The Target (FBI Thriller)

If you want a super quick read on the beach, this might work for you. There is lots of action, a lost kids, confrontations at gun point, a bit of shooting, a mob boss, a scene where the woman walks in on the man getting into the shower and stares below his belt for a few minutes while he responds physically, some "Awww" moments where the kid is sweet and the mom is teary-eyed etc......

But if you are looking for anything more that fictional fast food, this will not work for you.

The lead character is a judge. Something happens in his courtroom and he jumps into action like a ninja and kills a guy and saves the day. Oh, did I mention he is handsome? Did I mention he is the youngest Federal judge ever appointed. He is a karate expert? He has guns and is proficient? He can get shot in the leg and still run around? He is off alone on a mountain top communing with nature when he hears a kid whimper and rescues her..... I am only half way through and I imagine he cures cancer toward the end.

The woman is, of course, red haired and beautiful. She just happens to be a great shot. She can drive like a demon. She finds the kid before teams of professionals do. She assumes the judge is the monster who kidnapped the kid, but then she is ready to marry him fifty pages and two days later because he is so good with the kid. Her dad is a mob boss, who she has defied repeatedly even though he is very controlling and angry but then gives in to her. Her mom raised her in Italy. She attended Vassar........

The kid is five. The kid is so traumatized she can not talk, until suddenly a week later she can not only talk but defend the main character with lengthy sentences. Did I mention she is a musical genius who at five plays Mozart so well everyone is the crowd at the music store is stunned. She talks like she is ten or twelve. I think the kid gets knocked unconscious by getting literally hit on the head and drugged a few times during the month or so this story runs and she bounces right back!!She is traumatized because of the kidnapping but comes around from sheer terror to pretty normal in a week or so because the main character is nice and feeds her cheerios. By the end of the book, she will probably take out a professional sniper at one hundred yards.

All the characters are stereotypes from Romance novels. If you have read her other work, you will recognize the scenes and even some of the lines from other books. Psychos always want to "lick" the kidnapped person; people get hit on the head hard enough to pass out for hours but then bounce back within minutes; the main character has suffered some trauma or nightmare and so retreats to an isolated location, someone who is a close friend of a major character ends up being one of the really bad guys.

Again, if you want a twinkie for a beach read, this may do it for you.

After reading The Cove and The Maze, I was anticipating The Target to have Coulter's signature style. There didn't seem to be enough history or depth to each character in this book like her previous books with Lacey Sherlock, James Quinlan and how can we forget Dillon Savich. Judge Ramsey Hunt could have been the hero readers would have "swooned" over, unfortunately there were times when his actions were just too hard to believe! How can a JUDGE discover a child that was physically abused and not go to the authorities? Realizing the child cannot speak was a spark for the beginning of a flame, but that was quenched too early in the book. Coulter tried to incorporate Sherlock and Savich into the cast, but it seemed that by adding them in was an attempt to keep you reading so you wouldn't just put the book down. The plot tried to thicken with "Who could have done it?" unfortunately it came up with TOO many people to point the finger at. There is a GREAT story to read in the pages of The Target, too bad in never manifested itself completely.

I listened to this book during a long road trip. I loved it! In fact, I started it about 3 hours into my return trip (12-14 hour drive). I wasn't done with it by the time I returned. For the next three days I found myself driving around so I could finish my book. I was surprised to see that it got such bad reviews by the reading public. I like books where I am a bit uncertain how the characters will react to new situations and where I am equally as uncertain about what is going to happen next. Although some of the events themselves were predictable, how they came about was not. I like that. I encourage those who decided against this book to consider listening to it on their next road trip. I listened to the unabridge version. The only drawback was that the book was recorded on all tracks individually (you had to listen to each side twice but switching the speakers to either right or left depending on where you were in the book). As far as a child acting like an adult. When something like that happens to you at that age, unless you live the rest your life scared of every person and every thing you have no choice but to grow up fast when it comes to coping with a horrific incidents such as being raped and abuse when you were child. It's inevitable that the newfound maturity will spill out into other aspects of the child's life. I think the author handled it well by not explaining the process of how Emma coped but by setting up the environment in which her healing took place,just letting the healing happen and manifesting those changes in Emma's actions and conversations throughout the book.

I thought, a judge finds a sexually abused girl in the woods and calls no one? I must be missing something. So I read on. It got no better. This was such a poorly conceived book, I couldn't make it past the halfway point of the story.

I actually stopped reading this book, when I realized this little girl had really been molested, and I could not make it unhappen. My reaction was: "I why would Ms. C put her through that"? Then I started reading again. Why? I realized I was reacting like these were real people. The actions of the people continued to anger and baffle me. In the real world, people do things for idiotic reasons and things get out of hand. Going well beyond the comprehensible. I was slightly disappointed at the lack of romance, but felt anything more "grand passionish" would have been absurb for such tramatized people. After all Ramsey's first love was that sweet mute little girl(I felt his tenderness and treatment were so PERFECT).

I am just getting acquainted with Catherine Coulter's FBI Series and I am not dissappointed. I couldn't put this book down for a minute. Never a dull moment. If you get the chance listen to the audiobook unabridged version & read while listening and you will enjoy it even more. You will experience every emotion including shock, anger, terror, frustration, sadness and last but not least happiness.

When you least expect it another twist and turn takes place and the author keeps you guessing. What now? What next?

Judge Ramsey Hunt takes some time off of his court duties after some shocking circumstances & heads to a quiet mountain cabin in the Rockies for some peace and quiet hoping to quiet the nightmares. Never in a milion years does he imagine that will stumble upon a child that has been kidnapped and what on earth will he do next. What should he do next?

I am not going to give anything else away just read it and you will nto be dissappointed!

This book had a refreashing plot. It keep you thinking. But,I really don't think men are that mesmerised by a woman that easily. I give them more credit than that. I received it in great shape.

This was one of the best mystery novels I have read. Maybe it is because I was a single parent dad, but Judge Hunt's desire to protect Emma really touched me. His romance with Mollie was wonderful, and the mystery was superb. You must read this.

I love these crime mystery FBI thrillers. Has me on the seat through the hole book!!!!

I like these books.