Code of Dishonor

Pretty good read which entertains through to the end. I also like how the Big Guy thought he was working with an ally only to find out that who he thought was not actually who and what they were. The relationship between the father and daughter was puzzling as you got the impression she was trying to make up to her father for the fact that his son was dead and her death at the end was unnecessary and a bit surprising when the Big Guy took her out. The overall plot was good and original where if he had of got away with it the US would have been struck by two nuclear devices in a payback strike from the Second World War. Recommended reading in the series here folks.

Had high hopes for this one as the first McQuay Executioner I read was really, really strong. Although this one was vey well written and the attempt was made to give Bolan some heart, the story felt too disjointed and the pacing was off. It read like the book got away from McQuay. The end result was an interesting read but nothing spectacular. I expected more from the author and the plot. Japan nuking the US! Come on? How can that miss. Well, this one does. More a collection of scenes than a novel. Summing up, worth a read for the quality of the writing, but not worth desperately tracking down a copy. If you stumble across one, go for it. Otherwise, there are better novels in the series.

Code of Dishonor is I believe the 2nd Bolan novel that the late Mike McQuay wrote. I think the book shows a better grasp of the character and raised a very interesting vision of Mack retiring. Like Death Has a Name, this book has a real feeling that McQuay either traveled in Japan or did some decent research on Tokyo and its suburbs. The plot is needlessly "heightened" in my opinion by adding a surprise nuclear threat that Mack must address, but the story line is not bad. An aspect I found particularly interesting was the offer that Hashimoto made to Mack about a permanent safe home in Japan. This book is from the era when the adventures of Bolan were still happening in more-or-less real time. It is about twenty years since Mack started his private war against the Mafia...so Bolan is nearly fifty years old. He does give some serious thought to accepting Hashimoto's offer. There is definitely a temptation there (beyond the attraction to and of Hoshimoto's daughter), that feels right for someone who has been warring as long as Mack has. This book is less pulpy than McQuay's previous effort...but Mack is forced to surrender 2 or 3 times as the plot demands (why are the bad guys early in Bolan books so good at eluding the police and Bolan such an frakking amateur?) and the whole end sequence in the subterranean complex is a little too much like the end of a Roger Moore Bond movie for my tastes. Bolan uses his standard-to-this-era armament (Big Thunder/93-R) and adds in the Weatherby V in .460Mag with a sniper sequence that is somewhat marred by McQuay thinking the Weatherby V is a single-shot weapon (it has a 2 round magazine) and putting Bolan in a position where the starting plan is he will handle seven sentries single-handed so the ground forces running forward are not fired upon (apparently no one in the Japanese force can handle a long-range shot). I like the idea of the subterranean complex left over from WWII that Hoshimoto is using as his base, but finding it filled with Zero fighters and stockpiled fuel and munitions seemed a bit much, especially in the scale that is depicted. The complex is written as if it stretches for mile upon mile with all of it ventilated and lighted yet populated with very scant number of people given its huge size. I did enjoy this book and will probably re-read it at some point.

Wow this book was really good. Hashi-san was a very well-developed villain, whose beliefs initially seem to be aligned, then collide with mack bolan's. It was also interesting to see the police captain's (forgot his name)relationship with bolan as he both respects him but keeps him under arrest. I felt very sorry for junko at the end because she was really a victim of her father's ambition. i wonder why mack didn't just try to KO her or something. The action scenes are great, especially the chase with the motorcycles. The only badly done scene is when the police use old airplanes as sheilds. I really liked the story because it had a lot of twists and turns. if you read the first chapter and then read the last chapter, you would have no idea what happened. you really had to see the plot exposed chapter by chapter. A really great book. 9.5 stars!

I gave Death Has A Name by the same author and I gave it a 9. This novel was even better. This book was of course action packed but also examined the concept of honor. Hashi and Bolan could have been really great allies. But their concept of honor was so distinct that it left then on a collision course. Hashi thought it was about family history and ideals even if those sacrificed innocent people and his own daughter. Yes in some ways he was a very sympathetic villian which is exceedingly rare in this series. You could imagine a young man wracked with guilt over not only hiding out instead of fighting but knowing 2 cities nuked. Keep in mind this is Japan a land where honor/face and tradition along with culture is very different from our own. I also felt so sorry for Junko. Blind loyalty to her father even though she knows what he is doing is wrong yet got herself killed following his orders. I could just feel Bolan's heartbreak when he had to kill her and give her a mercy shot. Junko was really a victim to her father then a victim to Bolan. Bolan was not the confident man seen in so many novels but a man torn and made mistakes like not taking in Japanese thinking more and let his emotions rule him in terms of Junko. Even though he saw Johnny make the same mistake in Death Has A Name. Really an exceptional novel.

This book caps the 90's books the way they started. Very good! I rate it 9 1/2 star. An Excellent Mcquay novel,it was very entertaining, the trick with the tires was kinda strange, but I loved the gondola scene, it made me laugh. I wish this author wrote more books than he did.

This was the very first Mack Bolan book I read which was 12 years ago.When I read it,it immediatly filled my need for a book that had a lot of action.Since then I have tried to collect every book in the series.So I yeah I would have to say that this is a great book.Score 8/10.

A decent entry to the series with enough to keep you interested.

DAMN GOOD ONE. ANOTHER REASON TO SALUTE THE SERIES. BOLAN UNAWARE THAT HE'S WORKING FOR THE ENEMY THE WHOLE TIME MADE IT ELECTRIFYING AND LED TO A DEFINATE GRAND FINALE!

Started out good, but couldn't maintain it throughout. It got too

A pretty good book. Not great, but not bad, either.