Stone Cold (Camel Club Series)

Oliver Stone, et al, and Annabelle Conroy team up to battle Jerry Bagger (Annabelle conned 40 million dollars from him) and Harry Finn who is assassinating people associated with Stone's past. Milton ends up getting killed.

Is it just me? I hated this book! Having read the Camel Club and the Collectors, I came to regard Oliver Stone as one of the good guys. A hero. How do you square that with the end of this book? Wait! Don't tell me! Let me guess... Stone has a brain tumor? OK, I'm being sarcastic, but really. The

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author spent three books developing the character and threw it all away in the last chapter.

The writing is not up to par (uses "over" for more or greater than--over and over and over). Neither is the editing, for that matter. The stories have always been far fetched. I forgave the "to be continued" ending to the Collectors, my favorite of the three. This book, however, is the end of the road for this reader.

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The members of the Camel Club are sleuths who detest government treachery. They center their quest on the touchstone of truth. This latest installment is the authors best accomplishment with these characters yet. The book is fast paced with new, well developed characters. Their nemesis, Carter Grey

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is at his reviling best in this book. The reader believes he is at the limits of hating Carter, when one page over the hate surges to a new level. The cunning the author crafted in this book is excellent. Here's to hoping for more of the crafty Camel Club.

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Baldacci resurrects The Camel Club with Stone Cold (The Camel Club and The Collectors) with Oliver Stone, Milton, Caleb and Rubin playing their loyal supporting roles in ferreting out justice. Annabelle Conroy appears after conning a viciously vindictive casino owner. Harry Finn leads a double life

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as father extraodinaire and a Homeland security expert while systematically eliminating those responsible for his father’s (Raymond Solomon) murder. How do all these lives and histories and personalities and goals fit together? This novel reads like two separate stories with converging journeys becoming closer and more interconnected until they collide, revealing personal tragedy and bureaucratic corruption and surprising secrets.

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For the first 2/3 or so of Stone Cold, I was thinking that it was the best entry in Baldacci's Camel Club series. The story (well, actually, two intermingled stories) was (were?) interesting and the quirky characters (well, all but one, I guess) were being given more opportunity to play parts in

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the story. But then, rather suddenly, it seemed as if Baldacci got bored. The early parts of the story developed with a fairly methodical, careful pacing. The latter portions of the story rushed by, less due to sheer excitement and more due to the seeming rush by the author to get to the end. The story remained enjoyable, but I would have preferred a somewhat slower pace and as much detail and attention in the latter stages as in the early parts of the story.

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Oliver Stone, the leader of the mysterious group that calls itself the Camel Club, is both feared and respected by those who've crossed his path. Keeping a vigilant watch over our leaders in Washington, D. C, , the Camel Club has won over some allies, but it has also earned formidable

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enemies-including those in power.
Annabelle Conroy, an honorary member of the Club, is also the greatest con artist of her generation. She has swindled forty million dollars from casino king Jerry Baggerm, the man who murdered her mother.

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3rd of Oliver Stone and Camel Club series dealing with spy assasinations from the cold war era. Reader does a good job of attributing characters and fitting the theme.

Stone Cold, the third installment in David Baldacci's Camel Club series, brings the boys back together - along with Annabelle Conroy - to solve two mysteries at once. As Oliver Stone's former secret agent colleagues disappear, one by one, Jerry Bagger - casino boss and the man Annabell conned out

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of $40 million dollars - vows to destroy everyone involved in conning him. Oliver brings in help from his friends, the Camel Club - Milton, Reuben, Caleb and Alex Ford - to help him find out why Harry Finn is killing his former colleagues and to keep Annabelle safe from Bagger.

Baldacci interweaves the two stories well, and generally keeps the reader's heart rate up throughout this thriller. Baldacci is not the best writer in the genre, and unfortunately I found myself occasionally tripping over his use of language in this book. I think he could use a bit more editing to keep his grammar in line. I also found the ending a bit off-putting. In the past, Oliver Stone's past as a trained killer seemed to be something he had overcome - in the early two Camel Club books, Stone generally used his wits to get out of situations. However, the ending of this book took quite a turn. It will be interesting to see if, in the next Camel Club book, Baldacci returns Stone to his more reasonable self or if he decides that revenge is what drives him. I hope it's not pure revenge - it's just too predictable.

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Oliver Stone, the leader of the mysterious group that calls itself the Camel Club, is both feared and respected by those who've crossed his path. Keeping a vigilant watch over our leaders in Washington D.C., the Camel Club has won over some allies, but it has also earned formidable enemies

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including those in power who will do anything to prevent Stone and his friends uncovering the hidden, secret work of the government.
Annabelle Conroy, an honorary member of the Camel Club, is also the greatest con artist of her generation. She has swindled forty million dollars from casino king Jerry Bagger, the man who murdered her mother. Now he's hot on her trail with only one goal in mind, Annabelle's death. But as Stone and the Camel Club circle the wagons to protect Annabelle, a new opponent, who makes Bagger's menace pale by comparison, suddenly arises.
One by One, men from Stone's shadowy past are turning up dead. Behind this slaughter stands one man, Harry Finn. To almost all who know him, Finn is a doting father and loving husband who uses his skills behind the scenes to keep our nation safe. But the other face of Harry Finn is that of an unstoppable killer who inevitably sets his lethal Bull's-eye on Oliver Stone. And with Finn, Stone may well have met his match.
As Annabelle and the Camel Club fight for their lives, the twists and turns whipsaw, leading to a final that is explosive as it is shattering. When buried secrets are at last violently resurrected, the members of the Camel Club left standing will be changed forever.

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I have read several books by David Baldacci, including the two earlier novels in his Camel Club series. In short, Stone Cold, the third Camel Club book was entertaining, but left a bit to be desired.

The best part was the new character, Harry Finn, who works for a private company that has a

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government contract to test the security measures of government agencies and contractors. This plot line is very interesting.

The worst part is when some bad guys are either stupid or not bad enough. The reader is not sure which it is because an obvious potential advantage is just ignored. I found error so glaring and annoying that when it occurs 440+ pages in, I almost tossed the book unfinished.

I attempted to ignore the blunder and finished Stone Cold and it ended decent, but not great because I just couldn't forget.

Note: I mentioned the blunder to the person who loaned me Stone Cold. He did not notice the plot weakness until I pointed it out to him. Perhaps if you read rapidly and don't think too much, you will enjoy the book to its conclusion.

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I loved this book. I listened to the abridged version and have decided to step back and listen to the unabridged. Of the 4 books in the series, this is my favorite. I found myself really liking Annabelle. Even though she was a conn, I found her story interesting, all the way down to the

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relationship with her and her father. I was a little heartbroken that Oliver wasn't the one who was going to save her from Jerry Bagger, but Oliver was true to his word in helping her. Even though it wasn't him. (Can't tell you who it is!) I think that what I liked about this the most was that no matter how hard I tried to predict the next event, I was never right! Baldacci has his newest fan!

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Gotta love Oliver Stone and his gang.

A friend of mine recomended this book. I've never heard about this writer but was lucky as they just got this book...
I can't deny it's really well written and a good story but sometimes a bit hard to believe for me...

Third in the Camel Club series. Great story

Stone Cold is the 3rd book in the Camel Club series. The club is back and still making trouble for those who need it. Susan/Annabelle has a mob-like casino boss gunning for her since she ripped $40 Million from him, and someone else seems to be killing off all of Oliver Stones old triple 6

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teammates. Carter Grey even invites Oliver to his house in order to present the evidence. Later after Grey's house is blown up, Oliver is hung out as bait to draw the killer out of the woodwork.

This book is rather action packed and keeps one wondering what is going to happen next. It also is mostly 'reasonable' as far as spy novels go, no major groaners for easy outs or spectacularly impossible feats. Just reasonable over the top action.

Overall an enjoyable book, well written and no one had any unexplained superpowers show up out of the blue. I liked it and it's worth a read. Also Ron McLarty did an excellent job IMO in reading as well.

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I have read 4 or 5 books by David Baldacci and I like his style very much because I can read a book in one day and never get bored.
The Camel Club has an interesting mix of personalities. It does seem unbelievable that people could live a secret life that is not interfered with because they have no

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families that would make them tread the straight and narrow. I guess that is just highlighting my own personal fantasy which is to somehow escape from the constraints of being responsible for my own family. Of course, Oliver Stone is not happy at all because he lost his family, so the point I made above is kind of dumb. I would like to be free from my family but not by the means of some catastrophic loss. So for the present moment, reading a book like this just serves as pure escapism.

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A cracking read which kept me turning the page until I finished it. Most of the action is set in and around Washington and the political scene with two interleaving threads. One thread is a con artist and her team who are trying to evade the wrath of an Atlantic City casino operator they conned out

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of $40m; the other thread is a cold war retribution involving high-level DC political operators. Well plotted and any holes easily overlooked by the sheer pace of the story.

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The conspiracy theories continue to fly in the 3rd installment of the Camel Club series. I love that Baldacci brought back Annabelle from the last book and finished that story. Now I hope to see some Henry Finn and company in the next installment. And not to try and spoil the story for those who

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haven't read it yet, one principal member will sorely be missed, but in these stories where the body count is continually climbing I guess I can't be too surprised. Just sorry it was one of my favorites.

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Oliver Stone and his motley crew of unlikely heroes return in this next instalment of the Camel Club. Two plot threads run side by side in this novel. We discover more about the mysterious Stone's past as he battles to stay alive when his previous life starts to catch up with him. All the favourite

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characters are back as the story races to a thrilling and devastating climax. It will be interesting to see where Baldacci takes these characters if he chooses to write anymore Camel Club books.

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Alias Oliver Stone finds himself hunted once again when the son of a former hit comes to wreck revenge.

There is so much I can't say about this book for fear of giving too much away! Suffice it to say, Stone Cold picks up right where The Collectors left off. Oliver Stone, the leader of the Camel Club, is determined to help con artist Annabelle Conroy out of a jam. Unfortunately, he finds himself in a

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dangerous predicament of his own, making things far more complicated.

At its core, Stone Cold is a story of revenge. While all the Camel Club books have a theme of seeking justice, the events that unfold in Stone Cold are even more personal and require a large measure of personal sacrifice in order to exact revenge - no matter how well deserved that revenge is. Through it all, you will laugh, gasp and maybe even cry.

I was turned on to the Camel Club two years ago by an advance reading copy of Divine Justice, the fourth book in the series. I hadn't planned to reread it, but it has taken me so long to get back to the series that I don't remember what happens. The books of the Camel Club series flow one into the next making it difficult to stop yourself from picking up the next one.

The next installment of the Camel Club series, Hell's Corner, is due for publication on November 9, 2010. I can't wait to read what happens next!

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Exciting Story that will keep you on the edge!

I’ve always enjoyed David Baldacci's Camel Club series and their group of peculiar characters. The books are exciting and always keep you on the edge.
In this story there are several plots and subplots going on. In one plot we find Oliver Stone, who

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went by the name of, John Carr, as a former CIA assassin, comes to grips with a terrible mistake that he made years ago. He had terminated an innocent man who was falsely identified as a traitor. While Stone uncovers the mystery behind this mistake, he finds himself entangled in the lives of the dead man's family. Once he finds out that this family is to be terminated by the same man who ordered the execution of the father years ago, he must act quickly to prevent another injustice from being performed.

There are other plots, other characters that if covered it would only spoil the book for you. Be assured, that Baldacci, brings all the plots together with nonstop action, interesting character development, and an ending that neatly ties everything together.
Highly recommend.

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I am enjoying this series of books, "Camel Club." In this, the third, there are several plot lines weaving together, both tying up the open items from the second book and introducing new lines - and characters. Enjoyable, fast-moving, a little over the top, but the author makes the unbelievable

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sound plausible when you're in his world. Looking forward to number four.

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I am enjoying this series of books, "Camel Club." In this, the third, there are several plot lines weaving together, both tying up the open items from the second book and introducing new lines - and characters. Enjoyable, fast-moving, a little over the top, but the author makes the unbelievable

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sound plausible when you're in his world. Looking forward to number four.

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