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The Destroyer #35
Last Call
Red Riot
During a CIA budget war, a group of assassins mistakenly triggers an ingenious CIA plot originally planned in the 1950s - and a world-wide killing spree of top-level Russian officials begins....
Only the Destroyer, with the all-wise Chiun and the ever-wild Ruby, can stop them from reaching their primary target - the Russian premier!
However, in the midst of all this carnage, Chiun still wants Remo and Ruby to create a super baby as heir to Sinanju, before the government's budget cuts wipe out welfare funds!
How will The Destroyer cope with life and death, love and procreation, all at once?
Warren Murphy wrote this book by himself; Richard Sapir's name is on it as co-creator of the series.
During a CIA budget war, a group of assassins mistakenly triggers an ingenious CIA plot originally planned in the 1950s - and a world-wide killing spree of top-level Russian officials begins....
Only the Destroyer, with the all-wise Chiun and the ever-wild Ruby, can stop them from reaching their primary target - the Russian premier!
However, in the midst of all this carnage, Chiun still wants Remo and Ruby to create a super baby as heir to Sinanju, before the government's budget cuts wipe out welfare funds!
How will The Destroyer cope with life and death, love and procreation, all at once?
Warren Murphy wrote this book by himself; Richard Sapir's name is on it as co-creator of the series.
182 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1978
17 people are currently reading
112 people want to read
About the author
Warren Murphy
294 books124 followersWarren Murphy was an American author, most famous as the co-creator of The Destroyer series, the basis for the film Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins. He worked as a reporter and editor and after service during the Korean War, he drifted into politics.
Murphy also wrote the screenplay for Lethal Weapon 2. He is the author of the Trace and Digger series. With Molly Cochran, he completed two books of a planned trilogy revolving around the character The Grandmaster, The Grandmaster (1984) and High Priest (1989). Murphy also shares writing credits with Cochran on The Forever King and several novels under the name Dev Stryker. The first Grandmaster book earned Murphy and Cochran a 1985 Edgar Award for Best Paperback Original, and Murphy's Pigs Get Fat took the same honor the following year.
His solo novels include Jericho Day, The Red Moon, The Ceiling of Hell, The Sure Thing and Honor Among Thieves. Over his career, Murphy sold over 60 million books.
He started his own publishing house, Ballybunion, to have a vehicle to start The Destroyer spin-off books. Ballybunion has reprinted The Assassin's Handbook, as well as the original works Assassin's Handbook 2, The Movie That Never Was (a screenplay he and Richard Sapir wrote for a Destroyer movie that was never optioned), The Way of the Assassin (the wisdom of Chiun), and New Blood, a collection of short stories written by fans of the series.
He served on the board of the Mystery Writers of America, and was a member of the Private Eye Writers of America, the International Association of Crime Writers, the American Crime Writers League and the Screenwriters Guild.
Murphy also wrote the screenplay for Lethal Weapon 2. He is the author of the Trace and Digger series. With Molly Cochran, he completed two books of a planned trilogy revolving around the character The Grandmaster, The Grandmaster (1984) and High Priest (1989). Murphy also shares writing credits with Cochran on The Forever King and several novels under the name Dev Stryker. The first Grandmaster book earned Murphy and Cochran a 1985 Edgar Award for Best Paperback Original, and Murphy's Pigs Get Fat took the same honor the following year.
His solo novels include Jericho Day, The Red Moon, The Ceiling of Hell, The Sure Thing and Honor Among Thieves. Over his career, Murphy sold over 60 million books.
He started his own publishing house, Ballybunion, to have a vehicle to start The Destroyer spin-off books. Ballybunion has reprinted The Assassin's Handbook, as well as the original works Assassin's Handbook 2, The Movie That Never Was (a screenplay he and Richard Sapir wrote for a Destroyer movie that was never optioned), The Way of the Assassin (the wisdom of Chiun), and New Blood, a collection of short stories written by fans of the series.
He served on the board of the Mystery Writers of America, and was a member of the Private Eye Writers of America, the International Association of Crime Writers, the American Crime Writers League and the Screenwriters Guild.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
July 30, 2010
Project Omega is a plan put into effect 20 years earlier to cripple Russia, by assassinating as many top level government officials as possible, should we ever lose a war to them. The new head of the CIA is cutting spending, and cancels Project Omega without researching what it is, inadvertently setting the plan into motion. Remo and Chiun are called in to protect the Russian Premier after several Russian officials are killed.
A very enjoyable spy novel with some great scenes between Chiun and Ruby.
Favorite tidbits: Chiun is still trying to get Remo and Ruby to have a baby boy.
Warning, sex and graphic gory violence.
A very enjoyable spy novel with some great scenes between Chiun and Ruby.
Favorite tidbits: Chiun is still trying to get Remo and Ruby to have a baby boy.
Warning, sex and graphic gory violence.
March 29, 2021
Murphy and Sapir definitely did not like the CIA in the 1970s. Several of their books have plot elements that stress the incompetence of the organization and its failure to prioritize national security. In Last Call, a Carter appointee gets rid of a program he knows nothing about in order to save money—and in so doing, accidentally triggers a doomsday scenario. The program was designed to assassinate key Soviet figures if they launched a nuclear strike on the U.S. but it is set in motion not by a nuclear strike but by a failure to file a report which can’t be filed when the program is shut down.
This is a fun novel and let’s Harold Smith get some time in the limelight. Smith set up this program during the Eisenhower Administration when he was still in the CIA. Now Smith has to use Remo and Chiun to try and stop the leader of the Soviet Union from being assassinated.
Ruby Gonzalez reappears for the third time in this novel and while she certainly continues to be a sharp and capable operative, I did not think that the banter between her and Remo and Chiun was as effective this time around.
If you liked this review, you can find more at www.gilbertstack.com/reviews.
This is a fun novel and let’s Harold Smith get some time in the limelight. Smith set up this program during the Eisenhower Administration when he was still in the CIA. Now Smith has to use Remo and Chiun to try and stop the leader of the Soviet Union from being assassinated.
Ruby Gonzalez reappears for the third time in this novel and while she certainly continues to be a sharp and capable operative, I did not think that the banter between her and Remo and Chiun was as effective this time around.
If you liked this review, you can find more at www.gilbertstack.com/reviews.
May 17, 2020
A rogue CIA operation threatens to launch WWIII. Remo to the rescue! Much chaos ensues.
December 23, 2021
The digs about Disneyland are worth the price.
June 4, 2014
"This is a .22 caliber Ruger semi-automatic, the weakest handgun in the world," Ruby said. "The cartridges are five years old and the gun may be rusty. Even if I hit you right between the eyes, I might not be able to stop you. Now what you have to ask yourself is, do you think I’ll get lucky?"
That's probably the best line in this relatively average Remo book. Having read a few of these back-to-back, however, I feel a strange urge to read something different for a change.
That's probably the best line in this relatively average Remo book. Having read a few of these back-to-back, however, I feel a strange urge to read something different for a change.
November 14, 2022
By a fair margin, the most satirical Destroyer novel I've yet read, with the ire directed at penny-pinching, and low-information government bureaucrats rather than political correctness or other leftist strawmen . The highlights linked above give a pretty good idea of Murphy and Sapir at their most sharp.
Still, the "action" is tame, the "mystery" is lame, and the Chiun and Remo dialogue is subdued. Ah well.
Still, the "action" is tame, the "mystery" is lame, and the Chiun and Remo dialogue is subdued. Ah well.
February 12, 2016
One of the big men's adventure series from the 70's than ran an impressive 145 books. The series while an adventure/action story is also full of satire toward much of the mainstream fads and icons of the time. An interesting main character and the sarcastic mentor makes this a funny action/adventure read. The team must stop the CIA from starting a world war by killing Soviet agents. Recommended
January 28, 2009
If television had never been invented, the souls of every tree would cry out with the voice of this kind of crap. Either that, or if it weren't for television, this kind of crap might have never been written.
December 24, 2007
read 08.25.84
June 8, 2012
A little less action in this tale compared to the others, but it was an ok read nonetheless.
May 2, 2014
Not one of the best but i still love this series, probably my favourite series of all time.
Action, Humour and philosophy Sinanju style.
Action, Humour and philosophy Sinanju style.
April 23, 2016
Another 70s era action tale involving Remo Williams and his mentor, Chiun.
July 27, 2010
A typical Destroyer book.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews