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Search and Destroy

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The CIA created him. Treachery unleashed him.

Cal Shepard was trained by the government to be a hunter of other assassins. He’s the tip of the spear in the war on terror and a master of tradecraft after 16 years in black-ops.

When he’s assigned to be a consultant for the Burke Corporation, a US defense firm creating a software-targeting database of terrorist threats, he thinks his time in the field is over. As an expectant father and with a battle-torn body, he’s more than ready to settle down for a while in the quiet suburbs outside of DC. Days before the database is supposed to go live, he is framed for murder and becomes the target of a nationwide manhunt.

But he’s not about to disappear....not without exacting revenge. With an FBI task force on his trail and a group of hired guns needing to take him down before he can uncover the truth, Shepard realizes that the network of corruption extends to the upper echelons of the government.

Applying his well-honed skills from years of search & destroy missions, Shepard takes the fight to the enemy, methodically hunting down those responsible and dispensing his own brand of justice.

For fans of Jack Reacher, Mitch Rapp, Jason Bourne and Jack Ryan comes an explosive espionage thriller from Amazon bestselling author JT Sawyer.

322 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 1, 2021

471 people are currently reading
172 people want to read

About the author

J.T. Sawyer

80 books120 followers

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5 stars
733 (68%)
4 stars
270 (25%)
3 stars
60 (5%)
2 stars
7 (<1%)
1 star
7 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 45 reviews
6,062 reviews78 followers
March 17, 2021
This is the first entry in a new series by JT Sawyer. It gets off to a good start with protagonist, Cal Shepard, assassinating some guy in a safe house. From there, we get to how the assassination came to be. Shepard was part of a search and destroy team, taking a break by helping a tech billionaire create a program that could predict events like coups. On his last day of work, a bomb goes off, killing the entire company hierarchy, and Shepard's wife. Shepard finds himself under suspicion, and under the gun.

It's nothing we haven't seen before, but very well done.

Recommended.
Profile Image for John.
490 reviews17 followers
February 27, 2022
⭐️⭐️ STUNNING DEBUT ⭐️⭐️

An extremely good start to a new series! Cal Shephard a tip of the spear kind of guy who works for a blacker than black SD, search and destroy CIA unit. He’s sent to work with a computer programmer to develop an ultra secret program to ferret out political coup’s and terrorist acts. PROBLEM! There are others who want to stop this or control. Everyone Cal Shepard knows and loves is killed. That starts the story, now read it!!! You won’t be disappointed!
Profile Image for Carl R Palmer.
22 reviews1 follower
Read
September 21, 2024
Great read. Full of action and some suspense.

Good start to a series. Action packed and a good story line. Couldn't put in down. Will read the next installment.
1,626 reviews13 followers
March 18, 2021
This is the 1st book in the series and it is a definite winner. The story has Cal working with a defense contractor in the development of special software. As the completion date nears, the head of the company is giving a party at his estate. Cal's boss also gives him a present for all of his support in the development of the software program. After Cal left the office, he picked up pies for the celebration. When he arrived at the estate his whole life fell apart.

Cal from that point of time made it his mission to discover who was responsible for the incident and make them pay. As he started gathering information on the parties responsible, somebody made a point to point the cause to him and he became a hunted man by the FBI and law enforcement. He also had to evade the law enforcement personnel as well as individuals who were trying to kill him. Even though he was working alone, he still ultimately got what he needed to find out who was responsible. At the same time, individuals that were involved a a lower level were also targets which he took care of.

While he was involved with this, he received a text from an unknown source with cryptic information. Once he was able to figure what the text meant, he went to the location to get the contents that were reported to be there. While there, he set off a silent alarm which had law enforcement responding. As the law got closer and he was almost certain to be caught, a member of his SAD team was able to help him get away. In addition she also played a part in the completion of Cal's task that he had started.

The final confrontation of the people responsible had Cal and his team mate, Viper, go to Texas to accomplish. At the same time, they also saved 3 members of the FBI.

To discover the event which changed Cal, what program Cal was working on and who the individuals were that planned and executed the incident, you need to read this book. It is well worth it and you won't be disappointed.
Profile Image for Brenda Cosby.
103 reviews
April 30, 2021
New series, great characters, no zombies! Lol

New series for JT, excellent writing and story telling. Great main characters and author shows expertise in how government agencies work, either for us or against us. Great read!
532 reviews4 followers
February 28, 2022
Great new series

Just finished the first episode of this new series and can't wait to get to the next book in line. The storyline is well written and action packed and keeps you turning the pages. Well done!
922 reviews10 followers
March 3, 2022
Adrenalin Pumping Page Turner!

Lawyer's real life experience, research and imagination provided the foundation for this gripping hardcore international military level tale! Readers won't be disappointed.
192 reviews2 followers
March 15, 2022
great read

As a new reader of jt sawyer I was knocked out of my socks with this book. Great characters and awesome plot line. The detail and the action packed into these pages left me wanting more. Couldn’t put it down.
31 reviews1 follower
Read
February 20, 2022
This is my kind of book, the bad kind of guys get their justice! I was kind of hoping that since his wife, Missy, had been blown from the upstairs porch, out onto the lawn with minor injuries.
670 reviews11 followers
June 13, 2021
I like novels about spies, assassins, and operators. When I have headaches, I look for thrillers that will divert my attention. This is the first book I’ve read of the author. The blurb caught my attention & I picked it up quickly.

Here we have a standard story of a lone operator, cut off from friends and family, blamed for the murder of a lot of people, including his wife. He cuts a path of destruction as he works through all of the bad people who took part in the plot to discredit him.

I found the character of Cal Shepard intriguing. He’s your good guy operator that likes being in the field, yet wants to also be home. His skills are used to remove other assassins from the field. He would be a fun character to follow in his Agency job before the events in this book take place.

While the action and plot were good, I downgraded the book due to its lack of computer knowledge. When an author uses the term “Mainframe” to describe a modern computer, I worry. To have the computers the main bit of software resides sitting in the office of the programmer genius is not how its done in the real world. Or that someone can steal the software system by stealing the “mainframe” out of the office. Ugh. Servers, data centers, cloud computing. This is modern. The computer part of the plot falls flat & distracts as the action ratchets up.

While I like the character and his world, the computer bits need updating. The next book is a continuation of the computer bit, so I’m not 100% sure if it’ll have the same issues as Cal Shepard brings a world of hurt to those that hurt him.
Profile Image for Claudete Takahashi.
2,490 reviews35 followers
April 18, 2021
I loved reading this book, it has action - lots of action, deceit, and determination in pursuing what is right and punishing what is wrong. The plot is well constructed and the story well written,and the main issue - an AI computer system - if it exists in real life, it may be a great help in fighting the bad guys. The main character - Cal Shepard - is almost a super human, but he definitely has feelings and shows extreme loyalty for those he loves. The story describes struggles and crimes that may be happening anywhere in the world to the benefit of only a few. Really entertaining! I´ll be looking forward to reading the next book in this series.
I downloaded a free copy of this book and this is my honest review.
1,587 reviews14 followers
December 15, 2024
This is the second book I've read by this author, and it needs to be made into a movie!

So many emotions you will experience in reading this action-packed story. My heart ached for what the H experiences in losing his wife and unborn baby. Life as he knew it is gone forever. The country he fought for is after him.

This story is filled with descriptive violence, suspense, intrigue, many twists and more villains than you can imagine.

Story is clean, no cheating, no cliffhanger, great set up for the next story which I've bought, HEA, fast paced, crude words used, and Lord's name used in vain a few times.

I can't improve on the blurb, just giving you extra tidbits to help you decide whether to purchase. (ljb)
7,709 reviews47 followers
April 13, 2021
SEARCH & DESTROY
...JT.Sawyer
..Cal.Shepherd..Black.Ops
Cal was a consultant for Burke Corporation going after terrorist’s.
Cal Shepherd mind was busy planning on how to eliminate Landis, with his steel door panic room costing 50 K and body guards. The solution was always the conduct system. The job unsanctioned, personal for a wife and friends, now payback time.
A job Burke started would Cal and Viper continue, first to Mumbai and a life on the run. Good clean story with an excellent plot. The jobs seems simple to plan, completing is not and the adventure to do so begins.
Given ARC for my voluntary review and my honest opinion
395 reviews4 followers
May 5, 2022
Shows what happens when gov’t people get out of control.

The author did a good job of putting the story and characters together. There was a nice flow in the story that kept your interest going. The book shows what can happen when there isn’t the right oversight on projects. Cal got his life destroyed when big money needs a fall guy. The way Cal fought back to get his revenge for the death’s of his wife and friends had a very nice tone to it. Now what does his future hold? Read and enjoy.
Profile Image for Victoria Beavers.
59 reviews3 followers
September 19, 2021
If You Enjoy This Genre, You'll Love This Book!

This is such an entertaining read. The action begins early. Violent and quick, it's just enough to set the tone of the story. After that, the plot is set up and the characters well established. Once that's accomplished, the action picks up once more, pounding out a frenetic pace until the wrap up.

All together it's an adrenaline treat just about par with Brad Thor. And it's a lot less money. I hope you enjoy it.
Profile Image for Shawn W.
58 reviews
July 19, 2023
Wow I absolutely loved this book. This is definitely in the same vein as Jack Ryan or Jason Bourne. I can tell this series is going to quickly rise to the top of my favorite list. I will keep it on the fringes until I read the next installment. If you are a fan of espionage thrillers this is definitely a book for you. I highly recommend this book. I kept finding reasons to take a break to read more.
536 reviews10 followers
March 22, 2021
An excellent first in a series black-ops thriller with a good storyline and strong well developed characters. Cal and Viper are very strong characters that the reader can relate to. A page turning story with plenty of action, suspense, and violence. Very enjoyable and highly recommended story by a very accomplished author. Looking forward to the next book in this series.
Profile Image for Billie.
5,778 reviews71 followers
April 13, 2021
This is a brilliant read.
Wonderful well written plot and story line that had me engaged from the start.
Love the well fleshed out characters and found them believable.
Great suspense and action with wonderful world building.
Can't wait to read what the author brings out next.
Recommend reading.

I read a complimentary advance copy of the book; this is my voluntary and honest review.
16 reviews
August 2, 2021
Read and enjoy

Please get the terrain correctly, the hill country in Texas is not in West Texas, it is located north of San Antonio and West of Austin about the center of the state. The story line is exciting and very believable and the characters are real life. I truly enjoyed this book and look forward to the next stage of this saga.😀
Profile Image for Stormy Shadows.
486 reviews11 followers
February 19, 2025
military action and its entertaining!

I really loved this. The characters were fun to get to know and all the ops going on it kept me entertained through the whole book. If you’re a fan of military fiction or books that deal with heavy military with some action then I really recommend! I’m a sucker for a good military book.
Profile Image for Connie Hamby.
989 reviews9 followers
December 8, 2022
A truely good book!

I really enjoyed reading this book i really like cal Shepard if you like good action books i know you will to! Jt Sawyer has got a winner with these books i can't wait for the next one!
1,124 reviews2 followers
December 26, 2022
HIGHER ENTERTAINING THRILLER

A fantastic introduction to a new espionage thriller series. The characters are intense each possessing unique attributes and strengths. An intense read from start to finish.
Profile Image for Samantha Glass.
1,096 reviews6 followers
April 14, 2023
For all spy thriller fans, especially those with a point man and ensemble team, this is the book for you. Very Jason Bourne/James Bond/Jack Ryan vibes with money, secrets, politics, revenge, you name it. Moves at a quick pace. Enjoyed it.
4 reviews
April 20, 2023
I couldn’t put this one down.

Very well written and suspenseful. For anyone who likes action books I would recommend checking this one out. I will be moving on to the next in the series.
93 reviews1 follower
February 12, 2024
Don't get mad at the good guy

A excellent read that will keep you entertained and not able to put the book down. The escape and evade keeps the reader trying to figure out the next move.
248 reviews6 followers
April 30, 2021
If you're looking for a romantic PC story with a female lead. This ain't it! This is full on action at it's best!
Profile Image for HaloLove.
276 reviews9 followers
March 8, 2022
Fantastic read!

I am so in desperate need of this book becoming a video game! The action was phenomenal and the hero of the story lost so much but his vengeance was oh so sweet!
1 review
March 16, 2022
Good read

Good read. Suspenseful, hard to put down. Looking forward to the next book in the series. I will definitely continue reading.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 45 reviews

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