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3.89 AVERAGE
3.89 AVERAGE
adventurous
medium-paced
It's a bunch of macho claptrap with name brands and instant kills. He had all kinds of help, from a rich guy who gave him whatever he wanted to a woman who was a private plane pilot to even some guy on the inside for some Intel. All he had to do was pull the trigger. The author missed nothing in setting up all kinds of trite situations, like having his Alzheimer's mom suddenly getting lucid and saying to get them. Ridiculous.
This book was a fun read and suspiciously good for something supposedly written by a guy who had an interesting career as a SEAL before doing any writing. Similarly ghostwriter-ish of him is his annual release schedule, which isn’t unbelievably fast but is still a little suspect.
I wouldn’t call it drivel per se, it definitely has a message it’s trying to make, but it’s pretty much all classic trump era conservative takes. I’m not sure what his stance on torture is, as he describes waterboarding as something we did “when we still had the will to win” but is later rather pious about the treatment of prisoners, saying that not torturing them is part of what sets America apart. I suspect this may be the result of a disagreement between the author and writer.
The third most liked review of this book on Goodreads had me expecting a remorseless, arch-conservative tirade of a book. Unfortunately, it’s much more measured than that. I was expecting something truly out of pocket when they referred to the book saying Black Muslims weren’t real Muslims, but it’s said by a jihadi who is about to martyr himself, so it doesn’t really read as a reflection of the views of the author so much as a reflection of the character’s hardcore fundamentalism. I did take issue with the portrayal of the leader of a mosque who funnels money to terrorist organizations as indistinguishable from a legitimately well meaning Islamic cleric, which felt like a bad faith way to indirectly point the finger at Islam as a whole.
All told, if you can put up with occasional moments full of talking points you would expect from your grandparents, I recommend.
I wouldn’t call it drivel per se, it definitely has a message it’s trying to make, but it’s pretty much all classic trump era conservative takes. I’m not sure what his stance on torture is, as he describes waterboarding as something we did “when we still had the will to win” but is later rather pious about the treatment of prisoners, saying that not torturing them is part of what sets America apart. I suspect this may be the result of a disagreement between the author and writer.
The third most liked review of this book on Goodreads had me expecting a remorseless, arch-conservative tirade of a book. Unfortunately, it’s much more measured than that. I was expecting something truly out of pocket when they referred to the book saying Black Muslims weren’t real Muslims, but it’s said by a jihadi who is about to martyr himself, so it doesn’t really read as a reflection of the views of the author so much as a reflection of the character’s hardcore fundamentalism. I did take issue with the portrayal of the leader of a mosque who funnels money to terrorist organizations as indistinguishable from a legitimately well meaning Islamic cleric, which felt like a bad faith way to indirectly point the finger at Islam as a whole.
All told, if you can put up with occasional moments full of talking points you would expect from your grandparents, I recommend.
A new addition to the spy/thriller genre with the introduction of James Reece.
Good fast paced read, a tiny bit confusing in some places but definitely full of action.
Good fast paced read, a tiny bit confusing in some places but definitely full of action.
challenging
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A good read for a government thriller, if you’re ok with plenty of right -wing propaganda snuck in. Do we really need the only black character to pop in with probably 2 pages of internal dialogue to suggest liberals are bad for his race? I can’t believe his editor allowed it. Super white-guy-centric, but…. at the end of the day, still a good military thriller.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I was very impressed by the writing. Intricate plot and lots of action. I'll never truly understand the impact of war on the human psyche.
This was a heavy read and took way longer than expected...not that war and post-war are bubble gum topics. And even as Reece exacted his revenge, I found myself wanting him to "win." A little too gory for me at times, but overall, well done.
This was a heavy read and took way longer than expected...not that war and post-war are bubble gum topics. And even as Reece exacted his revenge, I found myself wanting him to "win." A little too gory for me at times, but overall, well done.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Grief, Murder, War
Moderate: Cursing, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Drug use, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Medical content, Trafficking, Medical trauma
The only positive of this book is the chapters are short enough to enable frequent eye rolling without losing my page.
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
It's a very easy read and gets straight into the plot without needing a ton of exposé.
The main con is I wish there was a little more back story around certain side characters. Maybe the later books go into that?? The main character feels indestructible which gives little uncertainty as to what will happen in the plot.
Overall, if you are looking for a pretty surface level thriller, it's a decent read.
The main con is I wish there was a little more back story around certain side characters. Maybe the later books go into that?? The main character feels indestructible which gives little uncertainty as to what will happen in the plot.
Overall, if you are looking for a pretty surface level thriller, it's a decent read.