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Badge of Honor #11
The Last Witness
The dramatic new novel in the Philadelphia police saga by the #1 New York Times–bestselling author.
For Philadelphia homicide detective Matt Payne, the news from an old law-enforcement friend sends a shiver down his spine: a connection between the Mexican drug cartels and the Russian mob.
Russian girls are being smuggled in to work in the sex trade, and now some of them are dying or just disappearing. The trail leads right to Philadelphia—where Payne learns that’s not all. It isn’t just Russian girls who are vanishing. Teenage girls are being lured from foster homes. Police department sources are turning up dead. The lone living witness has gone into hiding, with everybody—the Russians, the cartels, some of Philadelphia’s most powerful politicians—all looking for her. It’s up to Payne to find her—and hope he gets to her first.
For Philadelphia homicide detective Matt Payne, the news from an old law-enforcement friend sends a shiver down his spine: a connection between the Mexican drug cartels and the Russian mob.
Russian girls are being smuggled in to work in the sex trade, and now some of them are dying or just disappearing. The trail leads right to Philadelphia—where Payne learns that’s not all. It isn’t just Russian girls who are vanishing. Teenage girls are being lured from foster homes. Police department sources are turning up dead. The lone living witness has gone into hiding, with everybody—the Russians, the cartels, some of Philadelphia’s most powerful politicians—all looking for her. It’s up to Payne to find her—and hope he gets to her first.
402 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 6, 2013
263 people are currently reading
664 people want to read
About the author
W.E.B. Griffin
351 books1,298 followersW.E.B. Griffin was one of several pseudonyms for William E. Butterworth III.
From the Authors Website:
W.E.B. Griffin was the #1 best-selling author of more than fifty epic novels in seven series, all of which have made The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Publishers Weekly, and other best-seller lists. More than fifty million of the books are in print in more than ten languages, including Hebrew, Chinese, Japanese, and Hungarian.
Mr. Griffin grew up in the suburbs of New York City and Philadelphia. He enlisted in the United States Army in 1946. After basic training, he received counterintelligence training at Fort Holabird, Maryland. He was assigned to the Army of Occupation in Germany, and ultimately to the staff of then-Major General I.D. White, commander of the U.S. Constabulary.
In 1951, Mr. Griffin was recalled to active duty for the Korean War, interrupting his education at Phillips University, Marburg an der Lahn, Germany. In Korea he earned the Combat Infantry Badge as a combat correspondent and later served as acting X Corps (Group) information officer under Lieutenant General White.
On his release from active duty in 1953, Mr. Griffin was appointed Chief of the Publications Division of the U.S. Army Signal Aviation Test & Support Activity at Fort Rucker, Alabama.
Mr. Griffin was a member of the Special Operations Association, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the American Legion, the Army Aviation Association, the Armor Association, and the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) Society.
He was the 1991 recipient of the Brigadier General Robert L. Dening Memorial Distinguished Service Award of the U.S. Marine Corps Combat Correspondents Association, and the August 1999 recipient of the Veterans of Foreign Wars News Media Award, presented at the 100th National Convention in Kansas City.
He has been vested into the Order of St. George of the U.S. Armor Association, and the Order of St. Andrew of the U.S. Army Aviation Association, and been awarded Honorary Doctoral degrees by Norwich University, the nation’s first and oldest private military college, and by Troy State University (Ala.). He was the graduation dinner speaker for the class of 1988 at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
He has been awarded honorary membership in the Special Forces Association, the Marine Corps Combat Correspondents Association, the Marine Raiders Association, and the U.S. Army Otter & Caribou Association. In January 2003, he was made a life member of the Police Chiefs Association of Southeastern Pennsylvania, Southern New Jersey, and the State of Delaware.
He was the co-founder, with historian Colonel Carlo D’Este, of the William E. Colby Seminar on Intelligence, Military, and Diplomatic Affairs. (Details here and here)
He was a Life Member of the National Rifle Association. And he belongs to the Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Pensacola, Florida, chapters of the Flat Earth Society.
Mr. Griffin’s novels, known for their historical accuracy, have been praised by The Philadelphia Inquirer for their “fierce, stop-for-nothing scenes.”
“Nothing honors me more than a serviceman, veteran, or cop telling me he enjoys reading my books,” Mr. Griffin says.
Mr. Griffin divides his time between the Gulf Coast and Buenos Aires.
Notes:
Other Pseudonyms
* Alex Baldwin
* Webb Beech
* Walker E. Blake
* W.E. Butterworth
* James McM. Douglas
* Eden Hughes
* Edmund O. Scholefield
* Patrick J. Williams
* W. E. Butterworth
* John Kevin Dugan
* Jac
From the Authors Website:
W.E.B. Griffin was the #1 best-selling author of more than fifty epic novels in seven series, all of which have made The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Publishers Weekly, and other best-seller lists. More than fifty million of the books are in print in more than ten languages, including Hebrew, Chinese, Japanese, and Hungarian.
Mr. Griffin grew up in the suburbs of New York City and Philadelphia. He enlisted in the United States Army in 1946. After basic training, he received counterintelligence training at Fort Holabird, Maryland. He was assigned to the Army of Occupation in Germany, and ultimately to the staff of then-Major General I.D. White, commander of the U.S. Constabulary.
In 1951, Mr. Griffin was recalled to active duty for the Korean War, interrupting his education at Phillips University, Marburg an der Lahn, Germany. In Korea he earned the Combat Infantry Badge as a combat correspondent and later served as acting X Corps (Group) information officer under Lieutenant General White.
On his release from active duty in 1953, Mr. Griffin was appointed Chief of the Publications Division of the U.S. Army Signal Aviation Test & Support Activity at Fort Rucker, Alabama.
Mr. Griffin was a member of the Special Operations Association, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the American Legion, the Army Aviation Association, the Armor Association, and the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) Society.
He was the 1991 recipient of the Brigadier General Robert L. Dening Memorial Distinguished Service Award of the U.S. Marine Corps Combat Correspondents Association, and the August 1999 recipient of the Veterans of Foreign Wars News Media Award, presented at the 100th National Convention in Kansas City.
He has been vested into the Order of St. George of the U.S. Armor Association, and the Order of St. Andrew of the U.S. Army Aviation Association, and been awarded Honorary Doctoral degrees by Norwich University, the nation’s first and oldest private military college, and by Troy State University (Ala.). He was the graduation dinner speaker for the class of 1988 at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
He has been awarded honorary membership in the Special Forces Association, the Marine Corps Combat Correspondents Association, the Marine Raiders Association, and the U.S. Army Otter & Caribou Association. In January 2003, he was made a life member of the Police Chiefs Association of Southeastern Pennsylvania, Southern New Jersey, and the State of Delaware.
He was the co-founder, with historian Colonel Carlo D’Este, of the William E. Colby Seminar on Intelligence, Military, and Diplomatic Affairs. (Details here and here)
He was a Life Member of the National Rifle Association. And he belongs to the Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Pensacola, Florida, chapters of the Flat Earth Society.
Mr. Griffin’s novels, known for their historical accuracy, have been praised by The Philadelphia Inquirer for their “fierce, stop-for-nothing scenes.”
“Nothing honors me more than a serviceman, veteran, or cop telling me he enjoys reading my books,” Mr. Griffin says.
Mr. Griffin divides his time between the Gulf Coast and Buenos Aires.
Notes:
Other Pseudonyms
* Alex Baldwin
* Webb Beech
* Walker E. Blake
* W.E. Butterworth
* James McM. Douglas
* Eden Hughes
* Edmund O. Scholefield
* Patrick J. Williams
* W. E. Butterworth
* John Kevin Dugan
* Jac
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 119 reviews
January 10, 2020
W.E.B. Griffin is a good author on occasion. Unfortunately, this isn't one of them. 2 of 10 stars
August 30, 2013
What in the world happened to this series. I waited several years for the next book in this series to come out and this is the result. WEB Griffin's name may be on the book jacket, but his son wrote this book. The writing is not crisp, the character interaction is almost non-existent, the politics and dialogue inside and outside of the department has vanished, as have several central characters. Missing persons report. Has anyone seen Peter Wohl, Amy Payne, and others? One of the best things about this series was watching an investigation develop and follow it to its conclusion with all the politics, egos, tragedy, luck and solid police work. This book had none of those things except luck and Matt Payne and the Texas Ranger charging in to the rescue. Very disappointing and the crime here is a once great series has been diluted and ruined. A better title would have been The Last Book. Mr. Griffin please write the next book and fix this.
May 16, 2022
Not the best book in the series.
The villains are the main characters and they bounce around quite a bit.
Of all the books in the series, This is disappointing at best.
The villains are the main characters and they bounce around quite a bit.
Of all the books in the series, This is disappointing at best.
May 6, 2024
2.0 stars
The devil is in the detail, this book however has not found the delicate balance.
This book felt like one big work of gloating about ones privilege and not having to work for their place in life.
I felt as if there was more detail about someone's skin than of character building or scene setting.
This book covers a span of two possible three day (it was washy throughout) that was to cover a murder linked to human trafficking. I felt there was possible 50-70 pages out of the 345 pages that covered the crime and trafficking ring, the rest was talking about how nice their boats are, how rich the characters are in life along with more detail dropping an anchor than there was talk of the crime and dialoged.
The devil is in the detail, this book however has not found the delicate balance.
This book felt like one big work of gloating about ones privilege and not having to work for their place in life.
I felt as if there was more detail about someone's skin than of character building or scene setting.
This book covers a span of two possible three day (it was washy throughout) that was to cover a murder linked to human trafficking. I felt there was possible 50-70 pages out of the 345 pages that covered the crime and trafficking ring, the rest was talking about how nice their boats are, how rich the characters are in life along with more detail dropping an anchor than there was talk of the crime and dialoged.
October 24, 2025
There were many characters to track.
The tension was low. I kept waiting for the tension to rise and then all of a sudden the novel ended.
The tension was low. I kept waiting for the tension to rise and then all of a sudden the novel ended.
July 2, 2018
Matt and Amanda's friend Maggie is on the run after someone was murdered in her house and the house was fire bombed. Maggie knows that the Russian mob others are after a 2 books she has and will kill her when the books
February 26, 2016
Disappointing effort by Mr Griffin's son who has apparently completely taken over as WEB Griffin has aged.
The book was somewhat confusing and had no clear concise entertaining story-line. The plot was all over the map. I struggled to finished it and was glad I got it for free via the my local library. I wanted to see what was next for Matt Payne but fear that's a dead end a la Killer McCoy and Cletus Frade. Hopefully Griffin the son can salvage this series and maybe create a decent spin off ref the TX Ranger character, but I'm not holding my breath.
This wasn't even close to the longstanding masterful writing style of WEB Griffin. I've read Griffin series going back 20-30 years. Sad to see WEB Griffin no longer up to the task and that his son is having trouble keeping his series alive & well.
The book was somewhat confusing and had no clear concise entertaining story-line. The plot was all over the map. I struggled to finished it and was glad I got it for free via the my local library. I wanted to see what was next for Matt Payne but fear that's a dead end a la Killer McCoy and Cletus Frade. Hopefully Griffin the son can salvage this series and maybe create a decent spin off ref the TX Ranger character, but I'm not holding my breath.
This wasn't even close to the longstanding masterful writing style of WEB Griffin. I've read Griffin series going back 20-30 years. Sad to see WEB Griffin no longer up to the task and that his son is having trouble keeping his series alive & well.
September 18, 2013
This book has more violence, or maybe gross dead bodies are more appropriate term, than the majority of Griffin books. The book is also well padded with excerpts from past books in this series which removed would make this plot line a very short story. Matt Payne and team are after a Russian and Porto Rican drug cartel selling drugs and women in Philly. They kill off any woman that tries to quit or anyone that gets in their way. What saves the audio book is the narration by Scott Brick, he made it pleasant to listen to. I have followed W.E.B. Griffin for years and hate to see the decline in story telling compared to his older books. But I will keep on listening to his books as he produces them, even at his worse he is better than a lot of other writers.
November 24, 2013
I have read approximately 20 books by WEB Griffin, and of all those books this was my least favorite, actually it's not a favorite in any way. I think this book was written for the money. The plot was weak, and hard to follow, it was more about the criminals than the hero. Matt Payne who I expected to have a significant role in the novel barely had a speaking part. For those who are Badge of Honor followers, it really isn't worth the effort. I had to force myself to finish this book before I would move on to anything.
August 1, 2017
This was intended to be a revealing look in to the evil and moral bankruptcy of the drug and slave trade.Matt Payne, the main protagonist, just seems to be more of a background character here.Typical Griffin and Butterworth story. Over 200 pages of developing a complex story and 3 pages to resolve it This book has more violence, or maybe gross dead bodies are more appropriate term, than the majority of Griffin books. The book ended abruptly and with too many plots unresolved. Whether I'll go on to #12 in the series is in doubt.
February 10, 2014
I was disappointed. I am a big W.E.B. Griffin fan. While I love how he builds the setting and the plots, I felt like the book ended abruptly and with too many plots unresolved. This is a revealing look in to the evil and moral bankruptcy of the drug and slave trade. We see how little value is placed on life and how far these master criminals will go to reach their end
August 29, 2016
Great read fun, engaging and relaxing.
June 20, 2025
Marshall Earp of the Main Line rides again!
Matt Payne is fairly busy during this book, yet he doesn’t interact with some of the bigger characters he has in previous books.
Part of that is due to people who notice not only how hard he’s worked but also the deeply done legwork to support it.
Quite a big chunk of the book is taken up by the various characters speaking to each other in reasonably accurate sounding dialogues. We get an unpleasantly detailed “behind the scenes” insight into the worlds of drug addiction, drug manufacturing & distribution, how far too many kids in bad places are groomed to lives of hopelessly horrid people who are treated worse than slaves or even animals.
These facts make it all the more respect that the fictional people in these stories deserve if they were real people. Both Matt & the Ranger discuss how futile it sometimes seems to be when they see heartless killers manage to skate away from charges. But they both agree that they still are determined to do the best they possibly can to protect the innocent, capture or remove the leech like scum when & where they can!
Matt Payne is fairly busy during this book, yet he doesn’t interact with some of the bigger characters he has in previous books.
Part of that is due to people who notice not only how hard he’s worked but also the deeply done legwork to support it.
Quite a big chunk of the book is taken up by the various characters speaking to each other in reasonably accurate sounding dialogues. We get an unpleasantly detailed “behind the scenes” insight into the worlds of drug addiction, drug manufacturing & distribution, how far too many kids in bad places are groomed to lives of hopelessly horrid people who are treated worse than slaves or even animals.
These facts make it all the more respect that the fictional people in these stories deserve if they were real people. Both Matt & the Ranger discuss how futile it sometimes seems to be when they see heartless killers manage to skate away from charges. But they both agree that they still are determined to do the best they possibly can to protect the innocent, capture or remove the leech like scum when & where they can!
April 21, 2020
This book fell down hard. It was like someone else wrote the book and knew only a few characters from the previous books in the series. Definitely not in the Griffin style. The previous book started the downfall, and this book just zoomed down the hill faster and at a greater angle. Too much was left out and too much unnecessary garbage was included, and it bounced around haphazardly. I have read 32 of the Griffin books, and this was definitely a huge letdown. It was like someone just randomly tore out pages here and there and destroyed or didn't print the last fifty pages of the book.
I have started the next book in the Badge of Honor series (I always read the series in order) and only 41 pages into the book, but it seems to be following in the greater angle downhill. I would have to say the publisher and editors are just as much to blame as the "unknown" author(s).
The sad part about this series is that it has made me decide to never visit Philadelphia again and the last two books and 41 pages into 'Deadly Assets' left no desire to finish the series.
I have started the next book in the Badge of Honor series (I always read the series in order) and only 41 pages into the book, but it seems to be following in the greater angle downhill. I would have to say the publisher and editors are just as much to blame as the "unknown" author(s).
The sad part about this series is that it has made me decide to never visit Philadelphia again and the last two books and 41 pages into 'Deadly Assets' left no desire to finish the series.
July 9, 2025
Disappointing for fans of the first 8 books in this series. The series has become less about the interesting lives of the Philadelphia PD and more about how Philly and the rest of the country is, from the author's perspective, going to hell in a handbasket. I miss the characters from the original books that were set in the 1970s like Peter Wohl, Dave Pekach, McFadden and Martinez, Tiny Lewis, etc. Vincenzo Savarese was a more compelling villain than the current crop of generic Russian and Mexican gangsters.
There's also just a lot of factual continuity issues. When the series jumped forward in time, we had a new police commissioner (Mariani, with an i) and a new mayor (Alvin Martin). Now, Jerry Carlucci is back as mayor, and the commissioner is Mariana (with an a). No explanation. Does the author not have an editor?
"The Last Witness" will be the last book in this series I spend any more money on.
There's also just a lot of factual continuity issues. When the series jumped forward in time, we had a new police commissioner (Mariani, with an i) and a new mayor (Alvin Martin). Now, Jerry Carlucci is back as mayor, and the commissioner is Mariana (with an a). No explanation. Does the author not have an editor?
"The Last Witness" will be the last book in this series I spend any more money on.
November 18, 2022
This book is the first W.E.B Griffin that I have read. It is part of a crime investigation series, based in the Homicide Division of the Philadelphia Police Department with detective Matt Payne. Matt investigates the murder of one young woman and the disappearance of another, who is a sanctuary case worker. Matt’s investigation takes you into the Mexican drug cartels, and the Russian mob. The story is about the sex trade, drugs, and the underworld. There is significant violence, but the plot is very thin, and hard to follow. I do not intend to continue reading this series.
January 4, 2025
finished 3rd january 2025 good read two stars it was okay kindle library loaner have read a half dozen or more from griffin enjoyed his historical fiction more so than this one with a storyline that seemed to be all over the map literally various islands and locations key west and caymen others, new orleans, texas, philadelphia with a large cast of characters from both sides of the aisle. there's a lot of communicating with email cell phones nothing wrong with that and maybe at one point the point
January 3, 2018
Matt Payne a well off cop in homicide is labeled the Marshall after Wyatt Earp type crime solving. Matt and Texas Ranger Jim Byrth join forces to solve different crimes against teenage girls in sex and drug trafficking involving cartel in the islands , texas and Russian mob in Philly -- all seemingly not connected but are. The last witness is socialite Maggie McCain who takes it upon herself to try and find out about the disappearance of several girls from the halfway houses.
July 30, 2019
It is a novel based in Philadelphia. Maggie McCain is a Social Worker who establishes relationships with young ladies in the foster care system. One was brutally murdered in her home in Society Hill. For whatever reason, Maggie flees instead of going to the police. This messes up Matt Payne's much needed vacation. The action was so-so. There was a Texas and Cartel connection that was interesting.
July 26, 2022
I get a bit tired of the horrible ways the bad guys eliminate their victims in these stories. This one started off a bit slow, and until about the last 40 pages was not helped by the many characters in the bad guys group heming and hawing on what to do to recover the "books". The ending was good, but didn't mention who was "eliminated". I was confused as to where "Maggie" was in the end, and how she was planning this trap.
December 10, 2025
To me, this was not the most well-written of WEB Griffin and William E. Butterworth IV's books about the Philadelphia police department. The novel could have existed without the PPD at all, as it is mostly about the cartels and the Russian mob, and the cruel destruction of women in the sex trade. It was also confusing to me with the different text messages and chapters about both of those groups. It's always good to read the quips coming from Matt Payne
September 23, 2017
This book started well and ended well, but there seems to bog down in the middle of the book with too much inane dialogue and an over abundance of texting that makes the story drag. The earlier books that I read many years ago moved along well. Recent books seem to drag, but I would give it one more try.
June 17, 2019
I liked the plot and the writing. The only thing I found difficult to do was follow who all the characters were and their occupations. That's probably just me, though. As I get older, I'm finding it hard to follow when there's many different characters with many different occupations.
I try to keep the number of characters to a minimum, if possible.
Good book, though.
I try to keep the number of characters to a minimum, if possible.
Good book, though.
September 16, 2020
Compared to other books in this series, The Last Witness was disappointing. If it was my first W.E.B. Griffin read I probably wouldn’t be back for a second look.
I was actually glad to reach the end of this one, even though it happened somewhat abruptly, but I still look forward to the next in the series (and others) expecting that my faith will be restored.
I was actually glad to reach the end of this one, even though it happened somewhat abruptly, but I still look forward to the next in the series (and others) expecting that my faith will be restored.
January 10, 2022
WEB Griffin created a great series. Adding his son was a big mistake. This one, and the two previous books concentrated on elaborate international crime syndicates. The original books in the series were more about the Philadelphia Police, the people, and their relationships. I won't be reading any more.
April 12, 2022
I I can't believe that people gave one or two stars on this book. It is an excellent book. A lot of excitement, an excellent story line that is believable. Matt and the Texas Ranger gave life to the story. It shows us about the Russian mob and how ruthless the people are. Look at them today. A must read.
April 17, 2018
By the numbers
Bland, predictable this installment of this series failed to get my heart or my head interested. There were some despicable scenes, i.e. Mexican stew, but it read more clinical than horrific.
Bland, predictable this installment of this series failed to get my heart or my head interested. There were some despicable scenes, i.e. Mexican stew, but it read more clinical than horrific.
August 25, 2020
Weak and unnecessarily complicated story
Too much Butterworth and not enough Griffin. Endless exposition, lectures and pointless dialogue. Poorly developed characters, story loops going nowhere and very little action.
Too much Butterworth and not enough Griffin. Endless exposition, lectures and pointless dialogue. Poorly developed characters, story loops going nowhere and very little action.
July 30, 2017
decent read
August 31, 2017
ok. But I would not recommend it. Too formulaic.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 119 reviews