Warlord

Alex Hawke, Book 6

By: Ted Bell

Narrated by: John Shea

Length: 16 hrs and 51 mins

Publisher's summary

Alex Hawke has all but given up on life. The British-American MI6 counterterrorism operative lost the woman he loved almost a year ago and has sought refuge at the bottom of a rum bottle ever since. But late one night at his home on Bermuda, he receives a wake-up call... literally.

His Royal Highness Prince Charles, an old friend, desperately needs his help. The prince has discovered a not-so-subtle threat directed toward the British royal family. What’s more, the evidence reveals an ominous connection to Charles’s godfather, Lord Mountbatten - the beloved family patriarch assassinated by an ingeniously designed bomb 30 years before. A shadowy figure from the past has the British crown in his sights, and has proven once before that his warnings are not to be taken lightly. Several clues point to IRA involvement, but the authorities have little to go on and answers are scarce. This is just the call to duty Hawke needs to get back into action - if the madman doesn’t strike first.

Take another thrill ride with Alex Hawke.

©2010 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Bell's fine sixth thriller featuring swashbuckling British spy Alex Hawke mixes action and suspense with just the right amount of humor and old-fashioned boys-book adventure." ( Publishers Weekly)

“A James Bondish adventure brought up to date…. A meaty, entertaining thriller…just the thing for fans of Ludlum, Trevanian and Fleming.” ( Kirkus Reviews)

Unexpectedly Entertaining

What did you love best about Warlord?

This is my first book by Ted Bell or the narrator John Shea. I had minimal expectations before beginning, but was immediately immersed into a great story by an excellent reader.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Warlord?

Since this is very similar to the epic adventures on a great James Bond book, you can say there is a single moment. The twists and turns, different venues, and outrageous situations are all memorable.

Have you listened to any of John Shea’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have not listened to any of John Shea's work. However, half way through the book I did a search to find other works he has done. One of the best I have listened to so far.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

The book had some extreme action sequences and situations. I cannot believe that these books have not be good candidates for Hollywood action movies.

Brilliant!!!!

My favorite so far! In the words of Harry Brock " this book is cursing good!" I loved the way Ted Bell wove historical tragic events with the royal family within his plot! Never saw the ending twist coming - Brilliant!!!!!

Betcha Saw This Coming …

… if you listened to “Tsar” first. Yes, the predictable surprise-ending to “Warlord” will probably come as no surprise at all to anyone who has listened to the previous episode in the Alex Hawke series (after all, he never 𝙙𝙞𝙙 actually see the body, did he?); but never mind: “Warlord” still provides us with rip-roaring good entertainment. However, starting with “Tsar,” I would suggest that you need to listen to the Alex Hawke series in order … In other words: Listen to “Tsar” before you listen to “Warlord,” so you will fully understand why Alex is moping around so badly in the first chapter, and why the last chapter comes as no surprise. Also, prepare to suspend disbelief entirely for the whole Alex Hawke series. Although author Ted Bell does do his research, and comes up with some pretty scary scenarios for his novels — based on actual real-world situations — he then extrapolates potential threats to their worst-possible outcomes; at which point Alex Hawke, & Co. must step in to save the world — 𝙖𝙜𝙖𝙞𝙣 — at the last moment. Good stuff for all thriller-lovers!

Some reviewers have accused Ted Bell of right-wing racism. While Bell certainly does lean considerably to the right; and one could legitimately accuse him of testosterone-poisoning — and maybe even a bit of misogyny (which kinda goes with the testosterone-poisoning, right, ladies?) — I must disagree with the racism accusation. I think, rather, that Mr. Bell is fiercely patriotic and just plain fed-up with all terrorism and any “P.C” tolerance for terrorists. To quote one of the minor characters in “Warlord:”

“They hated the country, the people, and the government, from what he had read in the Daily Mirror. Terry had an idea: If they didn’t bloody like it here — didn’t like our flag, our religion, our way of life — pack up and go home! He had never expressed those feelings out loud, of course — very un-P.C., as his wife would say. But he was beginning to wonder about this whole “P.C.” movement. He thought that it was ruining everything … especially the truth.”

As a dyed-in-the-wool liberal, I none-the-less tend to agree with Mr. Bell on this issue. To mis-quote Winston Churchill: “Anyone who is not liberal in their youth has no heart. Anyone who is not conservative in their maturity has no brain.” Experience does, hopefully, teach us a thing, or two; including the hard lesson that tolerance has its limits. On the other hand, Mr. Bell needs to exercise some anger-management in his proposed solutions to the terrorism dilemma, lest we emulate the terrorists themselves. Do terrorists deserve due-process? Obviously not. Should we apply the same torture-techniques to the terrorists that they use on their hostages? Hmmm …

Animal-lovers, stand forewarned about this audiobook: I have deducted a star from my rating of “Warlord,” because of the scene where Alex Hawke & Co. murder their pack-animals, in order to provide a bullet-bulwark against approaching Afghan Mujahideen fanatics. As a devoted animal-lover and animal-rights activist, I could not bear this scene, and will never listen to this audiobook again, because of it. To me, murdering or hurting other animals differs in no way from murdering or hurting our fellow humans: Both are criminal actions — every bit as evil as terrorism — and devising a literary predicament where murdering animals provides the only solution sends a wrong message. I therefore recommend against this audiobook to all animal-lovers, although I generally recommend the Alex Hawke series to thriller-lovers.

Poor Alex Hawke!

Poor Alex Hawke, he does not seem able to keep his mates alive. Then he goes into a terrible self destructive dive and then miracles, he recovers to work on another problem. The theme is getting old. The whole book seemed to be very formula driven. It was a difficult to listen to since it seemed so mechanical. I normally like Ted Bell style of writing but this book could have been by any thrill writer. I am probably done with listening to this series.

Warlord Review

Really Good Read! Another exciting adventure with Alex Hawke and his friends......enjoyed this book on my MP3 player.

Excellent listen

Wow... is this a movie or going to be? This is everything the action movies of today are and more. Stokes is my absolute favorite! I have stayed away from the current wave of terrorist novels because I see enough of that on the news. I listen for entertainment and suspense. This book has opened a new world in listening for me and I will be enjoying another one of Mr Bell's books soon. - it really SHOULD be made into a movie, though!
John Shea has to be one of the best male narrators as well. Kuddos for an excellent listen!

Light entertainment

I enjoyed listening to this novel. It was pure escapism, not the best plot I've ever heard, but still one that kept me interested. I thought the narration was very good, the accents exceptional, especially "Hawk" and "Stoke".

Disappointing

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

I have enjoyed this series until this book. Perhaps not great literature, but at least enjoyable yarns. This story is contrived, disjointed and boring. Not even Princess Di could save it. It seems likely this is one where Bell owed his editor another book, but didn't want to write it. I may try one more (if he writes any more) in this series, but if it is not a lot better than this one, I'm done.

What do you think your next listen will be?

Human Blend by Alan Dean Foster.

Which scene was your favorite?

Wasn't one.

Did Warlord inspire you to do anything?

Erase it before I was done.

Won't dissapoint!

Great book! Fast paced and action packed! Alex Hawke never dissapoints and neither does Ted Bell! I absolutely love the ending and set up for the next book, I'll be waiting anxiously for it! Back to Russia (Hint)!

Typical Alex Hawke, Wanna be Bond...

This book was one of my favorites even though the suspension of disbelief must be pretty high, this book & 'Pirate' are not bad & 'Tsar' rounds it out to the top 3 I think in the Bond Wanna-be books... Stokley is still the coolest character, any large special forces black man the size of an armoire with an extremely funny sense of humor. Since all the Hawke books are average comparable speaking to most other books of this Genre I'm going to write a small spoiler, I would borrow 'Tsar' from the library just to hear John Shea's voice for Vlad Putin & the conversation he has with Hawke in Energetica

This book is not bad because its the book that comes right after 'Tsar' & how he ends up coping with what happens in that particular book & what it takes to get him back in the saddle or his Aston again... seriously, some people say he's not a bond wanna-be? The only reason he isn't is because he needs the other characters to get his jobs done, everyone from the family butler since he was a child, to Stokley Jones, to Harry Brock, to Congrieve... The concept of this book is OK although I don't think it would ever happen with the type of security a country like England has nowadays... Also the way America just trusts him is takes some suspension of disbelief because America is all about its own, it doesn't want a James Bond it wants a John Rambo lol...

The book does reveal where Hawke gets his hatred towards certain people & his past regarding his family & what happened to them... so if u were wondering about that, its revealed in this book, I would recommend this book for purely entertaining purposes... u will not venture into ur inner thoughts or give u a smile for revealing what family is all about... its a James Bond like book that will end like they all do... Hawke lives by the way *** spoiler lol ***