Ghost (Paladin of Shadows Book 1) Review

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(More customer reviews)I found myself voting "helpful" for reviews with one star and reviews with five stars. I'm definitely conflicted over this book.
As the author says in his own review on this site, the book reads well. The stories are pretty carefully plotted, although the third one kind of skips around a little too much.
And how many nukes does one guy just happen to stumble across? In that respect it reminds me of the murder mystery genre, where amatuer sleuths just happen to trip over bodies every time they go on vacation. Suspension of disbelief is integral to the idea. These are "tall tales", not psuedo-realism.
And yes, there is lots of sex. Very dark sex, too. And it gets darker from story to story.
And yes, there is lots of violence. Very dark violence, too. It also gets darker from story to story.
Not only is the book not "politically correct", but it is an over-the-top right wing fairy tale. The hero is always right, the Bush-like president is noble and wise, all liberals and the French are weak and stupid, and all the positively portrayed characters make comments about how they are now going to vote Republican for life. The book is also relentless about showing the bad side of Islam: the villians in all three stories are Muslim terrorists. There is not a single sympathetic portrayal of a Muslim in any of the stories.
But ... well that's what this book is about. It is not about plot realism, political moderation, or cultural understanding. It is about darkness: rage, sexual dominance, the seductive joy of killing your enemies, and most of all it is about the relationship of the wolves to the sheep.
It is well executed, but very disturbing. I'm not surprised the author had to be talked into publishing it. It reads more like a private exorcism of personal demons than something intended for public consumption.

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Unbeatable Review

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(More customer reviews)Stop making excuses. Act as if your life depended on it
Want to lose weight? Stop making excuses. Forget about fad diets. Try this instead:
Imagine that the life of someone you love ABSOLUTELY DEPENDS on your losing 15 pounds. Could you do it? Of course you could. Suddenly all the excuses you'd had in the past would be meaningless. You wouldn't find excuses. You'd not only lose weight, you'd walk through a wall of fire if necessary to save their life.
Apply the same technique to ANYTHING you want to do --- from stopping drinking, to ending procrastinating, curing a compulsion to gamble. Find an incentive that's strong enough --- one that puts at risk the life of someone you love --- and you can do anything.
Imagine for a minute that in every thing you do, your life is at stake --- even in ordinary circumstances. Going to the supermarket, for example, or driving down a highway. When you begin doing ordinary things in an extraordinary way --- as if your life were on the line --- life suddenly takes on a whole new meaning.
These are some of the secrets of living your life as extraordinary. Every second of every day is an opportunity to start all over. Failure has no meaning. Living life as a Navy SEAL means you become UNbeatable. Why? Because you never give up. "Failure" disappears from your vocabulary. The time you allow between failure and starting all over again drops from months, days or hours to zero. And when you develop the habit of starting again immediately, you are, quite literally, unbeatable.
Jack Schropp asks you to consider a lioness living in the jungle. If she returns from a day of stalking prey and comes back empty-handed, does she berate herself? Does she mutter, "Elsa, you pounced too soon." Do other lions chastise her, "Elsa, you've got to get your anger management under control. It's throwing off your ability to pounce." No, when the lioness misses, she simply adjusts and tries again. And again. Over and over, until she succeeds. Doubt isn't part of her experience. The only thing with meaning is her NEXT opportunity. Schropp encourages us to live like the lioness: Focused. Without doubt. And without meaningless self-recriminations.
Bellyaching? It's nonsense. Like SEALS, we're volunteers in most of the things we do in life. Nobody puts a gun to our head and forces us to get married or to take or stay with a dull, unsatisfying job. When we stop thinking of ourselves as victims and begin thinking of ourselves as volunteers, our whole outlook changes.
SEALS also know the secret of teamwork. Just as geese know to fly in formation, with one taking the lead for a while, then dropping back so others assume the lead position. None tire quickly because all in the flock take their turn at the helm. SEALs know that their lives, and the lives of their teammates, depend on everyone doing what they say they will do, when they say they will do it.
Most people who begin SEAL training never finish. At least 66 percent of the members of every SEAL class drop out before they graduate. Schropp includes a list of excuses trainees offer up when they quit (everything from "I didn't know it was going to be like this," to "my a-- hurts," or "I ran out of clean underwear. Honest.") Reading the list makes us realize how stupid people sound when they make excuses.
This book will help anyone prepare for a more rewarding future. And in doing so, it teaches another SEAL secret: The future is NEVER what we expect it to be.
This isn't really a book about SEALS. It's about living life effectively. It's not a self-help book, but it can be one of the most helpful books you'll ever read. It's not perfect. Sometimes it jumps around a bit. The writing is a bit uneven in places. But the ideas sparkle. They're practical. You can put them to work immediately --- in your personal life and in your career. And you'll see immediate results. Best of all, you'll gain access to a no-nonsense formula for living that can make you unbeatable. Count on it.

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Unleash the Warrior Within: Develop the Focus, Discipline, Confidence, and Courage You Need to Achieve Unlimited Goals Review

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(More customer reviews)The intensely focused, macho like posture of the author on the cover of this book may likely suggest to the casual browser, that this book is about combat or martial arts (the author is an ex-Navy Seal). It may lead one to judge it was written for those that want to learn how to better kick butts, cultivate an intimidating attitude or be trained in how to become an action star. Actually it could help kick butts (figuratively speaking).
As the subscript to the title suggest, it is about using "the principles (seven of them)of combat to achieve your goals."The axiom, which states that to accomplish most things in life one must set goals, create a plan, then follow through, will probably not be news to most readers. There exist myriads of materials and advisers prepared to guide us onto bigger and better things.
In this reviewer's opinion, what makes this book different is its focus on the details about how to accomplish one chosen goals. It never patronizes us with lectures about self improvement. As Machowicz points out, the SEALs spared no expense acquiring the best training available on the planet. When carrying out a mission, they simply do not have the option of failure from a preventable mistake or lack of focus. This technology can easily be translated and applied by us civilians in our everyday quest to accomplish the things we want.
Feeling overwhelmed, not sure what you should do next? There's help in getting started through a priority exercise called CARVER. You would begin by listing all of the things on your plate and analyze what you have based on six factors using a scoring method. This would help identify and set up targets, the things in your life which are the most critical, important, and feasible for you to accomplish. This little exercise assists one in getting one focused. It may also bring out awareness that some things are less important than originally thought. There are chapters on dealing with one's own fears (the SEALS aren't exempt), the role of information, practice and attitude. Again, Machowicz's target always seems to be on turning information into practical exercises.
There is a fascinating description of an actual SEALs mission during which each recommended principle is described as it applies "in the moment" while the story unfolds.
This book is recommended to anyone who wants to become highly skilled and proficient in the art of mastering the technology of achievement. It has earned a valued place in my library.

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