Spoilers [Paperback]

This is a book about drugs and traffickers. Desmond Bagley brings his own unique perspective into the picture. Totally different from the legalistic "Snow Tiger", this books pumps adrenaline all the way. But since the book was first published some 20 years ago, it does not have the social ambience to grip the reader in a vice hold. A good read anyway

When wealthy film tycoon Sir Robert Hellier's daughter dies of a heroin overdose, Hellier pressures her physician Nick Warren for answers. Warren, a doctor who prescribes "clean" heroin and provides a safe and sterile environment for users to inject, has developed a close relationship with drug addicts, and knows more about the ins-and-outs of the heroin trade than most people. Hellier wants the trade smashed at any expense, and offers Warren unlimited finances to use his insider knowledge against a major international drug ring. Initially reluctant, Warren is worn down by professional interest and personal circumstances, and assembles a rag-bag team of friends and specialists to travel to the Middle East. Through a combination of deceit and violence, can this eclectic bunch infiltrate and bring down the drug ring, and destroy the heroin supply at its source?

I am a huge fan of Desmond Bagley's work (see my other mostly positive reviews of his books on Amazon), but 'The Spoilers' is easily his worst book, by a considerable margin. The fundamental problem with this book is that the plot just requires too much suspension of disbelief. The idea that an ordinary doctor, no matter how sympathetic to addicts, would have knowledge that the most well-resourced international police forces wouldn't is hard to accept for a start. But even allowing this, we then have Warren turning into a quasi James Bond character, travelling to some of the most dangerous corners of the Middle East, blowing up drug factories, fighting pitched battles in caves, and so on. This is an ordinary doctor, remember, not some ex-Special Forces mercenary who dabbles in medicine in his spare time. It's just not believable, even accepting that your standards for realism aren't high in an adventure thriller. When Warren himself notes over and over how "ridiculous" it all seems, you know there's a problem. And the motivation for many of the other protagonists is pretty weak; they tag along basically because Warren asks them to.

The parts of the book that focus on Abbot and Parker's attempts to infiltrate the organisation are better, however. This sort of clever scheming and manipulation is much more like what we'd expect from Warren, using brains and guile instead of brawn. Some of the baddies such as femme fatale Jeanette Delorme are interesting, and these parts of the book allow the antagonists to be fleshed out and developed a bit. If 'The Spoilers' had been based around this sort of strategy, and not on Warren pulling a Rambo, it would have been a much stronger and more interesting book.

Unfortunately, for the most part, you just can't really believe Warren doing all the things he does, and so you can't really get into the book. You just read with increasing frustration and lack of interest as the book becomes more and more over-the-top and silly. 'The Spoilers' is definitely not the place for newcomers to start; if I'd read this one first, I probably would never have given Bagley a second chance. If you're a fan, you'll eventually get around to reading this, but be aware that this is quite clearly his weakest and least interesting book.

Old-fashioned action thriller with one redeeming feature - a character sharing the same name as me! Pure co-incidence, of course. The Nick Warren in this book is a top British drug expert who finds himself on the trail of Iranian smugglers after an entertainment impressario's daughter is found dead in her own apartment after a heroin overdose, and vows revenge for her death. An oft-told tale unfortunately still set in the past with an old fashioned narrative and dialogue(does anyone really say OLD CHAP these days? Maybe in a Colin Forbes book . . .) which does not quite work now in print, but would certainly make a decent movie.

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 3 reviews  2.3 out of 5 stars