Paid in Blood (NCIS Series #1)

A great, suspenseful book - A must read

I've read several of Mel Odom's books recently and I must say, they're getting better each time. Paid In Blood initially revolves around the death of Chief Petty Officer Helen Swafford, who was found murdered and whose demise eventually opens up a 'can of worms'. As the main character, Commander Will Coburn, investigates the death of the officer he discovers clues that make him realize there's more to the murder than meets the eye. The murder leads Will and his team (Maggie Foley, Estrella Montoya, Frank Billings Shel McHenry and Nita Tomlinson) on an investigation that has ties in the Middle East, Russia, Colombia and South Korea. I won't spoil the book by giving too many details about the plot and content, but I can say that Mel Odom leaves you wanting more at the end of each chapter. Mel skillfully makes the characters in the story 'human', allowing us to get into their personal lives, present struggles and into their pasts. While there are human casualties and losses throughout the book, he also introduces new characters at various points throughout the story, adding to the plot and keeping your interest in check. What I found most interesting is how Mel mixes his indepth knowledge of forensics with criminal invertigation, then frequently ties in a jolt of action and suspense, making this a great read. I'm glad to see that this is book 1 and am hoping that book 2 comes out sooner rather than later. I'd recommend this book to anyone who enjoys action, suspense, forensics, investigation, military-based thrillers or 'CSI-ish' types of storylines. What more could you want? -BW

4 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

a reviewer

Though somewhat immune to murder having been a Naval Criminal Investigative Services Agent for a few years, in Wilmington, North Carolina Commander Will Coburn sadly looks at the corpse of NCIS Chief Petty Officer Helen Swafford, who was on her own unauthorized hook when her throat was slashed. As he wonders what she was involved in, Will and his team (Maggie Foley, Shel McHenry, Estrella Montoya, Dr. Nita Tomlinson, and Frank Billings ) begins tracking clues involving the illegal trafficking of military weapons being sold to rogue states and terrorist groups. Their efforts lead them to Chainae, Republic of Korea where they spy on a suspected weapons dealer.----- However, to their shock and chagrin, hooligans working for a drug dealer abduct their prime suspect. When they finally catch up to the kidnappers and their victim, the NCIS team find corpses only, as if someone knows what they are doing and wiped out the evidence. The Navy takes control of the body of their prime suspect, only to have it snatched from them leaving behind a dead NCIS agent. With no time to mend fences at home though each, except perhaps Frank, face personal crisis, the unit finds clues in South Korea, Colombia, Russia, and the Middle East, but how drug dealers and weapons sellers converge as their commodity markets are so different remains just out of reach.--------- Though the investigation turns over the top with global repercussions, Mel Odom¿s fine NCIS thriller is an exciting tale starring real people as the Navy investigators. Each of the team members has issues back home with family members or with themselves as they struggle with personal demons while battling an insidious unknown enemy who may be connecting two major illegal commodity selling groups into a super power. Fans will enjoy observing the dedicated team members follow the clues in North Carolina and overseas trying to save the big world while their little world teeters on the brink of implosion.------------ Harriet Klausner

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Great story

A great book. Highly recommend!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Great book

This was a great book! I enjoyed getting to know a little bit about each team member throughout the book and can't wait to read more of the series. I highly recommend reading this book.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Very, very good. Fast moving and interesting.

Highly recommended.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

I was amazed

I got this and the second one for my birthday last year from a friend. I am addicted to the television series NCIS and when I read the summary, I wasn't sure. Different characters, locations, etc. But I started reading it and I couldn't stop. I loved the book. The plot twists, the suspense, all of it. After finishing the first two, I just had to look for the third. Now I am waiting to see if there will be another.

I totatlly recommend this series to anyone, especially if you follow NCIS on TV.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Mel Odom Paid in Blood

This is one of the best books I have read in a while. I wanted to read the book, because I already love the TV show NCIS and wanted to learn more about it. I love the chacters and the action. I am only 13 years old and I was highly pleaed to find no cussing or sex. It also did not have hugely chalenging vocabulary. I loved Odom's style of writing, and the page-turning suspense. I would deffinatley recomend this book to a friend.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Don't buy this book

If you know anything about NCIS, you'll be disappointed. The book definitely lacked research on the Navy and NCIS. I didn't even finish the book. The author spends too much time adding extra explainations that are completely redundant. He basically stops the story to explain, picks it back up, then stops again to expain...and so forth. So, don't buy this book.

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Great Book

This is the first Mel Odom book I have read and I found it to be a really great read. The Character development is great and Mel gives you just a little bit everyonce in awhile as the story goes along instead of trying to shove it down your throat all at once. The overall story of the NCIS team trying to find out the murderer of another Naval member is greatly written and very easy to follow. It is interesting to read about some of the ways the criminal has tried to cover their tracks. Great Detail on the forensic part of the story.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Is it any good

Is it good i want to know if it is worth buying

The NCIS part is good, only wish they had left out the strong Christian angle

I was really looking forward to reading this serious because I am such a huge fan of the TV Shows. And the NCIS parts were great. But what bothered me was the blending of a good crime solving novel with that of a Christian Fiction novel. Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against Christian Fiction. I actually own quote a lot and as a Christian I appreciate them. I just felt that the combining of the genres seemed off, it took away from the NCIS theme and actually came off as pretty preachy. I could easy see how someone would be turned off by the book, thinking that they were picking up a crime drama and instead finding something that was very different. I wish the author had chosen a different approach, which still could have included a Christian message without beating the reader over the head with it. I think many non-Christian NCIS fans would have appreciated that too. I know I would love to read a more main stream NCIS series.

Spell-binding Action

Wow. I felt like I was on an unending roller coaster ride. I almost could not catch my breath. Air was coming in gulps. On occasion, I even talked to the book or screamed out loud (especially when a negative incident occurred with one or two of the NCIS special agents). Great Read! It was so intense, not sure if I can read the next installment. I am a big TV-NCIS fan, so this book did not disappoint. The inspirational tones were very subdued, so it is a book that can be enjoyed by any adult.

Good read

Good reading. All of the NCIS series are well written and a good read for all.

Page Turner

I am a huge fan of the NCIS tv series, so I am not surprised that I enjoyed this book. This is a well written, fast paced book that kept me up nights wanting to read more. I can't wait to read the next in the series.

Great story, for a good read.

I enjoy NCIS on tv, so was drawn to this bood right away, it will keep your interest.

a GREAT page Turner!

NCIS ¿ Paid in Blood, where to start? First off the spine of the book says `Novel one¿ which indicates that there are more coming in this series, so rather than repeat a lot of plot elements that are better written by the author, lets look at that aspect. I read an average of 4 ¿ 6 books a month, split between fiction and non fiction, balanced between SCI-FI, Finance and Spirituality. That being said I¿ve delved into my share of series books. If this is indeed the 1st book in a new series, as it appears to be, I have to say that Mel has done something that seems VERY difficult in writing. He¿s made a 1st book very easy to get involved with. Typically many series books start off using the first volume to fill in the entire back story on every primary character being utilized. Although I do agree that knowing the characters past helps you become involved in their present and care about their future, there have been some very good Volume One¿s that have been VERY hard to get through, due to all the back story. Whether it¿s LEFT BEHIND, INTERVIEW WITH A VAMPIRE or LORD OF THE RINGS, the stories themselves are great the books are good, but the depth at which most authors seem to subject their readers to detail of history is overwhelming! Not Mel, he drops you SMACK DAB in the middle of it! There is action and intrigue from page one! Now this is not to say that the characters history is ignored, instead it¿s fed to you a little bit at a time, in just enough volume to make it palatable and yet still keep it relevant to the story at hand. Mr. Odom should also be applauded at the amount of precise detailed military information that he relates to each character and their story. Not since Tom Clancy in the early 80¿s have I read a novel with as much accurate detail in relation to the story and the tools being used. More over this isn¿t simply a recitation of facts and figures in relation to bullet grains and wind velocity, this information is made integral to the movement of the plotline. But most importantly I think that any prospective reader should know up front that Mel has brought us back to a method of story telling that seems buried in the past, but that made so MANY books great! His chapters are short, legible and leave you at a cliff hanger at the end of every one! Whether you like Dan Browns Da Vinci Code or not, I believe that the thing that has made it such a HUGE success is that he brought reading back to the average person! The average chapter in Da Vinci was about 4 pages, and it always left you wanting more! NCIS does the exact same thing! The chapters are more than 4 pages, but within each he moves along several different characters, each being left in a situation where you the reader are holding your breath! I¿m not quite old enough to remember the Tom Mix movie serials of the 50¿s but I absolutely understand the concept! Leave your fans for more! Even the END of the book leaves the reader going `Hey wait! What happens NEXT?¿ I first read Mel Odom in his `sideline¿ to the Left Behind Series ¿Left Behind-Military¿, and although I am avidly awaiting the continuation of that series, I personally feel that the writing, story, plot and character development in NCIS far outweighs that of the other series. Perhaps it has to do with the investment he as an author makes in characters and a universe of his own creation. Whatever the reason, I for one hope that this does become a series and will be looking out for the next volume. Also a search through this bookstore shows that he has done an awful lot of work with other characters and universes that I¿m a fan of. So if, like me, you buy and enjoy this book, I¿d strongly recommend you see what else he has on tap.

Not the US Navy

I was unable to get much into this book, due to the absurdity of the data presented in chapter one. The team leader is a USN Commander (O-5) who has 12 years sea experience, and spent 6 of those years as the captain of an aircraft carrier. Sorry, this doesn't rise to the level of frivolity. No USN CV is ever commanded by less than an O-6 (Navy Captain), and no USN CV has had one officer remain in command of it for 6 years within my lifetime.

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