The Ghost War (A John Wells Novel)

4½ stars - John Wells is back and it's the year following the events of The Faithful Spy that found him saving the day in Times Square. His name is now known around the world and he's a national hero, though his face is still pretty much a mystery; thanks to the CIA's efforts, only 20 year old photos and a lot of misinformation about him are floating around. As The Ghost War begins, CIA agents are ambushed while trying to extract an informant in North Korea who's been compromised, which leads to the discovery that there's a mole somewhere in the Asia branch of the Agency. Meanwhile, back in the U.S., Jennifer Exley, Wells' girlfriend and former handler, has discovered that the Taliban, who are fighting better, smarter and with more coordination, which translates into a higher U.S. body count, appear to be doing so because they are getting help from white mercenaries. Wells ends up heading of to Afghanistan, while Exley and her and Wells' boss Ellis Shafer, begin looking into the mole who gave up the informant in North Korea. This next sentence or two may be as undecipherable as Sanskrit to Berenson's target/core audience. I read mostly YA and NA contemporary and YA and adult paranormal books and I was a little sick of it and decided I needed a break. Something with intrigue and espionage sounded good and I'd had this book sitting around for a while. Plus, I figured it would take me a while to get through this book. I was right on the first count, totally wrong on the second (it only took me a few days to blow through this one as well as the next book in the series). As with The Faithful Spy, there's a lot of action and a few twists, as seemingly unrelated events end up closely linked and we see what's going on from the POVs of characters on both sides of the conflict. I really enjoyed The Ghost War. Berenson is great at switching between characters, and not just the main characters, but secondary ones as well, while keeping the intensity high. Of course, he'd usually wait until something was going to happen, or had just happened, when he'd flip to another location with another character, which made me want to scream. Then, if it was a new character/location, he'd start building this new part up to the point where you'd almost forgotten how involved you were with what had been happening. If it was a new character, you knew there was a good chance that things were going to end up less than well for him, but Berenson still manages to get you fully involved in this latest, though possibly very brief, storyline (It reminds me of Sam Rockwell's character in the movie Galaxy Quest, he was an extra who was sure he was going to get killed because no one knew his last name and characters with no last name are the ones who got dead fast; unfortunately, even having a last name in Berenson's novels is no security, by any stretch of the imagination.). I don't know how accurate it is, though I assume a lot of it's pretty spot on, but I love how technical Berenson is in his descriptions of everything from the workings of the spy business to bomb construction. It really seems like he does an exhaustive, and exhausting, amount of research and, even if everything isn't 100% accurate, it makes for a really good read. If you're looking for a good, fast even in spite of the length, espionage thriller, I would definitely recommend The Ghost War. While I think you can read it without having read The Faithful Spy, I'd still suggest reading it first. Not only will it filling in the blanks, it's a page turner itself.

I thoroughly enjoyed Alex Berenson's second installment of his John Wells series. This time, Wells is famous for his previous heroics and it's driving him nuts. He is constantly monitored for his safety, or perhaps because certain characters within government distrust and dislike him. At any rate, he feels caged and his handlers, including his girlfriend Jen Exley, know that he needs a mission. The world provides in the form of treks to Afghanistan and China where John Wells faces dangerous challenges. The primary villain in this book is the head of China's People's Liberation Army who dreams of his own seizing power and returning China's leaders to the virtues of Maoist communism. He enacts a scheme that includes a deal with Iran and employing the help of North Korean allies to push the US and China to the brink of full-scale war. I was really impressed by Berenson's imagination in this one. He created a very believable and timely scenario that employs his extensive research as a journalist. He paints incredibly vivid images of his settings and I can attest, since I read a lot of the book while at one of the locations he set the book in, that they are accurate. His use of current events to color the story made this work all the more interesting. It was very obvious while reading The Ghost War that Berenson listened to his readers' feedback and refined the characters and his skill to make a thrilling piece of fiction that I highly recommend.

I have no idea how this author can make these books so real and authentic so as to make them so engaging. Thanks.

Berenson published, so far, three Wills books and this one is the least plausible of them. There is nothing wrong to speculate about a rogue Chinese general except when we know that the Chinese, as one would expect, do not have actually anyone that crazy among their leaders. That is, not very likely. They had absolutely insane Mao but it has been long time ago. For decades they are now busy doing business with us, financing our deficits and are relatively nice. The idea to bring the world on the brink of thermonuclear war is quite farfetched. On the other hand, Berenson has been, apparently, in many places we know very little about, real, not fictional, and he describes them well. Perhaps, he even has some REAL knowledge about weaponry (mostly naval) and it is interesting to read about that. Reads like early Clancy. Will Berenson be as successful as Clancy? Only time will tell. Hopefully, not too successful to hire ghost writers making major mistakes like Clancy allowed them (did not give a damn) in one of his later books (claiming that Sunnis are a majority in Iraq, Shia are). But that's another story. Enjoyable reading this book mostly in China, introducing a new character to provide continuity with Berenson's last book. Quite recommended, still 4 star book.

This book was outside my normal genres of reading but it was good. Berenson is a solid author who can balance action with character building. The story didn't particularly grab me and make me want to read more of the author's novels. But like I said, this was outside my normal reading so that was not expected.

If you have read Terry Hayes this is the author for you! Such a interesting story and I loved all the characters .I have started this series and cannot wait to start book 3 ..you will really get into John Wells..so glad I found this author

it would be hard to top Berenson's first novel. That is not to say that 'Ghost War' isn't highly readable. Like it's predecessor the story shows how precarious the world order is, and how it can be manipulated. In 'Ghost War' a Chinese general attemnpts to wrest control of his country from those he deems to be selfish and without the interests of the general populace in mind. He creates world tension by making a deal with the Iranians that would give them support for their nuclear program and simultaneously provoking confrontation between China and the U.S. Wells, Exley and Shafer bring threads of the story together and 'Times Square Wells' finds himself in China without CIA support in an attempt to stave off war. The writing is crisp and the story believable but 'Ghost War' lacks the perfect storm of the first book. Still highly recommend - will continue to read this outstanding series.

Returning to a more 'normal' life after saving the world, or at least New York City (see book 1: The Faithful Spy ), John Wells finds himself famous, living with his former CIA handler and now girlfriend, and incredibly bored. After all, it's only natural that someone who spent several years living with Al Qaeda jihadists in Afghanistan would have a hard time adjusting to the life of a suburban nine-to-fiver. It doesn't last long. He may be happy with his love life, but it isn't enough to domesticate him. Tensions flare up back in Afghanistan, and he takes the opportunity to put the turban back on and slide back into his undercover life. I’m a huge fan of Alex Berenson’s novels, and his protagonist John Wells. I’ve read them all – more than once – and followed Well’s fictional life from the first story ( The Faithful Spy as mentioned above and see the full listing below) describing how he lived as an undercover agent with Al Qaeda terrorists in Afghanistan, succeeding in earning their trust and becoming the only American agent to actually live and fight with elements of bin Laden’s army. I love these stories because of the uniqueness of the Wells character, particularly in these early novels where he fights his own internal battles between the Islamic faith he had adopted and learned to respect and even love, and his western life that continued to be under threat. Over many years of reading novels of this genre, today I have only a very few authors whose works I am certain to purchase. Lee Child’s Jack Reacher novels are one. Alex Berenson’s John Wells novels are another. I have been looking forward to this since it was announced months ago, and I had pre-ordered it immediately. When it appeared on my Kindle this past evening as soon as it was released, I opened it up and began reading. I wasn’t disappointed. For those new to these John Wells stories, this book will be satisfying and it's not necessary to have read the predecessors. Once you have read this story, however, you may well want to go back to the beginning to follow Wells development. Here are the John Wells novels in order of their publication, with links to the books here on Amazon (Kindle versions are linked but hardcover and paperback editions can also be selected on the same page): Book 1: The Faithful Spy (first published April 2006) Book 2: The Ghost War (February 2008) Book 3: The Silent Man (February 2009) Book 4: The Midnight House (February 2010) Book 5: The Secret Soldier (February 2011) Book 6: The Shadow Patrol (February 2012) Book 7: The Night Ranger (February 2013) Book 8: The Counterfeit Agent (February 2014) Book 9: Twelve Days (February 2015) Book 10: The Wolves (February 2016) Book 11: The Prisoner (January 2017)

GREAT BOOK; GREAT SERVICE AGAIN, AMAZON; THANK YOU!

Alex Berenson has really done his homework, as usual.....and produced a great story. IAs with all his John Wells yarns, it is hard to put down!

Der zweite Roman über den CIA Agenten John Wells ist ebenso spannend. Berenson schreibt ein Englisch, an das man sich leicht gewöhnt (gilt für solche wie mich, die Schulenglisch gelernt haben).

Get time reading one of this series but already had to get the fir as t and subsequent novels downloaded. Great read, hooked with the characters. Can't wait for the next one.

中国の陰謀、イラン、北朝鮮を巻き込んで、米国の極秘任務がつぶされる。次第に米国と中国の間に危機が迫る。主人公は果たしてその危機を救うことができるのでしょうか。Ghost War というタイトルがぴったりとはまります。「２重スパイってこういう経緯で生まれるのか」ＣＩＡの捜査官が２重スパイのプロファイリングをする部分がおもしろいです。アフガニスタンでのコンバットシーンもあり、武器商人が暗躍し、そして中国へ。とにかくあっという間に読み終えていました。ボキャブラリーは平易でどんどん読んでいけます。お勧めです。