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Official Review: A Touch of Terror by Gary Ponzo

Posted: 18 Dec 2019, 20:18
by Mbrooks2518
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "A Touch of Terror" by Gary Ponzo.]
Book Cover
3 out of 4 stars
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When a high speed car chase on the Pacific Coast Highway leads to the discovery of a case full of enriched uranium, FBI Agents Nick Bracco and Matt McColm are brought in to investigate. Quickly discovering that there is a continuing threat from a rogue Russian agent known as The Machine, Nick calls on his cousin Tommy to use his mafia connections to try and track down The Machine and who he is working with. The chase becomes a race against the clock to stop The Machine before he sets off his nuclear bomb in California.

A Touch of Terror by Gary Ponzo is an exciting book from beginning to end. It has a fast pace that never lets up all the way to the thrilling conclusion. I was immediately drawn into the story with the gripping opening where a scared college student tries to evade the police. The plot has many twists and turns. There were even a few chapters that ended in cliffhangers that made me want to keep reading so I could find out what happened to a character. At times, I even had to stop myself from skipping ahead.

My favorite thing about this book is that some of the characters are criminals and former criminals who help with finding and stopping The Machine. I like books and TV shows that use that element as it always makes for interesting characters. It’s a great way of showing the different sides of people and that even criminals can have a line they won’t cross, which leads to them helping law enforcement.

There were, unfortunately, more than ten editing errors. I stopped counting at 16, but I was almost three quarters through the book, so in my opinion the editing was good. However, there were still too many errors, and I have to take away a star.

Overall, there was nothing I disliked about this book except for those errors, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. I can see why Gary Ponzo is an award winning author. A Touch of Terror is the sixth book in the Nick Bracco Thriller series, and I will definitely be reading the others. My final rating for this book is 3 out of 4 stars, but if the editing mistakes were fixed, I would definitely change my rating to 4 stars. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys action thrillers. There were a few bloody scenes but nothing particularly graphic, so this book would be appropriate for readers as young as 18.

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A Touch of Terror
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Re: Official Review: A Touch of Terror by Gary Ponzo

Posted: 06 Jan 2020, 00:55
by Manang Muyang
Thrillers are my comfort reads, haha. I'm sure Ponzo and I will hit it off.

Re: Official Review: A Touch of Terror by Gary Ponzo

Posted: 06 Jan 2020, 08:45
by inaramid
Sounds thrilling, indeed! Thanks for the recommendation. I do hope the errors get fixed.

Re: Official Review: A Touch of Terror by Gary Ponzo

Posted: 06 Jan 2020, 13:33
by Prisallen
I enjoy thrilling, action-packed novels, and this book seems to fit into that category. I will have to check it out. Thanks for a great review!

Re: Official Review: A Touch of Terror by Gary Ponzo

Posted: 06 Jan 2020, 15:20
by Erin Painter Baker
I don't much like thrillers, but I do like books that make good use of characters and allow people to act outside of expected norms. It sounds like the author did a great job with this story.

Re: Official Review: A Touch of Terror by Gary Ponzo

Posted: 07 Jan 2020, 01:02
by Kelyn
Although the plot sounds mildly interesting, action thrillers simply aren't one of the genres I enjoy. I'll be skipping this one. Thanks for the review!

Re: Official Review: A Touch of Terror by Gary Ponzo

Posted: 07 Jan 2020, 06:54
by Adina Lutinger
Seems like a very intriguing and well-written book. Thanks for your great review!

Re: Official Review: A Touch of Terror by Gary Ponzo

Posted: 07 Jan 2020, 14:23
by Gabriel Merêncio
This sounds like an excellent criminal thriller. The premise reminds me a bit of Terror in Resonance, so I'd definitely like to check this one out. Thanks for the review!

Re: Official Review: A Touch of Terror by Gary Ponzo

Posted: 07 Jan 2020, 14:41
by Rayasaurus
This sounds like an amazing thriller! Such a pity that there were a number of editing errors, but it seems as though the other aspects of the book more than make up for that. Thank you for the wonderful review!

Re: Official Review: A Touch of Terror by Gary Ponzo

Posted: 07 Jan 2020, 19:23
by Erin Dydek
This one sounds awesome! I wanted to review this one but saw that it was the sixth in the series and wasn’t sure if you could read it without reading the others. Seems like the author delivered a great stand-alone with this one. Thanks for the great review!

Re: Official Review: A Touch of Terror by Gary Ponzo

Posted: 08 Jan 2020, 03:58
by Mbrooks2518
Miriam Molina wrote: 06 Jan 2020, 00:55 Thrillers are my comfort reads, haha. I'm sure Ponzo and I will hit it off.
Prisallen wrote: 06 Jan 2020, 13:33 I enjoy thrilling, action-packed novels, and this book seems to fit into that category. I will have to check it out. Thanks for a great review!
esp1975 wrote: 06 Jan 2020, 15:20 I don't much like thrillers, but I do like books that make good use of characters and allow people to act outside of expected norms. It sounds like the author did a great job with this story.
Kelyn wrote: 07 Jan 2020, 01:02 Although the plot sounds mildly interesting, action thrillers simply aren't one of the genres I enjoy. I'll be skipping this one. Thanks for the review!
SomeoneInTheWorld wrote: 07 Jan 2020, 06:54 Seems like a very intriguing and well-written book. Thanks for your great review!
Tomah wrote: 07 Jan 2020, 14:23 This sounds like an excellent criminal thriller. The premise reminds me a bit of Terror in Resonance, so I'd definitely like to check this one out. Thanks for the review!
Thanks for reading and commenting!

Re: Official Review: A Touch of Terror by Gary Ponzo

Posted: 08 Jan 2020, 04:00
by Mbrooks2518
Everydayadventure15 wrote: 07 Jan 2020, 19:23 This one sounds awesome! I wanted to review this one but saw that it was the sixth in the series and wasn’t sure if you could read it without reading the others. Seems like the author delivered a great stand-alone with this one. Thanks for the great review!
He definitely did. Thanks for reading and commenting!

Re: Official Review: A Touch of Terror by Gary Ponzo

Posted: 08 Jan 2020, 04:04
by Mbrooks2518
inaramid wrote: 06 Jan 2020, 08:45 Sounds thrilling, indeed! Thanks for the recommendation. I do hope the errors get fixed.
I hope they get fixed too. Thanks for reading and commenting!

Re: Official Review: A Touch of Terror by Gary Ponzo

Posted: 08 Jan 2020, 04:05
by Mbrooks2518
Rayasaurus wrote: 07 Jan 2020, 14:41 This sounds like an amazing thriller! Such a pity that there were a number of editing errors, but it seems as though the other aspects of the book more than make up for that. Thank you for the wonderful review!
TThe rest of the book definitely makes up for the errors. Thanks for reading and commenting!

Re: Official Review: A Touch of Terror by Gary Ponzo

Posted: 09 Jan 2020, 23:14
by unamilagra
Ooh, this sounds like a really exciting story. I will have to check the book out. I hope the author gets the errors cleaned up soon. Great review!