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Stratton #3
The Operative
In war-torn Iraq, Stratton’s closest friend is killed whilst on operation, leaving behind a grieving wife and child. When the widow moves to Los Angeles she is brutally murdered and her child placed in state custody. Stratton, rocked to his foundations by the killing, uncovers a FBI plot to hide the crime and sets off on a private operation of revenge that eventually pits him against one of the most powerful East European crime syndicates in America. Hunted by the CIA and FBI as well as a brutal army of Albanian mobsters and armed only with his wits and an extraordinary skill with explosives, Stratton relentlessly pursues his private war, a fight he suspects could be his last. This is another enjoyable Falconer weave of thrill and action wrapped in the rich authenticity that defined his previous novels that provides a roller-coaster ride across half the globe.
544 pages, Paperback
First published February 2, 2006
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
December 25, 2014
A new direction for Stratton, as he finds himself operating on his own, avenging the murder of his best friend's wife, only weeks after his best friend was killed in an operation. He also has to deal with a distressed little boy who has list both his parents in the space of a few weeks. Another taut, page turning thriller by Duncan Falconer, this story gives us a different view of Stratton, who shows himself to be a man of great feeling. Loved it!
December 3, 2025
I read a good number of novels, some are hard work and don't deliver on the entertainment front. I'm delighted to say that this was not such a book.
The story kept me turning the pages, with brilliantly described and plausible detail. I like the way some history is woven into, making it all the more interesting.
Really enjoyed this one.
The story kept me turning the pages, with brilliantly described and plausible detail. I like the way some history is woven into, making it all the more interesting.
Really enjoyed this one.
June 20, 2021
Awesome read
The more I read the Stratton series, the more I enjoy them. From Iraq to the UK to Los Angeles, the story is a roller-coaster ride, making it difficult to put down until it was done. Looking forward to the rest of the series.
The more I read the Stratton series, the more I enjoy them. From Iraq to the UK to Los Angeles, the story is a roller-coaster ride, making it difficult to put down until it was done. Looking forward to the rest of the series.
May 4, 2017
Fabulous page turning read
May 16, 2017
123 excellent couldn't put it down now for book 4?
November 8, 2018
Another great book Mr Falconer.
February 23, 2021
Great story, if perhaps a little far-fetched at times....maybe...who knows what Special Forces get up to in real life? Looking forward to reading another on this series.
August 13, 2021
Excellent
Couldn’t put it down. Great read. On to the next book. Now I need to account for several more words. Thanks
Couldn’t put it down. Great read. On to the next book. Now I need to account for several more words. Thanks
April 9, 2024
When I read this book, it was called "The Bomb Surgeon". Stratton fights the Albanian mafia in Los Angeles in order to save his godson, an orphan. (aka, The Operative)
May 10, 2016
With The Operative, Duncan Falconer strides into a higher league of thriller writing. Alongside the high-action scenes we expect of Falconer is an emotional punch that previous work never achieved.
John Stretton is back, off-duty, and mourning the loss of an SBS close friend and colleague who has just been killed in action. When the widow takes her son Josh on a recovery holiday to America, she strays into the wrong part of town and is viciously murdered by an Albanian thug. Stretton instantly flies out to facilitate the boy’s return to the UK and the repatriation of Sally’s body but events rapidly provoke Stretton into dealing with things his own way. The theme quickly becomes one of revenge as Stretton hunts and kills the culprit.
The Albanians, however, are very loyal, and the thug’s brother, Dren Cano, who is the ruthless second in command of a Mafia-like criminal empire, seeks retaliation for his brother’s death.
Daut Skender, who runs the organisation, enjoys his American lifestyle, and aims to build a legitimate business empire on the money gained from his criminal activities. He constructs a massive new office complex as a symbol of his power and success, complete with a slightly larger-than-life sized statue of himself in its grounds. Skender’s criminal background is well known, but he is protected from prosecution by a deal high-up with the FBI that gives him freedom in return for occasional information on terrorists and other criminal activity. He tries to control Cano but fails.
The US Child Protection Agency temporarily takes Josh into care after his mother’s death. Stretton is allowed supervised visits and becomes friendly with Josh’s care-worker. Her life is soon at risk when Cano’s vendetta reaches its climax, and her feelings for Stretton are beautifully painted and emphasize how difficult it is form a relationship with a Special Services operative. We really feel both their pains as the events increasingly create psychological barriers between them.
When direct attacks on Stretton fail, Cano kidnaps Josh in an attempt to gain the upper hand. In an explosive climax, we follow Stretton’s final assault on the Albanians, and the tense final moments as his and the boy’s lives literally hang in the balance.
Although slightly unbelievable at times, this powerful story of revenge makes a great read. The opening is uncharacteristically slow, but is necessary to demonstrate Stretton’s expertise with explosives, a skill that is vital to the rest of the book. After that, though, the pace never slacks.
The book does suffer from an occasional very long sentence, particularly in the first half: in chapter 1, for instance, one sentence runs to nearly sixty words. There are also occasional large blocks of background that are dropped into the story and disrupt the reader’s immersion in the action. Fortunately, though, these are infrequent enough not to damage the overall enjoyment.
In summary, The Operative is a brilliant book: it’s basically a tale of revenge, but also explores the impossibility of Special Services operatives forming lasting relationships. It’s characteristically tense and fast-faced but the events surrounding his colleague’s wife and son, and subsequently those around Strettons’ relationship with Josh’s care-worker, add a piquancy that carries Falconer into a new league of thriller writing.
John Stretton is back, off-duty, and mourning the loss of an SBS close friend and colleague who has just been killed in action. When the widow takes her son Josh on a recovery holiday to America, she strays into the wrong part of town and is viciously murdered by an Albanian thug. Stretton instantly flies out to facilitate the boy’s return to the UK and the repatriation of Sally’s body but events rapidly provoke Stretton into dealing with things his own way. The theme quickly becomes one of revenge as Stretton hunts and kills the culprit.
The Albanians, however, are very loyal, and the thug’s brother, Dren Cano, who is the ruthless second in command of a Mafia-like criminal empire, seeks retaliation for his brother’s death.
Daut Skender, who runs the organisation, enjoys his American lifestyle, and aims to build a legitimate business empire on the money gained from his criminal activities. He constructs a massive new office complex as a symbol of his power and success, complete with a slightly larger-than-life sized statue of himself in its grounds. Skender’s criminal background is well known, but he is protected from prosecution by a deal high-up with the FBI that gives him freedom in return for occasional information on terrorists and other criminal activity. He tries to control Cano but fails.
The US Child Protection Agency temporarily takes Josh into care after his mother’s death. Stretton is allowed supervised visits and becomes friendly with Josh’s care-worker. Her life is soon at risk when Cano’s vendetta reaches its climax, and her feelings for Stretton are beautifully painted and emphasize how difficult it is form a relationship with a Special Services operative. We really feel both their pains as the events increasingly create psychological barriers between them.
When direct attacks on Stretton fail, Cano kidnaps Josh in an attempt to gain the upper hand. In an explosive climax, we follow Stretton’s final assault on the Albanians, and the tense final moments as his and the boy’s lives literally hang in the balance.
Although slightly unbelievable at times, this powerful story of revenge makes a great read. The opening is uncharacteristically slow, but is necessary to demonstrate Stretton’s expertise with explosives, a skill that is vital to the rest of the book. After that, though, the pace never slacks.
The book does suffer from an occasional very long sentence, particularly in the first half: in chapter 1, for instance, one sentence runs to nearly sixty words. There are also occasional large blocks of background that are dropped into the story and disrupt the reader’s immersion in the action. Fortunately, though, these are infrequent enough not to damage the overall enjoyment.
In summary, The Operative is a brilliant book: it’s basically a tale of revenge, but also explores the impossibility of Special Services operatives forming lasting relationships. It’s characteristically tense and fast-faced but the events surrounding his colleague’s wife and son, and subsequently those around Strettons’ relationship with Josh’s care-worker, add a piquancy that carries Falconer into a new league of thriller writing.
April 9, 2025
This was great. I enjoyed it being outside the war zone as such. Lots of Jack Reacher about Stratton so I will continue with this series for a couple more yet!Hard to keep up with all these new organised crime groups!
February 13, 2012
I do love the John Stratton series, and The Operative really delivered! It was packed full of action – but it wasn’t just a mission that Stratton was sent on by the British government, rather this mission was personal.
It was extremely far-fetched, as these stories often are, and on many occasions I rolled my eyes at the inadequacies of the police/FBI that were hunting Stratton. Also, at the end of the book everyone seemed to just act like Stratton killing all these people was no big deal.
There were no big gun battles – most of the action sequences were using explosives as weapons. This was somewhat of a breath of fresh air, because these books are often saturated by shoot outs. There was a lot of information about how Stratton manufactured the bombs, which was a little bit boring for me. I was interested in it, but didn’t need over a chapter on the manufacture and testing of the devices.
I also thought it was funny that there had to be a mention of Islamic fundamentalists – the story was interesting without it, but by using that plot device Falconer underlined what was at the time the FBI’s main focus. Or that is what I deduced from the novel.
It was extremely far-fetched, as these stories often are, and on many occasions I rolled my eyes at the inadequacies of the police/FBI that were hunting Stratton. Also, at the end of the book everyone seemed to just act like Stratton killing all these people was no big deal.
There were no big gun battles – most of the action sequences were using explosives as weapons. This was somewhat of a breath of fresh air, because these books are often saturated by shoot outs. There was a lot of information about how Stratton manufactured the bombs, which was a little bit boring for me. I was interested in it, but didn’t need over a chapter on the manufacture and testing of the devices.
I also thought it was funny that there had to be a mention of Islamic fundamentalists – the story was interesting without it, but by using that plot device Falconer underlined what was at the time the FBI’s main focus. Or that is what I deduced from the novel.
July 24, 2011
A revenge saga involving explosives, Albanians(and therefore drugs). What brings this book much above other simillar revenge sagas, is the very plot itself, and the fast moving actions. Few authors can do this well(Mack Bolan books being a notable exception).
April 26, 2015
Extremely well illustrated technical story of revenge, bureaucracy and ultimately going it alone to do the right thing when the law has failed the most vulnerable of the innocent. As ever, thought provoking and world view eye opening. Mr. Falconer, it's always a pleasure to read your work!
April 19, 2011
Fast paced, a good read.
March 24, 2013
Zzzzz
Read
August 14, 2013Carbon: read 534 pages.
January 28, 2015
I really enjoyed this book and liked how that the author showed more depth to the character and his awesome knowledge of explosives.
November 6, 2019
In which our hero gets involved in some extra curricular activities with Albanian gangsters in the USA. Rolls along nicely and I'm looking forward to reading the next one in the series.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews