Severe Clear

A Stone Barrington Novel, Book 24

By: Stuart Woods

Narrated by: Tony Roberts

Length: 7 hrs and 38 mins

Publisher's Summary

Stone Barrington is called to Bel-Air to oversee an exclusive event that will gather the top echelons of the beau monde: Hollywood starlets, socialites, politicos, billionaires from overseas. It’s a task in which Stone has a personal stake, and one that is made all the more pleasurable - though somewhat more complicated - with the arrivals of two beautiful women with whom he’s intimately acquainted.

But the grand occasion has also attracted a dangerous criminal group with sinister plans. The hunt to find them leads Stone into a complex web of deceit and misdirection, in a world where the intrigues of government intelligence collide with the clandestine machinations of the upper crust.

As he draws nearer to his quarry, he realizes that the stakes are higher than anybody could ever imagine...and that the enemies he’s seeking might just be hiding in plain sight.

©2012 Stuart Woods (P)2012 Penguin Audio

Less Stone and Dino, more crap about the Wealthy

Any additional comments?

It seems Stuart Woods is drifting away from Stone Barrington. These books are more and more about peripheral characters and less and less about Stone and Dino. It's not the same and not what I buy the books for. They were never anything but fairly simplistic, but I enjoyed them for their escapist value. Now, with Woods concentrating on everything but Stone, including characters that were formerly the objects of derision (like Herbie Fisher who now has to be called Herb and who Woods has made into a younger version of Stone), I am close to not getting any more of them. If the next one is like this, I'm done.

Amaturish

I find my self in the unwanted position of not not knowing who to recommending this book to. It doesn't fit into the mystery or the thriller category. Stuart Woods is a great author but his dipping a toe into the technothriller realm is not successful.

He should have created a character within the Barrington novels and started another series with an occasional cameo by Stone.

Leave Stone as a semi-cop lawyer

Definately not Stone at his best!

Is there anything you would change about this book?

Narration wonderful as always-story not well developed, sketchy, found myself for the first time not really caring if Stone won or not!

Which character – as performed by Tony Roberts – was your favorite?

Stone, as always!

Glorifies characters too much, too little story

What would have made Severe Clear better?

Get to the meat of the story

Has Severe Clear turned you off from other books in this genre?

No.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Tony Roberts?

Roberts is OK, but just average

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

Once he got to the story, it was fine.

Any additional comments?

No

Stone should stick to being an attorney!

Woods' writing style and Roberts' narrative style are both plodding. Even this plot, which should have had me in suspense, did not. After 24 books starring Stone Barrington I am not going to abandon him but I am growing tired of listening to uneventful stories. Stone is not aging well with me! If this were the first book one read with these characters I cannot imagine reading a second.

Another short story

What did you like best about Severe Clear? What did you like least?

I've always liked the characters, but these books seem to get shorter and shorter. The storyline is predictable. His books have become a quick very read.

Would you be willing to try another book from Stuart Woods? Why or why not?

I will only keep up with the Stone Barrington, but anything else no.

Could you see Severe Clear being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

no, too short no indepth story.

Any additional comments?

Spend more time building the story and give us more then you have been lately with the past couple of books.

Enjoyable but not a homerun

Would you try another book from Stuart Woods and/or Tony Roberts?

Yes

If you’ve listened to books by Stuart Woods before, how does this one compare?

N/A

What does Tony Roberts bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The narrator gives the book life and allows more to be imagined.

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

Yes

Any additional comments?

This book did keep my attention but did seem simple in it's plot and very predictable.

More Clear Skys for Stone

Stone does it again. The Stone Barrington series by Stuart Woods for nubies are short siimplistic stories where it generally, but not always, turns out wonderful for everyone in the end. Even the "town fool" Herbie becomes a multimillionaire and always gets the girl. In short these are great fun breaks from reality. Always well written. Narration always consistent.

Severe Clear

Super story. world espionage and they save the day. so many twists and turns I couldn't stop listening.

Not my favorite

Love this series but this one is not as much fun. Doesn't spend much time on the people and that's what I enjoy most.