Rating: 
Summary: Dreaded Sequel Sickness
Review: It would seem that Mr. Cobb has not learned that there is a time to stop a series. While I'm sure that the technical merits of the hardware involved in this book are accurate, the merits of the characters are not.I must say that I have enjoyed the other Amanda Garret books immensely. Which is why this was such a huge dissappointment. Amanda Garret was/is tough but fair, easy to be commanded by but the sort of demanding boss that gets her troops to work well for her. Until this book that is. Now Ms. Garret is reduced to a simpering puppy-love struck school girl who just can't help but fall into bed with her adversary. The sexual scenes involving Garret, and her pal Christine Rendino, do not add to the book. In fact they read almost as if some editor looked at the manuscript and said, "hey, we need some sex in this thing". And that is just the way it reads. The sex is an add-on which contributes nothing, the characters were doing so well up til this point. Some of the characters we'd like to know more about, but don't get the chance. These include the admiral in charge and the helicopter pilot who seems to be quite a character in his own right. The plot contrivances are stretched so thin you can see right through them. Need a secret base? Poof, one appears as if by magic. Need to track the heroine? Poof, suddenly the National Reconnasence Office can task a satellite right where it needs to be. Need a new country to act as villian? Hey, Indonesia looks promising. And so on. The only feeling I got from this book was that I was making a mortgage payment for the author. His heart seemed to be elsewhere, this being written only to fullfil some type of contractual agreement. There was no zest in this book. Nothing like the first in the series. My reccommendation: Don't buy it. Save your money.
Rating: 
Summary: A twist in the midst of a series.
Review: James H. Cobb's Latest offering of the life and actions of Amanda Garrett, takes a series of S-turns with this latest installment. The central character enjoyes a flirtation with a fantasy from her childhood days and takes a dip on the other side of the line, the darkside so to speak. Explored in the pages of this book is the question of what happens when a Officer and a Lady, sperated from her crew and command, offered the taste of forbidden fruit in the guise of childhood "crush", will she accept what is offered or be true to her calling. Those that say that Cobb's latest installment couldn't have been written by someone who truely knows the armed services give them selves away to be men, not able to put themselves in the place of a woman. Nor are they able to invision what might have to be done by a woman, to survive till rescue comes. This is a worthy effort on the part of the author. I give it a 4 our of 5 stars because I felt that there was a bit of drag in places that could have been polished out by the author. I look forward to seeing more Amanda Garrett works in the near future!
Rating:
Summary: send 'em down with the ship
Review: Ok, I admit it, I like sea stories & even have a weakness for technothrillers when in need of pulp fiction, and in fairness to Mr. Cobb I should say that I quite enjoyed his first two books in this series (CHOOSERS OF THE SLAIN & SEA STRIKE) although I felt that what seemed to be his decision at that point -to retire his heroine- was a wise one. Things were starting to get sloppy (at one point his "destroyer" was listed as weighing in at 80,000 tons -given that a WW II battleship generally weighed less than 60k this was presumably a typo!)& he seemed to have milked his characters for all he could get. I seem to have missed #3 & #4 certainly doesn't make me want to rush back to the library to get it. I believe it was Hitchcock who said something like "if the plot is sagging, torture the heroine". Cobb seems to have updated this into a Softer Gentler 'oughts model of "if the plot is sagging have the heroines sleep with whomever is around." They do. Quite apart from the tedium of his "love scenes" one has GOT to wonder what would happen to an officer in today's navy -male OR female- who shacked up with someone that s/he knew perfectly well was in the business of murdering U.S. Nationals & plotting to overthrow a Friendly Power. Can you say "Court martial"? While a major requirement of technothrillers is something of a suspension of belief -if the U.S. was even half as hip as the Cobbs of this world would have us believe bin Laden & co. would have lasted about 15 minutes back in the Autumn- one ought to be asked only to suspend belief only on the infalliable technology, not the very falliable humans. Nope, put this one back on the table and hope that Mr. Cobb can execute a major course change when he stands into danger.
Rating:
Summary: Another Excellent Offering
Review: Once again, James H Cobb has written a winner that will keep you enthralled until the last page. He manages to pull off showcasing all of his previous characters and adding several new ones. Readers of his first two novels will enjoy the reappearance of the USS Cunningham, while fans of his last book will savor the return of the Three Little Pigs. Of course the technology is very current (Check the latest issues of Naval Proceedings if you doubt this) along with the tactics. I especially enjoyed the WW2 references and tactics (no hints - read and find out for yourself!) You may be wondering - considering all the praise I heaped so far - why only four stars? Good question. One thing that disappointed me was still no return of Vince Arkady. References are made, but the character is still absent. You almost get the feeling he is being left behind, which would disappoint me greatly. Another disappointment is the relationship with Amanda's superior officer, Admiral Macintyre. Let's just say I don't like the way it's developing. Finally, I'll confirm that she is seduced by her opposition, the charming rogue Harconan. No suprise here, the synopsis above says that. It is good character development, provides insight into both characters, and brings a more human side into play. However, being an old fashioned hero type, I would have preferred it not happen. I'm sure others will disagree. To sum up, as a big fan of Mr. Cobb's, I think the book is excellent and a worthy addition to the Amanda Garrett series. I enjoyed it and devoured it at a single seating. Enjoy!
Rating: 
Summary: raise the skull and cross bones
Review: Target Lock is an excellent book. I found knowing the series was an aid to understanding the characters a little more. The concepts of the people, weapon systems, and the plot are vintage Cobb and of the "Admanda" series. I found the writing development very well down. The scenes and action flow smoothly. One of the great things Mr Cobb puts fourth in his books is the strength in doing what is right. For ones country, ones comrades in arms, ones feelings ... bold action and the price of all you have payment on the table. For those serving in the present US military, this theme is very applicable. All this played against some of the best in the military techno action today. The delve into a more obvious sexual spin was a bit surprising. It was intertwined with the fast moving action scenes, made sense, and fit. The fact that I like this or not is not what matters, what does when I read a book is if it makes me think or react. It is strange indeed to find myself comparing myself to a female warrior as man, but it did make me think. The main play of this book and the series is military action - specifically naval. It covers a wide variety of various combat arms. I am most interested in the ship based aviation type action and this book, as in the first, delivered. The weaving of the aircraft and weapons is nothingless than excellent. The balance to the people involved, making them the focal point is outstanding. Adventure, in the military techo thriller set, is alive and well in the latest installment Target Lock. To really enjoy this book you will want to read the other books in the series.
Rating:
Summary: Back to form...
Review: Target Lock represents a return by Cobb to the form shown in Choosers of the Slain and Stormdragon. This is not to say that I didn't enjoy SeaFighter, it just felt a little longwinded and didn't have to same pace and drive as the earlier two. This one however had me hooked from beginning to end. I brought this when I was holidaying in London and wasted far to much of my valuable holiday time reading this book when I should've been out enjoying the uncharacteristicly(sic) English weather. As one of those Aussie obsessed with Bali (even moreso since the bombings) to have at least part of the story set there, just gave it that extra "umpf". The open ending of this story annoyed me no-end at the time and I eagerly await the conclusion.
Rating:
Summary: The best Amanda Garrett book yet!
Review: The plot was perfectly typed. I envisioned myself right by her as it happened.
Rating: 
Summary: Sleeping with the Enemy
Review: U.S. Navy Captain Amanda Garrett has an Achilles' heel even she isn't aware of: she has a fatal weakness for pirates. This proves to be rather inconvenient when she finds herself pitted against multimillionaire Indonesian subversive Makara Harconan, a self-styled pirate in possession of a United States satellite stolen from the ocean during naval recovery. Harconan has plans for a Bugis islander native uprising to unseat the Jakartan government, and the black market sale of Uncle Sam's satellite will net him even more megabucks to finance the operation. TACBOSS Amanda manages shutting down Harconan's plans pretty well, in the early stages - until he kidnaps her, to seduce her into becoming Queen to his Pirate King. The scary thing is, he just might succeed...because she wants him to. This book should be a lot better than it is, but it's still pretty good. Its worst flaw is the too-true-blue-to-be-true John Wayne heroics of Amanda and her shipmates, who meet all challenges with guns blazing, yet barely ever muss-up their hair while cold-bloodedly blasting legions of Indonesian foes to bits. The style of this particular novel is clearly calculated to pander to current administration thinking: blow hell out of anything that might be an enemy combatant, whether it is or not, and sort it all out later. This underlying stance, pervasive throughout, actually makes the characters less sympathetic than they might otherwise be, and isn't terribly realistic. However, the action is hot and heavy, the plot (for the most part) holds interest, and the story - at least from the time Amanda becomes the Pirate King's prisoner/love interest - is pretty well handled. Target Lock practically screams for a sequel, and will probably have one. There are echoes of several Ian Fleming novels, notably Dr. No, Live and Let Die, and On Her Majesty's Secret Service - which James Bond entries, if you enjoy this installment in the Amanda Garrett series, you might also want to check out. The reader is to be warned: if you're not into in-depth descriptions of military hardware and blood-and-guts action, this book won't be for you. Action plays fast and exciting in dramatic performance, but reads slowly and sometimes tediously on the printed page. Target Lock suffers (or benefits, depending on your point of view) from a great deal of this. Just thought you'd like to know.
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