He's got something--I think it's a talent for telling or writing stories & an interest, too, in style (though not a style I'm at all crazy about--it's still a good sign).
He's much too much in love with gratuitous & zany violence to suit me--& he seems otherwise self-indulgent as well--he doesn't seem to have much taste--he tries to pull off gags in the course of narration that are weak in themselves & beside the point--he skips some of the (apparent) essentials of building (esp. character) or of managing a consistent & coherent narrative--& even so he gets quite a few small & terrific effects, including humor & probably accurate social observation & (even though it can be cheap) surprise.
He'd be better--this seems perhaps a naive thing to say but in this particular case I really think it's to the point--if he had more interesting people & subject matter--if he could write about things he didn't have to look down on & make fun of--but he's a lot better than average, in my opinion.

Did you read that whole excerpt? It doesn't get any better than that.

But so what if he has little imagination to speak of, has a poor regard for humanity, and can't write his way out of a paper bag, Eringer's selling millions of his own books with the help of influential friends in the business while other people crash and burn like the Mars explorer. That's just the way things work out for some guys born into rich and influential families.

As you'll never be given those sorts of considerations and leg up, you're best to forget all that. Here is another major action-packed adventure from Master Spy Eringer that really has the bland leading the bland. A tale of intrigue that will get any chairbound executive to wiggling in his seat. A hot serving of espionage that will lightly toast white bread anywhere slightly MidWest of a Minneapolis supperclub. This stuff sounds so right-on that you know anyone who writes a positive review will be contacted by the CIA for possible recruitment.

Actually, this publication is part of Eringer's secret mission -- a concerted "psy-op". The Eringer series is designed to confuse and instill fear into the hearts and minds of real-life agents, spies, and arms dealers throughout the suburbs of Belair, Beverly Hills, and Hollywood so that they'll co-operate. The clues and coded references are as lightly peppered throughout Eringer's series of books as in any single copy of Variety.

The "Parallel Truths" are "Monaco" and "billionaire nuclear arms smuggler" = "Arnon Milchan" and "movie producer". But dare, if you do, to mix that with the earlier book "Lo Mein". If you're at all hip to the ways spy books are engineered to make you want to turn a page, you'll just naturally ask yourself which of Arnon's best business friends and trader of inside information was raised only on Chinese food in New Jersey and oh wow, you can bet this Eringer guy really knows what he's doing. He's messing with their minds. Have no doubt, these bad guys cooperate.

But wait! This is deep stuff. "Lo Mein" is also a sometimes very soggy noodle. "Lo Mein" is also the name of an Eringer book that contains but one, just one, and only one joke throughout the whole book, and some people think that book is so clever and funny they want to keep the funny secret to themselves and don't dare reveal the joke. The big joke is [I hope I don't spoil it for those who haven't read Lo Mein] that spaghetti actually comes from China and most people think it's an Italian dish and so, you see, Eringer thinks the public has "soggy noodles" -- they're eating something every single day and don't know where it comes from. Think of that. Man, that Eringer is like a creative genius or something. Soon to be a major motion picture and television series. Soundtrack on Disney.

Can't wait for the upcoming book and lecture tour for "Spookaroonie" co-hosted by Claire George, no doubt scheduled for kickoff around Halloween. Also avidly awaiting Eringer's logical sequel, "Hung Chow".

Eringer's books occasionally have a three-syllable word that tells you he is intelligent and that if you know the meaning without looking that big long word up, you are intelligent, too. Eringer's books are designed to be read and enjoyed not just by Stepford Wives, Scientologists, and squareballs everywhere, but by regular people who watch 11-16 hours of television a day, believe what they see in Hollywood movies, and count a once-in-a-lifetime trip to the circus or Disneyland as the absolute height of life's experience. You know who you are.

Jay Sandek is hired for a job by his former employer, the CIA, to find a way to get Markham Fitch, a billionaire who is in sanctuary in Switzerland, to a place where he can be arrested. The methods used by Sandek are somewhat out of the CIA's area of legality. The quirky characters and odd the mannerisms of these characters, gave this novel a humorous edge. I see Sandek and his favorite drink, Corona, no lime, return for another adventure. Overall it was an enjoyable read, and quick.

Recommended.

James Spada aspires to create a shattering and shocking biography of the late Princess Grace Grimaldi, nee Grace Kelly. Unfortunately his biography reads less like a biography than like a listing of the affairs and miserable times she had.

It covers the background that Grace Kelly came from, and her rapid ascent into the Hollywood spotlight, where she became an adored and talented actress. She won the hearts of the public anew when she married Prince Rainier of Monaco, helped pull his small principality back into the spotlight -- and died tragically in a car crash at a relatively young age.

Spada certainly had the material for a good book in his hands, but like many other so-called biographers of famous and beloved personages, he descends to essentially repeating every little tabloid report and insinuation. Every one of Grace's lovers is listed, with Spada showing especial glee when the man in question was married. Literally half the book is taken up by descriptions of who she slept with and, very briefly, the movies she made. After reading this book, readers will be hard-put to remember the plots of her movies, but they will be able to remember her mother's argument with Oleg Cassini. Additionally, the only interactions in her life in Monaco that he focuses on are negative; one would think that Grace didn't have a satisfying five seconds after she married Rainier.

Similar treatment is given to her family. Rainier is a nebulous presence at best -- what little we hear is never enough to let us form a real picture of him as a person. Virtually no attention is paid to Caroline's role as First Lady, but plenty is paid to her tempestuous love life. Albert's adult life is summed up in a listing of his lovers, and Stephanie's accomplishments are crammed into a page and a half, in comparison to the pages dedicated to rebellion and, yes, her love life. To add insult to this amalgation of tabloid rumors, Spada even presents the assertion of a tabloid stringer that Grace's death was an attempted murder/suicide.

His writing style is dry and rushed. It is also repetitive; he often restates items such as the fiery personality under the ice queen exterior, or Grace's beauty, or how she only became involved with men if she believed they would marry her. Rather than grouping relevant quotes together, he allows them to crop up at random through the book.

For a better look at Grace's life, her flaws and gifts, and the lives of her family, try "Royal House of Monaco." If you're looking for a pointless listing of Grace's lovers, this is the book for you.