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Bolt Action
Since 9/11, the door between the pilots and the passengers on an airliner must be locked and impossible to break down. But what if the pilots are dead? Tristie Merritt leads a renegade band of ex-soldiers. Their daring scam will take millions from a furious British government and give it to veterans' charities -- if MI5 don't catch up with them first. But faced with the ultimate terrorist outrage at 36,000 feet, MI5 and the CIA find that Merritt is their one hope of preventing global disaster.
393 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2010
13 people are currently reading
52 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
July 11, 2017
Charters' military tale of ex-Paras with a grudge will certainly appeal to those who like very British action yarns. A daring Robin Hood-esque robbery ends up being foiled by terrorists and the ex-heroes must step up once more. The first third is hard going, with plenty of characters and their development never really makes any emotional connection. This is a fundamental flaw since readers are required to root for anti-heroes. When the airborne action kicks off Bolt Action finds its feet and delivers an entertaining, if at times over complicated, action piece. Although you'll only care for one of the team, and even then her character is paper thin, the plot is original enough to ensure the book remains engaging until the close. A clever idea, spun out in to story which hasn't got enough actual content to make this one stand out amongst the crowd. A decent enough début.
May 27, 2015
I was a tad confused at first in which way this thriller was going. Pilots dead, and the cabin locked? Pressure on the US from all fronts. Somehow all the parts did not fit well together. A female ex-Special Ops officer forms her own little Robin Hood group and this somehow leads into the hijacked plane (but she JUST happened to be on THAT plane). This must be the set up for a series of books, but the author did not do a good job of tying everything together. What if this ex special forces officer was not the plane? Okay, but not great!
February 8, 2015
Crazy premise. Great book
An unusual premise. One where every one wins. A hijacked plane, a group of well trained British soldiers put out to pasture, a well worn CIA agent that no one believes and a Pakistani General playing the long game. What more could you want?
You will smile, be amazed at the tension and perhaps be pleased with the results.
I hope we see this group again
An unusual premise. One where every one wins. A hijacked plane, a group of well trained British soldiers put out to pasture, a well worn CIA agent that no one believes and a Pakistani General playing the long game. What more could you want?
You will smile, be amazed at the tension and perhaps be pleased with the results.
I hope we see this group again
November 25, 2011
You finish the book and still want to find out more about the characters whose backgrounds we only get sketches of. Any chance they could feature in a sequel? Anyway, it was a great book. Big fan of life/death dramas on planes.
Want to read
February 11, 2019Synopsis: explosive action. We have a planeload of passengers but the pilots are dead and the cockpit door is locked.
Read
January 3, 2021An excellent read and would thoroughly recoomend. However something that puzzled me was one of the locations, specifically the small village of Elton in the Derbyshire Peak District. The group featured in the story were staying in a cottage at the base of a rock face which was a short walk form the village of Elton. One of the group walked to the village to purchase a newspaper from the shop to look for a hidden message in the advertsments. There was only ever one shop in Elton in recent years - it was our shop. The cottage at the base of the rock I'm certain is Cratcliff Cottage and the track to Elton part of the Limestone Way. Having looked at Charlie Charters bio I've found nothing to suggest that he's ever had any ties to the area. Out of interest I did email him to enquire even attaching a picture of the front of the building in Elton in the days before it became a shop. However I never received a response. If any other readers can shed any light on the background I'd be pleased to hear.
October 27, 2010
As a youngster, one of my favourite books, was the Modesty Blaise adventure The Silver Mistress. I don’t even know if it is one of Peter O’Donnell’s best Modesty stories, but it hit me at just the right age – and when I found out what the ‘silver mistress’ alludes to, it just blew my tiny mind. For those who haven’t read it, it is Modesty, during hand to hand combat with a villain, naked and covered in a gray mud, which under the moonlight makes her look silver. You can see how that would appeal to a teenage boy, right? So I love Modesty. She exists in a place in my heart that only sentimentality and nostalgia can bring. But her adventures are very much of their time. That’s not a criticism, but a rather obvious observation.
But what if there were Modesty Blaise stories being written now? What would they be like in this post 9/11 world. Of course, this a huge leap, but maybe they may be a little like Bolt Action, which features a heroine named Tristie Merrit. Tristie is an orphan, who found a life – a community – as a soldier. And an exceptional soldier at that. One, that even the most hard-nosed, woman hating members of the armed-forces, had to admit, was a damn fine soldier.
But Tristie’s life as a soldier has come to an end – after she is badly injured near Lashkar Gar in Afghanistan. The thing is, after rehabilitation she is dumped in a run-down barracks in South Wiltshire, and there she discovers that the the armed forces amenities have been sub-contracted out to large corporations. Corporations that are happy to take the governments money, but are not so keen on putting that money back into accommodation and services for the armed forces. Basically the army is going to shit, while a few fat-cats live off the riches and get even fatter.
Now as a civilian, this almost abusive treatment for people who have served on the front line for their country is unacceptable. It’s there and then she decides to do something about it. Now in my intro I took the lazy option of comparing Tristie to Modesty Blaise, and in some ways that is fair enough – they share many similar characteristics – but if you’ll forgive me – here she displays qualities more akin to Major Reissman – that’s Lee Marvin – in The Dirty Dozen.
Tristie sets about putting a team together for a mission – her own ‘dirty half dozen’. The guys are known as Whiffler, Button, Ferret, Shoe, Piglet and Weasel – and each is a specialist in a field of military endeavor, whether it be shooting, explosive’s, vehicles etc. She calls her team Ward 13.
Tristie and Ward 13 then set about extorting the Ministry of Defense for a sizable amount of money after stealing a computer with the protocols for Britain’s Trident missile system. The money however, is not for Ward 13′s personal use, but to be directed to a series of veteran’s charities.
Meanwhile as on the other side of the world, Pakistani General Ali Mahmood Khan has covertly been taken into custody as it is believed that he has siphoned off $247 million dollars in US funds which were intended for equipment and facilities for the Pakistani forces to use against al-Qaeda. But General Khan is a wily old critter, and had put in place a plan of vengeance against the west should he be killed or disappear, and his capture and rendition has inadvertently put his diabolical scheme into action. One man who suspects something is going to happen – but he doesn’t know what – is the CIA’s top man in Islamabad, Bill Lamayette. However Lamayette doesn’t have any concrete proof to back this up, so his opinions and ideas are given short shrift by his superiors, and he is left to go it alone.
In fact, Bolt Action features three main story threads playing out. The first concerns Tristie and her band of brothers, then there’s Lamayette’s quest for answers in Pakistan, and finally there is the office bound actions of Sheila Davane, who is one of the heads of M.I.5.
Unfortunately Lamayette is correct and a terrorist attack is in the works. The operation is called Macchar (or mosquito), and it involves the hijacking of a plane on route from Manchester to New York. This flight also happens to be the same flight that Tristie Merrit, Whiffler and Button are on. I’m sure you don’t need me to fill in the blanks now and can see where the story is headed. And while the central premise of the story may have done the rounds over the years, what lifts this story above the pack is the way it is told.
The first thing you will notice about Bolt Action is that it is written in the present tense. Most novels these days, and either written in past tense or in first person. So for example, rather than saying ‘she picked up a gun’, Bolt Action would say, ‘she picks up a gun’. Obviously writing in this way would not change the plot, but what it does, is drop the reader right into the middle of the action. Rather than having the story reported to you, you are in fact a witness to the action. Which is probably just what you want in an thriller novel.
Bolt Action, despite its title isn’t too action packed. The ‘Bolt Action’ of the title actually refers to the locks on the cockpit doors. The story does contain passages of action, but this book is a thriller in the old sense of the word. It’s sort of like the literary equivalent to an Alfred Hitchcock movie, with each incident building upon the next, ratcheting up the suspense and tension.Once the ill-fated flight takes off from Manchester to New York, the pages can’t be turned fast enough and it becomes a white-knuckle read.
But what if there were Modesty Blaise stories being written now? What would they be like in this post 9/11 world. Of course, this a huge leap, but maybe they may be a little like Bolt Action, which features a heroine named Tristie Merrit. Tristie is an orphan, who found a life – a community – as a soldier. And an exceptional soldier at that. One, that even the most hard-nosed, woman hating members of the armed-forces, had to admit, was a damn fine soldier.
But Tristie’s life as a soldier has come to an end – after she is badly injured near Lashkar Gar in Afghanistan. The thing is, after rehabilitation she is dumped in a run-down barracks in South Wiltshire, and there she discovers that the the armed forces amenities have been sub-contracted out to large corporations. Corporations that are happy to take the governments money, but are not so keen on putting that money back into accommodation and services for the armed forces. Basically the army is going to shit, while a few fat-cats live off the riches and get even fatter.
Now as a civilian, this almost abusive treatment for people who have served on the front line for their country is unacceptable. It’s there and then she decides to do something about it. Now in my intro I took the lazy option of comparing Tristie to Modesty Blaise, and in some ways that is fair enough – they share many similar characteristics – but if you’ll forgive me – here she displays qualities more akin to Major Reissman – that’s Lee Marvin – in The Dirty Dozen.
Tristie sets about putting a team together for a mission – her own ‘dirty half dozen’. The guys are known as Whiffler, Button, Ferret, Shoe, Piglet and Weasel – and each is a specialist in a field of military endeavor, whether it be shooting, explosive’s, vehicles etc. She calls her team Ward 13.
Tristie and Ward 13 then set about extorting the Ministry of Defense for a sizable amount of money after stealing a computer with the protocols for Britain’s Trident missile system. The money however, is not for Ward 13′s personal use, but to be directed to a series of veteran’s charities.
Meanwhile as on the other side of the world, Pakistani General Ali Mahmood Khan has covertly been taken into custody as it is believed that he has siphoned off $247 million dollars in US funds which were intended for equipment and facilities for the Pakistani forces to use against al-Qaeda. But General Khan is a wily old critter, and had put in place a plan of vengeance against the west should he be killed or disappear, and his capture and rendition has inadvertently put his diabolical scheme into action. One man who suspects something is going to happen – but he doesn’t know what – is the CIA’s top man in Islamabad, Bill Lamayette. However Lamayette doesn’t have any concrete proof to back this up, so his opinions and ideas are given short shrift by his superiors, and he is left to go it alone.
In fact, Bolt Action features three main story threads playing out. The first concerns Tristie and her band of brothers, then there’s Lamayette’s quest for answers in Pakistan, and finally there is the office bound actions of Sheila Davane, who is one of the heads of M.I.5.
Unfortunately Lamayette is correct and a terrorist attack is in the works. The operation is called Macchar (or mosquito), and it involves the hijacking of a plane on route from Manchester to New York. This flight also happens to be the same flight that Tristie Merrit, Whiffler and Button are on. I’m sure you don’t need me to fill in the blanks now and can see where the story is headed. And while the central premise of the story may have done the rounds over the years, what lifts this story above the pack is the way it is told.
The first thing you will notice about Bolt Action is that it is written in the present tense. Most novels these days, and either written in past tense or in first person. So for example, rather than saying ‘she picked up a gun’, Bolt Action would say, ‘she picks up a gun’. Obviously writing in this way would not change the plot, but what it does, is drop the reader right into the middle of the action. Rather than having the story reported to you, you are in fact a witness to the action. Which is probably just what you want in an thriller novel.
Bolt Action, despite its title isn’t too action packed. The ‘Bolt Action’ of the title actually refers to the locks on the cockpit doors. The story does contain passages of action, but this book is a thriller in the old sense of the word. It’s sort of like the literary equivalent to an Alfred Hitchcock movie, with each incident building upon the next, ratcheting up the suspense and tension.Once the ill-fated flight takes off from Manchester to New York, the pages can’t be turned fast enough and it becomes a white-knuckle read.
January 10, 2019
Slow to start
This book was a challenge. I almost gave up on it, but when I got to the half way point, things FINALLY started coming together and turned into a half decent book.
This book was a challenge. I almost gave up on it, but when I got to the half way point, things FINALLY started coming together and turned into a half decent book.
June 19, 2012
I have to admit at the very outset that under normal circumstances I would not have picked this book up. I can't explain exactly why but I just know that I wouldn't have. There are two major differences between this and other crime type books that I read. The writing style is the first and the subject matter is the second.
The story involving terrorism is something that I have come across in many books but Charlie Charters has produced a book that is heavy on the likes of Government procedure and army type war scenarios. His writing style is also quite unusual and takes some getting used to.
We are introduced very early on to Bill Lamayette who works for the CIA and is stationed in Islamabad. Lamayette is a stand alone type of person and although we see him throughout the story we don't really get to know anything about him outside of that.
Tristie Merritt however was the strength of this story and as we meet her early on I loved the storyline of her being an ex-soldier in the British Army and wanting to do right by her fellow soldiers. She created Ward 13 made up of a select few that were no longer property of the British Army and who were doing everything in their power to get what was right for the soldiers that had left the army and suffered the consequences. Even if that meant breaking the law which is essentially what Ward 13 was all about.
From the start of this book I found Charlie Charter's writing style hard to get used to. He packs the information in and unless you are very familiar with the MoD and British Army you really do have to pay attention. Having said that, around the halfway mark I began to see the reasoning for all the different events that were happening and what they were leading up to.
If I am being honest I was struggling with it halfway through but once it all came together and we see the terrorism at its peak it takes an upward turn. I liked the characters that were involved in Ward 13, but besides that I found the characters such as the British and US government a little too unrealistic.
By the end of the book I was both pleased and disappointed at the same time. I think my reluctance to rate this book highly is purely personal opinion and I am less than enthusiastic about Government/Army type stories as I have no interest in this type of thing. On the other hand I was really pleased that I had read this debut novel as I really got into his style of writing and think that I would really enjoy this kind of style again, but maybe this time on something I am more interested in.
For people that love this type of Army/Government setting you would probably adore this book. I would recommend this as it was a great read but I think purely down to personal opinion I wouldn't opt for this type of book/storyline again. 3.5 out of 5 from me
The story involving terrorism is something that I have come across in many books but Charlie Charters has produced a book that is heavy on the likes of Government procedure and army type war scenarios. His writing style is also quite unusual and takes some getting used to.
We are introduced very early on to Bill Lamayette who works for the CIA and is stationed in Islamabad. Lamayette is a stand alone type of person and although we see him throughout the story we don't really get to know anything about him outside of that.
Tristie Merritt however was the strength of this story and as we meet her early on I loved the storyline of her being an ex-soldier in the British Army and wanting to do right by her fellow soldiers. She created Ward 13 made up of a select few that were no longer property of the British Army and who were doing everything in their power to get what was right for the soldiers that had left the army and suffered the consequences. Even if that meant breaking the law which is essentially what Ward 13 was all about.
From the start of this book I found Charlie Charter's writing style hard to get used to. He packs the information in and unless you are very familiar with the MoD and British Army you really do have to pay attention. Having said that, around the halfway mark I began to see the reasoning for all the different events that were happening and what they were leading up to.
If I am being honest I was struggling with it halfway through but once it all came together and we see the terrorism at its peak it takes an upward turn. I liked the characters that were involved in Ward 13, but besides that I found the characters such as the British and US government a little too unrealistic.
By the end of the book I was both pleased and disappointed at the same time. I think my reluctance to rate this book highly is purely personal opinion and I am less than enthusiastic about Government/Army type stories as I have no interest in this type of thing. On the other hand I was really pleased that I had read this debut novel as I really got into his style of writing and think that I would really enjoy this kind of style again, but maybe this time on something I am more interested in.
For people that love this type of Army/Government setting you would probably adore this book. I would recommend this as it was a great read but I think purely down to personal opinion I wouldn't opt for this type of book/storyline again. 3.5 out of 5 from me
April 18, 2011
‘The forces of revenge have been unleashed.’
The heroes in this novel are a bunch of former British special forces soldiers, trying to cope with life outside now that the Army doesn’t want them any longer. Former Special Forces captain, Tristie Merritt has her own issues – both with the past and with the army. She recruits six ex-Army misfits: Ferret, Piglet, Shoe, Button, Weasel and Whiffler, to form a unit known as Ward 13. Ward 13’s mission is to get the Ministry of Defence to donate £315 million to a number of Armed Forces charities. Yes, Tristie Merritt has a plan and just how Ward 13 achieves this, and the consequences, make exciting reading.
One of the consequences is that three members of Ward 13 are on an international flight between Manchester and New York when the pilots are killed as part of a terrorist plot. Bill Lamayette, the CIA’s man in Islamabad has worked hard to get information about this plot. And, with the help of a certain rat, he gets critical information.
‘We’re supposed to call this guy Rattus norvegicus. But that’s such a lame handle for a dude to have, so let’s name this fellow … not Billy Bob, but Billy Ray. Like Billy Ray Cyrus. Same nice shiny teeth. Lovely thick brown hair… See how Billy Ray’s standing up on his back legs. Can’t wait to meet his first holy man. First ever terrorist ringleader…’
Unfortunately, no-one listens to Bill Lamayette in time to stop the plane taking off. And once the plane has taken off and the pilots have been killed, it looks like the plane is doomed. The door between the cockpit and the passengers is impenetrable, and while the plane flies on autopilot for most of the journey it can’t stay in the air forever and it’s unlikely to be allowed to enter US airspace. And, in the meantime the contents of released recorded messages are inflaming the situation around the world.
‘It’s quite a day when you make people safer by evacuating them into Afghanistan.’
I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. While the tension builds throughout the story, it is relieved at times by judicious use of humour. The story is both engrossing and exciting, and I’m pleased that my read was largely uninterrupted. It took me a little while to get into the rhythm of Charlie Charters’s writing, but once I did I was hooked. This debut novel is not just an entertaining thriller: it raises a number of issues about both the nature of and response to terrorism, and the treatment of soldiers.
Note: I was offered, and accepted, a copy of this book for review purposes. I’m glad that I did.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
The heroes in this novel are a bunch of former British special forces soldiers, trying to cope with life outside now that the Army doesn’t want them any longer. Former Special Forces captain, Tristie Merritt has her own issues – both with the past and with the army. She recruits six ex-Army misfits: Ferret, Piglet, Shoe, Button, Weasel and Whiffler, to form a unit known as Ward 13. Ward 13’s mission is to get the Ministry of Defence to donate £315 million to a number of Armed Forces charities. Yes, Tristie Merritt has a plan and just how Ward 13 achieves this, and the consequences, make exciting reading.
One of the consequences is that three members of Ward 13 are on an international flight between Manchester and New York when the pilots are killed as part of a terrorist plot. Bill Lamayette, the CIA’s man in Islamabad has worked hard to get information about this plot. And, with the help of a certain rat, he gets critical information.
‘We’re supposed to call this guy Rattus norvegicus. But that’s such a lame handle for a dude to have, so let’s name this fellow … not Billy Bob, but Billy Ray. Like Billy Ray Cyrus. Same nice shiny teeth. Lovely thick brown hair… See how Billy Ray’s standing up on his back legs. Can’t wait to meet his first holy man. First ever terrorist ringleader…’
Unfortunately, no-one listens to Bill Lamayette in time to stop the plane taking off. And once the plane has taken off and the pilots have been killed, it looks like the plane is doomed. The door between the cockpit and the passengers is impenetrable, and while the plane flies on autopilot for most of the journey it can’t stay in the air forever and it’s unlikely to be allowed to enter US airspace. And, in the meantime the contents of released recorded messages are inflaming the situation around the world.
‘It’s quite a day when you make people safer by evacuating them into Afghanistan.’
I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. While the tension builds throughout the story, it is relieved at times by judicious use of humour. The story is both engrossing and exciting, and I’m pleased that my read was largely uninterrupted. It took me a little while to get into the rhythm of Charlie Charters’s writing, but once I did I was hooked. This debut novel is not just an entertaining thriller: it raises a number of issues about both the nature of and response to terrorism, and the treatment of soldiers.
Note: I was offered, and accepted, a copy of this book for review purposes. I’m glad that I did.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
September 30, 2015
This book is a good beach read. Several story lines come together in a tense airline flight where a terrorist has killed the pilots and the cabin door is locked. The crew and passengers must get through the cabin door before the plane is shot down.
September 11, 2010
Bit slow to get going but once the plane takes off the build up of tension is relentless. Great read!
July 31, 2011
Very well written although the main characters stories end abruptly.
June 26, 2013
Finally,a female special ops character.Sweet!
February 13, 2015
Interesting Book
Main characters in this book are well-drawn and are the selling point of these books. They are worth a rear.
Main characters in this book are well-drawn and are the selling point of these books. They are worth a rear.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews