Scan barcode
rellimreads's review against another edition
5.0
3/5/2021 - I have been wanting to sink into another suspense/thriller series that already had a hefty number of published books. (I’ve started several and am waiting for new releases!) So, I took to twitter and asked the awesome folks at Best Thriller Books what they would recommend. While I now have a huge Thriller TBR/L – I immediately jumped on the Victor the Assassin series by Tom Wood to start because it’s narrated by Rob Shapiro.
Through multiple points of view Wood introduces a somewhat likeable antihero in Victor, a variety of CIA directors and agents with questionable motives, potential allies, definite adversaries, and shifting allegiances. I was kept constantly guessing and completely engaged. Also a little angry – I wasn’t always happy about who lived and who didn’t, but that’s generally the case with a good thriller, so it’s a compliment.
At 15 hours, this is a LOT of book and super heavy on the details. I enjoyed Wood’s thoroughness though found myself a little creeped out by it. I’m now going to be paranoid that every ignorably normal person near me is a hit man. I’m also feeling confident I could add retro safe cracker to my resume as well. It was fascinating and helped bring a level of believability to Victor’s life and world.
*Dear squiggly red line – I know “ignorably” isn’t a word. I don’t care. I’m using it.
Anyway – Not only is this a full and complete story, it actually felt like an entire season’s worth of TV given the number of missions and encounters weaved together. I’m glad I added this to my personal library as it’s the type of audiobook I could listen to multiple times. Wood left things somewhat open-ended by teasing a whole new world of possibilities for Victor and I’m looking forward to more. Next up in the series is a novella, Bad Luck in Berlin (#1.5) and then back to audiobook for The Enemy.
As I expected, Rob Shapiro was fantastic. Wood has created a HUGE number of characters and I felt Shapiro did a wonderful job of giving them unique voices and amplifying their personalities. I appreciate his ability to use accents when necessary and pronounce locations with ease as the characters traveled to a variety of countries.
2/25/2021 - The audios are narrated by Rob Shapiro! This just moved up my TBL.
Through multiple points of view Wood introduces a somewhat likeable antihero in Victor, a variety of CIA directors and agents with questionable motives, potential allies, definite adversaries, and shifting allegiances. I was kept constantly guessing and completely engaged. Also a little angry – I wasn’t always happy about who lived and who didn’t, but that’s generally the case with a good thriller, so it’s a compliment.
At 15 hours, this is a LOT of book and super heavy on the details. I enjoyed Wood’s thoroughness though found myself a little creeped out by it. I’m now going to be paranoid that every ignorably normal person near me is a hit man. I’m also feeling confident I could add retro safe cracker to my resume as well. It was fascinating and helped bring a level of believability to Victor’s life and world.
*Dear squiggly red line – I know “ignorably” isn’t a word. I don’t care. I’m using it.
Anyway – Not only is this a full and complete story, it actually felt like an entire season’s worth of TV given the number of missions and encounters weaved together. I’m glad I added this to my personal library as it’s the type of audiobook I could listen to multiple times. Wood left things somewhat open-ended by teasing a whole new world of possibilities for Victor and I’m looking forward to more. Next up in the series is a novella, Bad Luck in Berlin (#1.5) and then back to audiobook for The Enemy.
As I expected, Rob Shapiro was fantastic. Wood has created a HUGE number of characters and I felt Shapiro did a wonderful job of giving them unique voices and amplifying their personalities. I appreciate his ability to use accents when necessary and pronounce locations with ease as the characters traveled to a variety of countries.
2/25/2021 - The audios are narrated by Rob Shapiro! This just moved up my TBL.
innocenthedgehog's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
lhart2222's review against another edition
4.0
Good throughout but lacking in places, The Hunter by Tom Wood was a very readable and enjoyable assassin book. Similar to Jack Reacher, we follow Victor the assassin through his mission to exact revenge. If you’re familiar with this genre already then this book will be extremely well suited to you. If not, don’t worry. Still a good read with an engaging story with plenty going on.
Story-wise it was not reinventing the wheel. A classic revenge story as old as time, it did exactly what it said on the tin. Consistent throughout, it didn’t try too hard to be something it wasn’t, which helped this book flourish massively.
The characters in this book all had a place, with our main protagonist, and a bunch of surrounding characters to help tell his story. In the beginning, it is a little hard to keep track of who is who, but once you’re invested it’s easy.
Where I felt this book could have improved would have been by making certain moments a little more meaningful. At times, especially the bigger event, it felt a bit flat. Creating a reason to care creates more of a reaction from the reader when a big shock does happen. This book missed that.
Overall a simple and well-executed book that was enjoyable to read and not too complicated. Not perfect with improvements to be made, it has done enough to make me want to read the next in the series.
Story-wise it was not reinventing the wheel. A classic revenge story as old as time, it did exactly what it said on the tin. Consistent throughout, it didn’t try too hard to be something it wasn’t, which helped this book flourish massively.
The characters in this book all had a place, with our main protagonist, and a bunch of surrounding characters to help tell his story. In the beginning, it is a little hard to keep track of who is who, but once you’re invested it’s easy.
Where I felt this book could have improved would have been by making certain moments a little more meaningful. At times, especially the bigger event, it felt a bit flat. Creating a reason to care creates more of a reaction from the reader when a big shock does happen. This book missed that.
Overall a simple and well-executed book that was enjoyable to read and not too complicated. Not perfect with improvements to be made, it has done enough to make me want to read the next in the series.
rvdk's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
jillyrabb101's review against another edition
3.0
Good
A pleasant book to read. Slow to start but once hooked, was difficult to put down. I'm a sucker for the friendships and relationships made in stories so it tugged on my heartstrings when this one didn't go as I hoped. On to the next!
A pleasant book to read. Slow to start but once hooked, was difficult to put down. I'm a sucker for the friendships and relationships made in stories so it tugged on my heartstrings when this one didn't go as I hoped. On to the next!
wisepippin's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
jacki_f's review against another edition
4.0
If you like fast paced thrillers that offer non-stop action, this one is for you. It takes off from the very first page and barely lets up until the end. There is negligible character development, the array of exotic backdrops all seem fairly interchangeable and the plot itself contains several well worn cliches. Nevertheless the rapid pace allows you to disregard a lot of these flaws. The book's first quarter is one of the best I've read in this genre, and while it falls away slightly after that (by the ending it's all getting a bit too silly), it remains a very good thriller, reminiscent of the Bourne movies.
The "hero" is Victor, an assassin for hire. Usually in books, assassins have some kind of moral code where they'll only kill truly bad guys, but Victor will pretty much top whoever you ask him too. He's a guarded loner, but after a realising that he is himself the target of a former employer who wants to clean up all evidence of a job gone messy, Victor is forced to partner up with another individual in a bid to turn the tables on his shadowy employer. While I'm not sure that they "run for life across four continents" as the description above suggests (I counted only two continents), they will be led all over Europe in their efforts to evade their pursuers and get to the bottom of what's going on. And just when you think you know exactly how it's all going to pan out, there's a dramatic swerve that I didn't see coming. The ending sets itself up nicely for the sequel: The Enemy.
The "hero" is Victor, an assassin for hire. Usually in books, assassins have some kind of moral code where they'll only kill truly bad guys, but Victor will pretty much top whoever you ask him too. He's a guarded loner, but after a realising that he is himself the target of a former employer who wants to clean up all evidence of a job gone messy, Victor is forced to partner up with another individual in a bid to turn the tables on his shadowy employer. While I'm not sure that they "run for life across four continents" as the description above suggests (I counted only two continents), they will be led all over Europe in their efforts to evade their pursuers and get to the bottom of what's going on. And just when you think you know exactly how it's all going to pan out, there's a dramatic swerve that I didn't see coming. The ending sets itself up nicely for the sequel: The Enemy.
the_dubious_muse's review against another edition
5.0
Top notch action thriller with well written action sequences and compelling storyline. The author succeeded in keeping my attention without straining credibility. Highly recommend!
katemoxie's review against another edition
1.0
Very violent story -- unnecessarily so. While the spy/counter spy etc. plot was interesting, it could have been better developed with far less emphasis on killing. Will avoid this author in the future.