Iron Orchid

Holly Barker #5

by Stuart Woods

Holly Barker has moved on from her post as Chief of Florida's Orchid Beach Police Department in this exciting entry in the Stuart Woods series.

Now working for the CIA, she has joined the elite task force tracking Teddy Fay - a man who seems to kill his political targets for sport. As he begins to pick off America's enemies one by one, Holly unexpectedly finds herself face-to-face with the killer, kick-starting a high-speed chase through the streets of Manhattan. It's an adventure you won't want to miss!

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Thriller, Crime, Mystery Thriller, Audiobook, Suspense

400 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Stuart Woods was an American novelist best known for Chiefs and his long-running Stone Barrington series. A Georgia native, he initially pursued a career in advertising before relocating to England and Ireland, where he developed a passion for sailing. His love for the sport led him to write his first published work, Blue Water, Green Skipper, about his experiences in a transatlantic yacht race.
His debut novel, Chiefs, was inspired by a family story about his grandfather, a police chief. The book, a gripping crime saga spanning several decades, won the Edgar Award for Best First Novel and was later adapted into a television miniseries. It launched Woods' career as a novelist, leading to a prolific output of thrillers.
Woods' most famous creation, Stone Barrington, is a former NYPD detective turned high-profile lawyer who navigates elite circles while solving crimes. The series became a bestseller and remained a staple of his career, often featuring crossover characters from his other books, such as CIA operative Holly Barker and defense lawyer Ed Eagle.
Beyond writing, Woods was an experienced pilot and yachtsman. He maintained homes in Florida, Maine, and New Mexico, where he lived with his wife and their Labrador, Fred. His literary career spanned decades, with dozens of bestsellers to his name.

Reviews

[Jack Heath · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 Stars. Good but not up there with the first three. I truly enjoyed them. The next was a combination Stone Barrington #10/ Holly Barker #4 which I read a year ago. But the first three? Exciting, with interesting criminal issues in Orchid Beach, Florida where Holly is Police Chief. One concerned a secretive new development being used surreptitiously as an international drug haven. Now we have #5 and she has moved on. Lance Cabot of the CIA recruits her as an operative. The first section is more about her training at Camp Peary, aka 'The Farm' in rural Virginia, than I wanted to know. Except that her extraordinary dog, Daisy, is there too. It's only when Holly meets Teddy Fay that it becomes interesting. Teddy's a former CIA employee in technical services in charge of supplying weapons, fake credentials and disguises to field agents. Since retiring his personal mission has been to kill right-wing enemies of America with whom he disagrees politically. Law enforcement agencies don't take well to that concept. Then he asks a beautiful woman, although unknown to him, to occupy the empty seat next to him at the opera in New York. Her name? Holly. (October 2023)

[Diane Wallace · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good series! lots of action,suspense,tough Holly B plotline and an enjoyable series (paperback!)

[Maureen DeLuca · Rating 1 out of 5]

Um, this is book 4 of the HOLLY BARKER series.... I just couldn't finish it- Holly is now training at the 'farm' so she can be part of the CIA.. ok- I can get that. These books aren't real hard core thriller, nutty psycho books- a bit of a 'fluff' but not as 'fluffy' as some cozy mysteries. So, at times I can enjoy it- but this one- was too unbelievable ... I had it when a CIA agent/trainer is telling Holly that she has to go to NY- The sentence began with the agent telling Sally Liu (another new agent) that she will 'ride with Holly and 'HER DOG' in the car to head to NY. Holly has this great dog- which is fine when she was working in a small town.. but now, training to become a CIA agent- the agency allows Holly to bring her dog, while she is training, and now becoming an agent... Silly at best --- oh well....

[ML · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is by far the best Holly Barker book probably because she wasn’t the main character in this one. It was Teddy Fay. The bad guy everyone secretly loves.

More adventures with Teddy and how he outsmarts not only the FBI but also the CIA. I was rooting for him for the whole book. Dino and Stone are also in this installment for a brief time as is Will Lee.

This was a well rounded plot. I was hoping the bad guy got away….

Off to read the next one up.. Dark Harbor…

[Shelley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Synopsis: Holly has resigned as Chief of Police, and joined the CIA under Lance Cabot. Holly also has a secret she intends to hide from them as well. She has a secret cache of several million in a numbered account taken from one of her last cases in Orchid Beach.

Just weeks into her training at "The Farm" her class is hustled to New York City to track down Teddy Fay, good guy/bad guy villain from the earlier "Capital Crimes" novel. Fay is a rogue CIA agent, and has intimate knowledge of the inner workings of the company. He can make himself appear as anyone he wants, and has unlimited access to the CIA's database.

Now Fay is bumping off middle Eastern terrorists in a personal vendetta against "undesirables" that his former employer cannot take on themselves. His exploits escalate to President Will Lee's attention as well as his wife, who is the head of the CIA.

Lance Cabot is back as well as Stone Barrinton and pal Dino who make brief cameos, mostly we guess to assure us how red-blooded Holly is as she once again beds Stone.

Easily the most entertaining facet of the book is the exploits of the Teddy Fay, who actually takes Holly to the opera without her knowing it! For some reason, you actually find yourself cheering for Teddy, who later slips away unnoticed by anyone.

It's not a bad novel, but it could have been alot better. The story almost seemed rushed at times, and in all honesty, Holly, or Stone could have captured Teddy with a little bit more imagination.

[Kym Gamble · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another good Holly Barker book by Stuart Woods. These supporting books are even better than the Stone Barrington main series. Holly is training for the CIA this time when a "do-gooder" assassin is taking out US enemies. Holly's training is cut short to get her to New York to try to catch this former CIA operative. The problem is, no one knows what he looks like.

[Jeffrey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Holly is a likable character but this book is far removed from reality. Its like Woods just cannot figure out what to do with her next. Chief of Police in Florida, all used up. Aha joing CIA and fight terrorist --there's a current plot outline.

A close comparison is Jesse Stone by Robert Parker. Parker invents a new character who is a cop in a small town and then keeps him as a cop. He doesnt try to make him more than he has to be.

[✨ Gramy ✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book focuses on an ex-CIA technical wizard by the name of Teddy Fay. He assassinates people all over New York City for political sport. The book ends with the supposed death of Teddy Fay. The CIA hopes he is gone forever.

[Pierre Tassé (Enjoying Books) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this one. Why doesn't Stuart Woods write like this for the Barrington series. I found Iron Orchid a delight to read. Interesting and mysterious. I found that the book led me into areas that were intriguing and I easily got caught up in the events portrayed. Thanks for this one.

[Patrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fast fun read. It was kind of interesting in that the bad guys did not get caught in this one. This may have been intentional, or it may be that the chase is all the entertainment you need. Read it and decide for yourself.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

It has been so long since I read a Stuart Woods I forgot who Stone Barrington was! I recognized the name when he had a small part in this Holly Barker series book, but nothing clicked. Good read, I of course like Holly, bright, tough, no nonsense woman. A CIA agent noticed her too and talked her into taking training, joining the service. However she is not all squeaky-clean and has a big secret she is hiding from the CIA and everyone else....

[Alan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Talented as Stuart Woods is, his books aren’t always winners. In this book his storied characters are cardboard cutouts and glib asses. Unlike many of his other books there is no reason here to like any of the people much, except perhaps Teddy Fay and even that’s stretching it.

[John Olson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Holly Barker story with Stone and Dino mentions. Good story of history about Holly learning to be a CIA agent. Teddy Fay the good villain and how it all plays out. Pretty much a fast read.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Story moved along nicely.
Setting: mostly NYC
Very clever bad guy
Holly joins the CIA in this one. She also spends mucho money.
A much easier read for me than the other books of his that I have read.
2-3 big moral problems regarding characters decisions.

[Jerry B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Woods hauls out many past characters to pace a rather tepid "thriller" -- loose ends abound!

We've read Woods' entire booklist and don't intend to stop now. From his Will Lee series, his standalone books, his lengthy playboy-investigator Stone Barrington collection to his newest, the Holly Barker set, we've generally enjoyed each of his outings. Ostensibly, this book is another in the latter run, all of which contain "Orchid" in the title, which is the only sense we can make out of the otherwise cryptic title of this one. Holly has resigned from her unduly low key post as a small time Florida beach town police chief to seek more thrills (certainly not money, as she has a secret cache of several million in a numbered account) as a CIA operative. But just weeks into training at "The Farm" her class is hustled to New York City to track down Teddy Fay, good guy/bad guy villain from the earlier "Capital Crimes" novel. Now Fay is bumping off middle Eastern terrorists in a personal vendetta against "undesirables" that his former employer (also the CIA) cannot take on themselves. His exploits escalate to President Will Lee's attention; CIA bigwig Lance Cabot is back helping direct the hunt; and Stone and pal Dino make brief cameos, mostly we guess to assure us how red-blooded Holly is as she once again beds Stone like she did in "Two Dollar Bill". So almost every ex-character but Barrington's on-again off-again girlfriend Arrington is here to help.

Alas, the plot never goes much of anywhere -- and worse, gets there slowly. Easily the most entertaining facet of the book is the exploits of the clever Teddy, who actually takes Holly to the opera without her knowing it! He's a villain we come close to rooting for, and only the most naïve reader will think we've seen the last of him given the way this one ends up. Along the way, he uses multiple disguises and extensive planning, as well as a somewhat unbelievable inside connection, to stay several beats of ahead of his chasers, including Holly who as a new recruit seems to have the only good ideas in nailing him down.

In sum, "Iron Orchid" rolls out familiar faces and places, but the tepid plot does little to amuse. It's not a totally bad novel, but we know Woods can do much better by giving us something to care about, generating sustained suspense, and closing out the affair with some certainty. Not this time.

[John Marsh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Holly Barker changes careers to the CIA but first she deposits skimmed millions in a Carribean off shore bank, she has her faith dog companion with her everywhere she goes, Daisy. Reason to why isnot supplied as Holly is rich in her own right, maybe something from pervious book in the series. Ex-chief-of-police Holly Barker is accepted into training in CIA but before the training period is complete the remaining trainees are allocated to an the elite task force tracking Teddy Fay-a man who kills his political targets for sport. As he begins to pick off America's enemies one by one, Holly unexpectedly finds herself face-to-face with the killer, initially by chance at the Opera (The opera were been watched as a possible location he may turn up at). Teddy is in disguise and Holly only recognises that the stranger was Teddy seeing him run for the Taxi when he had said he was recovering from operation and could harly move. Teddy is ex CIA and has a passion to kill terrorist and such like individuals. In the the course of this story only one innocent is killed and that is the homeless man whose body at the end of the story was found in the diversion bomb attach on the site where Teddy used to shoot one of his targets. He used various methods. The FBI/CIA combined task force designated the homeless man's body as Teddy Fey's to save face. qucikly cremated . The public think Teddy died when his single engine plane was shot down. He had an insider as well in the CIA, a senior personnel officer Irene. She retires at the end to move to the Carribean to link up with Teddy. He dodges all attempts to corner him, Holly keeps being seen by Teddy as she and him are living in close promity in New York. and Teddy starts to get some sort of fixation on her. So the story turns out to show that cover up with political motive is the order of the day and the team although highly efficient fail to track down the insider or Teddy Fay.

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

August 2025. Still a fav…

June 2020 Love this story!!

Dec 2018 book on tape. It appears this a is"comfort food" book during times of medical stress... This piece of fiction addresses a joint task force between the FBI and the CIA something that shouldn't have been considered unique and daring. Enjoyed the bringing in of opera and humanizing Lance and his knowledge of opera. PS I wrote in April2016 " probably take a two year hiatus...". Apparently not gunna happen.
September 2018 I'm close to memorizing this book!
April 2018 still 5 stars and a big favorite!!!
May 2017 book on tape Again, I thoroughly enjoyed this story. Weird to root for Teddy. I just bumped rating up to 5 stars.
4-14-2016 I should probably take a two year hiatus before I do another re-read. I like the story line but probably need a break.
re read as book on 1-12-2015
book on tape 10-15-2014
Re-read 8-28-2013. This is the book that kept me company during the prep and post 5 year colonoscopy. terrific page turner, as well as to put down when pharmacutical nature kept calling. Liked the characters.
November 2011i thought i read this one, too.

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Holly Barker series integrates the character into the Stone Barrington series as a primary character.
Holly has joined the CIA and reports to the Farm for training. Dino Bachetti appears as a support character and Stone Barrington as an incidental character.
Later Stone Barrington books will feature Teddy Fey, former CIA Tech Services, and the man of many disguises, in increasing roles.
Iron Orchid is the fifth of the separate Holly Barker stories. Hot House Orchid, Holly Barker #6 seed Holly return to Florida on vacation. The book ties up some issues in Holly's life before joining the CIA.

[Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audio book read by Carrington MacDuffie
Teddy Fay is back! and killing foreign terrorists in New York City.
Holly Barker has left the Orchid Beach police Dept and joined the CIA under Lance Cabot.
She trains at the "farm", then is assigned to duty in NYC after Fay kills his first victim.
I love the way Fay uses his many disguises to hide from both the CIA and the FBI.

[Renee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one had a few familiar faces and the return of Holly's Dad. Always the mystery and humor we expect from them. Another score for Stuart Woods

[Tina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Holly goes CIA! And she's better than ever. This one has a villain who is a master of disguise and has big, brass ba....

[Dee Cyr · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good read in the series. Starting the next one right now! :)

[Dara S. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was disappointed in how this started out and actually how it ended.

[Michael Koch · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book, the sixth by Stuart Woods was first published in 2005. Cell phones were already in common use for many operations as described by the protagonist. The book sets the scene using as protagonist Teddy Fay, ex-CIA technology and disguise guru. Bad enough as that is, Fay is able to obtain full access to the CIA computer complex, and through it he is also connected to the FBI and most states, municipalities and their operational data bases. This allows him to follow the actions of the forces against him. His access to other data bases allows him to add, delete, revise or create extraordinary information, including employee, and police ID cards.

Chasing Fay is assigned to Lance Cabot, head of a joint secret FBI and CIA elite unit hunting down terrorists on US soil. They are joined by a recently joined member of CIA, Holly Barker, the successful police chief of Orchid Beach. Fay’s objective is to kill the worst enemies of the US. Many of these baddies are based in the US, they remain free as there is never judicial quality information or they are protected by diplomacy. Fay makes no effort to hide from the press; he wants them to know what has been done, when and how. It is unclear whether he simply wants to “help” police forces or is trying to entice fear in his targets and cause them to withdraw or cease activity.

Fay kills (two?) more targets before the national agencies, or anybody else, even know he is alive. They get a first sighting and begin to attempt to chase him down. They slowly seem to be closing their trap however a surprise explosion creates an explosive climax finish. Holly Barker is initially the only officer to see Fay. Fay is so well disguised that everybody else is chasing a sketch created from Barker’s description.

There is no lack of action in this book. A lot of the action is chasing the invisible Fay; finding then loosing the trail. The descriptions of his preparations, planning and execution of some of his actions are very detailed and very interesting. This is the best of Woods’ that I have read. Woods has laid out his plot in a manner that is exciting throughout and keeps the reader’s interest. Of interest to readers who like police action. Four and 1/2 Stars.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read some of the "Will Lee" and "Stone Barrington" books. They are good, but I absolutely love "Holly Barker."

(Apparently Mr. Woods is unconcerned as to how the prose in his older books can be improved. Oh, well -- his loss.)

Suggested improvements in the Large Print, Hardcover version of Iron Orchid:

Page 12, began circumnavigating the house / began CIRCLING the house ; 50, How do I know you're not a spy who's just trying to get me to talk. / How do I know you're not a spy who's just trying to get me to talk? ; 50, Yeah, well you're right / Yeah, well, you're right ; 57, Nancy Kimball answered / Nancy KIMBLE answered ; 63, answer them. "Is your name / answer them. Is your name (remove quote before "Is") ; 64, Have you ever killed anybody." / Have you ever killed anybody?" (replace period with ?) ; 95, "Whitey glared at Holly / Whitey glared at Holly (remove quote mark before "Whitey") ; 156, Special Agent Kerry White / Special Agent Kerry SMITH ; 156, Kerry White, at the other end / Kerry SMITH, at the other end ;

Page 171, I'll wait here. Holly turned / I'll wait here." Holly turned (add end quote after "here") ; 196, in seats H two or three / in SEAT H two or FOUR (On pages 184 and 186, the seats are explicitly identified as Row H, seats two and four, and Teddy can only occupy one seat) ; 213, in seats H two and three / in seats H two and FOUR ; 304, Yeah, well the last time / Yeah, well, the last time ; 329, "No," Kerry replied / "No," LANCE replied (The previous sentence was a question from Kerry to Lance.) ; 346, pause to try and identify / pause to try TO identify ; 348, the reflection in Saks window / the reflection in SAKS' window ; 363, I'll try and make a decision / I'll try TO make a decision ; 412, "Will do. / "Will do." (add end quote)

[Jim Harrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think that these books fall under a guilty pleasure for me. They aren't literary masterpieces but they do still give me a good deal of enjoyment. I read this one during a few evenings while on vacation in Italy. They are a quick read but mostly because it really gets me engrossed in the story and I don't want to put it down. I particularly like how this character is very human and relatable. There isn't anything extraordinary about her and she makes human decisions (and so mistakes happen). Many times when reading you can see where something goes the characters way to advance the plot. In these novels it only happens a little and usually not in a "big" way. I think that Woods may be writing himself into a box on this character though as the cases she is involved in are so large scale that if he were to try to write a smaller scale case for her it might come off as a letdown. However, I will continue to read this series until it does disappoint, but then again since my expectations are not the highest (as I know they are for fun reads only), it may be a while before that happens.

[JayeL]

Read this book before you read Shoot Him if He Runs. This is in the Holly Barker series, but it reminds me much more of a Stone Barrington novel. I'd love to see an integrated list of the Holly Barker and the Stone Barrington series.

Teddy Fay appears in this book and the story is about trying to catch him, though it starts with Holly in training at the Farm.

Ham, Stone, Dino and Lance all appear in this book. Irene Foster is also introduced in this book. She also appears in Shoot Him if He Runs.

In this book, Holly buys an apartment at 868 Park Avenue. Teddy is described as 67 years old, but looking 10 years younger.

Tyler, Holly's FBI partner, is from Delano, Georgia.

[Mylinda · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars.

I think Holly must have gotten hit in the head somewhere along the way. In the first couple of books, she was police chief-ing in Florida. A little ploddy, but ok. Then her fiance gets killed, leaving her a pile of money, and she just shrugs and jumps into solving his murder. Her emotional detachment reminded me of Joanna Brady. Then in book 3 (maybe 4, they are starting to blur together) she goes to NY and turns into a sex-crazed nut, racing after a criminal she wants, despite being warned off by the FBI, NYPD and everyone else. So then the CIA hires her, because, sure, that's how that works. She runs around Manhattan with her Doberman, buys an apartment and moves in within a couple of days, goes to the opera with the killer and still lets him get away.

Everybody drinks all day, eats all the time, no one minds her bringing her Doberman to work with her, and no one wonders how she affords a Manhattan apartment on a government salary. Summertime brain candy.

[L. · Rating 4 out of 5]

A surprisingly good read from Mr. Woods. This was a tightly written, fast paced novel that kept me turning the pages.
Teddy Fay is one of those characters that you know you're not supposed to like or root for but I did. He was very well developed and managed to slip through every trap that was laid for him while only hurting his intended targets. And NO I don't approve of anyone murdering anyone in real life.
Holly Barker is as sharp as ever but is prevented from pursuing Fay several times and I'm not sure Lance Cabot, her CIA boss, or his superiors wanted Fay captured. After all Fay was eliminating people they wanted to eliminate too but couldn't.
Once Fay gets to meet, talk to, and observe Holly he feels she is an excellent adversary and decides to make his latest target his last one and retire to some nice island in the Caribbean far away from Holly.
This would be a great read for a rainy Saturday.

[Ada Iaboni · Rating 2 out of 5]

OK, I read the first book, missed the next few and read this one, which is #5.
Well, I guess I missed a bunch of stuff in between because this one was confusing and it appeared that things that happened in past books made what happened in this one the story it was, which, again to me, I did not understand. And the end left a huge hole that I assume will continue in the next book.
I've read several series to date, and yes, a lot of them refer to past things and events if it was necessary to the current story, but most stand alone very well. This one was definitely a bridge to and from other books. So, no, it made little sense and although the search for the bad guy was well done, it had no real beginning or an end. 2 stars was generous.