Amazon JD Tynan Category:  Action/Thriller Publisher: A Better Be Write Publisher ISBN-10:  0977197158 Type: Fiction Pages: 248 Copyright: April 15, 2007 What’s the worst that could happen? Charlie gets a job with Hollywood’s top hunk; caring for his blatantly pretentious twelve-year-old daughter, Annabelle. A summer to be spent in Africa with bugs the size of her fist, dirt, and bad guys with guns. Who knew that airplanes actually do get hijacked and Charlie does scream like a girl and tends to pass out--a lot! Welcome to Charlie and Annabelle’s adventure abroad. To add to the excitement, there’s a hunky super-spy with a tendency to attract trouble, a lot of girl talk and plenty of non-stop action. It’s unlike any summer vacation you’ve ever had. When we finally landed in Nairobi, Kenya, we learned that we had to wait a couple of hours to take a small commuter flight to the landing strip just south of where they were filming yet another version of King Solomon’s Mines. I think that Hollywood has completely overdone the whole legend of Alan Quartermain and furthermore, I just can’t see Roald Munson playing the same character that Sean Connery once played, or for that matter Richard Chamberlain. It just didn’t fit; but I’m obviously not a famous movie producer, so what do I know? Now, Hugh Grant would make a great Alan Quartermain. Hell, he’d make a great Mr. Ford. I’d marry him and have his babies any day of the week. Okay, I digress. I was just trying to keep my mind off the flies and the scary guys with guns and the fact that my underwear is permanently stuck up my butt crack, thanks to the sweltering heat and humidity. We held up in a small airport terminal until our guide came to take us to the plane. It would have been nice if Roald had come to meet his daughter at the airport in a strange country. Especially since men with semi-automatics were walking around the terminal looking like something out of Commando. It was unnerving to me and I’m an adult--an adult with Army training no less. I can’t imagine what Bella was thinking. She hadn’t let go of my hand since we landed. Perhaps she does love me after all. I stopped for a couple of Cokes and batted my hand in front of my face to keep the flies away. I think I prefer civilization to the great big outdoors. This was not my idea of a dream vacation. A dream vacation for me would be a couple of weeks in St. Martin with a Swede, named Sven, who had hands that never quit. I really couldn’t believe that I was thinking about sexy Swedes at a time like that. I was just delusional that’s all. I blamed it all on the heat of course. Before getting out to the small plane that would take us to Kisumu, we were both patted down by said men with guns and I thought for sure Bella was going to cry. It was scary to have normal men pat my butt and thrust their hands into my crotch, but these guys seemed to be enjoying it a little too much. The first white man that I have seen all day yelled something that sounded like hurry up, and we ran over to the decrepit plane. I stopped dead in my tracks and looked up. “Uh uh,” I muttered as I looked at the ancient piece of hardware that was supposedly going to take me over the mountains. “No freaking way,” I said to the white male, who didn’t look too impressed with me. Bella grabbed my hand and begged me to come, but the rubber on my shoes seemed to have congealed with the hot tar of the asphalt. I was frozen and I had a bad feeling about this. Another white male quickly shuffled me up the stairs. I was in hell. The seats were too close together and the leather was ripped and torn. I took a seat next to Bella and remained silent while the rest of the passengers boarded. Overall, I counted ten passengers and two pilots. There were no flight attendants to pass out peanuts and Bloody Marys and no pillows or blankets. Bella and I were the only two female passengers. That was a bit unsettling, but then again, what woman in her right mind would come to such a place? Don’t get me wrong, I did learn to deal with dirt and grime in the Army, but I still didn’t like it. No one has to like dirt, do they? Bella squirmed beside me, so I took her hand in mine and patted her knee for good measure. “We’ll be there soon. I’m sure of it.” I hope. I clenched my jaw and listened to the other passengers mumbling about nothing and then we were air bound. Bella put her earphones to her ears, closed her eyes and laid her head on my shoulder. I kept my eyes toward the front and did what I always do. I mentally flew the plane from coach. After finishing my Snickers bar and half my bottle of Evian, I grabbed the crossword from my bag and had just clutched my pen in my fingers when all hell broke loose. When I said there were ten passengers on board, I was mistaken. There were seven passengers and three hijackers. Holy-shit!

Lillian Brummet
Rating: 4.5 stars (out of 5)

Charlie Ford Meets Secret Agent Man ~ Book Review

Charlie (Charlene) Ford is a young woman who cannot let go of her past and is terrified to reveal her life to her family – yet Charlie is one of the most courageous young women readers will have the pleasure of meeting. She is a true modern woman with emotional baggage, stiff language and enough determination to sign on for 8 years in the Special Forces unit Sector 72G and take on a Masters Degree in Criminal Justice. Charlie is gainfully employed as a nanny, which funds the strategic goals she has in place. Most of the time, being a nanny is a fine choice of employment, however Charlie’s endured too many judgmental parents and is starting to feel less than thrilled about her work. Thankfully, this is the last nanny job she will have to take - if all goes as planned, at least.

Bella (Annabelle) is the teenage daughter of two very famous Hollywood personas and the granddaughter of a highly politically connected man who has upset some very powerful people. Bella struggles to find balance between the disgust and love she harbors for her mother, while secretly hoping her parents can reunite, and is starving for her father’s attention. Her anger and teenage assumptions keeps a wall between herself and others. When Charlie arrives, Bella is less than pleased.

Ironically, Bella’s father is a famous actor and has taken on a new film assignment that will be shot in Africa – the very country Charlie had hoped to never see again. On route to the filming location, unidentified hijackers take over the tiny decrepit plane and begin eliminating a few of the passengers. The unexpected rescuer, Duane, is not what he appears to be and he is not thrilled that he was forced to divert from his assignment due to the hijacking. Charlie cannot trust this man, but since she depends on him for their safety at the moment, she tries to make the best of a difficult situation.

Accidents, errors, death, several kidnapping and hijacking scenes and the rescue of yet another mysterious man make this high-paced thriller hard to put down. I could have sat and read all day – in fact, I nearly did. Author JD Tynan has created a solid story line with humorous undertones in her recent novel Charlie Ford Meets Secret Agent Man. The sexual tension between Duane (or whatever his name is) and Charlie was well done and will have romance enthusiasts enthralled. I particularly enjoyed Charlie’s character development scenes where she discovers herself and finds peace in her inner world and I found myself envying the bond between Charlie and Bella.


Reader Views
Thanks to author J.D. Tynan, I was actually able to enjoy a flight across the United States because I had this book in my hands. By the way, this flight was full of traveling junior high school kids... and I don't like kids.

Anyway, from the first page Tynan had me hooked. It is important to note that Charlie Ford is a woman. She is a pretty tough woman. The story begins with Charlie being fired from another nanny position. She seems to have a problem with spoiled rich kids getting the best of her. Unwilling to give up she takes another nanny position for a twelve-year-old girl who is the daughter of a movie star dad. The daughter initially seems like every other spoiled brat, but Charlie senses that she has some protective barriers up and starts to see past the facade. She and Charlie end up going to Africa to be with her dad while he completes filming a movie. Along the way, their plane is hijacked. Charlie and Annabelle manage to escape into the jungle with the help of a mysterious man.

Charlie spent eight years in an elite military unit. She learns that she must use her survival skills, military training, and her excellent physical condition to survive. In dealing with Annabelle she also comes to terms with relationships that she has with her family members. This ordeal brings out the worst of her issues. But it is these issues that help her relate so well to Annabelle. She has to deal with not feeling like she is good enough and how to relate to her family, especially her father.

The girls are not sure if they can trust this man or not. He aids them, but he also leaves them to fend for themselves. At one point on their adventure, Charlie ends up helping him out. For now he is nameless, because he keeps giving her different names. Charlie also finds herself attracted to him. This adds to the suspense.

I really loved, "Charlie Ford Meets Secret Agent Man," because of all of the aspects incorporated into the story. It has everything, adventure, romance, suspense and a great deal of laugh-out-loud humor. That might be why the kids left me alone on the plane.

Anyway, “Charlie Ford Meets Secret Agent Man” tops the list of great books that I have read. I cannot recommend this book enough. It would be a perfect selection for a woman's readers group.