIA agent John Wells, is a tension-mounting thriller that has Wells returning to Afghanistan to investigate evidence the CIA received pertaining to a surge in Taliban activity backed by an unknown foreign power. But what he finds there is far from what he expected. Without going into detail, The Ghost War will have you on the edge of your seat as it tells its tale of the world hurtling toward confrontation as a result of a power play in China, an Iran determined to go to nuclear, and a mole within the ranks of the CIA. As with The Faithful Spy, Berenson's The Ghost War is well-written, exciting and very true-to-life. Further, the author has created characters that are believable and interesting; and John Wells is a character I definitely plan to go along with when the third book in the series, called The Silent Man, is published in March. Like most books, The Ghost War has some very minor flaws but they really aren't worth taking up your time describing. Rest assured, The Ghost War is a very worthwhile read, but I recommend that you read its predecessor, The Faithful Spy, first.

Berenson rights books with elaborate twisting plots . He shows war as it really is , and he shows the maneuvering behind the scenes . Sometimes it's rough but he makes it clear that sometimes rough is necessary . Recommended

Berenson definitely pulls off another solid and entertaining entry into the counter-terrorism political thriller genre with The Ghost War, the second in a line of four novels centered on CIA operative John Wells (and the sequel to The Faithful Spy).

This book has all the right ingredients: great main characters, an edge-of-your-seat plot with the world on the brink of war and double agents infiltrating governments everywhere you look, and vivid, easy-to-read storytelling that will keep you hooked. However, this book lacks a lot of what made The Faithful Spy so fresh and powerful.

John Wells plays a far less conflicted role in this novel, easing into the more stereotypical CIA counter-terrorism agent who is assigned to stop the United States' enemies - first in Afghanistan and ultimately in China. Along the way, he visits a Russian arms dealer and helps investigate the death of a North Korean spy working for the Agency. So the plot easily spans the globe and has more than enough action and intrigue to keep your attention... it just lacks the originality and tension of the first book in the series.

Another addition to this book that the first did not have is a little more insight into the author's political leanings - which I found slightly disappointing if only because it made for some confusing internal dialog at some points. For instance, (minor plot spoiler ahead) at one point Wells finds himself captured by the Chinese and strung up to be tortured. Before he begins getting beaten, he wonders to himself if the torture he was about to undergo was some sort of karma-like revenge for what Americans had done to Iraq or for waterboarding or for all the other methods of torture the United States' lawyers said wasn't torture. It seemed quite out of place for a license-to-kill CIA operative to be having those thoughts, not to mention the non-existant logical connection between American 'torture' and what the Chinese were about to do to him. Hopefully that doesn't happen too much in the next two books.

While those two issues keep the book from getting 5/5 from me, they are minor when compared to how good the story is and how well-written it is. I would still recommend this series if you're at all into this genre.