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Enigma Series #2
The Enigma Rising
A vacation in Acapulco turns deadly for Jacob and Petra
Carlos and Juan, bad boy entrepreneurs are helping drug lords and their wealth disappear. Mexican authorities and American agencies want to know—And make it stop.
The R-Group gets called in as a contractor specialized in solving puzzles.
In parallel, the disappearance of a wealthy Brazilian industrialist's daughter, Lara, causes Thiago to also hire the R-Group to quietly locate and return her. Is the heiress in trouble and gone forever. Can she be found before it is too late to save her?
The destiny of two groups is on a collision course. No one knows if the impact will result in good or bad fallout.
The R-Group, operating on the morale high-ground, wants justice.
Incarceration and disappointment are lurking nearby for someone. Time is running out.
What Readers are saying –
“This is one of those books that you lose track of time. It has twists and turns, and the characters have your emotions all over the place.”
“ The plot and characters keep you engaged to the end.”
“ If you like tech and cyber thrillers... check this out. I love the level of detail in the technology used in the book.”
Carlos and Juan, bad boy entrepreneurs are helping drug lords and their wealth disappear. Mexican authorities and American agencies want to know—And make it stop.
The R-Group gets called in as a contractor specialized in solving puzzles.
In parallel, the disappearance of a wealthy Brazilian industrialist's daughter, Lara, causes Thiago to also hire the R-Group to quietly locate and return her. Is the heiress in trouble and gone forever. Can she be found before it is too late to save her?
The destiny of two groups is on a collision course. No one knows if the impact will result in good or bad fallout.
The R-Group, operating on the morale high-ground, wants justice.
Incarceration and disappointment are lurking nearby for someone. Time is running out.
What Readers are saying –
“This is one of those books that you lose track of time. It has twists and turns, and the characters have your emotions all over the place.”
“ The plot and characters keep you engaged to the end.”
“ If you like tech and cyber thrillers... check this out. I love the level of detail in the technology used in the book.”
420 pages, Paperback
First published January 2, 2014
About the author
Charles V. Breakfield
37 books74 followersWrites mostly with Rox Burkey as "Breakfield and Burkey"
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
November 18, 2017
Review originally published at: http://www.lomeraniel.com/audiobookre...
The R-group is hired this time to find the daughter of a powerful man. Petra and Jacob travel to Mexico and there they meet Carlos and Simone, which rapidly becomes Petra’s friend. But Carlos and his brother Juan are mixed in some dangerous stuff.
I really enjoyed the previous book, so I was looking forward to this one. Even though this is the second book in the series, it is not a continuation of the previous book and could be read standalone. If the previous book was very technology centered, the same does not happen with this one, which is something I missed.
We get to know better Jacob and Petra, but even like that they didn’t feel fully fleshed to me. Petra started a sudden friendship with Simone that felt completely artificial to me. The conversations the girls had did not feel natural at all, so I disliked this part.
It was an entertaining thriller, but for me not at the level of the previous book. It felt slowly paced at some points, and the girls’ conversations were definitely skippable.
This book is narrated by a different narrator than the first book. Derek Shoales does a good job with accents and voices, but the book is so loaded with accents that it becomes a bit tiresome after a while. Not Shoales fault, he did very good a differentiating characters and keep things consistent.
I received a copy of this book in audio format from the producer in exchange for an honest review.
The R-group is hired this time to find the daughter of a powerful man. Petra and Jacob travel to Mexico and there they meet Carlos and Simone, which rapidly becomes Petra’s friend. But Carlos and his brother Juan are mixed in some dangerous stuff.
I really enjoyed the previous book, so I was looking forward to this one. Even though this is the second book in the series, it is not a continuation of the previous book and could be read standalone. If the previous book was very technology centered, the same does not happen with this one, which is something I missed.
We get to know better Jacob and Petra, but even like that they didn’t feel fully fleshed to me. Petra started a sudden friendship with Simone that felt completely artificial to me. The conversations the girls had did not feel natural at all, so I disliked this part.
It was an entertaining thriller, but for me not at the level of the previous book. It felt slowly paced at some points, and the girls’ conversations were definitely skippable.
This book is narrated by a different narrator than the first book. Derek Shoales does a good job with accents and voices, but the book is so loaded with accents that it becomes a bit tiresome after a while. Not Shoales fault, he did very good a differentiating characters and keep things consistent.
I received a copy of this book in audio format from the producer in exchange for an honest review.
September 25, 2017
My original The Enigma Rising audiobook review and many others can be found at Audiobook Reviewer.
ABR Reviewer's Choice Award Winner
The R-Group finds themselves immersed in major cyber activity in Mexico and the Caribbean along with tracking down the daughter of rich and powerful Brazilian industrialist. The trail for the missing daughter becomes enmeshed with the father’s worse nightmare - drug lords, drug money and pornography. Will the R-Group find and reunite the daughter with her father? Will they be able to find and fix everything they need to without starting an international incident?
Jacob and Petra’s return with Otto is fast, fun and exciting. Charles Breakfield and Roxanne Burkey provides a deeper look into these characters as well as introducing us to more of the R-Group. While the R-Group still seems somewhat of a mystery, we are given more in-depth character development than before. The introduction of other R-Group members and potential ones is both satisfying and enlightening.
Breakfield and Burkey give their listeners a lot of moving parts that somehow come together throughout the book in a logical and realistic manner. The dialog is well-developed and the action is non-stop.
Be prepared to set aside all 10 hours in one sitting, because you will NOT be able to turn this one off. There are several “aha” moments and many “oh no!” ones as well. The breadth and skill level of the R-Group is overwhelming and scary.
I enjoy thrillers but this is much more … thrills, action, the edge of your seat suspense with a touch of romance and humanity. An awesome series that I cannot wait to see where it goes next!
The narrator, Derek Shoales, owns not only the characters but the entire book as well. His performance was solid and enthralling. His accents and female voices were top-notch.
The authors and narrator together will captivate the listener until the end.
There were no issues with quality or production of this audiobook.
Audiobook was provided for review by the author.
ABR Reviewer's Choice Award Winner
The R-Group finds themselves immersed in major cyber activity in Mexico and the Caribbean along with tracking down the daughter of rich and powerful Brazilian industrialist. The trail for the missing daughter becomes enmeshed with the father’s worse nightmare - drug lords, drug money and pornography. Will the R-Group find and reunite the daughter with her father? Will they be able to find and fix everything they need to without starting an international incident?
Jacob and Petra’s return with Otto is fast, fun and exciting. Charles Breakfield and Roxanne Burkey provides a deeper look into these characters as well as introducing us to more of the R-Group. While the R-Group still seems somewhat of a mystery, we are given more in-depth character development than before. The introduction of other R-Group members and potential ones is both satisfying and enlightening.
Breakfield and Burkey give their listeners a lot of moving parts that somehow come together throughout the book in a logical and realistic manner. The dialog is well-developed and the action is non-stop.
Be prepared to set aside all 10 hours in one sitting, because you will NOT be able to turn this one off. There are several “aha” moments and many “oh no!” ones as well. The breadth and skill level of the R-Group is overwhelming and scary.
I enjoy thrillers but this is much more … thrills, action, the edge of your seat suspense with a touch of romance and humanity. An awesome series that I cannot wait to see where it goes next!
The narrator, Derek Shoales, owns not only the characters but the entire book as well. His performance was solid and enthralling. His accents and female voices were top-notch.
The authors and narrator together will captivate the listener until the end.
There were no issues with quality or production of this audiobook.
Audiobook was provided for review by the author.
January 28, 2018
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
I really enjoyed this book, and I much prefer this book to #1 in the series. It looked deeper into Jacob, Petra and Otto, as well as looking into the other members of the R-Group. As in book 1, my favourite part of the novel is the character development and the character interactions, which was excellent.
I did struggle with the plot a bit, because there was a lot of moving parts that I struggled to link together. It reminded me a bit of the Jack Reacher novels with all the moving parts of the plot. The tech aspects did again feel overdone, but not as bad as the previous novel.
I really enjoyed this book, and I much prefer this book to #1 in the series. It looked deeper into Jacob, Petra and Otto, as well as looking into the other members of the R-Group. As in book 1, my favourite part of the novel is the character development and the character interactions, which was excellent.
I did struggle with the plot a bit, because there was a lot of moving parts that I struggled to link together. It reminded me a bit of the Jack Reacher novels with all the moving parts of the plot. The tech aspects did again feel overdone, but not as bad as the previous novel.
October 4, 2018
I received this audiobook as part of my participation in a blog tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by MK Marketing. The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it.
This audiobook was a bit different from what I expected for a few differences. For one, it is narrated by a different person, which doesn't mean I don't like him, he's quite good at the accents and such, but I could tell there was a difference from the first book.
Secondly, this is the second book in a series, but it felt like it was a different story for about the first two-three hours of the audiobook simply because they were nearly all different characters. This book did take me a little bit to catch up on and get into. I didn't enjoy it as much as the first one, but that's alright. I find that the second book is always a bit more awkward than the first.
Thirdly, I felt as though the first book delved into a lot of the technology part of the story and kept that interesting and I felt as though I was learning a lot. However, this one feels much less technological and at points didn't even feel like a sequel, but more of a companion novel.
Overall, I have mixed feelings about this book, but I am enjoying the series, so we will see how the next few books go. Three point five out of five from me.
This audiobook was a bit different from what I expected for a few differences. For one, it is narrated by a different person, which doesn't mean I don't like him, he's quite good at the accents and such, but I could tell there was a difference from the first book.
Secondly, this is the second book in a series, but it felt like it was a different story for about the first two-three hours of the audiobook simply because they were nearly all different characters. This book did take me a little bit to catch up on and get into. I didn't enjoy it as much as the first one, but that's alright. I find that the second book is always a bit more awkward than the first.
Thirdly, I felt as though the first book delved into a lot of the technology part of the story and kept that interesting and I felt as though I was learning a lot. However, this one feels much less technological and at points didn't even feel like a sequel, but more of a companion novel.
Overall, I have mixed feelings about this book, but I am enjoying the series, so we will see how the next few books go. Three point five out of five from me.
October 26, 2017
“The Enigma Rising” is the second book in the “Enigma” series of books co-written by Charles V. Breakfield and Roxanne E. Burkey. The Audible narration is performed by Derek Shoales; who is a different narrator from the first book’s narration. Although this book is categorized as a technothriller, I would not place it is that genre. The first book seemed to excessively use technology where this book seems to go to the other extreme by lacked as cohesive blending of technology and thrill. Instead, I would put the book in the mystery and suspense category with some technology aspects thrown in for good measure. If you enjoy rater dark stories of drug runners, back stabbing, and deception, you may find that you enjoy this book. Even though I enjoy solidly written technical thrillers, I found this book departs too far from what I would have expected to fully enjoy it.
I thought the premise laid out in the author’s summary section was compelling, but I felt compared to the first book, this one missed the mark. I wanted to know more about the R-Group and understand the technology they utilized in more detail. For me, understanding exciting new technology and how it functions makes for a good technothriller, yet technology did not seem to be central to this book. Sure, there was suspense, mystery, and a little scheming, but I found the lack of focus on the technology made the book feel a little deflated for me.
I often found the book to be more confusing and overly complicated than the first book in the series. Apart from some electronic banking, satellite hacking, and some penetration testing, this story was less technology centric as it was character and event focused. I felt this story did not flow as smoothly as the first, and I would have liked to have had a bit more of a prequel section bringing the listener up to speed on the previous book’s events. Throughout the book, bits and pieces seemed to fill in some of the story gaps, but it just never reached that point where I felt a part of the story.
The book is vast and takes place over a number of location, some of them quite exotic, yet I did not get the feeling I was there. I did not feel the writing was overly descript, as I would have liked to have had some portions (mostly the technical ones) be more descript than they were. I want to learn something new and exciting about a technology I have not seen or heard of, but I found this never materialized for me even thought there were places I thought it would have fit perfectly.
I found the narration by Derek Shoales to be well done as there were many accents and a fair number of characters needing to be voiced. I found the audio levels to be consistent and the pacing of the book’s narration to be at an average speed. I do not recall any noticeable audio artifacts such as swallows, page turns or other background noise while listening.
For parents or potential younger readers, it should be noted that this book is not intended for younger readers as the language is quite vulgar along with direct and descriptive scenes of sex, many references to sexual innuendos, and a focus on the pornography industry. There is also a fair amount of quite graphic violence that would not be suitable for younger readers. Along with the above, there is a fair number of adult topics such as drug use, alcohol use, along with others. I would only recommend this book to mature audiences who are not offended by the above subject matter.
In summary, the book is really an action suspense story with a technology veneer. If you are a fan of technology thrillers, you may found yourself disappointed with the level of detail and actual technology used. Instead, if you like action and mystery books with some technology thrown in, you may enjoy this series.
I thought the premise laid out in the author’s summary section was compelling, but I felt compared to the first book, this one missed the mark. I wanted to know more about the R-Group and understand the technology they utilized in more detail. For me, understanding exciting new technology and how it functions makes for a good technothriller, yet technology did not seem to be central to this book. Sure, there was suspense, mystery, and a little scheming, but I found the lack of focus on the technology made the book feel a little deflated for me.
I often found the book to be more confusing and overly complicated than the first book in the series. Apart from some electronic banking, satellite hacking, and some penetration testing, this story was less technology centric as it was character and event focused. I felt this story did not flow as smoothly as the first, and I would have liked to have had a bit more of a prequel section bringing the listener up to speed on the previous book’s events. Throughout the book, bits and pieces seemed to fill in some of the story gaps, but it just never reached that point where I felt a part of the story.
The book is vast and takes place over a number of location, some of them quite exotic, yet I did not get the feeling I was there. I did not feel the writing was overly descript, as I would have liked to have had some portions (mostly the technical ones) be more descript than they were. I want to learn something new and exciting about a technology I have not seen or heard of, but I found this never materialized for me even thought there were places I thought it would have fit perfectly.
I found the narration by Derek Shoales to be well done as there were many accents and a fair number of characters needing to be voiced. I found the audio levels to be consistent and the pacing of the book’s narration to be at an average speed. I do not recall any noticeable audio artifacts such as swallows, page turns or other background noise while listening.
For parents or potential younger readers, it should be noted that this book is not intended for younger readers as the language is quite vulgar along with direct and descriptive scenes of sex, many references to sexual innuendos, and a focus on the pornography industry. There is also a fair amount of quite graphic violence that would not be suitable for younger readers. Along with the above, there is a fair number of adult topics such as drug use, alcohol use, along with others. I would only recommend this book to mature audiences who are not offended by the above subject matter.
In summary, the book is really an action suspense story with a technology veneer. If you are a fan of technology thrillers, you may found yourself disappointed with the level of detail and actual technology used. Instead, if you like action and mystery books with some technology thrown in, you may enjoy this series.
October 1, 2017
This is a fairly complex, action-packed thriller with reasonably believable characters. Some of the actions and behaviors of the characters stretch credulity a bit and are rather predictable, but admittedly, there are a couple of very well written sex scenes.
Derek Shoales delivers an excellent performance, giving distinctive voices to the characters. His accents aren't always perfectly accurate, but they serve their purpose well.
The ending seems to be a major setup for the next book in the series -- a practice I abhor -- but it's not a cliffhanger, thankfully. I'm looking forward to the next book in the series.
NOTE: I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
Derek Shoales delivers an excellent performance, giving distinctive voices to the characters. His accents aren't always perfectly accurate, but they serve their purpose well.
The ending seems to be a major setup for the next book in the series -- a practice I abhor -- but it's not a cliffhanger, thankfully. I'm looking forward to the next book in the series.
NOTE: I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
October 27, 2017
I read the first book in this series several months ago and liked it. I thought there were a few small writing issues that the audiobook made more apparent. This time around the author has obviously matured. The story is engaging right from the beginning and the characters really develop in this book. The action doesn't stop. The narration is excellent. The story moves forward at a great pace, and I was so glad to be along for the journey!
I received a free copy of this audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left my honest review. The free copy did not influence my review in any way.
I received a free copy of this audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left my honest review. The free copy did not influence my review in any way.
October 17, 2017
( Format : audiobook )
"So cute when they become animated."
The information gatbering R group searches for a missing heiress and also investigates the disappearing drugs lords and their accumulated assets. Along the way, it uncovers financial and identity laundering, pornography and fashion, friendship, sex and romance together with a host of colourful characters and a blurring of distinction between criminal activity and Bad Boy rogues. A slow action thriller which would benefit from reduction in length, densely filled as it is with meticulous conversation which is often unnecessary and sometimes feels stilted and, frankly, silly. This is, presumably, to reinforce character identity and authenticity but which for this reader became tedious. It is also somewhat patronising towards the female protagonists.
Narrator Derek Shields has a pleasant to hear voice and he reads well, with good pace and clear delivery. There is not much differentiation between voices, other than through myriad assorted accents, some sounding rather spurious, but this in no way diminishes the performance overall.
A good story is buried beneath the over-verbiage, however. A stand alone story, second in the series, which first introduced the Group and it''s cyber expertise as well some of the characters in book one. My thanks to the rights holder of The Enigma Rising for gifting me a complimentary copy, via Audiobook Boom at my request and without expectation of any return
"So cute when they become animated."
The information gatbering R group searches for a missing heiress and also investigates the disappearing drugs lords and their accumulated assets. Along the way, it uncovers financial and identity laundering, pornography and fashion, friendship, sex and romance together with a host of colourful characters and a blurring of distinction between criminal activity and Bad Boy rogues. A slow action thriller which would benefit from reduction in length, densely filled as it is with meticulous conversation which is often unnecessary and sometimes feels stilted and, frankly, silly. This is, presumably, to reinforce character identity and authenticity but which for this reader became tedious. It is also somewhat patronising towards the female protagonists.
Narrator Derek Shields has a pleasant to hear voice and he reads well, with good pace and clear delivery. There is not much differentiation between voices, other than through myriad assorted accents, some sounding rather spurious, but this in no way diminishes the performance overall.
A good story is buried beneath the over-verbiage, however. A stand alone story, second in the series, which first introduced the Group and it''s cyber expertise as well some of the characters in book one. My thanks to the rights holder of The Enigma Rising for gifting me a complimentary copy, via Audiobook Boom at my request and without expectation of any return
July 21, 2018
There is a great deal to recommend “The Enigma Rising:” its colorful characters, quick dialogue and constant intrigue.
Read full review in the 2018 July Aug issue of InD'tale Magazine.
Read full review in the 2018 July Aug issue of InD'tale Magazine.
October 8, 2018
After reading the first book, I was interested to continue Jacob and Petra's story, especially since I loved all of the technology present in The Enigma Factor.
And while this book is good, I was slightly surprised that it didn't seem to be a continuation of the first, nor did it have the same amount of technology present. It seemed to be a side story. But don't let that make you think that the story wasn't good, it really was, it just wasn't what I expected.
I have a lot of the same comments with this book as I did with the last one regarding how forced the romance felt, however I did notice an improvement on character development with some of the background characters. A lot of the scenes carried more detailed descriptions which really improved the realisticness of the story; however the sex scenes (also present in the first book) also increased, which I certainly didn't care for.
So overall, I like the premise of the The Enigma series and so far I like the characters, but I'm not in love with it. The sex scenes present also repel me for enjoying it like I would've had they been left out. Because there are still 6 (almost 400 pages...) books left in the series, I'll likely not be finishing the entire series.
I received this audiobook from the author via AudioBookWorm for the purpose of this review. All comments and opinions are entirely my own.
This is a LiteratureApproved.com Review.
And while this book is good, I was slightly surprised that it didn't seem to be a continuation of the first, nor did it have the same amount of technology present. It seemed to be a side story. But don't let that make you think that the story wasn't good, it really was, it just wasn't what I expected.
I have a lot of the same comments with this book as I did with the last one regarding how forced the romance felt, however I did notice an improvement on character development with some of the background characters. A lot of the scenes carried more detailed descriptions which really improved the realisticness of the story; however the sex scenes (also present in the first book) also increased, which I certainly didn't care for.
So overall, I like the premise of the The Enigma series and so far I like the characters, but I'm not in love with it. The sex scenes present also repel me for enjoying it like I would've had they been left out. Because there are still 6 (almost 400 pages...) books left in the series, I'll likely not be finishing the entire series.
I received this audiobook from the author via AudioBookWorm for the purpose of this review. All comments and opinions are entirely my own.
This is a LiteratureApproved.com Review.
May 17, 2023
As a cybersecurity professional, I appreciate a technothriller that goes more than surface deep into technology. I've been looking for a series like this for a long time and this second book delivers just like the first.
This sophomore entry in the Engima Series is more focused on the thriller than technology compared to the first book. However, this book is a little more polished and it seems like the authors learned some lessons and applied them well.
I did not care for the erotic scenes in the first book so I'm happy to see there are less of them in this book. There's a little bit of graphic eroticism which doesn't need to be in this story but at least its not every other chapter this time. Our characters are growing up!
The end kind of dragged on. Normally I love a long epilogue but there's were several chapters that felt like they were not tying things up but instead setting up more for the future. I'm hoping this pays off in book 3 because it didn't make sense in book 2.
This sophomore entry in the Engima Series is more focused on the thriller than technology compared to the first book. However, this book is a little more polished and it seems like the authors learned some lessons and applied them well.
I did not care for the erotic scenes in the first book so I'm happy to see there are less of them in this book. There's a little bit of graphic eroticism which doesn't need to be in this story but at least its not every other chapter this time. Our characters are growing up!
The end kind of dragged on. Normally I love a long epilogue but there's were several chapters that felt like they were not tying things up but instead setting up more for the future. I'm hoping this pays off in book 3 because it didn't make sense in book 2.
October 5, 2018
This book is really good. Although I missed the main characters from book 1 this book had more suspense. And what better way to start off with them trying to find a missing girl. Did she runaway or kidnapped? With Otto's help can him and his team find the female and stop any attacks in the area and world? I love how this is based on hackers but yet action outside of the technology world as well. Who is covering for who? Who is playing both sides. I often wondered how the R team get themselves into some of this that I was like OMG damn. Already on book 3 and I'm sure it's going to get even better. Look out for my next review on book 3 coming soon.
October 11, 2018
Book #2 The Engima Rising was a better story than the first book. This was less of a sprawling plot with a clear aim, new characters and a better storyline. Definitely had more of a humorous tone which made me laugh out loud several times. A bit too heavy on the sexual activity though.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews