City of War

Rail Black #1

by Neil Russell

“Neil Russell has to be one of the finest, skilled and accomplished writers in the country, a true master of intrigue.” —Clive Cussler   Rail Black has arrived…with a vengeance! A new series character who is part James Bond and part Bruce “Batman” Wayne, ex-Delta Force commando Black is the star of City of War —an electrifying thriller by veteran Hollywood executive ( Paramount, Columbia, MGM/UA, Carolco Pictures)  turned novelist Neil Russell. Spellbinding nonstop fictional action with a startling nonfiction base—called “utterly gripping” by New York Times bestselling author of The Last Spymaster , Gayle Lynds— City of War marks the debut of a true master of suspense…and of an exceptional protagonist destined to become one of the greats.

Genres: Fiction, Thriller, Mystery

496 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published March 9, 2010

About the author

Neil Russell is the founder and CEO of Hollywood Artists Pictures Corporation (HAPCORP), which creates, acquires and licenses intellectual properties for exploitation across all entertainment media. HAPCORP also produces motion pictures, television and music and has begun publishing books through its Rothington House imprint. Neil acquired his first intellectual property when he was in college, and over the course of his career has acquired the rights to hundreds of books, movies, plays, screenplays, short stories, formats, titles, magazine articles, life stories, songs, pitches and trademarks.

A former executive with Paramount, Columbia, MGM and United Artists, he formed his first company, Horizon Entertainment, in 1983, which was later acquired by Carolco Pictures, producers of the Rambo pictures, Terminator 2, Total Recall, Basic Instinct, etc. Neil was involved in all facets of Carolco's business, including the acquisition of entertainment properties like Platoon, Terminator and The Last Emperor and companies like De Laurentiis Entertainment, the Vista Organization and the Wilmington Studios. He was also founder and president of Carolco Television Productions which produced thirty-one high-profile television motion pictures.

In 1993, Neil purchased the assets of CTP and began acquiring intellectual property rights under his own banner. Producing partnerships or licensing arrangements of rights owned or controlled by him have been made with Walt Disney Studios, Fox, Warners, MGM, Sony, Universal, Paramount, Jerry Bruckheimer Films, Activision, Georgeville Television, Simon & Schuster, HarperCollins, Tribune Entertainment, Scott Free Productions, Heyday Films, ABC Television, Hyde Park Entertainment, F/X Networks and many others. He also authored the book, Can I Still Kiss You?: Answering Your Children's Questions about Cancer and the action/thriller novels, City of War, Wildcase and Beverly Hills is Burning.

Neil works with the major Hollywood agencies, law firms and investment banks.

Note: Hollywood Artists Pictures Corporation does not accept unsolicited material.

Reviews

[Ubiquitousbastard · Rating 1 out of 5]

Am I a terrible person that I finished this book when I knew I would utterly hate it at page 38? Honestly, this is one of the least likable things I've ever read, and probably one of the least likable authors-since the protagonist has all the makings of an author avatar.

The issues with this book are beyond numerous, but key among them are the rampant misogyny, the terribly stock characters, and the annoying instance on the part of the author to declare viewpoints on things that have no bearing on the plot.

The misogyny in this book came fast and stuck around. There is a dirty phrase in there somewhere. Anyway, besides all of the women being versions of the same person, there is the portrayal of women as basically lusty, irrational arm candy. Every woman in this book either wants to or has sex with the protagonist, like, almost exactly on meeting him. Like women just can't contain themselves over height and money. Then there is the utter helplessness and immense emotional vulnerability of ever single attractive female (the women are either hot or 70). Ugh.

I really should spend more time on the author avatar. Everyone loves him on sight, he's super tall, he has money but manages to be plain folks, he's also Special Forces...yeah. He's supposed to be likable, but to me he seemed like a delusional idiot. There is no way he knew what everyone around him felt (they admired him) and he's clearly not as cool as he imagines himself to be. Actually, this would have suddenly become okay if it turned out that he was insane and just making up his ideal life.

Also, this book really could have done with some heavy editing. Not for grammar, but for the huge swathes of opinion left all over the book. The Getty Museum is mentioned...so the author decided to rant through his protagonist about all of the things wrong with the history and current running of the Getty. Then managed to connect it to bad socialist Europe. I also picked up on the AMERICA F**K YEAH! that was implied about every two pages. I don't know if I can think of a nationality that isn't debased by the author's ranting. Germans, Jews, the French, Russians...got to make sure that we know America is always gonna be #1! (Yeah, um, the dollar is not more stable than gold). That's another issue, the "facts" sometimes mentioned are inaccurate or common misconceptions. Please don't lecture me on things I know more about.

Finally, I admit that I read this knowing I would hate it, but it didn't prove me wrong. This was badly written in just about every way something can be badly written. I almost thought it was supposed to be kind of satirical, but there wasn't anything to support that. No, it really just is that terrible.

[Andy Gavin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't read too many Thrillers without a Horror/Sci-fi/Fantasy/Supernatural element, but I was introduced to the author through a friend of mine and decided to check his book out. I'm glad I did. This is a roller coaster ride I can only describe as Fletch meets James Bond meets The Big Sleep. A billionaire playboy who happens to be ex-special forces happens to rescue a naked (and gorgeous) kidnapping escapee on the freeway, and things snowball into a globe spanning conspiracy of murder, art forgery and more. It's fast and fun, but what really sells everything is the know-at-all first person voice of the protagonist. The action is often a little over the top, but his snarky attitude makes everything amusing. Perhaps (like Bond and many other action heros) he is a little too good at what he does, too calm under pressure etc. But it doesn't really matter because he entertains with every paragraph. Great settings and a plot with a few shocking moments and unexpected changes of direction doesn't hurt either. A director and well cast lead with the talents to capture the voice could turn this into a great action movie.

[Larry · Rating 3 out of 5]

The backstory (incredibly rich English lord who happened to serve as a special forces-type soldier) is a bit much and the relationships are like John D. MacDonald on steroids, but the basic plot is interesting and Russell can write. It's very rough, but maybe it shows enough promise to see a second book.

[Judie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A mystery, a rich hero with a cast of other well defined characters, murder, fast cars, a little romance and a lot Hollywood. City of War is a very entertaining read and I'm looking forward to #2 in the Rail Black series.

I received this book compliments of Goodreads for my honest review.

[Blood Rose Books · Rating 2 out of 5]

In the first of a new series Neil Russell what a rich ex-Delta Force gets up to when he sees a wrong being committed:

Rail Black is stuck in traffic when he sees a cargo van door open and naked woman leaps out, he know he has to help her. What starts as help on the freeway turns into a deadly cat and mouse game that is rooted in history. Kim has found some information that has lead to murder, a rare treasure and the greed of those who want it. Rail didn't know it at the time but he is about to put all his resources and training to use as he tries to help Kim not only stay alive but discovery what is the City of War.

I'm a little on the fence with this book, while I enjoyed the plot and story that was laid out, I wasn't a big fan of the characters and you're supposed to like them in this book so that tampered my ability to really enjoy this book. There are many points in this book and characters that are pretty far fetch. I guess I just question if there is a man like Rail out there, just like maybe you question whether James Bond could work in the real world (as portrayed in the movies) and I guess the richness with all the connections and toys kind of feels a bit Bruce Wayne to me. All these factors should make for an interesting character in Rail right? Well, in my opinion he fell flat and was pretty full of himself (alright if a guy was a Bond/Batman hybrid he would be full of himself). Additionally, it seemed like Rail had charm for days and every woman he meets wants to sleep with him and that right there basically sums up how Russell portrays female characters in this book and there are quite a few of them.

Where Russell excels in this book is the mystery. I didn't have a clue as to what the Kim was hiding and what The City of War was or its importance as Russell does a great job of hiding this from his readers. When Rail or Kim or Archer discovers something the reader is discovering it for the first time as well. There are so many twists and turns within this book that you may get dizzy but I loved the intricate plot that Russell decided to put in a book that could have been all action and know substance. I enjoyed that Russell looked to history for this book and in crafting the conspiracy aspects around the City of War and what it really means.

Well you can tell a man wrote the sex scenes in this book and there are quite a few of them which was surprising, but they are short which I appreciate. However, there is really only one sex scene where I was like WTF; It involves using caviar as lube for anal sex.... really??? (sorry if I just put that image in your head). Maybe I’m a prude but this just coincides with how Russell portrays his female character, sexy and ready for "action" at any time.

I enjoyed the mystery/conspiracy aspect of this book, most of the characters I could take or leave, there was nothing really interesting about them even when Russell was trying to make them flawed or different. I think I would read the next in the series just to see the story that Russell is able to weave but I'm out of there is there is another caviar scene.

Enjoy!!!

[Mcf1nder_sk · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just completed reading this book, one of the last old books on my TBR, and what a great book it was. I just discovered that this was the first in a series starring Rail Black, an English titled media mogul with a habit of helping those in need (picture the A-Team with an unlimited trust fund). .
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Russell does a good job developing his characters, and his attention to detail in his research shows. The story itself was well-crafted and this was indeed a page-turner. The action was fast-paced and realistically portrayed. .
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I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the Rail Black series (only two more so far), and I'm hoping that some incidents mentioned in Black's past are made into their own stories.
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[Greg D · Rating 1 out of 5]

I tried to get into this story. Though there was good character development, the characters were very shallow. Rail was your atypical tall, studly male, with all the right cars, wealth, and machismo. Though Kim was a highly educated woman, she came across as a sleazy bimbo. Clearly, this novel had a mysoginistic feel to it. And with all of the allusions to old movie classics and actors, it felt rather dated too. Good action initially, but it fails to entertain. Perhaps Mr. Russell should respectfully keep to his movies.

[Tomi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the story, although it was generally predictable. Way too much sex, though.

[Robert Enzenauer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Neil Russell has certainly hit a grand-slam home run with his first novel. The action grabs you very quickly. Page 3: "Suddenly one rear cargo door of the van burst open, and a tall, stark-naked woman leaped out." The hero is an over-the-top Brit who is something like James Bond on steroids. There are only brief allusions to a military past as a US Army Delta-force operator, but this explains his dexterity with weapons and artful dealings with murderers and international terrorists. The characters are well developed and the action is fast-paced. It was hard to put the book down when I had to go to bed.

[Les · Rating 2 out of 5]

I came to this book having read and loved the third book in the series Hollywood is Burning. This novel introduces Rail Black, the billionaire, former Delta Force member and all around good guy. In City of War he stumbles into a crime that takes him around the world and into the nasty parts of humanity.

The book is just too complex; there are layers of villains and good guys and locations that become overwhelming. I wanted to like the book, I tired but I just got exhausted reading it.

[Noelle Walsh · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was an interesting one. Fast cars, some romance, well-defined characters (in my opinion) and mystery made this story an entertaining one. I enjoyed reading it and am curios as to what the future holds for the main character.


*won on GoodReads First Reads*

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great start ... the rest, eh.

[Tulsi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Creative; entertaining; too Hollywood

[Paul F. Brady · Rating 3 out of 5]

A mite too long....

Good plot, lots of action.... too many twists ... becomes tedious. May have been better being broken into separate sagas...
Three stars

[Neil · Rating 2 out of 5]

probably wouldn't read another of his