The Ghost War (A John Wells Novel) Paperback – January 27, 2009

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.

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)

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.

Alex Berenson seems to be a very exciting author. I read his first book which I could not put down so I opened the Ghost war with high expectations. I was not let down, the story line is great and believable. I like how he moves between scenarios to keep the action going. I am now planning on getting book 3. It is better to read the books in order as he does refer to things in book one, though you could read this as a stand alone should you desire. Personally though book one was so good it would be a shame to read book two first as you would know the outcome to book one.

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!

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

Really enjoyed it. Looking forward to the next in the series. Wells is a heroic and tragic protagonist which is appealing.

I usually love his books they go into such detail, but not this one, not one of his bests!