Desperate Measures

Desperate Measures: Stuart Woods:

Stone Barrington has the infinity for attracting women and for some reason never receives a negative response. As one girlfriend decides to relocate and return to the CIA another bumps into him and is now the flavor of the day. Faith barnacle is young, beautiful and blonde a deadly combination. Dealing with stone was a perk and getting close to him gave her a new career. Hiring her as his pilot and buying a plane for her to use this became a working relationship but danger follows stone everywhere and, in this case, a serial killer is targeting blondes. Since this is an open investigation the details will have to be learned by the reader and kept confidential. Stone is often asked to consult on police cases, as he’s a Hedy friend with the police commissioner. Many dinners transpire, and Faith becomes part of his flight department as stone meets Cilla Scott and things escalate quite fast but first her bad ankle. Nothing like having a doctor who makes house calls and brings his own X-ray equipment. Things handled and information about Cilla revealed we learn is involved in s messy dive. Stone takes the lead calls Herb Fisher one of the Lawyers in the firm he’s a partner, and things move fast, agreements signed but Donald Rask in dangerous, greedy and not satisfied with the final settlement. Danger is everywhere when faith eludes her bodyguards and uses her ingenuity to escape her captor, but will she recover from her wounds both mental and physical and will stone fire her for going against his wishes?

While faith is recuperating in the hospital, he and Dino are figuring out how to disarm and deal with Trask along with detectives Muldoon and Calabrese. One is astute and the other not too bright but sometimes appearances are deceiving.

Added in Stone seems taken at least for a while with Cilla until he meets Edie. Stone advises Cilla about how to proceed in her divorce and what would expedite matters more quickly including changing her will. But Trask is smart and cunning, but someone is leaking information about Cilla and stone finds himself as the primary suspect in her murder when he arrives for his or her dinner date. The two detectives on the case want him for the murder but Dino intervenes, and things slant in another direction. With stone dealing with her murder and faith in the hospital two cases need to be solved and a break comes when they catch two men working in the hotel where faith had a room before coming to live at stone’s, and s third is arrested but powerful people want mike Adams cleared. When your grandfather is rich and powerful, and you have the right legal team what Author Stuart woods relates mirrors what we would see on old episodes of Dynasty or Southfork. Women come and go, and he’s introduced to Edie who is taken by stone and I’m sure you can figure out the rest.

Things get dicey when Caroline and Charlotte whitethorn come into the picture and you learn about the power of position and money, two are arrested for killing the young blondes and one offered immunity to testify against them. But faith has s memory and it might uncover the truth, but Dino and stone find obstacles standing in their way. Power greed and a touch of corruption goes a long way to allowing someone freedom.

Stone gets involved with Caroline and Charlotte and a dinner lands him in the with a strange shot to the head and total memory loss of the incident. Added in a witness comes forward I. The murder of Cilla identifies the killer until he faces getting hit by a car and a serious head injury but why does he recant his statement?

Things heat up and cover-ups come about, and stone and Dino learn the ramifications of having a top-notch legal team and someone guilt might go free. Herb learns that dealing with the ADA takes creativity, so he uses the stone Barrington method of deceit and deception. Allowing him to drop the bane of Mike ford whitethorn helps get what he wants from her and of course some special fun.

Edith Beresford is a formidable adversary for stone and although taken with him not easily snowed.

When Cilla is killed, and Donald thinks he’s in the clear after being questioned by Muldoon and Calabrese you wonder why he’s still free and whether he’ll beat the rap with Eddie recanting his statement, but Author Stuart Woods created a scene that will shock readers reveal a mole and take down a killer in a unique way.

My favorite character is Fred, Stone’s driver who is smart resourceful and you want him as your protection. The final outcomes will surprise readers as the author allows Dino to close two cases but not in the conventional way. Who killed the blondes? Who might skate free? Will Trask pay for his wife’s murder? The only way to find out is to realize that stone Barrington will never rest until justice is done and, in this case, he had to employ many desperate measures.
Fran Lewis: Just reviews/MJ Network/MJ magazine