The Spy Across the Table: A Jim Brodie Thriller

Jim Brodie #4

by Barry Lancet

In this exciting international thriller featuring Japanese antiques art dealer and PI Jim Brodie, a double murder at the Kennedy Center forces Brodie into a dangerous game of espionage - putting him in the crosshairs of the Chinese, North Korean, and American governments.

Jim Brodie is an antiques dealer, Japan expert, and second-generation private investigator. When two theater friends are murdered backstage at a Kennedy Center performance in Washington, DC, he's devastated - and determined to hunt down the killer. He's not the only one.

After the attack Brodie is summoned to the White House. The first lady was the college roommate of one of the victims, and she enlists Brodie - off the books - to use his Japanese connections to track down the assassin. Homeland Security head Tom Swelley is furious that the White House is meddling and wants Brodie off the case. Why? For the same reason a master Chinese spy known only as Zhou, one of the most dangerous men alive, appears on the Those murders were no random act of violence.

Brodie flies to Tokyo to attend the second of two funerals, and his friend's daughter, Anna, is kidnapped during the ceremony. It is then Brodie realizes that the murders were simply bait to draw her out of hiding. Anna, it seems, is the key architect of a top-secret NSA program that gathers the personal secrets of America's most influential leaders. Secrets so damaging that North Korea and China will stop at nothing to get them.

Publishers Weekly said, "Readers will want to see more of the talented Jim Brodie", and The Spy Across the Table is an edge-of-your-seat thriller in Barry Lancet's wildly popular and highly acclaimed series.

Genres: Fiction, Thriller, Audiobook, Espionage, Japan, Suspense, Mystery

Audible Audio

First published June 20, 2017

About the author

Barry Lancet is the author of the award-winning international suspense series featuring Jim Brodie. The latest entry is THE SPY ACROSS THE TABLE (Simon & Schuster) and sends Brodie careening from Washington, D.C. and San Francisco to Japan, then on to South Korea, the DMZ, and the Chinese-North Korean border in a story that could have been ripped from today’s headlines. In one of the first advance reviews, Publishers’ Weekly said that “Lancet keeps the suspense high through the exciting climax.”

The previous entry in the series, PACIFIC BURN, explores the tragic aftermath of the Fukushima quake-tsunami disaster and the real reasons behind the nuclear melt down. JAPANTOWN, the first Brodie adventure, won the Barry Award for Best First Novel, was initially optioned by J. J. Abrams, and is now under consideration at other studios. The second volume, TOKYO KILL, was a finalist for a Shamus Award for Best Novel of the Year and declared a must-read by Forbes magazine.

An American from California, Lancet has lived in Japan for more than twenty years. His editorial position at one of the Japan’s largest publishing houses allowed him access behind many closed doors, and his overseas experiences lend his novels a true insider’s authenticity.

Reviews

[Glen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This fourth entry in the Jim Brodie series keeps the excellent work going.

Jim Brodie is watching a kabuki performance, when there is a murder backstage. Jim Brodie pursues the real killer, but is tackled by the secret service. At one time, I would have trouble believing this could happen, but after all the recent scandals involving the secret service, it now seems all too believable. They just haven't been the same since Scott Harvath left.

Brodie tries to follow the trail, but a hostile Homeland Security bureaucrat interferes constantly. The trail goes to North Korea, and following the trail has grave consequences for Brodie and Company.

Great stuff. Highly recommended.

[Ms. Just One More Book (Kris Miller) · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Plentiful feast of suspense, mystery and intrigue!

While watching a play at the Kennedy center, two of Jim Brodie's friends are murdered. As an antiques dealer and private investigator, he's not only devastated at the loss -- he's determined to hunt down the killer at all costs. His determination is further bolstered when the first lady personally requests his help in solving the  crime. But when one of the victims daughter -- a key architect of a top-secret NSA program is kidnapped during the second funeral, Jim will be thrust into a dangerous game of espionage. One that will ensnare him in the crosshairs of the Chinese, North Korean and American governments. Like a tornado, THE SPY ACROSS THE TABLE is an engrossing thriller that will suck you in to the deep underbelly of the espionage world. Full of street smarts and a snarky personality, Jim Brodie shines as an instant likable main character. A craftily plotted storyline accompanied by staccato paced action scenes explodes into a dynamic ending. A plentiful feast of suspense, mystery and intrigue!


~ Kris Miller, certified TopShelf Reviewer. TopShelf Magazine does not offer 'paid review services’ and TopShelf Reviewers are not compensated for their reviews

[Ronald Barak · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just finished my first Jim Brodie thriller, THE SPY ACROSS THE TABLE, by award winning storyteller Barry Lancet. Number four in this exciting series, it won't be my last Brodie read. So many reason why I loved this novel, it's difficult to know where to begin. Let me try this way:

Some novels are thoughtful and engaging. They make you think. Some novels are just really entertaining, for the sake of entertainment. It is not always that a novel can pull off both at the same time. It takes a highly skilled writer to achieve that. THE SPY ACROSS THE TABLE is one such novel. Lancet is one such writer. You don't want to miss either Lancet or his stories. Like Daniel Silva's Gideon Allon, Brodie is part art dealer and part spy, but Brodie makes me engage more than Allon. And that's saying a lot.

THE SPY ACROSS THE TABLE is a geopolitical and gastronomical delight. Great mystery, great imagery and scenes, great characters, and great tension. From Washington, D.C., to San Francisco, to Japan, to South Korea, to North Korea, to China, to Mongolia, and back. But I didn't need my globe because Lancet lays it out so effortlessly and so clearly. One heart-pounding challenge after another. If Brodie doesn't require any anxiety meds to get through it all, you may.

And in between each life threatening scene, one great meal in one great restaurant after another! 007's shake don't stir (or was it stir don't shake?) has nothing on Lancet. And what nostalgia for anyone like me who has spent considerable time in Japan, right down to the prefectures and the restaurants!

And while we're talking about Bond, Brodie is more exciting for me than Bond because, albeit with a bit of martial arts training, people can actually do what Brodie does. Well, almost, and at least some of the time. In the Bond novels, the good guys are all good and the bad guys are all bad. In THE SPY ACROSS THE TABLE, the good guys have some bad in them and the bad guys have some good in them. Well, at least some of the good guys and some of the bad guys. More illustration of how thoughtful Lancet truly is.

Like Lee Child's Jack Reacher, Brodie is a philosopher. These are characters who can think and do. I wonder if, and when, Lancet's Brodie will hook up with Lee Child's Jack Reacher for an adventure or two. They're made for each other.

No spoilers here, but this reader wonders what will become of Brodie and Rie. I don't think we're done with Rie because (i) I'm too much of a romantic and (ii) Brodie's daughter, Jen, would never stand for it.

And what's next for Brodie? My prediction: Brodie will take on some menacing challenge threatening Japan's hosting of the 2024 Olympic Games.

THE SPY ACROSS THE TABLE. Don't miss it! You'll be glad you didn't.

[Janet Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Closer to a 5 than a 4. I was blown away by the timeliness of this plot, with shenanigans by North Korea and China at the forefront and cyber security in the center. The torture scenes were hard to take, but Lancet's action scenes are top-notch. He is clearly one of the best authors of action thrillers writing today.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

The best one so far. Lancet gets better with each book.

[Wesley Britton · Rating 4 out of 5]

You can tell from the titles of author Barry Lancet’s previous three novels featuring reluctant PI Jim Brodie that the writer likes to draw on his deep knowledge of Japan in his globe-trotting adventures: Japantown, Tokyo Kill, and Pacific Burn. In these books, Lancet shows off what he’s learned from his considerable experience living and working in Japan for over 25 years, where he edited books on Japanese history, arts, and philosophy.

Now, The Spy Across the Table might spend much of its time in Washington D.c. and San Francisco, but Brodie again shows off how much of a Japan and Asiatic expert his character is, not to mention how much Brodie learned in his father’s Tokyo security firm, especially regarding physical combat, and how he can be pulled into strange murder mysteries against his will. In this case, Brodie witnesses the shooting deaths of two of his close friends on a Kennedy Center opera stage which sets him off into trying to track down the killer. At first glance, these deaths during a Kabuki play might not make anyone think of international espionage, but in short order Brodie is called into action by the U.S.’s First Lady despite the unhappiness of American intelligence agencies over his participation. Just why does the President think Brodie can contribute to an investigation when National Security agents are all over the case?

Then, Brodie is involved with Chinese and North Korean interests in a murky game revolving around a somewhat bizarre and inexplicable kidnapping, most particularly in a duel with Chinese spy Zhou, the man Brodie matches wits with across restaurant tables. And that’s just the first half of the novel.

Readers unfamiliar with the previous Brodie tales need not worry about knowing what went on in Brodie’s life before Spy as there are apparently no integrated plotlines linking the books. From time to time, we get summaries of what happened in those yarns. Perhaps the earlier novels revealed more about his character as we don’t learn much in the new book about who he is beyond his own actions and choices, at least for the first 100 pages or so. Character development isn’t the point and I often thought of detective stories of the ‘40s and ‘50s where hard-boiled gumshoes tracked down their prey with little introspection or second guessing of their actions. Like such pulp adventures narrated in the first person, Lancet quickly drops us into a fast-paced story with Brodie chasing a killer through the back rooms of a theatre before the chase widens far beyond that of a seemingly pointless double murder in the U.S. capital. Then, Brodie travels to Japan, his home turf, and that’s when we begin to learn much about his family, friendships, and love life.

Perhaps the most distinguishing characteristic of this story is Brodie’s bad luck at finding himself ensnared in increasingly impossible situations and his skill an fortitude in extricating himself from dilemmas that would end the careers of many another hero. Lancet is very good at presenting surprise after surprise. In fact, that’s my favorite characteristic of the book, that no matter what hot water Jim Brodie is plunged into, he’s able to find very unexpected ways out of danger. So if you like your thrillers fusing espionage with murder mysteries, set in locations vividly described, and moving at a fast, dense clip with more twists and turns than many another author’s entire canon might provide, The Spy Across the Table should be very diverting summer reading.

This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com May 22, 2017
goo.gl/SQHKYv

[John McKenna · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Spy Across The Table
Mysterious Book Report No. 290
by John Dwaine McKenna

Although prognostication and predicting the future isn’t what we normally do here at the MBR, there’s always exceptions, and this is one. I’m gonna stick my neck all the way out to the cut-on-the-dotted-line tattoo and forecast the near future. In about a week and a-half—June 20th to be exact—a new thriller will be released that I think will be the hottest read of the summer season, if not the whole year. I know, I know, that’s a bold statement, but it’s one helluva bold book.
The Spy Across The Table, (Simon & Schuster, $26.00, 435 pages, ISBN 978-1-4767-9491-4) by Barry Lancet, is the fourth—and most electrifying installment—of his highly acclaimed, widely praised Jim Brodie series of international thriller/mysteries. Brodie, a San Francisco art dealer specializing in high-end Japanese antiques, just wants to be an ordinary guy, a widower and single parent of a precocious and endearing seven-year old daughter named Jenny . . . but circumstances and a most unique skill-set prevent that from ever happening. That’s because he grew up in Tokyo, where his father owned an investigative agency. Brodie’s a martial-arts master, an expert in the art, antiquities, history and culture of Japan . . . and speaks, reads and writes fluent Japanese. He’s also the half-owner of Brodie Investigative Services in Tokyo and works with the San Francisco Police Department on cases involving Japanese-Americans, or whenever a liaison to their community is needed.
As The Spy Across The Table begins, Jim Brodie is in Washington D.C. He’s attending a Kabuki play at the Kennedy Center Opera House with Mike Dillman, his college roomie and close friend. “Mikey,” as Brodie calls him, is a production designer in Hollywood, making sets for the movies. He’s there to meet Sharon Tanaka, a world-famous designer from Japan, and another Brodie friend and contact. Brodie himself was there to enjoy the Kabuki art-form and introduce the designers, who’ve never met. But mere moments after the play begins and the pair are just getting to know each other, an assassin shoots and kills them. Brodie intercedes, but loses the fight and the gunman—a spanish speaking professional killer—manages his escape, unknown, undetected and unharmed. Brodie is devastated, vows revenge and is summoned to the White House . . . where he is given a directive he can’t refuse. The order puts him at odds with the security services of four different nations, puts him in the crosshairs of the most deadly spy in China and puts him physically into a place he probably won’t survive, all while trying to rescue a hostage whose mind contains enough coding secrets to unlock the deepest vaults of American’s NSA super computers. Her name is Anna . . . and she’s the only daughter of Sharon Tanaka. The action, and the mystery starts with the first sentence . . . Mikey was shot because he begged me for a favor and I complied . . . then expands, deepens and darkens in every chapter thereafter with a twisted intensity that even Niccolo Machiavelli would appreciate. The threats, suspense, double crosses and heart-stopping thrills never end in this chilling, and realistic masterpiece that could be tomorrow’s international news. If you’re a fan of Flynn, Meltzer, or Dan Brown, you’ll be all-in with enthusiasm for Barry Lancet and his good guy PI, Jim Brodie. He’s tough, unusual, honest and absolutely awesome!

[Tom Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

“A Thrill Ride A Minute.”

Jim Brodie is in Washington DC visiting the Kennedy Center to watch his Japanese friend’s Kabuki performance when the Japanese designer and another friend are murdered. Afterwards, he is approached by the Secret Service and taken before the First Lady. The stage designer was also a college friend of hers, and she wants Brodie to investigate the murders (you would think the FBI would be called in) . No sooner does he take the case, than Homeland Security agents let by Tom Swelley begin harassing him and beats him up. The case gets more tangled in Japan when he brings the Brodie Detective Agency into the Japanese end of the case. Korean gangsters kidnap the daughter of the Japanese designer at the funeral, and Brodie discovers she is being transferred to North Korea. He must intercept the transfer, and heads to South Korea with a Marine combat squad to stop them from entering a tunnel on the DMZ. However, the team was spotted and the girl is moved to the border with China. Now Brodie must enter China, but tangles with the Chinese spy, Zhou, and is captured and turned over to Chinese torturers. This is all great stuff in movies and fiction.

This was a nonstop thrill a minute ride, with political stumbling blocks along the way. It is a well-written yarn that kept me turning the pages. There were some things I didn’t like about it, mostly the portrayal of agents in our intelligence departments. Men like Tom Swelley would have been dismissed long before he got out of hand. Everyone has a boss, and heads roll when agents go amok. Another thing is our Ambassadors; they do not go against the President of the United States. They represent the president. The actions of the American Ambassador to Japan was beyond imbecilic. And finally, let’s look at torture. Yes, torture does exist, and it is horrible. But I can guarantee the Chinese would have obtained what they wanted from Brodie within hours without torture, they didn’t need to use physical torture to get the information they wanted. But Brodie goes through many days of torture. Now, what happens to a person after they have been tortured for days on end? They don’t get up and fight, or cross China in an automobile. They need physical and mental therapy for months before they can perform anything close to normal. I won’t even discuss the subject of a Chinese spy rescuing Brodie, except to say it wouldn’t happen. Still, with all these things I didn’t like with the story, this is a work of fiction, and as such, it is very entertaining, and I highly recommend it to readers.

[Amy Rogers · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m a big fan of Barry Lancet’s novels, the Jim Brodie series of international action thrillers that are largely set in Japan. Book #4 The Spy Across the Table was just released. I opened to page 1 and in the first line I was reminded of why I enjoy Lancet’s writing so much: “Mikey was shot because he begged me for a favor and I complied.”

The narrator and protagonist, Jim Brodie, is a singular character in modern genre fiction. Brodie is most passionate about art and antiques, particularly the Japanese objects that he sells in his antiques shop in San Francisco. But the character (like the author) has also lived in Japan for a long time. Brodie’s father left him a private security agency in Tokyo, which Jim continues to own and operate. In previous books, it was this connection to the agency which landed him in trouble. In Spy, Brodie’s involvement begins with a personal tragedy–a vendetta to find out who murdered his friend. This quest quickly spins out of control into something much larger, involving governments and the Chinese super-spy of the title. Did Lancet know that North Korea and tensions in East Asia would make his plot so timely?

As with previous novels in this series, the book is full of insights into Japanese culture, art, and history. Also as previously, Brodie is a reluctant fighter but he is a master of hand-to-hand combat, and Lancet writes the fight scenes in spectacular fashion. What is different this time is a much darker tone. Spy is Brodie’s most wrenching experience yet, messing with his mind, his heart and soul, and definitely his body. If a character is revealed by the choices he makes in the most difficult circumstances, then Jim Brodie bares his soul in this book. After all he suffered, what kind of man will he become in the next book? We’ll find out in a year or two, I expect, with a book #5 which I will be eager to read.

I was given a free digital ARC of this book, with no promises.

[Leith Devine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest opinion.

Wow, what a great read The Spy Across the Table is! There was action from beginning to end, and the story stretched from Washington D.C. to San Francisco all the way to Tokyo, Korea and China. The descriptions of the different locales were amazing and so detailed. They added a lot to the book. I couldn't put it down and read it in one sitting.

Jim Brodie is a P.I. and an art dealer in San Francisco and Tokyo. He takes one of his closest friends to see a kabuki performance in Washington D.C. and sets him up to visit the set designer, another friend of his. After the play, Jim is shocked to hear gunshots and finds both his friends dead. FLOTUS and then POTUS get involved and ask Jim to solve the murders.

Jim ends up tangling with a savvy Chinese spy, Homeland Security, the NSA, and the police and security services of several countries. The sophisticated plot takes many twists and turns and left me breathless. The story involves cyber security, hacking, North Korea, China and their ambitions as a country and struck me as being very timely.

The characters are so well written. Jim Brodie is kind of a reluctant P.I. He wants to solve the murders of his friends, and he has the experience, but you sense that he'd rather be dealing antiques than going one on one with a tricky Chinese spy. It's too bad he's so good at solving strange mysteries.

I highly recommend this book and think it will be a summer hit. I'm going to read the other Barry Lancet books in the series.

[Ed · Rating 4 out of 5]

#4 in the Jim Brodie series. An exciting tour de force as Brodie witnesses murders in Washington, D.C., a kidnapping in Tokyo and is abducted in China. The novel follows its own internal logic, but is over the top with everything in 4 countries happening to or around Brodie. An interesting read but 430 pages of detailed conspiracy may be a bit too long.

Jim Brodie is an antiques dealer, Japan expert, and second-generation private investigator. When two theater friends are murdered backstage at a Kennedy Center performance in Washington, DC, he's determined to hunt down the killer. Brodie is summoned to the White House. The First Lady was the college roommate of one of the victims, and she enlists Brodie to use his Japanese connections to track down the assassin. Homeland Security head Tom Swelley wants Brodie off the case. Why? For the same reason a master Chinese spy known only as Zhou, one of the most dangerous men alive, appears on the scene: Those murders were no random act of violence. When his friend's daughter Anna is kidnapped during the second funeral Brodie realizes that the murders were simply bait to draw her out of hiding. Anna, it seems, is the architect of an NSA program that North Korea and China will stop at nothing to get.

[Roger · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a 3.5 star book, maybe pushed up to a 4 after some contemplation. To date I have really liked Barry Lancet's Jim Brodie series, starting with his debut novel, JAPANTOWN. Brodie is an atypical blend of an American comfortable in Japanese culture and on the streets of San Francisco. His background is unusual but not contrived. And that is where some of my misgivings with this book come into the story. The plot seems a little contrived, in an effort to continue Brodie's adventures despite his civilian status. Brodie's client is the First Lady and the President charges him with leading a dangerous clandestine mission into North Korea and China, after only the briefest of acquaintances and against the advice of cabinet members and ambassadors. The plot does afford Lancet the opportunity to shine some light on North Korea, the Korean conflict, and Chinese diplomacy, and that is worthwhile, up through a very serious appendix. There are also several indications about future plot lines, and that makes me look forward to new editions in the series.

Jim Brodie knows art
Martial arts and Japanese.
The latter saves him.

[Jeffrey Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the challenges of writing any kind of thriller is how to get the action and the characters from point A to point B seamlessly while engaging the reader with various twists and turns in the plot.

There are some authors who make it seem so easy and in turn, come up with stories that resonate with you long after you have read them.

Such is the case with Barry Lancet and his latest Jim Brodie thriller, The Spy Across the Table. I so do enjoy the way the Lancet writes and engages his reader with his storytelling techniques. I’m especially impressed with the various characters Lancet weaves in and out his novels that move along the story and add a richness and depth to the story. He is one of the best writers out there these days doing this sort of thing.

Whether you have been following Jim Brodie through all the books in this series or if this is your first foray into Brodie’s world of art and espionage, you won’t be disappointed with Lancet’s latest literary offering. From the Kennedy Center to the DMZ on the Korean peninsula, the action is non-stop and heart-pounding in this geopolitical thriller.

[Dan Downing · Rating 4 out of 5]

By this time Mr. Lancet is an old friend, as are some of the characters who accompany his Jim Brodie. This effort shows improvement over the first three in the series, although all are estimable. Certainly, one gets a lot of story for the buck as well as some cultural expansion and culinary advice. While my normal diet excludes fins and feathers, reading about Jim and his Chinese spy buddy chowing down does tickle the palate.
The descriptions of torture included here are reasonable (if one can use that word in this context) and the reader cringes in sympathy.
The political landscape described is harsh: real politick. Much more serious writers and analysts have proposed the strategy Mr. Lancet has his spy propose---the long-term conquest of the West as envisioned by Chinese leadership. We should pay heed even as we enjoy the story.
Recommended.

[Kay · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one soars on from the first three Brodie books and delivers a page turner that is super-thrilling--dealing with rogue countries is always going to be thrilling, the added torture gruesome--and gives a shuddery view into the regimes in North Korea and China. Involving the arts scene, then the White House in personal way, added a really good twist. Lancet gets the subtleties of Asian behavior and culture right, and plays them perfectly. Just who the bad guys really are and finally finding the poisonous pit in the nut of the plot is brilliant. Whose side is who on in international intrigue, based on personal ambition? I bet the audio book is thrilling, too, and I'm going to try it! While waiting for the next Jim Brodie...

[Jodi · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 stars. I really enjoy this series. Lancet weaves in historical fact, actual places, food and culture into the stories brilliantly, and then explains what is true and not at the end. In this outing, a good childhood friend and another of Brodie's is killed at a performance in Washington DC. Brodie sets out to find the killer which leads him on a chase through San Francisco, DC, Japan, China and Korea. Spies and government agencies are involved. There is much action, intrigue and suspense, and this one features international issues currently in the news. I highly recommend this series, but read in order. Some of the characters from previous books make appearances and are major characters in this one.

[Kathleen Gray · Rating 5 out of 5]

A briskly written thriller with some great settings and a terrific protagonist in Brodie! Some of this is implausible but suspect your knowledge of how things really work and go for it- you'll be rewarded with a page turner that's perfect for travel or the beach. There are good guys and bad guys, conspiracies, espionage, topical issues (North Korea!), and all in all if makes for a good read. You don't need to have read the earlier books to enjoy this one, which is actually, I think, more complex than its predecessors so feel free to pick this one up as a standalone. Thanks to Edeleweiss for the ARC- this is a fast ride!

[Lavonn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the 4th book in the Jim Brodie series. The story takes place in Japan and San Francisco. The main character, Brodie, is a Japanese art collector as well as owner of a private detective service in Japan that was his father's. Brodie grew up in Japan and speaks the language and understands the Japanese culture. Mr. Lancet writes a good story, offering enough detail about the settings and Japanese art to keep the reader interested as well as entertained with the current, ripped from the headlines whodunnit. I am already looking forward to the next Jim Brodie offering...

[Richard Janzen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jim Brodie is one of my favorite private investigators. A smart series that combines is both political thriller and action-oriented, and moves between Japan and America. This book, in particular, also features China and North and South Korea. Lots of twists and turns. This book has a heavier focus on torture than the previous books, which may have made sense for this book, but was less fun to read.

[Barbara White · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved The Spy Across the Table. I couldn't put it down. It is fast-paced from beginning to end. The characters were well-developed and extraordinarily believable. I recommend this book to anyone that likes to read about intrigue. This is the first book I've read by Barry Lancet, but it will certainly not be the last. Thanks to Goodreads First Reads for a copy of The Spy Across the Table. Thank-you, Barry Lancet.

[Esther · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my first read of this author. I don't know how I missed him but I will definitely go back to book 1 in the Jim Brodie series. This international thriller held my interest with its fast pace while providing informative tidbits about the Far East culture as well as insight into the darker side of our own government. Recommend for thriller, espionage fans.

[K-BRC · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very timely FBI thriller espionage book that will entertain you for days. This nonstop action will have you thinking of our current political climate. We could all use a storyline like this to take us away from our current Suspense. Recommended read.

[Books on Asia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the fourth in the Jim Brodie series. It is fast-paced and reads like an action movie. The writing is excellent and the plot moves along fluidly in 98 short chapters, each ending with a hook, thus making it a real page-turner.

[Randall Lovejoy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have really enjoyed all of the Jim Brodie series. The author is certainly talented with his knowledge of East Asia and especially Japan. I hope the series does not end with this 4th novel. Very entertaining and enjoyable. Of course I highly recommend the series.

[Michelle Olms · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

[Nita · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! This is the best thriller I have read in many years, maybe ever. Unputdownable.
Further review to come.

[Jackie Mungle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well done, enjoyed the book very much,you want details, you'll have to read it for your self, I don't want to spoil it for others

[Andy Plonka · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great story and I hate spy stories. Great insight into the relations between China, th US North and South Korea. The Asians don't have much love lost for each other.

[Phyllis Bismanovsky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of twists and turns in the plot. Great descriptions of the locales. But way too much description of the violence and torture for me.

[Sami Long · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the Japanese elements - and Jim Brodie!