Desperate Measures

January 30, 2012
Christopher Lane brings his considerable talents to bear on this new audio edition of Morrell’s 1994 thriller about the harrowing experiences of Matt Pittman, an idealistic investigative journalist turned burned-out obituary writer. On the verge of suicide after the loss of his young son to cancer and the breakup of his marriage, Pittman agrees to write a final article for his soon-to-be-defunct daily newspaper—an obituary for a man who is not yet dead—and inadvertently stumbles into a violent struggle with a powerful cadre of aging diplomats. Lane’s performance captures the spirit and tone of Morrell’s novel, and he masterfully conveys the depths of Pittman’s grief and depression. Additionally, the narrator’s rendering of dialects and accents is effective. Fans of political thrillers are in for an entertaining listen, although contemporary audiences may find the book’s technological references—which predate the Internet and mobile phones—downright anachronistic. A Warner paperback.

September 19, 1994
In the seventh thriller from the creator of Rambo (introduced in First Blood), yet another defeated soul becomes a rebellious dynamo eluding evil minions of the Establishment as he campaigns violently for personal justice. His son's slow death from cancer has ended Matt Pittman's marriage and led him to quit his newspaper job and stick a gun in his mouth. Before Matt pulls the trigger, however, his editor calls in a last payback, assigning him to a deathbed interview with Jonathan Millgate, one of five patrician diplomats who have recommended war to every President since Truman and grown rich from ties to the arms industry. Arriving at the Manhattan hospital just as the other four are spiriting Millgate away, Matt follows them to a walled estate, into which he breaks to find Millgate struggling, his life supports detached. Hooked back up, the old man mutters, ``Duncan... The snow... Grollier'' before guards send Matt running for his life. Daybreak finds the former reporter wanted for murder, his assets frozen and a gunsel in his apartment. So begins Matt's bloody journey to the truth. Morrell is a master of formula action fiction and his fans won't be disappointed by the complex but hurtling plot. Major ad/promo; author tour.

May 1, 1994
Morrell's First Blood (1972) was the driving force behind the laughable Rambo phenomenon, but his material has thankfully evolved since then. Today, he writes international thrillers like Desperate Measures, which is slated for a 150,000-copy first printing.