No comments about American Troops In Afghanistan: Building A New Nation (Frontline Coverage of Current Events).

No comments about 2004 Complete Guide to Biological Weapons and Terrorism, Anthrax, Smallpox, Monkeypox, Ricin, Botulism, Brucellosis, Toxins, Plague, Q Fever, Tularemia, ... WMD, First Responder Two CD-ROM Set).

No comments about Islamic Radicalism and Political Violence: The Templars of Islam and Sheikh Ra'id Salah.

No comments about Transforming Our Terror: A Spiritual Approach to Making Sense of Senseless Tragedy.

1 comments about Miles to Go Before I Sleep: My Grateful Journey Back from the Hijacking of Egyptair Flight 648.

1. This is an incredible first person account of a woman who was the selected target of terrorists on an Egypt Air Flight because she was holding an American Passport. She was taken outside of the plane onto the top of the stairs and was shot in the head. Her body fell down the stairs onto the tarmack and she was left there for dead. People picking up her body unexpectedly discovered she was alive and rushed her to a hospital. The remainder of the story is of her amazing recovery coupled with personal tragedy and overcoming obstacles to teach herself to read again(she was able to do this based on her special education background/experience) in spite of her prognosis.

1 comments about Islam and Jihad: Prejudice Versus Reality.

1. This is an excellent eye opening book to misconceptions that non-Muslims and some Muslims have about Islam. The author discusses issues such as Fatwas and Jihad in a very well manner that claers many false understandings of the terms. He also "breaks off" some of the orientalist such as Bernard Lewis and Samuel Huntington for pushing these false images of Islam in the modern world.

No comments about Securing Health: Lessons From Nation-building Operations.

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5 comments about Terminal Event.

1. There are some books --The Name of the Rose comes to mind-- which absolutely drench you in arcane detail. A page is fascinating. A chapter is interesting. An entire book leaves you comatose. Other books --pick almost any one of today's "adventure writers"-- are full of action but feature characters who seemingly are taken off a shelf somewhere, like Campbell's Soup. And then there are the books full of character... well, you presume they are, but since nothing ever happens you can't be sure.

   Thayer's "Terminal Event" finds a wonderful balance among those three elements. The action is compelling, the technicalities interesting and germane, and his characters are appealing and real.

   Joe Durant, his daughter, Wayne Ray, the FBI agents --they are all well-drawn and each advances the story line. Linda Dillon, arguably the central character, even if the book is told from Durant's point of view, is fascinating but, frankly, is a bit much. The only reason I didn't rate this book 5 stars was her over-the-top assaults on credibility (to say nothing of civil rights) while arresting Fahey and Dietz or disrupting the shipping carrier's offices.

   Still, even Linda Dillon is a refreshing change, for all her ramboism: here is someone in a story who actually has morals, beliefs and prejuidices, and acts on them... we could watch one million Hollywood movies and never see anything like it.

   There are a couple of irritating editorial lapses --for example, when Joe Durant interviews the "Lady in the Hat" in her limousine, she's described as wearing a pants suit, but in the next paragraph she's adjusting her hemline-- but those are minor.

   The relationship between Durant and Linda Dillon is particularly well handled --a growing, believable intimacy, but with the clear understanding that there's a line which can't be crossed, not because the author chooses not to but because the character won't allow it.

   This book made me want to read more of Thayer --a rarity these days, believe me-- and I recommend it to all of you. I'd be interested in hearing from others who've read it.

   FJB




2. This book was gripping from the start. Thayer does a great job at detailing crash sites and the remarkable actions of the NTSB. The relationship with the female FBI agent adds an interesting dimension, without the typical tacked on love story feel, and certainly without the expected happy ending.

   It is an easy read, and I was also baffled by the nearly complete inaccuracy of the description on the back cover (there is never any suggestion of pilot error). However, if you can put aside the expectations of the story his publisher is advertising, this really is a great story.




3. ýTerminal Eventý by James Stewart Thayer, Large Print, Beeler Large Print, Hampton Falls, NH, 2000.

   This book opens with a horrific scene: former NTSB investigator, Joe Durant, is running towards an airplane crash and encountering parts of human bodies. As a former National Transportation Safety Board investigator, Durant has seen many crashes, but this one is different: he knows that his wife was on Emerald Airlines plane calledý Sacajaweaý.

   Author James Thayer then develops three major plot lines in the investigation into the cause(s) of the crash and each plot line depends upon the kind of people, the characters, involved. The first centers on Joe Durant, the NTSB engineer, who develops an engineering theory based upon improper design or, perhaps, incorrect maintenance. The second revolves around the FBI and ATF agents, who scour the Northwest part of the Untied States for skinhead groups who are anti-government enough to shoot down commercial airliners. The third plot line introduces a Saudi Arabian prince, in the United States for treatment of alcoholism. His presence on the crashed plane is ascertained from identification of those attending funerals and memorial services, and determining why those individuals would be at these events. All three plots compete and it seems, to the reader, that each competing cause is plausible: engineering failure, or terrorist attacks or assassination of the Saudi. But then, not to give away the surprise ending, the main protagonist , Joe Durant, discovers the one important clue that leads to the actual killer.

   The discussion of technology is appropriate to this type of mystery, and the hint of romance, with the hotshot FBI agent, Linda Dillon, serves to lighten the book. Author James Thayer does know the Northwest part of the country. Read the book to find out ýwho dun itý.




4. Terminal Event was a great technology read and provided an enormous amount of insight into the working of the National Transportation Safety Board crash investigations. From the forensic investigations of the shattered bodies to the analysis of the National Security Agency data files, the technology was spot on. Now, about the story - good grief but all the characters were two dimensional and horribly predictable. The "bomber", although not readily identified, was know as none of the suspects. The suspects - Saudi intelligence and Idaho "Off the Net" resisters - were sadly paper cutouts. Half way through the story the FBI's frustration with the non-suspects drove me - the reader - into fits of frustration. I almost put the book away but wanted to know "who done it!"
   I found this book in a remaindered book strip mall book outlet. There was a good reason that it was there.



5. An airline crash affects thousands of lives besides those of its unfortunate passengers. There are the authorities, such as the police and rescue personnel, who must deal with the grim aftermath; the frenzied media; the employees of the affected airline; and, of course, the families and friends left to mourn their dead. Finally, there are the employees of the National Transportation Safety Board, who are charged with explaining the tragedy. The inquiries made by these investigators are meant to correct fatal flaws, or bring killers to justice.
   
   One such individual is Joe Durant, the hero of James Thayer's latest thriller, TERMINAL EVENT. Readers first encounter Joe as he arrives at the crash site of an Emerald Airlines passenger jet named Sacajewea. As Joe moves about the site, readers experience the devastation firsthand through his eyes. Equipment, luggage and human remains are strewn everywhere, nauseating even Joe, a veteran of dozens of such tragedies. Readers with weak stomachs might are cautioned--seldom has such carnage been rendered so graphically, effectively or movingly.
   
   In the course of his grisly pilgrimage across the crash site, we discover that Joe has a personal interest in the crash--his wife, possibly visiting Seattle to reconcile with him after a long period of estrangement, was a passenger on the plane. In addition to this sad news, we learn the crash also represents a grim homecoming for Joe, who, unable to cope with the pressures of his job, recently resigned from the NTSB. His instincts kicking in, Joe directs rescue efforts until NTSB officials arrive on the scene. Due to his unfortunate connection to the incident, he requests and receives permission to work as a consultant on the case.
   
   Thus begins a grim but fascinating journey to determine just why Sacajewea dropped from the sky. The investigation, given special urgency due to a plausible threat to down another plane within ten days, leads Joe and his FBI liaison, Special Agent Linda Dillon, from the backwoods near Seattle, where they investigate a militia group, to the testing facilities of the NTSB, where Joe pursues his pet theory of an electrical fault. Over the course of their inquiry, several theories are proposed and tested, hundreds of leads are investigated, and dozens of lives impacted. Slowly, the relentless investigators close in on the answer, one guaranteed to startle even the most careful reader.
   
   TERMINAL EVENT brings to mind FATE IS THE HUNTER, a 1964 feature film starring Glen Ford (based on Ernest K. Gann's best-selling book), and Michael Crichton's AIRFRAME, the former due to its emphasis on the human side of an airliner crash, the latter because of its fascinating level of technical detail. Thayer effectively mixes the two approaches, treating readers to a wealth of technical knowledge even while manipulating their emotions. He also delivers a number of potent action scenes, as when the investigators raid a militia member's house, or when, in an ancillary investigation, they capture a drug dealer who had used the flight to transport illicit cargo.
   
   At the center of the action is Joe Durant, a middle aged, single father. Joe isn't your stereotypical hero--he's just an average "Joe"who happens to be good at what he does, an everyman trying to cope with the problems life and his job throw at him. As well drawn a character as I've encountered lately, Joe is realistic and appealing, a protagonist readers can relate to. You find yourself rooting for him, even in his weakest moments.
   
   As fresh as today's headlines (the story bears striking parallels to the crash of TWA Flight 800 and PanAm Flight 103), TERMINAL EVENT is a highly charged tale of suspense. As in previous novels such as WHITE STAR and FIVE PAST MIDNIGHT, Thayer has created a fast paced, spellbinding narrative. Part quest, part clinical investigation, part race against time, TERMINAL EVENT features a well constructed plot, plenty of tension and a good blend of the serious and humorous sides of human nature. Notable too is the intensive research Thayer must have done to make the backgrounds of his entire cast of characters sound plausible--Thayer's attention to detail shows on every page. Gripping and authoritative, TERMINAL EVENT is a reading experience thriller fans can savor.

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