Havana Five

I forgot to review this title which I read 2 weeks ago. I do seem to gravitate towards Jon Guenther's books which must mean I like them, but this one failed to stick in my mind. The fact that Bolan and friends stayed in Cuba instead of globe hopping I did appreciate. The problem is that the Havana Five were meant to be some kind of fearsome alliance holding off the Mexican and Colombian drug cartels yet there was hardly any challenge for Bolan. Havana Five just turned out to be another gang of hoodlums to breeze through. I also wasn't convinced by the revenge story, the widow didn't seem to be as driven by hatred as was suggested. All in all it was an easy to read story, posed no challenges for Bolan, and in my case was instantly forgettable. As an addition, the helicopter on the cover is the wrong color and seems to be photoshopped from another cover as there is writing behind the helicopter.

Pretty much agree with the previous reviews hence the rating. Some very good characters introduced here with probably Stein and Crosse the standouts but many others as well. Along with Mack is Jack and Rafe which is hardly surprising as the title is set in Cuba. The action scenes are good to very good with the three man attack on the rebel army base the highlight. I reckon noticeable in this title with the reduced page count this one seemed to finish very abruptly like sections had been edited out of the ending. Not realizing the reduced page count I remember when I was reading nearing the end thinking to myself how is all of this going to be closed off in the short amount of pages left and it wasn't. If Havana Five was supposed to be Havana Zero at the end of the Big Guy's mission one out of five just doesn't cut it. Good read though even with the abrupt ending recommended reading in this series.

Another decent entry by Mr. Guenther. It was nice seeing Bolan aided by some Stony Man help in the form of Encizo & Grimaldi. The plot moved along at a decent pace and the action scenes were well written. Although at times I found myself not really caring about what occurred between the fueing factions of the Havana Five and the female villain was a bit much with her sexual appetite - lol And I expected a little more emotion from Encizo being back in his birthland of Cuba. 8 out of 10, this author has a solid track record when it comes to Bolan novels.

Special Guest Star: Rafael Encizo. Havana Five is the name of the most powerful cartel in Cuba. One of its members is up to something, so Bolan’s personal mission is to change its name to Havana Zero. He is sanctioned in this one, bringing along some assistance, most importantly with Encizo. They partner up and enter a maze of lies, treachery and deceit. Encizo had some very good scenes, stepping out as just one of the five, and into the spotlight. The characterizations of the reoccurring members are good, even the President managed a surprise in this one. Some of very colorful characters appear in this installment. I will remember Stein and Crosse for a while. I am a little amazed on how easily Bolan and company could operate in Cuba, perhaps too easily. The usual editorial mishaps appears here as well, the 3-round burst from a Desert Eagle tops the list. Oh another qualm, Inez Fuego is a little too sex crazy, under-mining her character development, making her into a throwback caricature. I give this installment a slightly above average recommendation. First of the reduced page count books.