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In a sense the opening chapter of THE COBRA is a kind of spoiler. The character who gives his name to the book makes it clear that the only way to end trafficking in cocaine is to prevent the Colombian drug cartels from delivering their product to the USA or Europe. However, a moment's thought will demonstrate that in the real world the cartels have not gone away and that the trafficking continues. Somehow or other, therefore, Forsyth has to write an action-filled story about war on the cartels, after which he has to provide a reason for the eventual failure to eliminate them. Whilst he manages to provide a reason of sorts, the action itself is less than gripping and does not even begin until late on in the book. The reason for this initial lack of action lies in the complex and time-consuming preparations that the Cobra needs to make. As each step is described, it becomes possible to anticipate what the intended military strategy. Thus, the author tends to give the game away. When eventually the real action does begin it is very disappointing, the same successful tactics being described on a number of occasions. Perhaps the main criticism of the book, however, is that the people in it are so uninteresting. Forsyth feels it necessary to provide a dramatis personae, without which it would have been difficult to remember who was who. We are told that the Cobra himself is an intellectual giant, brilliant linguist and Islamic scholar – the last a little unusual in somebody who is also a devout Roman Catholic. However, the author merely tells us about these attributes and fails actually to demonstrate them. When the Cobra actually speaks he seems pompous and self-important and in general, the book suffers from an overall weakness in dialogue. What is convincing is the description of the way in which cocaine is produced from the initial harvesting of the many small crops to its eventual dispatch, either by air or sea. However, whilst we do need to know how the cartel operates, the level of detail given simply isn't necessary. It is not the first time that this author has been guilty of including too much of his research into what is supposed to be a thriller. A reader coming to Forsyth for the first time will probably find something to interest them but for those familiar with his work the formula has become a little tired. § Arnold Taylor is a retired Examinations Board Officer, amateur writer and even more amateur bridge player.
Reviewed by Arnold Taylor, July 2011
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