The Fox Paperback – 20 Sept. 2018

So dissatisfied with this.You could tell what was going to happen a mile away.A few military,political facts and figures coupled with lazy coincidences.That just about sums it up.I've been buying Frederick Forsyth' s books since The Day Of The Jackal,so I was a big fan.The only reason I finished it was to see how the hacker finished up.TV soap operas are more convincing than this dross.DO NOT BUY THIS RUBBISH.I don't know how FF can sleep at night.

A sad deterioration over the years has culminated in this.A Forsyth fan expects a labyrinthine plot, a slow build, expert research and knowledge and a twisting resolution. This provides none of these. The plot is entirely linear, a mere series of set-pieces. Research is no better than a Google-search afterthought, and Forsyth's habit of displaying his political leanings is like a punch in the face here. The ending is almost as if he'd run out of time in an exam, and had to bullet point the last tenth of the book.Remember when the first chunk of Fourth Protocol characterised two protagonists who playing no more part than a plot device, tantalised and make you read just one more chapter? The whole book was based on a fantastically interesting foundation. None of that here, none. Only the main character has any vague characterisation, there's a wholly pointless love story crow-barred in, and then only for five sentences. We're expected to believe his thinly-veiled representations of Theresa May and Donald Trump are respected around the world for their intelligence and indomitability. Sorry Freddie, you sort of managed that with Thatcher, but it doesn't hold water here.From his previous works, I truly believe he had expert knowledge of espionage, mercenaries, the KGB/CIA/Mossad/MI6, the Middle East & Africa, military technology, terrorism, world leaders and the corridors of power. From this book, I don't think his knowledge of computer security, database tech, autism, love or what constitutes a believable coincidence is any better than mine.He's been a novelist a long time, and has written several thrillers which must make other authors weep. In no way does this cheapen or lessen Jackal, Fourth Protocol, Dogs of War or even those written late 80s to early 90s. What it does do is show that as time passes, he just seems to make a bit less effort.It would probably merit three stars and a take-to-the-charity-shop from another author, but this is the author of Day of the Jackal. The heights reached previously make this look a whole lot worse. After you've read it, try not to think of it as one of his.

Frederick Forsyth’s return after a fiction hiatus of five years sees his thriller The Fox published before it’s really ready. It seems rushed, for reasons I’ll go into soon, and is sadly unsatisfactory, and I believe the blame can be shared equally between Mr Forsyth and the publisher.The publisher should do better. The list of books by Forsyth is impressive, with The Outsider following on from The Kill List, below which are two Non-fiction books listed, The Biafra Story and Emeka. Don’t Bantam Press know that The Outsider is non-fiction, being his autobiography?The story is about a young man, Luke Jennings, with Asperger’s Syndrome who has hacked into the US security system. Together with his family (mother, father, brother) he is arrested and sequestered in a safe place. Rather than prosecute him, both the Americans and the British decide to utilise his considerable gifts to tilt the balance of power – to interfere with Russian, North Korean or Chinese computer-linked weapons systems.Forsyth’s page-turning ability is apparent as he peppers the story with facts and details about the clandestine and political world, even including most recent events, such as the Skripal poisonings in Salisbury and the summit meetings with North Korea. As usual, Forsyth employs his omniscient third person narrative, creating that immediacy of a reporter viewing events unfolding. Unfortunately, that technique here leaves little room for emotion. In truth, I felt that the book reads more like a film treatment than a novel.The utilisation of Luke is serious wishful thinking, breaking down foreign firewalls virtually at the drop of a hat. Luke’s technical shepherd who directs the lad’s hacking activities is Jeremy Hendricks, who (to tick a box) ‘was gay but made no mention of it, choosing a quiet life of celibacy’ (p13). As for characterisation, we don’t really get to know Sue Jennings, Luke’s mother, or even Luke, ‘The Fox’ for that matter. We learn a little about Sir Adrian, even delving beneath his skin. But that’s all. The majority of characters – and there are over 30 listed (with organisations too) beginning on p303 – are ciphers. There is no emotional content, so as a reader I didn’t experience any tension when threats were described to silence Luke. Really, Luke is the main character, the reason for the story, Hitchcock’s McGuffin, yet he does not come alive, so then the threat of his death falls flat: it should create concern at least.Since reading the book, I’ve looked at the reviews. They fall into two categories: excellent thriller, couldn’t put it down and the obverse, highly disappointing with a cop-out ending. I regret to concur with the naysayers.

Sadly, for me at least, the weakest book by Forsyth.When compared to his greats, characters and their depiction seems lazy, and by and large the plot lacks the intrigue and twists for which the author is renowned. I read on, but couldn’t help but feel cheated at the randomness of the final chapter. It’s almost as if the author couldn’t work out where to go next, got bored, and just pushed the book over a cliff...The Fox falls a long way short of his earlier works (up to mid 80s), most of which have been revisited several times.

As usual , totally brilliant. If Frederick Forsyth wrote the phone book it would be a bloody good read. The plot, the characters , the different strings to the plot were wonderfully written.