The Barrabas Creed

Soldiers of Barrabas #24

by Jack Hild

The brutal slaying of the Swedish prime minister pits Nile Barrabas and his combat veterans against an expatriate Swede with a lethal new invention -- a way to manufacture synthetic cocaine.
From his South American base, the Swede directs an all-out attack against a single The United States of America. As the drug pipeline gets set to pump the first lethal hit into America's bloodstream, Barrabas leads a search-and-destroy mission into the heart of the Bolivian jungle.

219 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published April 1, 1988

About the author

"Jack Hild" is a pseudonym shared by multiple authors ghostwriting the Soldiers of Barrabas (SOBs) series of action-adventure novels. The most prolific of these authors were Robin Hardy and Alan Philipson.

Despite Hild's output being the work of several authors, the novelist Warren Murphy provided a cover endorsement saying "Jack Hild is simply the best and gutsiest action writer around today."

In backmatter to some of the SOBs books, the publishers Gold Eagle jokingly stated Hild's "whereabouts are unknown. No one associated with Gold Eagle Books has ever seen Jack, in person or in a photograph... If you should ever meet Jack Hild... let us know."

Reviews

[Wayne · Rating 3 out of 5]

The second book in a row by John Preston is a lot better than his last outing. Although it's still not up to par for this series. As with the last one he wrote, this still makes the S.O.B.s seem like different characters than what you expect after 20+ volumes. There is more action in this. Not much, but a little more than last time. To me, at least, the author just didn't have a knack or feelings for this genre.

The S.O.B.s are lined up to go to Bolivia to take out a factory that is going to produce a synthetic form of cocaine. A Swede is helping the new dictator to rid the country of real cocaine so their product will be in demand. Of course, the Soldiers Of Barrabas won't let that happen. Even if they have to use there words over guns.

[Arizona Spartan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a much quicker read than the other books. I don't really like the new cover style. The book is setup as a find the mysterious drug problem in this foreign country but morphs into a "the big con" style book with an old friend of Nile's lending a hand. One of the villains was interesting and the others were stock 80s type villains. Not a terrible book but not as good as the others in the series.

[Josh Hitch · Rating 4 out of 5]

Probably closer to a 3.5, but its a solid tale. It does have less action than most of the books in the series, seems to be mostly set up for a quick wrap up. However the story is well told and written, just again for a mens adventure, the action was lacking. Second in a row by Preston and it's fairly obvious he doesn't really understand the genre, but can tell a solid story. This time the team is brought together to go to Bolivia where cocaine is king. After a revolution, the ruler of the country is speeding up production by making a new synthetic version that's cheaper and quicker to make. The SOBs are to destroy the supply and the plant that is making it. They will have to fight a country to do it.

Recommended for fans of the series, not one I would recommend for a newbie. Though there are enough character interactions that will appeal to those that are already familiar with the team.