Title: The Panther
Author: Nelson DeMille
Publication Year: 2012
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Edition: audio book and eGalley
Reader: Scott Brick (excellent)
Setting: NYC and Yemen
Source: NetGalley
Date Completed: December/2012
Rating: 4/5
Recommend: yes
I've been a long time fan of Nelson DeMille novels. Although his
suspense novels tend to be long, 600+ pages, his chapters are short.
His writing is usually peppered with witty and sarcastic comments which
make the reader chuckle, as well as anxious to turn the pages, or in
this case listen on -- his audio versions are always a treat. This one
was narrated by Scott Brick who always does a fantastic job.
His latest novel, The Panther, features John Corey, an
agent for the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force based in New York City, as
well as his wife, Kate Mayfield, an FBI special agent. The couple have
been selected for an assignment and sent to Yemen to track down and
capture an Al Qaida operative know as The Panther. He was the terrorist
behind the USS Cole bombing, an immigrant who had been living in New
Jersey. That is not all John and Kate need to worry about though, as
they are on the terrorists targeted list as well. Corey killed a Libyan
terrorist know as The Lion in one of his earlier novels. His wife Kate,
has also been involved in events that make her just as unpopular among
terrorists.
There are other intelligence agencies at work as well
throughout the novel, some involving secret missions and others unique
agendas of their own. One character who made the story all the more
interesting was Paul Brenner, an embassy DSS Chief who has also served
two tours of duty in Vietnam. Corey and Brenner seemed to feed off one
another making for some interesting dialogue and suspense filled thrills
along the way.
Although, I enjoyed this audio version a lot
and as well as the eBook, I thought the novel seemed way to long. One of the
things that draws me back to DeMille time and time again is his wit and
sarcasm, which always makes a commute that more enjoyable when listening
to his stories. For some reason the wit and sarcasm seemed to have been
over done in this story, and after a while I grew tired of the
wise-cracks. Despite that, I thought the ending was very good and I was
happy I took the time to finish this one. I don't feel like it is necessary to read his series novels
consecutively, for those interested, the (6) books in the series
featuring John Corey are: Plum Island, The Lion's Game, Night Fall,
Wild Fire, The Lion and The Panther. I've read/listened to them all and
enjoyed each of them. If you enjoy audiobooks, I highly recommend
listening to these.
Sounds like a good read. I never read this author and I'm wondering if I should start with the audio books.
ReplyDeleteEven a good writer could get carried away every now and then... this is what I found with reading Graham Greene's Travels with my Aunt. Also, I seldom read long books as I'm such a slow reader. But listening to audiobook just might be the solution.
ReplyDeleteI have never read anything by this author. Audiobooks do not work for me so I think I would try looking for he book here. Wit and sarcasm are things I also like in a book.
ReplyDeleteTBG and I read the first two in the series a long time ago and for some reason just never kept up with it even though we liked it. I think we have Nightfall and Wild Fire on the shelves somewhere. Glad you enjoyed the book, Diane. Have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteThere goes my reading list, getting longer again! Sounds like a good series!
ReplyDeleteI've listened to all the John Corey books, and I agree that this one wasn't the best (though Scott Brick is once again fabulous). It was definitely too long, and yet I still felt the ending was rushed. I was also disappointed that Kate played almost no role in the book other than that of nagging wife.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, I am eager to see what DeMille does next with the series. Clearly there is some unfinished business at the end!
I love witty and sarcastic...reminds me of Lawrence Sander's character Archie McNally...loved those books. I may enjoy these!
ReplyDeleteI will listen to Scott Brick read the phone book! My mother loves this series.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with your assessment of this one. It felt a bit too long and repetitive in bits.
ReplyDeleteI've read all the John Corey books, but it sounds like it might be worth switching to audio on this one.
ReplyDelete