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The Executioner #35
Wednesday's Wrath
It is Wednesday of Bolan's Last Week, his finale against the Mafia. Three days down, four to go. After years of relentless warring on the mob, The Executioner had to attempt a mop-up operation with a seven-day deadline. A higher authority needed him for even more vital duties. This is the story of Wednesday's Wrath, when our man in black went up against a brigade of mercenaries in the backyard of a U.S. Army nuclear weapons center...
192 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1979
68 people are currently reading
126 people want to read
About the author
Don Pendleton
1,517 books188 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
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
July 26, 2020
2nd read - Sarge is on the last leg of his mob mop-up week before joining a covert government group. In this one, he's diverted to New Mexico after the crime stench alerts him to some unfinished business he first encountered in his Colorado mission. There's alot of philosophy and dissertation here, and the usual action.
1st read - #35 in the 70's action series. I'd started reading these about '72 or '73, passed down by the girlfriend of a family member. The series revolves around Mack Bolan, a Nam soldier on a mission of vengeance.
Mack's sister, mom and dad are victims of Mafia interference, and he has sworn to rid the nation of their influence.
1st read - #35 in the 70's action series. I'd started reading these about '72 or '73, passed down by the girlfriend of a family member. The series revolves around Mack Bolan, a Nam soldier on a mission of vengeance.
Mack's sister, mom and dad are victims of Mafia interference, and he has sworn to rid the nation of their influence.
May 6, 2024
Excellent read
I have been an executioner fan for many years LOVED this done. I continue to look for more books in this genre
I have been an executioner fan for many years LOVED this done. I continue to look for more books in this genre
May 15, 2016
There are only three more books to go in the original Executioner series and I’d say Wednesday’s Wrath was par for the course. I’m going to continue with my theory that Don Pendleton was fairly burned out with writing these novellas this late in the bigger story. All in all, this episode was fair. When I’ve finished book thirty-eight, I’ll make two lists of my favorite five and least favorite five books of Pendleton’s series. This one will be on neither list.
This story picks up a few hours after Terrible Tuesday ended, (hence the name, Wednesday’s Wrath,) with Jack Grimaldi (Mack’s ally who is a pilot) dropping Mack Bolan at a Mafia ‘Turkey House.’ It isn’t a deli, but meat is getting cut up. Mack walks in too late to save today’s meat. Mack kills everyone, including what little remains of Charlie Rickert. Rickert was a dirty cop who worked for the mob, but got busted and was going to jail at the end of book #34. Clearly, that didn’t stick.
Soon after, we learn that the guy carving up Charlie Rickert was a rogue CIA operative, and that is when the story starts bending in a new direction from the previous thirty-four novellas. This story had very little to do with the Mob. Mack has pretty well smashed La Costa Nostra to bits. This story is the segue to Mack Bolan becoming America’s #1 anti-terrorist. The next series of books might be entertaining too—or they’ll be Fast and Furious, Eighteen. I don’t know.
Terrible Tuesday was a fumble, but Wednesday’s Wrath seemed to recover the story’s footing. Pendleton is cinching up all the loose strings. Charlie Rickert was a bad cop who’d been a pest for a couple of books. The villain in Wednesday’s Wrath is also a return villain from the Colorado episode and who showed again for a tiny role that was easily thwarted in book #28, Savage Fire. Because the bad guy got cooked at the end, he won’t be back for #36, Thermal Thursday.
Compared to the whole series this one is average. The plotting was engaging and the pacing was what would be expected from Don Pendleton—those times when he is on, it is pure magic. There were a couple hasty action scenes that I'd read better done in past installments, but none of the action scenes were weak like in the last two books.
There were a couple discrepancies with time continuum, and/or quantum physics if the Mafia doesn’t have a time machine. Charlie Rickert was arrested in L.A. close to midnight on Tuesday, and before Wednesday’s dawn he’s been tortured to the brink of death in Alamogordo, New Mexico. That is physically impossible—unless the mob prepaid Rickert’s bail before he was arrested and they had an airplane running and waiting on the highway right outside of L.A. County Jail. Last I checked, teleportation wasn’t an available mode of transportation yet in the 1970's.
Anyhow, all in all, this was a fun story and worthy of 3 out of 5 stars. Compared to a lot of other writers, this book probably deserved 4 out of 5, but by fitting this chapter into the bigger story, it was only a 3.
This story picks up a few hours after Terrible Tuesday ended, (hence the name, Wednesday’s Wrath,) with Jack Grimaldi (Mack’s ally who is a pilot) dropping Mack Bolan at a Mafia ‘Turkey House.’ It isn’t a deli, but meat is getting cut up. Mack walks in too late to save today’s meat. Mack kills everyone, including what little remains of Charlie Rickert. Rickert was a dirty cop who worked for the mob, but got busted and was going to jail at the end of book #34. Clearly, that didn’t stick.
Soon after, we learn that the guy carving up Charlie Rickert was a rogue CIA operative, and that is when the story starts bending in a new direction from the previous thirty-four novellas. This story had very little to do with the Mob. Mack has pretty well smashed La Costa Nostra to bits. This story is the segue to Mack Bolan becoming America’s #1 anti-terrorist. The next series of books might be entertaining too—or they’ll be Fast and Furious, Eighteen. I don’t know.
Terrible Tuesday was a fumble, but Wednesday’s Wrath seemed to recover the story’s footing. Pendleton is cinching up all the loose strings. Charlie Rickert was a bad cop who’d been a pest for a couple of books. The villain in Wednesday’s Wrath is also a return villain from the Colorado episode and who showed again for a tiny role that was easily thwarted in book #28, Savage Fire. Because the bad guy got cooked at the end, he won’t be back for #36, Thermal Thursday.
Compared to the whole series this one is average. The plotting was engaging and the pacing was what would be expected from Don Pendleton—those times when he is on, it is pure magic. There were a couple hasty action scenes that I'd read better done in past installments, but none of the action scenes were weak like in the last two books.
There were a couple discrepancies with time continuum, and/or quantum physics if the Mafia doesn’t have a time machine. Charlie Rickert was arrested in L.A. close to midnight on Tuesday, and before Wednesday’s dawn he’s been tortured to the brink of death in Alamogordo, New Mexico. That is physically impossible—unless the mob prepaid Rickert’s bail before he was arrested and they had an airplane running and waiting on the highway right outside of L.A. County Jail. Last I checked, teleportation wasn’t an available mode of transportation yet in the 1970's.
Anyhow, all in all, this was a fun story and worthy of 3 out of 5 stars. Compared to a lot of other writers, this book probably deserved 4 out of 5, but by fitting this chapter into the bigger story, it was only a 3.
December 2, 2022
3.5 stars
There’s nothing really new to say about the 35th book of Pendleton’s “Executioner” series…or at least anything that I haven’t said in one of my reviews of the previous 34.
The story is pretty much the same, even if the location and the characters are different. Bolan still continues to whittle down the mafia to its last remaining kingpins, still manages to survive against impossible odds, and still manages to have yet another score to settle against La costa nostra.
I guess this book does deviate from the typical formula a bit as it focuses more on a military conspiracy (funded and bankrolled by the mafia) so the repetitious background wheeling and dealing is, thankfully, almost non existent.
Still, this series remains tried and true, even if it, at this point, as we near the finish line, it feels tired.
There’s nothing really new to say about the 35th book of Pendleton’s “Executioner” series…or at least anything that I haven’t said in one of my reviews of the previous 34.
The story is pretty much the same, even if the location and the characters are different. Bolan still continues to whittle down the mafia to its last remaining kingpins, still manages to survive against impossible odds, and still manages to have yet another score to settle against La costa nostra.
I guess this book does deviate from the typical formula a bit as it focuses more on a military conspiracy (funded and bankrolled by the mafia) so the repetitious background wheeling and dealing is, thankfully, almost non existent.
Still, this series remains tried and true, even if it, at this point, as we near the finish line, it feels tired.
April 3, 2021
Mack Bolan should have remembered...the litany of the Mafia:
If you can’t steal it, extort it;
If you can’t extort it, join it;
If you can’t join it, corrupt it;
If you can’t corrupt it, hit it;
If you can’t hit it, buy it;
After you’ve got it, eat it.
And if you can’t get it, eat it on the run. Yeah. You could say what you like about the Italian brotherhood—whatever else, they were the most persistent and successful cannibals of them all.
“So where’s Harrelson?” The sinking feeling reached bottom. The captain or the builder, or whatever, had stood up absentia to be identified: Franklin P. Harrelson, ex-Captain, U.S. Infantry, now soldier of fortune and master of intrigue, last encountered by Bolan in the Colorado Kill-zone. And it was, yes, definitely time to be moving along... “So where’s Harrelson?” The sinking feeling reached bottom. The captain or the builder, or whatever, had stood up absentia to be identified: Franklin P. Harrelson, ex-Captain, U.S. Infantry, now soldier of fortune and master of intrigue, last encountered by Bolan in the Colorado Kill-zone. And it was, yes, definitely time to be moving along. Perhaps the greatest peril ever faced by Mack Bolan during his crime- fighting career, and certainly the most daring and imaginative caper, had come by way of Frank Harrelson. The guy had an audacious and savvy mind. He could have been among the finest combat commanders to emerge from the Vietnam experience; instead, he came home under a cloud, in semi disgrace, doomed to a dubious military future. They’d been friends in ’Nam—of a sort. Harrelson was a commissioned officer, of course, and Bolan was not—so there had always been that artificial barrier standing between them. Even without that, however, they would never have been true friends. Bolan respected the man’s military expertise and combat instincts; he did not particularly approve of Harrelson’s personal ethics. There was no particular need to do so.
"I think you can help. And I think you will. That’s the only reason you’re alive at this moment. You’re the first prisoner I’ve taken all day—and I’ve taken you because I believe you are close enough to the top to have information of some value to me...Now you’ve got this decision to make, see. It’s yours entirely. Are you going to live, or are you going to die? That’s the decision. But I’m not going to mislead you in this. You need to know—hell, you have a right to know, since it’s your life that’s at stake—you need to know that your decision is actually pitched between certain death and only a thin chance for life."
If you can’t steal it, extort it;
If you can’t extort it, join it;
If you can’t join it, corrupt it;
If you can’t corrupt it, hit it;
If you can’t hit it, buy it;
After you’ve got it, eat it.
And if you can’t get it, eat it on the run. Yeah. You could say what you like about the Italian brotherhood—whatever else, they were the most persistent and successful cannibals of them all.
“So where’s Harrelson?” The sinking feeling reached bottom. The captain or the builder, or whatever, had stood up absentia to be identified: Franklin P. Harrelson, ex-Captain, U.S. Infantry, now soldier of fortune and master of intrigue, last encountered by Bolan in the Colorado Kill-zone. And it was, yes, definitely time to be moving along... “So where’s Harrelson?” The sinking feeling reached bottom. The captain or the builder, or whatever, had stood up absentia to be identified: Franklin P. Harrelson, ex-Captain, U.S. Infantry, now soldier of fortune and master of intrigue, last encountered by Bolan in the Colorado Kill-zone. And it was, yes, definitely time to be moving along. Perhaps the greatest peril ever faced by Mack Bolan during his crime- fighting career, and certainly the most daring and imaginative caper, had come by way of Frank Harrelson. The guy had an audacious and savvy mind. He could have been among the finest combat commanders to emerge from the Vietnam experience; instead, he came home under a cloud, in semi disgrace, doomed to a dubious military future. They’d been friends in ’Nam—of a sort. Harrelson was a commissioned officer, of course, and Bolan was not—so there had always been that artificial barrier standing between them. Even without that, however, they would never have been true friends. Bolan respected the man’s military expertise and combat instincts; he did not particularly approve of Harrelson’s personal ethics. There was no particular need to do so.
"I think you can help. And I think you will. That’s the only reason you’re alive at this moment. You’re the first prisoner I’ve taken all day—and I’ve taken you because I believe you are close enough to the top to have information of some value to me...Now you’ve got this decision to make, see. It’s yours entirely. Are you going to live, or are you going to die? That’s the decision. But I’m not going to mislead you in this. You need to know—hell, you have a right to know, since it’s your life that’s at stake—you need to know that your decision is actually pitched between certain death and only a thin chance for life."
June 27, 2022
A villian from a previous novel in the series shows up again. He's a soldier who had led a Mafia-funded army with the goal of kidnapping the president. This time out, he's leading a Mafia-funded army with the goal of stealing nuclear and chemical weapons. It seems the Mob has decided to go into gun-running in a really, really big way.
The final confrontation with the bad guy ended, I thought, a little bit anticlimatically. But overall, the story is an effective mix of Bolan's investigation into the situation and his violent response to it. An especially fun scene is one in which Bolan and Jack Grimaldi (a reoccuring ally who is also an ace pilot) steal an attack helicopter from the bad guys and then use it against said bad guys.
The final confrontation with the bad guy ended, I thought, a little bit anticlimatically. But overall, the story is an effective mix of Bolan's investigation into the situation and his violent response to it. An especially fun scene is one in which Bolan and Jack Grimaldi (a reoccuring ally who is also an ace pilot) steal an attack helicopter from the bad guys and then use it against said bad guys.
February 14, 2022
Still winding down the final week of Bolan's war against the mafia. He ends up in New Mexico where a madman ex CIA think tanker came up with a way to get a bunch of military armaments including nukes. He found the mafia were willing to put up the funds and means to go through with the plan. Bolan is told something was going down by his mafia insider and ended up in this mess. Also facing an old enemy and once comrade in arms. Plus a large role for the ex mafia pilot and now friend of Bolan's, Grimaldi, which is always a welcomed addition.
Highly recommended, well told plot and seeing Bolan teaming up with government forces was a nice change of pace.
Highly recommended, well told plot and seeing Bolan teaming up with government forces was a nice change of pace.
August 20, 2019
Its Pnly Wednesday
Mack Bolan will put his skills to work for the US Government come Monday, but he has one week to mop up his mafia mess first. But, little does he know, that the mob has joined forces with disgruntled former American military
Will he make it out alive? Read it, and find out. You'll be glad you did
Mack Bolan will put his skills to work for the US Government come Monday, but he has one week to mop up his mafia mess first. But, little does he know, that the mob has joined forces with disgruntled former American military
Will he make it out alive? Read it, and find out. You'll be glad you did
November 16, 2023
This one is truly bonkers and a really fun read.
The best Mack Bolan stories always happen when he becomes quickly involved in geopolitics.
also, these one day books feel impossibly action packed.
The best Mack Bolan stories always happen when he becomes quickly involved in geopolitics.
also, these one day books feel impossibly action packed.
March 28, 2019
As you would expect this is halfway through the "last week"
April 29, 2024
Fast action
Really like the action in this book, never lets you rest for a minute. Will look for more in the future.
Really like the action in this book, never lets you rest for a minute. Will look for more in the future.
April 30, 2025
An excellent men's adventure series from the 60s, 70's and 80's. The first 38 books are outstanding but then the series is taken over by a bunch of new writers writing under the name of the original creator and they take the series into a new direction I did not care for. The first 38 books are very recommended
September 13, 2011
For an action/adventure book this one was a bit slow: a lot of talking/exposition. Part of the problem is that it's the middle-ish book of a 5? book series (one for each day of the week). I wasn't impressed enough to seek out the others.
March 7, 2016
This was an improvement on the last two books. The fact the annoying April character was less involved made all the difference. Unfortunately no one has yet terminated her annoying self so I assume she will appear in the next book.
Read
August 17, 2016read some time in 1981
July 21, 2019
Enjoyed it but getting sad that it is near the end of the "Don Pendleton" authored books. I've enjoyed his take and creation on this.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews