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Vin Cooper #5
War Lord
A $15 million ransom. A plane down in the remote swamps of Darwin. A new partner who plays by the rules.
Returning from an enforced sabbatical after his partner Anna's death, Special Agent Vin Cooper feels compelled to help an acquaintance of hers – Vegas showgirl, Alabama Thornton. Alabama's boyfriend, Randy, was on a plane that's gone down and she's just received a gruesome ransom demand.
But Vin's favour quickly spirals into a full-blown multi-agency screw-up. Not only was Randy hiding high-level secrets, he is also connected to a stolen nuclear weapon.
Vin and his straight-laced new partner Kim Petinski chase leads from Darwin to the favelas of Rio de Janeiro, and then further still into Tanzania. As their investigation hits dead ends, and dead bodies, an alarming possibility arises: the missing warhead is in the hands of Benicio von Weiss.
Von Weiss is a major international arms dealer on every watchlist that counts; he's also a man of diverse tastes, including snakes and Nazi memorabilia. And he has an obsession: vengeance against America.
If von Weiss is involved, all bets are off. With the threat of a plutonium mushroom cloud hanging over his head, Vin will risk his job – and his life – to bring the war lord to justice.
"David Rollins has conquered the international action thriller market with his Vin Cooper novels" – The Age
"A gripping tale... tense... frantic" – Good Reading
Returning from an enforced sabbatical after his partner Anna's death, Special Agent Vin Cooper feels compelled to help an acquaintance of hers – Vegas showgirl, Alabama Thornton. Alabama's boyfriend, Randy, was on a plane that's gone down and she's just received a gruesome ransom demand.
But Vin's favour quickly spirals into a full-blown multi-agency screw-up. Not only was Randy hiding high-level secrets, he is also connected to a stolen nuclear weapon.
Vin and his straight-laced new partner Kim Petinski chase leads from Darwin to the favelas of Rio de Janeiro, and then further still into Tanzania. As their investigation hits dead ends, and dead bodies, an alarming possibility arises: the missing warhead is in the hands of Benicio von Weiss.
Von Weiss is a major international arms dealer on every watchlist that counts; he's also a man of diverse tastes, including snakes and Nazi memorabilia. And he has an obsession: vengeance against America.
If von Weiss is involved, all bets are off. With the threat of a plutonium mushroom cloud hanging over his head, Vin will risk his job – and his life – to bring the war lord to justice.
"David Rollins has conquered the international action thriller market with his Vin Cooper novels" – The Age
"A gripping tale... tense... frantic" – Good Reading
412 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 2012
19 people are currently reading
119 people want to read
About the author
David Rollins
21 books86 followersHiya, I'm a fiction author and I live in Sydney, Australia. I guess my best-known work is the series featuring Vin Cooper, a special agent in the United States Air Force OSI.
I have published eleven novels, which most recently includes the seventh novel in the Cooper series, the highly controversial KINGDOM COME.
I've recently discovered the joys of Substack. Come and take a look at davidrollins@substack.com where I'm also serializing BLOOD & EMPIRE, the sequel to FIELD OF MARS.
I have published eleven novels, which most recently includes the seventh novel in the Cooper series, the highly controversial KINGDOM COME.
I've recently discovered the joys of Substack. Come and take a look at davidrollins@substack.com where I'm also serializing BLOOD & EMPIRE, the sequel to FIELD OF MARS.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
March 13, 2016
David Rollins doesn't disappoint with the action for the fifth instalment of protagonist Vin Cooper here in War Lord. In what appears to be a direct sequel from the preceding book, Ghost Watch, the chase for a number of undesirables continues which leads Copper into a mix of $15 million in ransom, Las Vegas, the memory of a former lover, Australia, nuclear weapons, Rio and the obligatory ladies.
War Lord is highly entertaining, well thought out and I get the feeling that the hunt will continue in the following book titled Standoff!
Thank you David and I hope there's more Vin Cooper to come.
War Lord is highly entertaining, well thought out and I get the feeling that the hunt will continue in the following book titled Standoff!
Thank you David and I hope there's more Vin Cooper to come.
October 30, 2014
Air Force Special Agent Vin Cooper aggressively pursues a multimillionaire Brazilian Nazi snake expert who plans vengeance on the US. Vin Cooper is basically James Bond with a better sense of humor and he's in top form here. This is a very entertaining thriller with admirable good guys, smart, sexy women and lots of unforgettably lethal bad guys all cracking wise when not trying to torture and kill each other. My kind of book!
September 1, 2013
An enjoyable, albeit OTT ending Vin Cooper novel. The last one, Ghost Watch, was easily the best in the series so far. This is a direct sequel in many ways, which made it far more involving and engaging. This one is about a nuclear bomb which has gone missing. There is probably a joke in there somewhere about 'how I stopped worrying and learned to love the bomb', but maybe not right now.
Anyway, our hero starts investigating. Vin is no oil painting, but he clearly has some sort of attraction to the opposite sex. And he is obsessed with breasts. Or Rollins is. Or both...
Unlike Ghost Watch, in which Vin shoots numerous bad guys throughout the book, here his violence quotient is very limited. Oh, that is until the end. Which is pretty silly - the end that is. Aside from the OTT premise, this is genuinely great fun. Easy to read, it rolls right along. Some nasty violence and a few great set pieces (apart from the end - did I mention that?), it is a 3.75 or so book. I am being generous today and bumping War Lord to a 4.
If you have not read the others first, do so, particularly Ghost Watch. It will be a far more satisfying read if you do.
Anyway, our hero starts investigating. Vin is no oil painting, but he clearly has some sort of attraction to the opposite sex. And he is obsessed with breasts. Or Rollins is. Or both...
Unlike Ghost Watch, in which Vin shoots numerous bad guys throughout the book, here his violence quotient is very limited. Oh, that is until the end. Which is pretty silly - the end that is. Aside from the OTT premise, this is genuinely great fun. Easy to read, it rolls right along. Some nasty violence and a few great set pieces (apart from the end - did I mention that?), it is a 3.75 or so book. I am being generous today and bumping War Lord to a 4.
If you have not read the others first, do so, particularly Ghost Watch. It will be a far more satisfying read if you do.
January 8, 2013
I love David Rollins and his Vin Cooper novels. He does not get anywhere enough credit. Vin Cooper is a great character and is up there with the likes of Mitch Rapp, Scott Harvath etc.. Please give David Rollins a chance I promise you will not be disappointed. There are 5 books in this series so far and they are all four or five star reads... Thanks David for another great read!
August 25, 2020
If you are a fan of Danielle Steel and find boys locker room talk offensive and intolerable, put this book down now and just walk away. This is not a book for you. However, if you were like me and your best friends growing up were a bunch of guys that you hung out with doing all kinds of stupid crap because that's what guys do, then you might find this book a fun read.
I recently exhausted my English library and found this book left behind in our rental apartment. I am not normally a fan of reading fiction and I can promise you that I would have never thought to purchase this book from a bookstore. Nonetheless, I fell in love with the main character Vin Cooper. I have hung out with a "Vin" countless times...a charming guy who cannot help himself but to drop sexual innuendos at every opportunity. He's not the relationship kind of guy. He's a smart talker who can charm the pants off of just about any girl. He's a rough and tumble kind of guy who always finds himself in a shit ton of trouble, but somehow manages to come out of it all smelling like roses. Being friends with a "Vin" can be a whole lot of fun, adventure, and close calls. But the best part about a "Vin," he's loyal and will always have your back no matter what.
I thoroughly enjoyed the author's style of writing and his development of the Vin Cooper character. It is clear the author spent a good amount of time as well in researching the military aspects of the narrative so it didn't come across as cheesy or some over the top macho hero flying in to save the day. The detailed descriptions throughout gave me the impression that I was an invisible bystander to each event and I wouldn't be surprised if some of the narrative was drawn from a mix of factual events. I could easily see this book on the big screen...Tom Hardy would make a great Vin!
Either way, David Rollins may have found himself a convert. Next time I am in a bookstore, if I happen to see a Vin Cooper adventure on the shelf...I may just have to buy it!
I recently exhausted my English library and found this book left behind in our rental apartment. I am not normally a fan of reading fiction and I can promise you that I would have never thought to purchase this book from a bookstore. Nonetheless, I fell in love with the main character Vin Cooper. I have hung out with a "Vin" countless times...a charming guy who cannot help himself but to drop sexual innuendos at every opportunity. He's not the relationship kind of guy. He's a smart talker who can charm the pants off of just about any girl. He's a rough and tumble kind of guy who always finds himself in a shit ton of trouble, but somehow manages to come out of it all smelling like roses. Being friends with a "Vin" can be a whole lot of fun, adventure, and close calls. But the best part about a "Vin," he's loyal and will always have your back no matter what.
I thoroughly enjoyed the author's style of writing and his development of the Vin Cooper character. It is clear the author spent a good amount of time as well in researching the military aspects of the narrative so it didn't come across as cheesy or some over the top macho hero flying in to save the day. The detailed descriptions throughout gave me the impression that I was an invisible bystander to each event and I wouldn't be surprised if some of the narrative was drawn from a mix of factual events. I could easily see this book on the big screen...Tom Hardy would make a great Vin!
Either way, David Rollins may have found himself a convert. Next time I am in a bookstore, if I happen to see a Vin Cooper adventure on the shelf...I may just have to buy it!
October 18, 2020
David Rollins never disappoints. After picking up the Vin Cooper series after a few years (didn't know there were other books), I was back in action like time hadn't passed.
This book will keep you on the edge of your seat...like the books previous. Never a dull moment and extremely hard to put the book down.
On to the next...the series is a must read!
This book will keep you on the edge of your seat...like the books previous. Never a dull moment and extremely hard to put the book down.
On to the next...the series is a must read!
September 21, 2021
It was a good read.
March 13, 2016
David Rollins didn't disappoint with War Lord. His writing style is amazing. I love his sarcasm and all the rest of it. This is now the third of his book that I had finished reading. I intend to continue reading the rest.
The story has a touch of implausibility about it, that's his style and yes, it's an all-out fiction. The second his plot becomes real would be the day we'd all rue it. This story was about a stolen warhead from America's arsenal of nukes. See what I mean?
There were many heroes, but of course, the biggest of them all is sex-crazed Vin Cooper. There were several disturbing scenes of gore and torture, if you can get passed that, you'll be ok.
I was just none too pleased when he, as Vin Cooper, said that he had met so many posh sounding, public school educated BRIT SAS to know that he was speaking to someone of a particular class. It would have worked better had he referred to British Ruperts, as in headsheds or officers. The majority of Brit SAS doesn't come from privileged background. (Based on my own research).
With that, he came unstuck in my eyes.
At any rate, I still rate him four stars for entertainment value. And he had obviously done a lot of research to be believable.
The story has a touch of implausibility about it, that's his style and yes, it's an all-out fiction. The second his plot becomes real would be the day we'd all rue it. This story was about a stolen warhead from America's arsenal of nukes. See what I mean?
There were many heroes, but of course, the biggest of them all is sex-crazed Vin Cooper. There were several disturbing scenes of gore and torture, if you can get passed that, you'll be ok.
I was just none too pleased when he, as Vin Cooper, said that he had met so many posh sounding, public school educated BRIT SAS to know that he was speaking to someone of a particular class. It would have worked better had he referred to British Ruperts, as in headsheds or officers. The majority of Brit SAS doesn't come from privileged background. (Based on my own research).
With that, he came unstuck in my eyes.
At any rate, I still rate him four stars for entertainment value. And he had obviously done a lot of research to be believable.
April 1, 2013
This book picks up several months after the previous book in the series, Ghost Watch, though it's not exactly a sequel in the series. Events in Vin Cooper's life brings him in contact with the characters of the previous book as he works a new case. This is an exciting adventure that takes him around the world on the hunt for a missing friend of a friend. It slowly builds to a climatic and exciting end. I read a third of the book in the last day as it was not easy to put down.
Though, Vin Cooper is seeming more and more like a super hero to be able to withstand all the punishment that is heaped upon him and yet he still manages to keep going. It is getting a bit unrealistic though compare to the earlier books in the series.
A good read.
Though, Vin Cooper is seeming more and more like a super hero to be able to withstand all the punishment that is heaped upon him and yet he still manages to keep going. It is getting a bit unrealistic though compare to the earlier books in the series.
A good read.
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September 27, 2016On par with The Death Trust
Better than the fourth book. Well written and loads of twists. Good from beginning to the end and non stop action. A bit more believable than book four but still a bit out there. Looking forward to number six.
Better than the fourth book. Well written and loads of twists. Good from beginning to the end and non stop action. A bit more believable than book four but still a bit out there. Looking forward to number six.
December 9, 2012
Number 5 in the Vin Cooper series. I enjoyed it but the plot was totally unbelievable this time. I wish Rollins would bring back Tom Wilkes.
August 31, 2016
Another Vin Cooper novel is well worth the time. This was starts a bit rambling, but once Vin leaves the USA the action, drams, mystery ramps up well. Strong entry in the series.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews