I was recently going over my Amazon reviews. When I went to this book, authored by my good friend and long time collaborator Dennis Martin, I couldn’t find my review. I have the draft copy — written many years ago when the book first came out — but my actual online review seems to have disappeared. Amazon has tweaked their algorithm for rating reviewers many times over the years. Early on there was a scandal of sorts with some authors going on and writing multiple glowing reviews of their books under different names, so Amazon sent a hunter-algorithm through their reviews looking for the characteristics of bogus reviews. I tend to write only one kind of review — good ones, and I don’t waste my time on bad or negative ones. Seems that may make me suspect.
So I’m irritated that my review appears to have vanished.
WORKING WITH WARRIORS is the auto-biography of a legendary figure in martial arts, combatives, close protection and paramilitary operations — my long time friend and collaborator Dennis Martin. I’ve written about Dennis before HERE and won’t recap much of that other than to reaffirm that he is Old Skool and rarely tells tales on himself. However, here, in the best English literary tradition, he’s turned to writing tales that not only illustrate his own incredible life, but also the evolution of hard martial arts into reality based self defense via combatives, the rise of close protection as an elite profession, and the wickedly funny adventures of some very tough Englishmen (and a few Aussies and at least one Yank).
Highly recommended.