Always count on Stuart Woods to deliver a straightforward,
juicy plot, ripe with mystery, seduction and exotic locales. SHOOT
HIM IF HE RUNS provides these elements, as well as two of our
favorite heroes, Stone Barrington and Holly Barker. What mystery
lover could ask for more?

Early in every Stone Barrington novel, the reader can expect at
least one scene to be played out at Elaine’s in New York.
Stone has a very sophisticated lifestyle, which includes fine
dining, fine wines and exotic travel. It is at Elaine’s where
Stone receives a call from Holly Barker, his sometimes-lover and a
flying instructor from Florida. She informs him that they both have
been invited to a White House black-tie dinner and secret
conference with the President of the United States. The adventure
begins there.

As a prominent New York attorney several years before, Stone had
been involved in a case on the island of St. Marks. He lost to Sir
Winston Southerland --- who is now the Prime Minister of St. Marks
--- and would encounter him again, as well as come to know other
wealthy locals with interesting pasts. On this trip, Stone would
travel undercover with two old friends and Holly. His challenge is
to discover if Teddy Fay, a former CIA operative, is dead or alive
and hiding under an assumed name.

“Theodore Fay was a career employee of the CIA, joining in
his twenties and retiring at age sixty-five. He worked in Technical
Services, which is a rather bland name of the department that
supplies all sorts of things to agents going into the field:
clothing, disguises, fake passports, insurance cards, credit cards,
and other documents an agent requires to establish a legend ---
that is, a false identity --- in the field. The department also
supplies weapons --- some of them quite exotic.”

Teddy Fay supposedly died in a plane crash. After relocating to New
York, he went on a shooting spree, killing terrorists. He also is
responsible for the murders of the Speaker of the House and a
Supreme Court Justice. It is thought that he retired to St. Marks
under an assumed name. Enter Holly and Stone. Ironically, Irene
Foster, a former Deputy Director of Operations for the CIA who is
retired and recently moved to St. Marks, is in charge of the
investigation involving Teddy Fay. Perhaps a little too
coincidental?

The President of the United States, in a secret meeting with Stone,
expresses how crucial it will be for Stone and Holly to uncover the
whereabouts of Teddy Fay and his link to others in St. Marks.

Of late, St. Marks has become a worldwide center for Internet
gambling. The banking community there has reaped the rewards in the
hundreds of millions of dollars. Its political system has changed
recently, and not for the better. Currently, it is becoming more
corrupt every day, with high-level politicians cashing in on
Internet gambling.

At first blush, St. Marks is a beautiful, exotic tropical island.
Each chapter shows us that very little of what we see or the people
we meet are what they seem to be. Leave it to Stuart Woods to
supply the environment and refreshing characters to keep us turning
pages at lightning speed.