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Mack Bolan the Executioner #62
Day of Mourning
An attack on Stony Man Farm results in the deaths of April Rose and Andrzej Konzaki, and Mack Bolan vows revenge.
185 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 1984
About the author
Don Pendleton
1,537 books195 followersDon Pendleton was born in Little Rock, Arkansas, December 12, 1927 and died October 23, 1995 in Arizona.
He wrote mystery, action/adventure, science-fiction, crime fiction, suspense, short stories, nonfiction, and was a comic scriptwriter, poet, screenwriter, essayist, and metaphysical scholar. He published more than 125 books in his long career, and his books have been published in more than 25 foreign languages with close to two hundred million copies in print throughout the world.
After producing a number of science-fiction and mystery novels, Don launched in 1969 the phenomenal Mack Bolan: The Executioner, which quickly emerged as the original, definitive Action/Adventure series. His successful paperback books inspired a new particularly American literary genre during the early 1970's, and Don became known as "the father of action/adventure."
"Although The Executioner Series is far and away my most significant contribution to world literature, I still do not perceive myself as 'belonging' to any particular literary niche. I am simply a storyteller, an entertainer who hopes to enthrall with visions of the reader's own incipient greatness."
Don Pendleton's original Executioner Series are now in ebooks, published by Open Road Media. 37 of the original novels.
Wikipedia: Don Pendleton
He wrote mystery, action/adventure, science-fiction, crime fiction, suspense, short stories, nonfiction, and was a comic scriptwriter, poet, screenwriter, essayist, and metaphysical scholar. He published more than 125 books in his long career, and his books have been published in more than 25 foreign languages with close to two hundred million copies in print throughout the world.
After producing a number of science-fiction and mystery novels, Don launched in 1969 the phenomenal Mack Bolan: The Executioner, which quickly emerged as the original, definitive Action/Adventure series. His successful paperback books inspired a new particularly American literary genre during the early 1970's, and Don became known as "the father of action/adventure."
"Although The Executioner Series is far and away my most significant contribution to world literature, I still do not perceive myself as 'belonging' to any particular literary niche. I am simply a storyteller, an entertainer who hopes to enthrall with visions of the reader's own incipient greatness."
Don Pendleton's original Executioner Series are now in ebooks, published by Open Road Media. 37 of the original novels.
Wikipedia: Don Pendleton
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
March 18, 2024
Mack’s life as John Phoenix comes crashing down around him as Stony Man farm is targeted in a nefarious plot. Stephen Mertz has penned an exceptionally tense page turner with this entry.
April 4, 2019
Great opening with Bolan fighting terrorists and sharks underwater, ala Thunderball, while retrieving a sunken nuclear warhead. Author Mertz continues to pull out all the stops as Bolan investigates a major plot to attack his base of operation, Stony Man Farm, taking him to Washington D.C. and violent encounters with hired assassins, more terrorists, and for old times sake, the Mafia. Meanwhile Able Team is is heading into a deadly trap in Asia with no way to communicate the danger. Bolan hopes to finish up his detective work, get revenge for the killing of one of his men in an earlier raid that also took out communications, and prevent the looming assault on Stony Man in a race against time. The book is a complete knockout. An outstanding entry in the Executioner series.
January 1, 2015
Stony Man Farm is under attack from someone high placed in the government. Mack Bolan, aka John Phoenix, is on the hunt. Communications are down, crippled armorer Andrzej Konzaki mortally wounded, and other agencies, plus the President, are warning Bolan to back off.
Not his style.
He's going to find who's setting up hia anti-terrorist organization whatver it takes.
Stephen Mertz is the author of this volume.
Not his style.
He's going to find who's setting up hia anti-terrorist organization whatver it takes.
Stephen Mertz is the author of this volume.
August 15, 2012
Stony Man Farm is attacked and The Executioner loses two very good friends. Someone must pay. The gloves are off Mack will fine who was responsible and they will pay.
July 18, 2026
This was my third executioner novel and it’s without question the best one so far.
The basic premise is Mack Bolan is on his way to recover a nuclear device from a shipwreck in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean when suddenly all contact with his base of operations (The Stony Man Farm) is cut off.
Bolan and the pilot of the helicopter Jack Grimaldi, are worried about it but he continues with the mission nonetheless and dives down to the shipwreck not before fighting a great white shark and winning with no issues. he takes out every enemy in the shipwreck with his shark-gun (capable of a lethal electric charge for close encounters and shooting an explosive projectile for long range targets), grabs the briefcase, and starts the return to surface. What he doesn’t know is that Grimaldi got into a dog fight with two other helicopters and after firing one last time, is shot down by an enemy missile. Bolan tries to make contact but can’t and looks up to see the helicopter wreck coming down on him from above. He narrowly avoids it, swims up to the surface, and sees that Jack made it and is being rescued by the Phoenix force team (they’re old friends of Bolan who started a team under his regime quite some time ago). They have a brief reunion, then Bolan contacts the farm successfully and gets a cryptic message to come home ASAP.
When he gets there there’s nothing wrong except his close friend (the farm’s weapons expert) is in a coma. There is no evidence of any enemy presence and no one knows who could’ve done this. Bolan starts the hunt for the person responsible and kills hundreds of enemy goons in the process. Plenty of plot twists and intrigue is present here and it makes for very entertaining reading. There is an incredibly dark twist ending that I won’t spoil here.
The ghostwriter for this particular entry was Stephen Mertz, an author unknown to me before reading this, but apparently he’s considered the best ghostwriter “The Executioner” ever received. That doesn’t exactly bode well considering there are well over 400 entries and he only wrote 6….
Nonetheless, Mertz is definitely on my radar now and I will seek out his other Executioner novels.
4/5; for action/adventure novel fans, this is a high recommendation.
The basic premise is Mack Bolan is on his way to recover a nuclear device from a shipwreck in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean when suddenly all contact with his base of operations (The Stony Man Farm) is cut off.
Bolan and the pilot of the helicopter Jack Grimaldi, are worried about it but he continues with the mission nonetheless and dives down to the shipwreck not before fighting a great white shark and winning with no issues. he takes out every enemy in the shipwreck with his shark-gun (capable of a lethal electric charge for close encounters and shooting an explosive projectile for long range targets), grabs the briefcase, and starts the return to surface. What he doesn’t know is that Grimaldi got into a dog fight with two other helicopters and after firing one last time, is shot down by an enemy missile. Bolan tries to make contact but can’t and looks up to see the helicopter wreck coming down on him from above. He narrowly avoids it, swims up to the surface, and sees that Jack made it and is being rescued by the Phoenix force team (they’re old friends of Bolan who started a team under his regime quite some time ago). They have a brief reunion, then Bolan contacts the farm successfully and gets a cryptic message to come home ASAP.
When he gets there there’s nothing wrong except his close friend (the farm’s weapons expert) is in a coma. There is no evidence of any enemy presence and no one knows who could’ve done this. Bolan starts the hunt for the person responsible and kills hundreds of enemy goons in the process. Plenty of plot twists and intrigue is present here and it makes for very entertaining reading. There is an incredibly dark twist ending that I won’t spoil here.
The ghostwriter for this particular entry was Stephen Mertz, an author unknown to me before reading this, but apparently he’s considered the best ghostwriter “The Executioner” ever received. That doesn’t exactly bode well considering there are well over 400 entries and he only wrote 6….
Nonetheless, Mertz is definitely on my radar now and I will seek out his other Executioner novels.
4/5; for action/adventure novel fans, this is a high recommendation.
July 3, 2023
Day of Mourning cycles back throughout Bolan’s past, interweaving moments of his war against the mafia, and critical events leading up to the pivotal denouement when Stony Man farm is attacked.
This one read far more similar to the early days of Mack Bolan’s “war everlasting” as he once again flies solo in America’s capital in a desperate attempt to save his team’s secret headquarters and somewhere between taking on surviving members of his original vendetta against the mafia and coming into contact with characters from the past, he discovers a web of corruption that leads to destruction and heartache.
With attention to detail, understanding of the story, and the perfect blend of shady politics, Mertz once again shows he was one of the better authors to take up the Executioner mantle.
Day of Mourning is one of the books in the Executioner books that marks a turning point in how the series evolves and changes Bolan’s focus (since now it’s pretty clear he’s going to be taking on the government instead of international terrorists and those Sicilian punks he still hates with all his guts).
This one read far more similar to the early days of Mack Bolan’s “war everlasting” as he once again flies solo in America’s capital in a desperate attempt to save his team’s secret headquarters and somewhere between taking on surviving members of his original vendetta against the mafia and coming into contact with characters from the past, he discovers a web of corruption that leads to destruction and heartache.
With attention to detail, understanding of the story, and the perfect blend of shady politics, Mertz once again shows he was one of the better authors to take up the Executioner mantle.
Day of Mourning is one of the books in the Executioner books that marks a turning point in how the series evolves and changes Bolan’s focus (since now it’s pretty clear he’s going to be taking on the government instead of international terrorists and those Sicilian punks he still hates with all his guts).
December 29, 2024
Starts another new chapter for Bolan. After the events here, he will be a fugitive again. Konzaki, the Stony Man's armorer is hit, and the communication system at Stony Man has been taken out. Boland believes that this means an attack on the compound is imminent. He blitzes through DC, trying to find the answers before the attack takes place.
Highly recommended, written by Stephen Mertz, it's expected to be good. First of a trilogy with the 2nd super Bolan and number 64 in this series.
Highly recommended, written by Stephen Mertz, it's expected to be good. First of a trilogy with the 2nd super Bolan and number 64 in this series.
July 26, 2019
Head and shoulders above most Bolan's I've read in the past. For once, I'd have to say that this should of been a tad bit longer. More twists and turns before the inevitable happens. What stands this apart from others in this series is the death of two of the good guys. There is no spoilers. They tell you before hand. Not only that, it's in the title. Pretty much non stop action.
March 25, 2021
I have been collecting this series for many years and this is one of the books I do not have and have always wondered about....The death of April Rose and the crippling of Aaron "the bear" Kurtzman as well as the death of ace armorer Konzaki. Glad I finally got the chance to read it even though it was a sad one.
June 28, 2021
my favorite
September 6, 2021
Stony Man Farm is attacked. Armorer extraordinaire Konzaki is dead. Bolan's beloved April died as well by taking the bullet meant for him. Who has it in for Stony Man? Who put out a hit on Bolan/Phoenix? CFB headman Lee Farnsworth, who also has the ear of the President? The CIA? How did Mafia soldiers get involved? Bolan is a barely contained volcanic eruption of white hot rage. He has vowed to get everyone involved in this destruction of all that he holds dear.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews