Oath of Office

Luke Stone #2

by Jack Mars

OATH OF OFFICE is book #2 in the bestselling Luke Stone series, which begins with ANY MEANS NECESSARY (book #1.

A biological agent is stolen from a biocontainment lab. Weaponized, it could kill millions, and a desperate national hunt ensues to catch the terrorists before it is too late.

Luke Stone, head of an elite FBI department, with his own family still in jeopardy, has vowed to walk away—but when the new President, barely sworn in, calls him, he can’t turn his back on her.

Shocking devastation follows, winding its way all the way to the President, who finds her own family in jeopardy. Her strength tested, as she steps into her new role, she surprises even her closest advisors. Rival presidential staff want Luke out of the picture, and with his team in danger, and left to his own resources, it becomes personal. But Luke Stone never gives up until he, or the terrorists, are dead.

Luke realizes quickly that the terrorist’s final target is even more high value—and more terrifying—than even he could imagine. Yet with only a few days before doomsday, it’s unlikely that even he can stop what’s already in motion.

A political thriller with non-stop action, dramatic international settings, unexpected twists and heart-pounding suspense, OATH OF OFFICE is book #2 in the Luke Stone series, an explosive new series that will leave you turning pages late into the night.

Book #3 in the Luke Stone series will be available soon.

Genres: Thriller, Fiction, Suspense, Ebooks, Audiobook, Action, Politics

300 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 18, 2016

About the author

Jack Mars is author of the bestselling LUKE STONE thriller series, which include the suspense thrillers ANY MEANS NECESSARY (book #1), OATH OF OFFICE (book #2) and SITUATION ROOM (book #3).

Reviews

[Xabi1990 · Rating 5 out of 5]

¿Os gustan las pelis de Tom Cruise de Misión Imposible? Si la respuesta es sí, este es vuestro autor.

El mundo - o más bien los EEUU- al borde del desastre y llega un equipo de dos cachas +chica técnica en inteligencia+hacker y salvan la cosa. Misión Imposible total, vamos.

Segundo de esta saga y en el género creo que no lo hay mejor. Y si conocéis alguno me lo decís, que la cosa es un no parar de acción y enganche.

Día y medio me ha durado, eso lo dice todo.

En este caso la cosa va del virus Ébola en manos de los malos malotes malísimos (del ISIS, claro)

[Pierre Tassé (Enjoying Books) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I find these books so exciting...or maybe it's because it is audio and narrated by Case Kelley. Looking for #3...

[Rodrigo · Rating 4 out of 5]

PURO DIVERTIMENTO.
UN THRILLER DE ACCION TREPIDANTE!!
El libro comienza justo donde acabó el anterior y ha sido como ver una película de acción.
Muy entretenido.
A por el siguiente...
Valoración: 8.5/10
Sinopsis: Un agente biológico es robado de un laboratorio de seguridad biológica. Armado, podría matar a millones de personas, y sobreviene una búsqueda nacional desesperada para atrapar a los terroristas, antes de que sea demasiado tarde. Luke Stone, jefe de un departamento de élite del FBI, con su propia familia aún en peligro, prometió retirarse, pero cuando la nueva Presidenta, que acaba de prestar juramento, lo llama, no puede darle la espalda.

Sigue una devastación impactante, que se abre camino hasta llegar a la Presidenta, quien ve peligrar a su propia familia. Su fuerza es puesta a prueba, a medida que entra en su nuevo rol, y sorprende incluso a sus asesores más cercanos. El personal presidencial rival quiere que Luke quede fuera de juego: con su equipo en peligro y abandonado a sus propios recursos, se convierte en una cuestión personal. Pero Luke Stone nunca se rinde hasta que él, o los terroristas, estén muertos.

Luke se da cuenta rápidamente de que el objetivo final de los terroristas es aún más valioso, y más aterrador, de lo que incluso él podría imaginar. Sin embargo, solo unos días antes del desastre final, es poco probable que ni siquiera él pueda detener lo que ya está en movimiento.

[Dee · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the first book I actually didn’t really like the MC Luke Stone but the story was fast paced, fun and explosive

And now in this one it was solidified, I really don’t like Luke at all add cheating on top of that , I just can’t continue with the series, I had to finish the book because I’d already started and wanted to see how it ends. I’m disappointed 😔

[Dave Wickenden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Following on the heals of an attack on the US administration that has wiped out most f the government, the newly instated President faces an horrific challenge when Islamic extremists steal a weaponised vial of Bubonic plaque. Luke Stone, who helped save what is left of the American government, including the Vice-President, is trying to bring normalcy back to his family who also have been harmed by recent events, is pulled back into the fight.

Not caring about legalities or foreign affairs niceties, Luke is like a bull in the China shop. He spends as much time fighting his own people as he does the enemy, as he will allow nothing to stand between him and the organization that is bringing America to its knees.

Hard hitting, action-filled adventure that holds more than ring of truth. This sequel to “Any Means Necessary”, does what sequels are meant to do; keep the story moving, bigger and better. Hod onto your seat, you’re in for one hell of a ride.

[Tulay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good second book.

Don't read this book before reading the free first one. You'll understand the characters better and Luke Stone better. Many gruesome murders, thousands of life in danger. Terrorists backed by one of the Saudi Prince, years in making, United States still didn't recover from the the first attack. Madam President took the oat just a day before. Non stop heart in your throat page turner.

[Dee · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you like the TV show "Designated Survivor" you will love these books. The same kind of intrigue where you aren't always sure who the good guys are, but much more action and skin of the teeth escapes and daring-do. Luke Stone and his team make you nervous but will surely keep you turning the pages. Too much happens to give you an overview, suffice it to say, it involves the possibility of spreading the Ebola virus inside the US borders.

[Cherye Elliott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book #2

Once again what a great story. Super fast paced. I loved the television series 24. This is in the same category. Couldn't tap the kindle fast enough to see what happens next.

[Stewart Sternberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Terrorists, ebola, and Luke Stone jumping from a helicopter. What's not to like? This reads fast and it's addictive as crack. What? You want grit and realism? Screw you. This is pulp. This is incredible escapism. It's good guys v bad guys.

[Sabrina S · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liking the characters in this series....

[Jo-Ann Fitzgerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the second book in this series and my first series to read from this author.

In this book the author seems to slow our hero down a lot. I liked how she brought in his team and even had the one guy keep having things done to him but he still kept moving forward. Not really that believable but I gave her some leeway on that one.

The hero's wife was brought into the story a bit more and did get a bit annoying with whining she seems to do through the whole book. I did like how the author gave her some ways to defend herself and the child but she just doesn't have or want to have the ability to defend herself in her prissy way.

The the story moved along at a fast but not jogging pace, the author seemed to be wrestling with the story itself. You could tell in areas she struggled but still kept it true to the story which is great. I can understand where some authors have this problem and I applaud her for keeping going.

Overall not bad, but I hope the author doesn't struggle with the next one.

[Steve H · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun easy read with lots of action..but the pace of the book ruined at times by the segments involving his nagging wife..just so bloody tiresome 😴 Two point five stars, 1000 stars removed due to the ridiculous boring wifie segments 🙄

[Harlie Bourdo · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.4

[Liss Luna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entretenido y palomero 3.5⭐️

[Tony Parsons · Rating 5 out of 5]

6/6, Dewey Beach, DE. Rebecca Stone (wife/mother, cancer researcher), & Gunner Stone (their son) had been abducted.
Agent Luke Stone (husband/father, FBI SRT, retired 75th. Ranger Regiment, US Army Delta Force), & Ed Newsam (A/A) were going to get them back & kill every one of the villains.
300 PPL & the President had died in the coup d’état attempt at the White House. The landmark building was destroyed.

BANG! Ed took out the sniper in the upstairs window who was wreaking havoc.
Becca & Gunner were tied up on folding chairs.
Mr. Brown & Luke confronted each other.
BOOM!
Mr. Brown was gone.
Bethesda Navy Medical Center. Bethesda, MD. Becca & Gunner had been admitted.

She was headed to the marina.
Ismail (asst.) took Aabha to see Omar bin Khalid al Saud (42, son, billionaire, World Holdings investment fund, Saudi Arabia founder). She gave what he had asked for.
Later after sex with Omar, the next day the bodyguard took care of her.
The sharks would have a hay-day.
Naval Observatory. Washington, DC. Richard Monk (35+, President’s chief-of-staff) greeted Agent Stone (35+) when he arrived via chopper.

SR Team: Luke, Ed Newsam, Mark Swann, & Trudy Wellington (Don’s mistress) were headed for Galveston National Laboratory.
Rachel (US Army 160th. Special Operations Aviation Regiment SOAR), & Jacob (US Army 160th. Special Operations Aviation Regiment SOAR) joined the group.

Captain Soares (Cuban) met with look.
He gave the group 2 choices, none of them pleasant.
Wesley Drinan committed suicide.
Susan’s daughter was kidnapped by terrorists.

What happened to Michaela?

I did not receive any type of compensation for reading & reviewing this book. While I receive free books from publishers & authors, I am under no obligation to write a positive review. Only an honest one.

A very awesome book cover, great font & writing style. A very well written bio-tech thriller book. It was very easy for me to read/follow from start/finish & never a dull moment. There were no grammar/typo errors, nor any repetitive or out of line sequence sentences. Lots of exciting scenarios, with several twists/turns & a great set of unique characters to keep track of. This could also make another great bio-tech thriller movie, or better yet a mini TV series. To be continued. A very easy rating of 5 stars.

Thank you for the free author; EBookStage; Amazon Digital Services LLC.; book
Tony Parsons MSW (Washburn)

[Todd Wilkinson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Based on reviews, I had great hopes for this book. Not sure where I picked up the digital version, but I jumped into this series on Book 2. The plot starts fast, as a serious threat to our nation unfolds. Enter the hero, Luke Stone - part Reacher, part Rambo, part Jack Bauer, rescuing kidnap victims (3 before the story is over), flying all over the country and creeping into the airspace of another, defying orders, saving the day in one of the most unbelievable plot lines I've read in a long time. With nothing to show for it except bloodshot eyes and a bit of fatigue.

I found the character development weak, with Luke being almost unlikable. Perhaps the first book in the series has more about the characters, but this left me flat. I'm not racing to start the next (or previous) book in this series.

[Patricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

The United States is in the midst of a political crises when another disaster strikes-- a terrorist attack using a biological weapon. Luke Stone springs into action using conventional methods of solving the problem and a few unconventional ones too. I hate to believe that our government would resort to such extreme measures, but . . .

No sex or graphic violence

[Jim Irons · Rating 2 out of 5]

Completely unbelievable.

I like my heroes to be believable. Stone's abilities and antics defy imagination and cheapen the exploits of the real heroes of Delta, Seals and other special ops. Also poor editing as when the ambassador reached out to shake the President's HEAD. I won't be reading more by this author.

[Chris Howells · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not for me

Not my kind of book. I read the whole thing hoping it might get better further but, sadly, no. The prose is okay, the characters are almost caricatures and stereotypes.

Many will enjoy this as a thriller and, I suppose, it is okay for that genre. I think that it is nothing outstanding.

[Bob · Rating 1 out of 5]

Review

Don’t waste your time like I did. Somehow this author thinks that when a woman becomes President, all of her aides, cabinet members and others will continue to address her by her first name (instead of as Madame President or “the President”). Misogyny or stupidity. Take your pick.

[Jim A · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too many cliches, too predictable and too formulistic. More books in the series, but they will have to get along without my dollars.

[x · Rating 1 out of 5]

Black and white

Too simplistic. Suspension of disbelief stretched beyond maximum. Didn't need to be written or read. Blissfully very short. Save your time

[Cheezie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars and a pretty good continuation of the series. The plot is a bit more straight forward in this one. Terrorists have weaponized Ebola virus and aren't afraid to use it. Cue Luke Stone and his band of seemingly super human teammates. There is tons of action and as in book 1, Luke makes some missteps along the way. He's not afraid to use torture to get information and that makes for some uncomfortable reading. His handling of his marriage breakdown was questionable. Luke is a hard guy to like.

The level of silliness gets dialled to 11 when Luke puts on a wing suit to jump out of a helicopter (eye roll) and that whole section felt like a James Bond film. The ending also felt a bit rushed. Suddenly the feds know where the terrorist cells are located and everyone is taken down quickly without the reader being privy to that intelligence. In a book full of details, this felt a bit weak.

I've rated this slightly lower as there are a few issues that grated on my nerves - one is the fact that the cliff-hanger of book 1 is sorted out in the first chapter and could have easily been included in the previous book. I expected it to play a bigger part. The other this is that everyone calls POTUS by her first name. I'm pretty sure everyone would have been referring to her as "Madame President" and not "Susan". Also there are some verbatim descriptions of people from book 1. Had I not been listening to the books one right after the other I might not have noticed. But I did and it was annoying.

[Scot · Rating 4 out of 5]

Second in the series but first read by me. Plot is unbelievable at tines but I say, go with the flow in a book like this. The over the top evil and dangers help make it a fast moving, exciting bit of adventure escapism. Many of the characters are shallow stereotypes (the ever whining wife really got on my nerves) but the author keeps me turning the pages with effective descriptions of the many action engagements as superhero of sorts, special ops wunderkind protagonist Luke Stone steps in to pretty ,much singlehandedly, by sheer grit and determination, save the President's family, the nation, the world. Well, he does have a support team, each a master at their separate skills and diverse enough for easy distinctions. The bad guys here, fundamentalist jihadists, have got their hands on a weaponized strain of the Ebola virus. As Luke just saved the US from a domestic coup attempt that took out the sitting president and the White House in book one, as were learn in exposition early on, we are alerted that very dire things may transpire in this novel!

[Sue Olexa · Rating 5 out of 5]

An Oath is an Oath is an Oath, and true patriots who take an oath, mean it, even in the face of adversity, life or death, or whatever, they uphold their oath. Agent Luke Stone never betrays his oath. Author Jack Mars has outdone himself with the Luke Stone Thriller Series, when he created Agent Luke Stone, who delivers at the risk of death, or danger of family, but never his country is tolerated by a threat, and Agent Luke Stone delivers a wonderful exciting read, that knows no bounds. There is nothing like a Luke Stone thriller to make that point! Acclaimed Author Jack Mars is unequalled with stupendous control over words. Can’t say enough about Oath of Office which drives that point home! “By ANY means necessary” is Agent Luke Stone’s mantra! That, and his deep love of country makes Agent Luke Stone LETHAL, but very successful, even against a deadly virus set to go off against his country, NO SPOILERS, but suffice it to say that Agent Luke Stone DELIVERS!! ENJOY!!

[Bob Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

The second book in the series picks up at the end of the first book. Literally, the beginning could have been the next chapter of the first book as Stone goes to rescue his family from the US government agents who kidnapped them as part of the coup again the new US President.
In this book the threat is weaponized Ebola virus stolen from the Houston laboratory. Stone is commandeered by the new president to use "Any Means Necessary" (to steal the name of the first book) to stop them.
Another roller coaster of threats and action with a heavy dose of political theater from Mars. He's clearly taken over from Tom Clancy who wasn't afraid of depicting realistic consequences in his Jack Ryan series. (Remember losing Baltimore?)
I'll be getting the third book as soon as my library opens after the holiday.

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would call this book a "guilty pleasure." The plot is unbelieveable with a coup toppling the US government plus a terrorist plot to spread Ebola across major cities. Our hero, Luke Stone, and his cohorts ride into town to rescue the good guys and take out the bad guys. The writer, Jack Mars, spins a wild and crazy tale but keeps the reader glued to the page (or the screen, in my case) throughout. I read the whole thing in the space of one day, and enjoyed every minute of it. Lots of action, a likeable hero, and fast pacing made the time fly by. This is the second Luke Stone action adventure book I've read, and I'm guessing that I will read more of them. Perhaps I should read some other, more subtle and nuanced, author in the meanwhile!

[Lyn Richards · Rating 5 out of 5]

We begin the book with Luke Stone looking for his wife and son who have been abducted and The President requires Luke and his colleagues to put an end to a potential viral warfare that may be unleashed. The book has an explosive start and the action keeps rolling right through to the end.

This is a powerful and suspenseful novel and the audio version is brilliantly narrated so much so that you as the reader are immersed into the story in every twist and turn.

Jack Mars is brilliant at capturing and maintaining the readers attention and keeping you on the edge of your seat wondering where the next twist will occur. Who will double cross whom?

A brilliant and suspenseful read. I can't wait to listen to the next book in the series of Luke Stone.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

Former VP Susan Hopkins is now president as a result of a failed coup attempt which resulted in the death of the president, his cabinet, and a large part of Congress. Luke Stone, special agent extraordinaire, who played a large role in saving the vice president's life during the coup, is once again called upon to help avert a crisis. Weaponized Ebola has been stolen from a supposedly secure lab in Galveston, TX, and is now in the hands of Islamic terrorists. After the president requests his assistance, Luke and a select team, using mainly brute strength and some bullying tactics to acquire and deploy the necessary assets, strive to contain the crisis. On the home side, will Luke's marriage survive the continued deployments. There are bodies everywhere, few, if any solid leads to follow up, and some less than enthusiastic government employees.

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oath of Office picks up immediately where Any Means Necessary ends. From there, it's a thrill ride to the end. If anything, the pace of the action is even faster than the first book, with tension stretched to the limit and action sequences that get ever more nail-biting. It's hard to put down.