‘When you read the first few lines and know you’re in for a terrific ride!’ @GeorgiaRoseBook Reviews #thriller Jenks by @burrell_barney

Today’s team review is from Georgia. She blogs here https://www.georgiarosebooks.com

Georgia has been reading Jenks by Barney Burrell.

You know that feeling you get when you open a new book, not knowing what to expect, and you read the first few lines and know you’re in for a terrific ride? That is exactly the feeling I got when I reached the end of the first paragraph of Jenks. A smile already on my face.

Jenks is a killer for hire. He has a profile on the dark web and carries out assignments for an unknown organisation called The Department, which is so undercover it isn’t linked to any legitimate agency. This makes everything deniable.

With his home life in the gentle seaside town of Whitstable, his on-going house renovation and pastime of birdwatching, Jenks is incredibly likeable. From his turquoise eyes and sense of humour to his casual flirtation with a local waitress that he knows can’t go anywhere you know he’s a decent man and are affected when he is jolted back to the life he gave up to be the necessity he’s described as.

Jenks naturally has a special skillset that he’s extremely accomplished at and there is graphic violence in this book.

Although this type of character and the activity he undertakes is not particularly new, think James Bond, Ethan Hunt or Jason Bourne, I found this story and Jenks refreshing. The writing is very good and flowed well. There is a lot of detail about how things happened or worked but I didn’t mind that at all. I thoroughly enjoyed meeting this new hero, I hope there is a sequel on the way and I highly recommend Jenks to everyone who likes a thrilling tale.

In a nutshell.. Ruthless freelance professional assassin Jenks is hired by ultra-top secret government agency – responsible for the dirtiest of work – to kill a rogue CIA analyst and prevent a super Wikileaks-like Russian backed dissemination of catastrophic above Top Secret explosive revelations, capable of overturning the world order.

Using the most ingenious of spycraft, the chameleon like Jenks has no option but to let the crime play out until the very end. With the action taking place between Soho, London and Virginia, USA, Jenks hurtles towards the ultimate confrontation and sacrifice – his pedal to the metal race to uncover the truth will leave you gasping.

AmazonUK | AmazonUS

‘A very captivating and fun read.’ Noelle reviews action #thriller JENKS by @burrell_barney, for Rosie’s #Bookreview Team #RBRT

Today’s team review is from Noelle. She blogs here https://saylingaway.wordpress.com

Noelle has been reading Jenks by Barney Burrell

I purchased this book for review, as a member of Rosie’s Book Review Team.

If you are a fan of James Bond and Jason Bourne, you will like Jenks, a freelance professional assassin with a moral compass. The book is a fast-paced thriller, and I will admit at the outset of this review I am a sucker for such books.

Jenks (short for Graham Jenkins) was recruited early in his life for an ultra-top secret government agency (MI5 on steroids). He chose to reject the offer but returned to accept it after time spent in the armed forces. He now lives rather anonymously in a house by the sea, taking only those assignments that appeal to him as an assassin.

The plot is an old trope: someone steals explosive, high level secrets about various world governments from the CIA, with the altruistic intention of providing them to a WikiLeaks type of organization which would reveal them and overturn the world order. Jenks is hired to find not only the people stealing and delivering the information but also those buying it.  The action takes place simultaneously in London, Virginia and Washington, with the story shifting from site to site.

Jenks is, of course, ruggedly handsome with brilliant turquoise eyes (normally hidden by contact lenses, so he can blend into his background) and is ultimately competent in his profession. Nicely, the author has given him a less robotic, human side – from refurbishing his old house to flirting with a local barista. 

Yes, the book is standard high-octane and the base plot unordinary, but there the commonalities end. The author has layered in several plot lines, a lot of high tech spyware, and moles at every level. Everyone is being manipulated, even Jenks to an extent, so the reader is unsure until the end who are the actual “good guys,” if you can call them that.  A warning, though, there is some graphic violence.

The only criticism I have is that there are a couple of places in the book where the author goes into enormous technical detail, a lot of which I didn’t follow, so when I got the gist, I skipped over those sections.

High tension, technical wizardry, and the knowledge that Jenks will successfully complete his assignment (how else could it end?) made this a very captivating and fun read. I definitely look forward to another Jenks outing.

4.5 stars

In a nutshell.. Ruthless freelance professional assassin Jenks is hired by ultra-top secret government agency – responsible for the dirtiest of work – to kill a rogue CIA analyst and prevent a super Wikileaks-like Russian backed dissemination of catastrophic above Top Secret explosive revelations, capable of overturning the world order.

Using the most ingenious of spycraft, the chameleon like Jenks has no option but to let the crime play out until the very end. With the action taking place between Soho, London and Virginia, USA, Jenks hurtles towards the ultimate confrontation and sacrifice – his pedal to the metal race to uncover the truth will leave you gasping.

AmazonUK | AmazonUS

Rosie’s #BookReview Team #RBRT DARK FRAGMENTS by @RSinclairAuthor #Thriller #TuesdayBookBlog

Today’s team review is from Georgia, she blogs here http://www.georgiarosebooks.com

Georgia has ben reading Dark Fragments by Rob Sinclair

 

There are likeable and unlikeable characters in fiction and Ben Stephens is one of the latter, although it wasn’t always that way for me. At the beginning of his story we meet a family man who dotes on his children and loves his wife.

Quite rightly Ben is still grieving the death of his first wife, Alice, the love of his life, who, now being dead, is lifted up to the level of sainthood which must be difficult for the second wife, Gemma, with whom he was having an affair while Alice was alive. And it is here that the first of the cracks starts to appear.

When Dani, Ben’s estranged twin sister who is a detective and was Alice’s best friend turns up out of the blue and starts asking questions the strain deepens. Ben works for Gemma’s father which is another source of pressure and he has also become involved with a local gangster in some dubious business venture and now owes him a lot of money.

The initial sympathy I had for Ben didn’t last long as he began to show his true colours. He makes some terrible decisions and it soon becomes apparent that he does whatever suits him, no matter what the cost to others.

Throughout the story there are chapters where Ben is talking to someone else and these conversations clearly show his lack of taking responsibility for his own actions, blaming everything and everyone around him for the situation he finds himself in.

This is a fast moving and suitably violent thriller which I highly recommend.

I received a free copy of this book from the author but this has not influenced my review one iota.

Book Description

Dark Fragments: an edge of your seat thriller from the best-selling author of The Enemy Series

Murder. Money. Revenge.

Outwardly, Ben Stephens appears to be a normal, hard-working family man. In reality, his life has been in turmoil since the murder of his wife, Alice, seven years ago. The killer was never caught.

Now re-married – to the woman he was having an affair with while still married to Alice – Ben’s life is once again spiralling out of control, and he’s become heavily indebted to an unscrupulous criminal who is baying for Ben’s blood.

When Ben’s estranged twin sister, a police detective, unexpectedly returns to his life, asking too many questions for comfort, it becomes clear that without action, Ben’s life will soon reach a crisis point from which there will be no return.

In order to avoid falling further into the mire, Ben must examine the past if he is to survive the present – but just how much pressure can one man take before he breaks?

Dark Fragments is a fast-paced thriller with a blend of mystery, suspense and action that will appeal to readers of psychological thrillers, as well as a broad section of crime, thriller and action fans. If you like authors like Mark Edwards, Robert Bryndza and C.L. Taylor you will love this unforgettable thriller.

About the author

Rob is the author of the critically acclaimed and bestselling Enemy series of espionage thrillers featuring embattled agent Carl Logan.

His explosive debut, Dance with the Enemy, was published in 2014 and introduced the world to the enigmatic Carl Logan. The second novel in the series, Rise of the Enemy, was released in April 2015 with the third, Hunt for the Enemy, released in February 2016. 

His latest thriller, the pulsating Dark Fragments, was released by Bloodhound Books in November 2016.

Rob began writing in 2009 following a promise to his wife, an avid reader, that he could pen a ‘can’t put down’ thriller. He worked for nearly 13 years for a global accounting firm after graduating from The University of Nottingham in 2002, specialising in forensic fraud investigations at both national and international levels. Rob now writes full time.

Originally from the North East of England, Rob has lived and worked in a number of fast paced cities, including New York, and is now settled in the West Midlands with his wife and young sons.

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Rosie’s #Bookreview team #RBRT SMOKESCREEN by @KhaledTalib action #Thriller

Today’s team review is from Terry, she blogs at http://terrytylerbookreviews.blogspot.co.uk/

Terry has been reading Smokescreen by Khaled Talib

Smokescreen by Khaled Talib

4 out of 5 stars

Reviewed by me as a member of Rosie Amber’s Review Team

Smokescreen is a fast moving, all action, international thriller about an assassination conspiracy, involving movers and shakers at the highest levels—think ’24’, James Bond, The Bourne trilogy, etc.

Magazine journalist and superficial Singapore socialite Jethro Westropp (Jet West) is to be set up as ‘the next Lee Harvey Oswald’ – only he knows nothing about it, and has no hint that anything is wrong until he meets up with the beautiful and ill-fated Niki. ‘He finds himself at the centre of a political plot so diabolical and sweeping in its world implications that he is stunned to discover tomorrow’s news headlines today’: that comes from the blurb, one of the lines that made me want to read the book!

It’s well written and I can tell it’s well researched; Talib obviously understands the dark side of politics in the international arena. The characters are brilliantly over the top stereotypes—that’s not a criticism as I think these sort of books and films rely on certain characters. Jet is perfect as the amusing and unsuspecting hero, but I enjoyed the dialogue between the older spies, agents and ne’er-do-wells best; X and the unscrupulous Chan and Yung, for instance. There are some good, witty lines!

There’s a case for saying that these sort of stories work better in films than in books, but this is very convincing, it’s a jolly good plot and I think anyone who loves this sort of books will thoroughly enjoy it. There’s certainly never a dull moment.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

Operation Unity by Phill Syron-Jones

Operation Unity is an action thriller and the second book in the John Steel series that I’ve read. There is an opening scene where our hero is trying to stop a timer and he needs a code, others around him call him Mr Black.

The book then jumps back fourteen days earlier. John Steel has previously been working with the NYPD Homicide department. He’s now working on a new lead and books himself on a new cruise liner leaving the English coastline on it’s way to New York via Spain. He’s using an alternative alias, Antony Black. So who is this guy? Imagine a mix of James Bond and Mission Impossible and you’d be pretty close.

Back in New York’s homicide department Detective Sam McCall is dealing with multiple murders and dead ends of clues. Where’s Steel when you need him? Swanning around on a cruise. Except he’s not, he’s got a nose for trouble and when The Neptune docks in Spain, trouble finds Steel in a BIG way. But even this pales to insignificance when the cruise heads off to New York and Steel uncovers a huge arms deal about to go down and just who is behind “Operation Unity?”

This is a good action thriller, quite a few characters, but not too many that your head is left reeling. The action scenes are believable and not filled with too much technology. Steel is the ultimate mystery man and one to make the ladies swoon.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

Rosie’s Book Review Challenge – Georgia reviews Business As Usual by E.L. Lindley

Today’s Book Challenge review is from Georgia. She blogs at http://www.georgiarosebooks.com

Georgia chose to read and review “Business As Usual” by E.L. Lindley.

Business As Usual – E.L. Lindley

Here is her review.

I would like to thank E.L.Lindley for gifting me a copy of Business As Usual which I have greatly enjoyed reading. Very well written and fast paced we meet Georgie Connelly who is rather embarrassingly, and reluctantly, undertaking community service after a misunderstanding. She is a documentary film maker which I thought was an original and interesting angle lending itself easily to the possibility of further stories. Georgie is short tempered and difficult but I immediately liked her. Beneath the prickly exterior is a warm hearted soul willing to go the extra mile to help the people she meets. She finds many, particularly social, situations awkward which made me feel empathy for her and Lindley portrays this rather flawed character, as well as all the others, skilfully and consistently throughout the book.

Georgie is already in trouble due to a previous documentary she has made about a white supremacist and despite her friends, Eric and Callie, arranging for an old friend, James Finn, to help protect her, this threat comes swiftly to a violent conclusion.

Georgie is meanwhile setting up her next project with a Russian gangster who is the head of a seedy underworld of drugs, prostitution and people trafficking, Maxim Petrov. Wanting to be portrayed as a successful and legitimate businessman Petrov is charming and personable but as Georgie works to expose him she realises too late the dangerous position she has put herself and those around her in.

Throughout the story James Finn struggles to look after Georgie and she gives him a hard time but there is an attraction growing between them which I couldn’t help hoping would develop but I’ll stop there not wanting to give anything away. The ending was perfect. This story was satisfactorily concluded, but plenty of scope was left for further stories to follow.

I will definitely be reading more by this talented and entertaining author and I highly recommend Business As Usual to all readers who like strong characters and fast paced action thrillers.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com