The Passion of Molly T.

by Lawrence Sanders

The Women's Defense Corps, an elite paramilitary force led by the charismatic Molly Turner and her brother-in-law, Rod Harding, embarks on a deadly quest for revenge against males judged guilty of crimes against women

Genres: Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Crime, Suspense

400 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1984

About the author

There is more than one author with this name

Lawrence Sanders was the New York Times bestselling author of more than forty mystery and suspense novels. The Anderson Tapes, completed when he was fifty years old, received an Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America for best first novel. His prodigious oeuvre encompasses the Edward X. Delaney, Archy McNally, and Timothy Cone series, along with his acclaimed Commandment books. Stand-alone novels include Sullivan's Sting and Caper. Sanders remains one of America’s most popular novelists, with more than fifty million copies of his books in print. Also published as Mark Upton.

Reviews

[Trudi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this decades ago and promptly went to the library to find out if The Women's Defense Corps or anything like it existed because I NEEDED IT. I wanted that part to be true very badly.

The book is shlocky crap, but the idea of women banding together to fight stayed with me. #metoo

[Lukasz Pruski · Rating 2 out of 5]

The premise of Lawrence Sanders' "The Passion of Molly T." is delightfully outrageous - women in the U.S. form a paramilitary organization to fight for equal rights, against rape, spousal abuse, pornography, etc. If I were to rate a book by its premise, this novel would clearly deserve five stars. Alas, the implementation of this splendid premise is lacking - the plot quickly loses plausibility, and is bogged down in a tangle of minor threads, with weak and unrealistic character portrayals.

The action takes place between 1987 and 1992 (note that the book was written about 1984). Two organizations carry the women's fight: the moderate National Women's Union and the militant Women's Defense Corps (WDC). The latter uses violence to further its lofty and deserving goals. Its mode of operation includes bombing buildings of companies that do not pay women fair wages, burning pornography outlets, lynching rapists, and the like. Many people are killed, others are maimed, yet, curiously, the prosecution of these acts is minimal, despite "everybody" knowing who is behind them. "Violence is the only road to reform in America" proclaims Molly T., yet she is allowed to stay free.

There are several hilarious bits in the novel. I particularly like the parody of a scholarly article that compares the rise and success of the WDC to the American Civil War. The concept of political engineering based on "weighted sampling" of very small numbers of potential voters (10 or so) to represent the entire population in swing districts is extremely funny, particularly because it might sound reasonable to people who have not taken a serious statistics course.

Overall: a fast and painless read, yet eventually vapid and unsatisfying.

Two stars.

[shapeofaflyingdeer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yeah but they 'short circuited' the female electorate. The union (females) sabotaged their electorate (females). So the novel was 'just short'of fantasy. I think this novel was multilayered though.

[Shady Lady · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just recently I read this futuristic Lawrence Sanders novel from 1984. Basically, this is a book about feminism on a whole new level. The main character is a woman named Molly Turner, who is the leader of a women’s group called National Women’s Union (or NWU). This is a group taking revenge on men who hurt women.

This group starts out peaceful, but a tragic event in Molly’s life changes that. She is now out for revenge and doesn’t care who gets in her way, and she persuades the other members of the group to follow her example.

I did enjoy the way in which these women stand up for each other and come together when needed; I didn’t so much enjoy the lengths that they go to in order to prove their loyalty to Molly.

All in all, I thought this was a great book, though. It was very entertaining and kept me on the edge of my seat right to the very end. If you like suspense and danger, you will enjoy reading The Passion.

[Cassie · Rating 1 out of 5]

The premise is fantastic - militant women deciding to fight rapists, misogynists, abusers with the same violence they threaten against women.
However, it was so clearly written by a man who does not understand women. I'm pretty sure we get a full paragraph dedicated to describing each woman character's breasts.

[Marianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Even when he's not that good, Sanders is still better than most authors. This one has too many sub-plots, it's a little complicated, keeping people straight is a task, some major parts were inevitable. Still, decent and worth reading.

[dani · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was an interesting story line but Molly was out of her mind and Lawrence Sanders is a racist asshole.

[Marty · Rating 3 out of 5]

Always important to have a "beach book" at hand for those last few minutes before sleep. This one filled that need fine. A little too much violence and (INHO) unnecessary killing, but entertaining nevertheless.

[Bob Box]

Read in 1985. Sea, suspense and violence all come together in this erotic thriller.

[Becky Griffus · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, not really mmy type of book. The womens movement is pretty interesting. Politics not so much. I did finish it, which is a rule with me. It wasnt the worst book I've ever read.

[Lady · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was looking forward to reading this book, but it was a hard slog to get through, and I was disappointed.

[John Mcconahey]

I watched the women's liberation movement evolve as though I were having an out-of-body experience. Understanding the basic premise of equality between the sexes, I was too busy with family and career to give this period in history more than a passing glance. I certainly didn't properly understand the political complexities.

The book follows the concurrent paths of Molly Turner and her sister, Ann Harding, who are active in the National Women’s Union. We also track Ann’s husband, a U.S. Senator and his aide, a couple of NWU presidents and board members, a homeless Vietnam vet, and an FBI agent. What comes out is a tale infidelity, homosexuality, politics, and violence as a means to an end. For me, the political maneuvering was the most interesting, but it left me uneasy about the way organizations (and even countries) are run.

This book will never make it to my favorites list, but at least it held my attention enough to get me to the last page.

[Thomas Walton · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was the second time I started this book and put it down. I got half way through and decided that there is no sence reading a book that I don't enjoy, I mean it's not like I have to write a school project! The story line was unlike any Sanders that I've read before. I just could not connect with any of the characters and the story line was with violent militants and politicians- just did not relate to any of it, I mean the sex wasn't even enticing,just not right at all, and forget romance, what fun is that?. Not recommended by this reader

[Gerry · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found it interesting to read about the future – after that future has taken place. In this case the book was written during the height of the women’s liberation movement and sees a future where it becomes militant... thankfully that didn’t come true – but a good read none the less.

[Cws]

M San

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nothing super special. However it had all the elements of a good book i enjoyed it!

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fabulous story all women should read about women's right to vote.

[Fatbaldguy60 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. A bit dark, but very good.

[Cathy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ugh!