Stone is surrounded by his usual coterie of friends and acquaintances in the escapades in which he finds himself partaking as he solves his latest mystery ... Since Stone owns several homes with servants around the world and has his own plane, he can pick up and go anytime he pleases. He also is in contact with all of his connections no matter where he is and is ready to follow whatever instructions he receives on his scrambled phone line. This keeps readers up to date on Stone’s latest assignments, which adds to the narrative’s fast pace.
Some of the plot strands peter out; others lead somewhere, often in unexpected ways ... Rumbling in the background like summer thunder is the search for that mole. But the most sublime moment, limited to the regular cast, comes when Joan Robertson, Stone’s long-suffering secretary, asks, 'Who left the house on the gurney?' and he replies, 'A woman of my acquaintance—you don’t know her' ... Bon appétit to readers who like their international intrigue sweet and weightless as a soufflé.
...serviceable ... The witty banter among Stone and friends and his frequent bedding of willing women keep the reader turning the pages to the mildly exciting showdown on a giant yacht anchored off Martha’s Vineyard. Woods seems to be treading water.
