Book Review: "The Last Days" ("The Last Jihad", No. 2)

Author: Joel C. Rosenberg
Published: 2003 by Forge

Synopsis: Set just after the events in The Last Jihad, Presidential aides Jon Bennett and Erin McCoy witness the start of a Palestinian civil war after the assassination of Yasser Arafat.  With the lives of millions of people at stake, McCoy and Bennett work with the American government to try to bring about peace...but, with wanton terrorists intent on destroying the "Great Satan" US, who will stop at nothing to get what they want, it seems like the Last Days may be upon them.

My Review: This is an improvement for the series.  A bit more intensity and action; a bit less profanity.  Even though I already know how the series ends--I read the last novel some years ago--I have to say that Rosenberg's narrative has gotten me hooked nonetheless.  I have a feeling that things will get even crazier as the story goes on...

Content Concerns:

• Sex: A brief reference to "Viagra ads," and another one to "prostitutes".  4.5/5
• Nudity: None. 5/5
• Language: About six or seven profanities, all uses of the h-word or d-word. 3.75/5
• Violence: The book begins with an assassination; multiple terrorist attacks occur, with plenty of devastation and implied deaths; a suicide bomber kills himself, but not anyone else; a dead body is found in a body of water. 1.5/5
• Drugs: Smoking is referenced twice; drinking alcohol, once. 3.75/5
• Frightening/Intense Scenes: This whole series is intended to be frightening and intense, and it is. 1/5

Score: 4.75/5