What do you think?
Rate this book
A. Shaw #2
Deliver Us From Evil
Locked in a battle of nerve and wits, a mysterious intelligence operative and a vigilante agent race against time to take down a greedy businessman bent on destroying millions of lives in this #1 New York Times bestselling thriller.
Evan Waller is a monster . . .
He has built a fortune from his willingness to buy and sell anything . . . and anyone. In search of new opportunities, Waller has just begun a new business venture: one that could lead to millions of deaths all over the globe. On his trail is Shaw, the mysterious operative from The Whole Truth, who has tracked Waller to Provence and must prevent him from closing his latest deal. But someone else is pursuing Waller: Reggie Campion, an agent for a secret vigilante group headquartered in a musty old English estate—and she has an agenda of her own.
Hunting the same man and unaware of each other's mission, Shaw and Reggie will be caught in a deadly duel of nerves and wits. Hitchcockian in its intimate buildup of suspense and filled with the remarkable characters, breathtaking plot turns, and blockbuster finale that are David Baldacci's hallmarks, Deliver Us From Evil is one of the most gripping thrillers you'll read this year.
Evan Waller is a monster . . .
He has built a fortune from his willingness to buy and sell anything . . . and anyone. In search of new opportunities, Waller has just begun a new business venture: one that could lead to millions of deaths all over the globe. On his trail is Shaw, the mysterious operative from The Whole Truth, who has tracked Waller to Provence and must prevent him from closing his latest deal. But someone else is pursuing Waller: Reggie Campion, an agent for a secret vigilante group headquartered in a musty old English estate—and she has an agenda of her own.
Hunting the same man and unaware of each other's mission, Shaw and Reggie will be caught in a deadly duel of nerves and wits. Hitchcockian in its intimate buildup of suspense and filled with the remarkable characters, breathtaking plot turns, and blockbuster finale that are David Baldacci's hallmarks, Deliver Us From Evil is one of the most gripping thrillers you'll read this year.
Audio CD
First published April 20, 2010
About the author
David Baldacci
378 books116k followersDavid Baldacci has been writing since childhood, when his mother gave him a lined notebook in which to write down his stories. (Much later, when David thanked her for being the spark that ignited his writing career, she revealed that she’d given him the notebook to keep him quiet, "because every mom needs a break now and then.”)
David published his first novel, Absolute Power, in 1996; the feature film adaptation followed, with Clint Eastwood as its director and star. In total, David has published 46 novels for adults; all have been national and international bestsellers, and several have been adapted for film and television. His books are published in over 45 languages and in more than 80 countries, with 150 million copies sold worldwide. David has also published seven novels for younger readers.
In addition to being a prolific writer, David is a devoted philanthropist, and his greatest efforts are dedicated to his family’s Wish You Well Foundation®. Established by David and his wife, Michelle, the Wish You Well Foundation supports family and adult literacy programs in the United States.
A lifelong Virginian, David is a graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University and the University of Virginia School of Law.
David published his first novel, Absolute Power, in 1996; the feature film adaptation followed, with Clint Eastwood as its director and star. In total, David has published 46 novels for adults; all have been national and international bestsellers, and several have been adapted for film and television. His books are published in over 45 languages and in more than 80 countries, with 150 million copies sold worldwide. David has also published seven novels for younger readers.
In addition to being a prolific writer, David is a devoted philanthropist, and his greatest efforts are dedicated to his family’s Wish You Well Foundation®. Established by David and his wife, Michelle, the Wish You Well Foundation supports family and adult literacy programs in the United States.
A lifelong Virginian, David is a graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University and the University of Virginia School of Law.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,586 reviews
May 27, 2015
I am disappointed with Baldacci. The reason I enjoyed his books in the past was that he weaves a great story without the typical sex, language, violence, etc. I knew this book would be darker from his others from the title, but Baldacci included sex and gratuitous violence that added nothing to the story. I would only recommend this book to die-hard Baldacci fans but skip chapters 1, 2 & 37!!!! These chapters are so far past the line of decency that you can no longer see the line. Chapters 1 & 2 have too much explicit sex and chapter 37 is a gross, disturbing, detailed description of graphic torture & violence. I skipped the majority of these chapters and suggest that you do to if you insist on reading this disturbing book.
April 11, 2023
Deliver Us From Evil by David Baldacci.
I am really surprised at the 4-star rating for this book by other readers. They must have gotten something from DUFE that I completely missed.
What didn't I like? The characters for the most part. Overall they seemed whiny and unlikeable and I'm talking the "good guys" not the monster, Evan Waller. He at least was true to his character.
Katie James, reporter: A renowned journalist in her 40's and single. Let's not forget single because "we all know" that successful women in their 40's can't have or have had a successful relationship along the way too.
In the first book she forces her way into a situation/operation Shaw is working, as journalists do. They spend a few weeks "together" working around the terrorist operation. I put together in "" because they weren't even in the same country a good part of the time. So in DUFE Katie decides that even though Shaw's fiancé (the only woman/person he ever let get close to him.blah.blah.) died in the last book, that there is something "between" them and she must have him. She calls him so often that like most men he just stops answering the phone. So she calls his boss (of a super-secret international spy organization!) and bugs him. She flies from San Francisco to Paris "just to see him and make sure he is alive and well". Really? James acts like a 16-yr-old in 'luuuuuv'. She is annoying and pathetic. I was SO disappointed when DB did not kill her off. I would have actually helped the monster shoot straighter just to get rid of her. And seriously Baldacci? You went to great lengths to describe the big caliber that would have no trouble bringing down a caribou or polar bear, yet Katie lives through a chest shot? How stupid do you think readers of this genre are? You even described the "huge exit wound in her back" and still the bitch did not die. Ugh.
Shaw, 6'6" international man of mystery: A cross between Edward Munch's 'The Scream' and Eeyore (woe is me...). Shaw buried his fiancé in the last book and feels guilty about her death maybe being related to his anti-terrorist operation. I get that. But then he extends his realm of guilt "Katie wouldn't have been shot at if not for me..." Excuse me, we see enough of this in the real world of people not taking responsibility for their actions. Katie forced her way into that situation and put herself in harm's way. This is just more of Shaw's 'poor me, everything is my fault, I don't deserve anyone good...' BS. And even when Reggie, Witt and Dominic go to Canada with him, he's guilty "this is all because of me.." Um, no, it's because they also tried to kill Evan Waller. Shaw is a martyr so there must be another book coming that will bring him together with another love. Unfortunately it will probably be Katie James instead of Reggie or someone else, and in that case I probably won't bother to read it.
Smart and capable but not especially likable. And for me, these characteristics do not translate into "sensitive, caring, a man I want to spend my life with, dream about or sigh over."
Frank, Shaw's boss: Really a supporting character but since he's Shaw's boss he gets to throw out lines like "You didn't deserve Anna and you don't deserve Katie." Talk about kicking a guy! A terrorist shot your fiancé so you didn't deserve her? Katie forced her way into the situation and got shot at and you don't want a stalking psychopath so "you don't deserve her"? Really? Sounds like Frank is mad that Katie wants Shaw and not him. Shaw doesn't want some stupid woman throwing herself at him, practically stalking him, just a few months after his fiancé's death, and this is cause for ridicule? Shaw slept with Reggie once after they escaped from the cave shootout with Waller's gang, so what? We've all heard of that post-stress adrenaline stuff. Big deal. And Shaw actually likes Reggie, he thinks he "cares deeply" about Katie but quite frankly I think it's just more guilt because it's all tied up in Anna's death.
Evan Waller, monster: At least Waller's character acted like he was supposed to, evil to the core and proud of it. Former KGB and "the real butcher of Kiev" did not change his stripes, ever.
p.s. Way to go,
Hey authors, here's a tip from readers. Just because you live with characters every day for months/years before the next book comes out and feel like it's been soooo long since the loved one died does not mean it is the same for readers. For us, the 'loved one' died ... IN THE LAST BOOK. So if you are going to move Character X onward, provide some time-framing context in the next book. i.e. "For months X was barely able to ....", "Y still thinks about D even though it's been ...", etc. Give us some context to move on, otherwise to us it's "Sheesh, your loved one just died and now you're madly in love, hopping into bed..." And by some I mean more than one time. If you want readers to identify with a character's guilt then give us good reason to. Throwing out a few self-serving lines like "because of my work, everyone close to me dies" is old and worn out and not believable anymore.
And I can't blame the audio reader for the poor showing of this book. Ron McLarty has read many of Baldacci's books and done a wonderful job on each. The fault with "Deliver Us From Evil" lies solely with the author, David Baldacci.
As always, I'd love to hear feedback or rebuttal!
I am really surprised at the 4-star rating for this book by other readers. They must have gotten something from DUFE that I completely missed.
What didn't I like? The characters for the most part. Overall they seemed whiny and unlikeable and I'm talking the "good guys" not the monster, Evan Waller. He at least was true to his character.
Katie James, reporter: A renowned journalist in her 40's and single. Let's not forget single because "we all know" that successful women in their 40's can't have or have had a successful relationship along the way too.
In the first book she forces her way into a situation/operation Shaw is working, as journalists do. They spend a few weeks "together" working around the terrorist operation. I put together in "" because they weren't even in the same country a good part of the time. So in DUFE Katie decides that even though Shaw's fiancé (the only woman/person he ever let get close to him.blah.blah.) died in the last book, that there is something "between" them and she must have him. She calls him so often that like most men he just stops answering the phone. So she calls his boss (of a super-secret international spy organization!) and bugs him. She flies from San Francisco to Paris "just to see him and make sure he is alive and well". Really? James acts like a 16-yr-old in 'luuuuuv'. She is annoying and pathetic. I was SO disappointed when DB did not kill her off. I would have actually helped the monster shoot straighter just to get rid of her. And seriously Baldacci? You went to great lengths to describe the big caliber that would have no trouble bringing down a caribou or polar bear, yet Katie lives through a chest shot? How stupid do you think readers of this genre are? You even described the "huge exit wound in her back" and still the bitch did not die. Ugh.
Shaw, 6'6" international man of mystery: A cross between Edward Munch's 'The Scream' and Eeyore (woe is me...). Shaw buried his fiancé in the last book and feels guilty about her death maybe being related to his anti-terrorist operation. I get that. But then he extends his realm of guilt "Katie wouldn't have been shot at if not for me..." Excuse me, we see enough of this in the real world of people not taking responsibility for their actions. Katie forced her way into that situation and put herself in harm's way. This is just more of Shaw's 'poor me, everything is my fault, I don't deserve anyone good...' BS. And even when Reggie, Witt and Dominic go to Canada with him, he's guilty "this is all because of me.." Um, no, it's because they also tried to kill Evan Waller. Shaw is a martyr so there must be another book coming that will bring him together with another love. Unfortunately it will probably be Katie James instead of Reggie or someone else, and in that case I probably won't bother to read it.
Smart and capable but not especially likable. And for me, these characteristics do not translate into "sensitive, caring, a man I want to spend my life with, dream about or sigh over."
Frank, Shaw's boss: Really a supporting character but since he's Shaw's boss he gets to throw out lines like "You didn't deserve Anna and you don't deserve Katie." Talk about kicking a guy! A terrorist shot your fiancé so you didn't deserve her? Katie forced her way into the situation and got shot at and you don't want a stalking psychopath so "you don't deserve her"? Really? Sounds like Frank is mad that Katie wants Shaw and not him. Shaw doesn't want some stupid woman throwing herself at him, practically stalking him, just a few months after his fiancé's death, and this is cause for ridicule? Shaw slept with Reggie once after they escaped from the cave shootout with Waller's gang, so what? We've all heard of that post-stress adrenaline stuff. Big deal. And Shaw actually likes Reggie, he thinks he "cares deeply" about Katie but quite frankly I think it's just more guilt because it's all tied up in Anna's death.
Evan Waller, monster: At least Waller's character acted like he was supposed to, evil to the core and proud of it. Former KGB and "the real butcher of Kiev" did not change his stripes, ever.
p.s. Way to go,
Hey authors, here's a tip from readers. Just because you live with characters every day for months/years before the next book comes out and feel like it's been soooo long since the loved one died does not mean it is the same for readers. For us, the 'loved one' died ... IN THE LAST BOOK. So if you are going to move Character X onward, provide some time-framing context in the next book. i.e. "For months X was barely able to ....", "Y still thinks about D even though it's been ...", etc. Give us some context to move on, otherwise to us it's "Sheesh, your loved one just died and now you're madly in love, hopping into bed..." And by some I mean more than one time. If you want readers to identify with a character's guilt then give us good reason to. Throwing out a few self-serving lines like "because of my work, everyone close to me dies" is old and worn out and not believable anymore.
And I can't blame the audio reader for the poor showing of this book. Ron McLarty has read many of Baldacci's books and done a wonderful job on each. The fault with "Deliver Us From Evil" lies solely with the author, David Baldacci.
As always, I'd love to hear feedback or rebuttal!
May 24, 2020
5 stars.
Some things do seem far fetched. However, I feel that the reason for those things that are far fetched is because of grief. I think grief journey is different for everyone and that applies with Shaw. With his grief journey, he has a lot of guilt. Reggie is also dealing with grief journey and hers is horrific(her past is explain at the end). Guilt can make the grief journey even harder. There is no time expiration with grief. Again, everyone reacts differently with grief.
Yes, this book has evil. History has evil and good. Without evil, we cannot cherish our Blessings. It can be hard to see Blessings with darkness in word. “We just have to Faith.”
Slight Spoilers here:
-Reggie’s dad killed her brother and mom when she was a child. Her brother died because he told police the truth about his dad. Their dad felt it was act of betrayal. Their dad was a serial killer. Not a surprise with the career she choose. Those who feel that grief has no time expiration would not understand the character Reggie. With all due respect.
-Shaw has guilt on his grief for things could have been done different. That is one of things that makes the grief journey seem like you are drowning. When faced with the possibility of that happening again, a person might do things that seem far fetched. With all due respect.
🇺🇸🦋
Some things do seem far fetched. However, I feel that the reason for those things that are far fetched is because of grief. I think grief journey is different for everyone and that applies with Shaw. With his grief journey, he has a lot of guilt. Reggie is also dealing with grief journey and hers is horrific(her past is explain at the end). Guilt can make the grief journey even harder. There is no time expiration with grief. Again, everyone reacts differently with grief.
Yes, this book has evil. History has evil and good. Without evil, we cannot cherish our Blessings. It can be hard to see Blessings with darkness in word. “We just have to Faith.”
Slight Spoilers here:
-Reggie’s dad killed her brother and mom when she was a child. Her brother died because he told police the truth about his dad. Their dad felt it was act of betrayal. Their dad was a serial killer. Not a surprise with the career she choose. Those who feel that grief has no time expiration would not understand the character Reggie. With all due respect.
-Shaw has guilt on his grief for things could have been done different. That is one of things that makes the grief journey seem like you are drowning. When faced with the possibility of that happening again, a person might do things that seem far fetched. With all due respect.
🇺🇸🦋
May 17, 2018
Another underwhelming book by Baldacci. This series has been shit and none of Baldacci's trademarks are evident. The plot is moronic and the characters behave as though they were in a YA novel with their whingeing and relationship angst.
WTF did I read. Stay away from the Shaw series.
WTF did I read. Stay away from the Shaw series.
May 5, 2010
One word: awful. I don't know what's wrong with Baldacci, but this is the second of his last two books that have been truly bad. I always admired Baldacci for knowing how to expertly walk the line between having a compelling, suspenseful story, and having lots of graphic violence. With this novel he has crossed the line into gratuitous violence without a real purpose, and that really adds nothing to the story. The guy was a bad guy, a serious torturer, we get it...move on! Unnecessary. And the ending? Are you serious? Guy "causes" harm to girl because of his work, guy cuts off girl...I feel like we've been here before, yes?
April 27, 2020
Special Agent Shaw is in Provence hoping to arrest organised gang leader, Kurchin, who is reportedly trying to sell nuclear materials to Islamic fundamentalists. Reggie and her crew are also in Provence, seeking to kill a Ukrainian Soviet-era war criminal... Kurchin! Two sets of people after the same man, but for different crimes... and the man himself... pure evil, but extremely rich, professional and powerful. Another typical pulp fiction thriller roller coaster by Baldacci. 5 out of 12.
May 22, 2016
A escrita de Baldacci é fluída e simples.
Este foi outro livro dele que me manteve sempre interessada, apesar de ser um livro grande não cansou.
Conta histórias brutais, de forma crua, que me deixou arrepiada por vezes.
Adorei Reggie, é uma personagem forte e de convicções. E Shaw, apesar de abrutalhado, também me conquistou.
Muito bom!!
Este foi outro livro dele que me manteve sempre interessada, apesar de ser um livro grande não cansou.
Conta histórias brutais, de forma crua, que me deixou arrepiada por vezes.
Adorei Reggie, é uma personagem forte e de convicções. E Shaw, apesar de abrutalhado, também me conquistou.
Muito bom!!
May 1, 2012
I don't know why the commotion of having some sexual topics, mild strong language, and very explicit violence scene is. I mean, the very first few chapters didn't aroused any feelings other than intrigue and it was clear as water that it wasn't erotica. Yes, one chapter in particular does have a strong and painful torture, but I guess that just enhances Evan's evilness. Personally, I think this book challenges the reader to think what is evil and why evil breeds in some of us. Not a lot of books can mentally challenge you to answer those questions while it entertains you. I must say that I never read about a character like Fedir Kuchin. He's charming, lethal, old, and strong. It's impossible to dislike him or to not fall for his ways. Yet, he's evil... yet, you see the reasons why he's evil. I recommend this book to any person that wants to be thrilled, see action, sparks of romance, and mystery all the way while you're challenged to understand evilness itself.
December 10, 2010
Back to form for Baldacci after True Blue. I thoroughly enjoyed this follow up to The Whole Truth and hearing more about Shaw's exploits. Jack Reacher he may not be, but nevertheless Shaw is a pretty decent hero. The book fairly rollicked along and I could barely put it down.
Some of the reviews have mentioned gratuitous violence... I have to be honest this was fairly infrequent and mostly necessary, not gratuitous. Fedir Kuchin was one of the most evil people on the planet and capable of horrendous acts against fellow human beings - how are you supposed to get that across properly without explaining some of the terrible things that he did or was doing? Just say he's really bad? What's the flip-side... that Shaw is a nice person and good at his job? The two of them have a bit of a set-to and the good guy wins? It would be different I think if he was a nazi like the opening mission. The horrors of the holocaust are well known and little explanation is required to describe somebody who played an active role in it. I had never heard of the Holodomor and the atrocities in the Ukraine under Stalin's leadership and description was necessary to understand the scale of the genocide.
Baldacci's characterisation was better in this one than the Whole Truth and you do come away knowing more about Shaw and wanting to know what happens to him, Katie, Reggie etc next. I look forward to the next one!
Some of the reviews have mentioned gratuitous violence... I have to be honest this was fairly infrequent and mostly necessary, not gratuitous. Fedir Kuchin was one of the most evil people on the planet and capable of horrendous acts against fellow human beings - how are you supposed to get that across properly without explaining some of the terrible things that he did or was doing? Just say he's really bad? What's the flip-side... that Shaw is a nice person and good at his job? The two of them have a bit of a set-to and the good guy wins? It would be different I think if he was a nazi like the opening mission. The horrors of the holocaust are well known and little explanation is required to describe somebody who played an active role in it. I had never heard of the Holodomor and the atrocities in the Ukraine under Stalin's leadership and description was necessary to understand the scale of the genocide.
Baldacci's characterisation was better in this one than the Whole Truth and you do come away knowing more about Shaw and wanting to know what happens to him, Katie, Reggie etc next. I look forward to the next one!
July 28, 2022
Two groups are after a known mass killer, Evan Waller AKA Fedir Kuchin. he was responsible for the deaths of thousands of Ukrainians during WW II. One group is from England and is operating on a shoestring budget. They have been hunting and killing escaped Nazis and other mass murders for years. The other consists of Shaw and his boss, Frank, part of a clandestine group operating out of the United States. Shaw is after Waller because he is dealing with terrorists who want to purchase spent uranium to make a bomb. He is unaware of Waller's alter identity as well as the other groups out to kill Waller-Kuchin. There are some exciting scenes and a bit or romance tossed in. The story moves along to a climax in Labrador, on the Atlantic coast. Reggie and Shaw get assistance from an unlikely source in their final showdown with Waller-Kuchin.
September 21, 2010
Ok, so I didn't enjoy this book as much as other Baldacci books. I knew it would be darker - it is called "Deliver Us From Evil" and is about an x-KGB guy who killed and tortured 100,000's of people during the cold war, and then escaped before he was captured, and became a business man dealing in human trafficking. I still read it because I was excited for the return of Shaw from The Whole Truth.
I still enjoyed Shaw as the main character, and most of the story was typical Baldacci - exciting and full of twists. But this is the first time I ever read a Baldacci book and thought "why did he have to put that in? He could have left that out and still told the story." One of my favorite things about Baldacci is that he tells a great story without throwing in unnecessary sex, language, violence, etc. But in this book, he had one chapter (chapter 37) that really went too far. It was talking about Evan Waller torturing a Muslim that had double crossed him, and got very explicit and detailed. And frankly, just gross and disturbing. I read the chapter, because Baldacci books have so many twist and turns, that I didn't want to miss something, but there isn't anything there that you need to know for the rest of the story other than Waller tortured the muslim and that he is beyond cruel (which you have pretty much already figured out in the previous 36 chapters). The only other information that comes into play later is in the last 2 paragraphs of the chapter, and it isn't even an intragal part of the story.
So, I'd only recommend this book to die-hard Baldacci fans who want to know the contiuation of Shaw's story - but skip chapter 37!!!!
I still enjoyed Shaw as the main character, and most of the story was typical Baldacci - exciting and full of twists. But this is the first time I ever read a Baldacci book and thought "why did he have to put that in? He could have left that out and still told the story." One of my favorite things about Baldacci is that he tells a great story without throwing in unnecessary sex, language, violence, etc. But in this book, he had one chapter (chapter 37) that really went too far. It was talking about Evan Waller torturing a Muslim that had double crossed him, and got very explicit and detailed. And frankly, just gross and disturbing. I read the chapter, because Baldacci books have so many twist and turns, that I didn't want to miss something, but there isn't anything there that you need to know for the rest of the story other than Waller tortured the muslim and that he is beyond cruel (which you have pretty much already figured out in the previous 36 chapters). The only other information that comes into play later is in the last 2 paragraphs of the chapter, and it isn't even an intragal part of the story.
So, I'd only recommend this book to die-hard Baldacci fans who want to know the contiuation of Shaw's story - but skip chapter 37!!!!
March 14, 2015
As an audio book, it's difficult to skip sections; and that was a problem in this book because of the graphic violence. Not a pleasant book to keep me company on the rush hour drive. I enjoyed the Reggie / Shaw relationship, but at the end I thought Reggie lost her edge and was not as strong a heroine or leader as she started out to be. Evan Waller was a good and convincing villain. Other characters like Witt rang true; the others like Professor Mallory and Allen Rice seemed more formulaic than real.
I stopped listening about 3/4 through because I could sense what was coming (one of our heroes was sure to be captured by Evan and torture would ensue). I may have been wrong but I wasn't that invested in Reggie and Shaw's relationship to endure the rest of the book.
Hearing it aloud also emphasized the lengthy background story - there were a couple chapters on Evan (his safe room in his home in Canada and at his house in the 'polar tundra') where there wasn't a single line of dialog. The narrative was overbearing, and at times, unnecessary.
I enjoy Baldacci's books and love to listen to Ron McLarty's voice (he's superb with the accents and differentiating characters, and seems to slip out of character or water down an accent only a few times making it difficult to know who's speaking). I recommend all Baldacci's books and these audio books except this one, which is not for the squeamish.
I stopped listening about 3/4 through because I could sense what was coming (one of our heroes was sure to be captured by Evan and torture would ensue). I may have been wrong but I wasn't that invested in Reggie and Shaw's relationship to endure the rest of the book.
Hearing it aloud also emphasized the lengthy background story - there were a couple chapters on Evan (his safe room in his home in Canada and at his house in the 'polar tundra') where there wasn't a single line of dialog. The narrative was overbearing, and at times, unnecessary.
I enjoy Baldacci's books and love to listen to Ron McLarty's voice (he's superb with the accents and differentiating characters, and seems to slip out of character or water down an accent only a few times making it difficult to know who's speaking). I recommend all Baldacci's books and these audio books except this one, which is not for the squeamish.
January 17, 2016
David Baldacci has written lots of books. Some of them I like, some of them I'm okay with, some of them I don't like (at all). This one falls in the "okay" area.
The first A. Shaw book I liked much better. There is also a sort of irony here as I just read another thriller that went down the same somewhat overused road. In the first book A's (yes A is his name not an initial) "love of his life" was killed and he went deeply into depression. However he did still manage to function...
Well to be fair he functions here to, but with a lot of angsty illogical actions. I had several "oh come on moments" in this one.
In some ways you could almost call this Mr. and Mrs. Smith meets The Most Dangerous Game...well except there's no odd strange double triangle in either of those.
And that's all I'll say about any of that as I don't want to give anything spoilery. Let us just say that A fails again as a "professional" and the book moves somewhat farther from the internal reality of the story. Still it (finally as I just said about another angsty thriller) pulls itself together and gets on with the story (in about the last third of the book).
Look, you may not be as annoyed (and occasionally bored) as I was with the story. Try it yourself and see.
The first A. Shaw book I liked much better. There is also a sort of irony here as I just read another thriller that went down the same somewhat overused road. In the first book A's (yes A is his name not an initial) "love of his life" was killed and he went deeply into depression. However he did still manage to function...
Well to be fair he functions here to, but with a lot of angsty illogical actions. I had several "oh come on moments" in this one.
In some ways you could almost call this Mr. and Mrs. Smith meets The Most Dangerous Game...well except there's no odd strange double triangle in either of those.
And that's all I'll say about any of that as I don't want to give anything spoilery. Let us just say that A fails again as a "professional" and the book moves somewhat farther from the internal reality of the story. Still it (finally as I just said about another angsty thriller) pulls itself together and gets on with the story (in about the last third of the book).
Look, you may not be as annoyed (and occasionally bored) as I was with the story. Try it yourself and see.
September 5, 2018
Shaw is a dangerous man to know, but he meets some intriguing characters and some real monsters.
August 17, 2019
Baldacci books are never works of art, but this one was more like spilled paint.
August 2, 2015
fast unpredictable another stand out from one of our favorite Writers.
pleased to see Katie made it so there is potential for them getting back together
its going to be interesting to see which way David Baldacci will go if there will be a sequel
it goes into my favs this one not sure which one to start next i have three more waiting to read
"The Winner" "last man Standing" And The Finisher all on the kindle any suggestions which one to read next?
pleased to see Katie made it so there is potential for them getting back together
its going to be interesting to see which way David Baldacci will go if there will be a sequel
it goes into my favs this one not sure which one to start next i have three more waiting to read
"The Winner" "last man Standing" And The Finisher all on the kindle any suggestions which one to read next?
April 8, 2019
I can't think of a better author to take along on a road trip than David Baldacci. Listening to the harrowing nip-and-tuck twists-and-turns in the audiobook version of DELIVER US FROM EVIL kept us on the edge of our seats. Very much so! Be forewarned... you may be so absorbed in the storyline that you'll miss your turnoff. I highly recommend this book!
August 31, 2018
2018 - Five star read until about 70%... then it goes downhill. Still a decent read. Probably won’t read it again though
2015 - Good read
2015 - Good read
August 18, 2016
A good story ruined by illicit sex and excessive profanity.
March 16, 2021
This book started out slow in the sense of being a little mixed up and seemingly disjointed action. It was during the last third of the book that I had a hard time putting it down. It seemed all the ikea pieces were coming together and the book was coming together. So many ties to the first book in the comments and Shaw's reactions that I found myself trying to remember the first book to get more into the story.
April 6, 2020
My first Baldacci. Entertaining, felt like James Bond or Jason Bourne. Looking forward to picking up more from Baldacci.
November 4, 2020
Great suspense til the last bit. The ending was somewhat disappointing.
September 15, 2010
I'm sad, because I'm a huge Baldacci fan, but this book was awful. It was very violent, so much so I skipped entire chapters and I really couldn't get into the characters. I read the end and found myself thinking "what? just happened?" I will definitely read the next Baldacci, because I've never been let down like this before, but this one just wasn't a winner. The Winner - now there's a great Baldacci novel.
October 31, 2021
"A novel that truly shows just how evil some people are in this world. It makes you wonder how few have survived situations like this fighting against evil and barley living to tell of the experience. "
December 6, 2022
Well written was visually able to imagine the horror the protagonist inflicted unbelievable how someone could be so evil
September 29, 2021
Predictable
There's a slight twist in the take of this story but then again I think that there needs to be. It's not his best book but I think it's okay
There's a slight twist in the take of this story but then again I think that there needs to be. It's not his best book but I think it's okay
July 26, 2016
Someone left this at my house. I never say no to free books but maybe I should start. I've heard that Baldacci is a good writer. He sure does sell a lot of books, but for the life of me, after reading this one, I can't at all figure out why. Perhaps his earlier books are better. This one had the feel of a real mass-produced churn factory.
Let's start with the premise. A. Shaw, a secret agent who works for an unnamed US agency, I think, decides to take down Evan Waller, a Canadian who leads a sex-trafficking business and has decided to sell nuclear materials to a terrorist organization. At the same time, Reggie Campion, a beautiful British woman who works for a secret vigilante organization also decides to take out Waller, on the premise that his real identity is that of a former KGB heavy by the name of Fedir Kuchin.
Both agencies work at cross purposes to get Waller until the nuclear deal falls through and Shaw's agency decides Waller is no longer a worthy target. However, by this point, Shaw has fallen a bit for Reggie, who is masquerading as a wealthy American orphan and has piqued the interest of the sadistic Mr. Waller. Thinking Reggie doesn't know what she's getting into, Shaw wants to stay to protect her. In the meantime, he's regretting ending a relationship with journalist Katie James, and his boss, Frank, constantly reminds him that he's not worthy of the woman.
So on the face of it, if I had just read the above, I'd be like, hmmmm sounds interesting. But man the writing and the characters will really let a girl down. This reads more like a bare bones screen play that no one picked up so Baldacci decided to turn it into a novel. Although the dialogue and low-brow descriptions make it a fast read, the only thing positive I can say is that at least I didn't spend too much time on it. My purpose was to read it lake-side at our family cottage over vacation and I mostly succeeded because the 3-4 page chapters were perfect for the constant interruption of my two toddlers.
So here's what went wrong. The characters all kind of suck. Their motivations are uneven, their backstories provided as a matter of rote. Their interactions with each other don't really make sense. People pop in and out of the plot without seeming to really know what they are doing there. When Frank tells us that Shaw doesn't deserve Katie James, we're not really sure why? Because he's emotionally unavailable? He's a secret agent, I'm not sure how available he's supposed to be. Meanwhile Shaw is getting all googly over Reggie while at the same time telling us that he's not too interested. It's all very awkward in the writing.
The book also just flat out tells us things about the people without letting the reader learn them organically to the story. Evan Waller, the evil man in the story is completely evil. The only off detail is a fondness for his own mother and a leaning towards being religious. This, I suppose, is supposed to give him some depth, but it just doesn't work.
In the end, Waller is played out like an evil genius who is one step ahead of our heroes and he is, until seemingly he's not and the reasons why don't really feel all that realistic.
While reading this book, I was increasingly feeling like perhaps this was at least the second book in a series and that perhaps I was missing something. When I got home from my internet free vacation, I looked it up and indeed it IS the second book in a series about A. Shaw (yeah he has no first name, get over it). So I thought, I should go ahead and read that maybe to get some context, but according to goodreads, I read it 5 years ago. And even reading my review I have NO idea what it was about and I can't actually remember reading it at all. Memorable huh?
This book is a major skip unless you are on the beach and want an easy read. Some poor guy on our airplane back was reading a different Baldacci book and I gave him this one as he said he'd not read it and I finally finished it 20 minutes into the flight. That poor guy has no idea what I just did to him, but if he was reading another, he maybe won't be surprised. I think I'll let another 5 years pass before I read another of Baldacci's novels.
Let's start with the premise. A. Shaw, a secret agent who works for an unnamed US agency, I think, decides to take down Evan Waller, a Canadian who leads a sex-trafficking business and has decided to sell nuclear materials to a terrorist organization. At the same time, Reggie Campion, a beautiful British woman who works for a secret vigilante organization also decides to take out Waller, on the premise that his real identity is that of a former KGB heavy by the name of Fedir Kuchin.
Both agencies work at cross purposes to get Waller until the nuclear deal falls through and Shaw's agency decides Waller is no longer a worthy target. However, by this point, Shaw has fallen a bit for Reggie, who is masquerading as a wealthy American orphan and has piqued the interest of the sadistic Mr. Waller. Thinking Reggie doesn't know what she's getting into, Shaw wants to stay to protect her. In the meantime, he's regretting ending a relationship with journalist Katie James, and his boss, Frank, constantly reminds him that he's not worthy of the woman.
So on the face of it, if I had just read the above, I'd be like, hmmmm sounds interesting. But man the writing and the characters will really let a girl down. This reads more like a bare bones screen play that no one picked up so Baldacci decided to turn it into a novel. Although the dialogue and low-brow descriptions make it a fast read, the only thing positive I can say is that at least I didn't spend too much time on it. My purpose was to read it lake-side at our family cottage over vacation and I mostly succeeded because the 3-4 page chapters were perfect for the constant interruption of my two toddlers.
So here's what went wrong. The characters all kind of suck. Their motivations are uneven, their backstories provided as a matter of rote. Their interactions with each other don't really make sense. People pop in and out of the plot without seeming to really know what they are doing there. When Frank tells us that Shaw doesn't deserve Katie James, we're not really sure why? Because he's emotionally unavailable? He's a secret agent, I'm not sure how available he's supposed to be. Meanwhile Shaw is getting all googly over Reggie while at the same time telling us that he's not too interested. It's all very awkward in the writing.
The book also just flat out tells us things about the people without letting the reader learn them organically to the story. Evan Waller, the evil man in the story is completely evil. The only off detail is a fondness for his own mother and a leaning towards being religious. This, I suppose, is supposed to give him some depth, but it just doesn't work.
In the end, Waller is played out like an evil genius who is one step ahead of our heroes and he is, until seemingly he's not and the reasons why don't really feel all that realistic.
While reading this book, I was increasingly feeling like perhaps this was at least the second book in a series and that perhaps I was missing something. When I got home from my internet free vacation, I looked it up and indeed it IS the second book in a series about A. Shaw (yeah he has no first name, get over it). So I thought, I should go ahead and read that maybe to get some context, but according to goodreads, I read it 5 years ago. And even reading my review I have NO idea what it was about and I can't actually remember reading it at all. Memorable huh?
This book is a major skip unless you are on the beach and want an easy read. Some poor guy on our airplane back was reading a different Baldacci book and I gave him this one as he said he'd not read it and I finally finished it 20 minutes into the flight. That poor guy has no idea what I just did to him, but if he was reading another, he maybe won't be surprised. I think I'll let another 5 years pass before I read another of Baldacci's novels.
December 23, 2019
Extradition? We don't need no steenking extradition!
I doubt if anyone ever accused David Baldacci of writing literary masterpieces replete with symbolism, satire, social commentary, foreshadowing, onomatopoeia, allegory, alliteration, pathetic fallacy, subliminal moral messages or any of those things that our English teachers were wont to torture their students with. But if you're looking for a solid, entertaining thriller, a compelling plot line that is not only always innovative but can be counted on for an unexpected twist or three, and a series of educational, informative and always fascinating "info-dump" side bar essays that are used to further the plot without ever threatening to derail it or slow it down - then Baldacci's books are what you're looking for and DELIVER US FROM EVIL is no exception.
A. Shaw (Shaw contends that the A doesn't stand for anything at all!), a globetrotting undercover operative for a shadowy black ops quasi-government organization, delivers slippery bad guys to well-deserved justice anywhere in the world (Extradition? We don't need no steenking extradition!). This time around his target is Evan Waller, a wealthy Canadian businessman who has earned his pile human trafficking - selling Asian women into prostitution and sex slavery. When Waller stepped into the arena of international politics and terrorism by deciding to sell smuggled highly enriched uranium to a middle eastern terrorist cell, Shaw's controllers knew enough was enough and Waller became a takedown target. What Shaw doesn't know is that Waller is actually an alias for Fedir Kuchin, a savage, blood-thirsty, post WW II ex-KBG officer responsible for the deaths of thousands of Ukrainians in the period following WW II and Stalin's iron-fisted rule over Russia. As such, Kuchin aka Waller is the current target of a second undercover group whose mission is the termination of war criminals who have evaded justice and slipped through the world's cracks.
DELIVER US FROM EVIL tells a remarkable, hair-raising story of two undercover groups working unbeknownst to one another toward a similar end. And what they don't know about one another might be enough to allow a vicious, sadistic soldier who has obviously learned to survive against all odds to evade capture once again.
As you are relentlessly pulled through the story, take note of those side-bar essays - a brief history of a relatively unknown genocidal event, the Holodomor, the relentless "death by hunger" of thousands of Ukrainian dissidents and civilians; the technical details of the use of HEU (highly enriched uranium) versus plutonium in tactical nuclear weapons; the evolution of the bizarre artistry of the Spanish painter, Francisco Goy; a remarkable, vivid description of the bleak, semi-polar landscape of the coastal tundra of Labrador; and more.
It's worth observing that at the close of the novel, every last plot thread is tied up and closed out superbly. But there are a couple of open-ended ideas concerning the development of Baldacci's characters that would lead one to believe that Baldacci has a third novel in the series in mind. I'll look forward to that.
Highly recommended.
Paul Weiss
I doubt if anyone ever accused David Baldacci of writing literary masterpieces replete with symbolism, satire, social commentary, foreshadowing, onomatopoeia, allegory, alliteration, pathetic fallacy, subliminal moral messages or any of those things that our English teachers were wont to torture their students with. But if you're looking for a solid, entertaining thriller, a compelling plot line that is not only always innovative but can be counted on for an unexpected twist or three, and a series of educational, informative and always fascinating "info-dump" side bar essays that are used to further the plot without ever threatening to derail it or slow it down - then Baldacci's books are what you're looking for and DELIVER US FROM EVIL is no exception.
A. Shaw (Shaw contends that the A doesn't stand for anything at all!), a globetrotting undercover operative for a shadowy black ops quasi-government organization, delivers slippery bad guys to well-deserved justice anywhere in the world (Extradition? We don't need no steenking extradition!). This time around his target is Evan Waller, a wealthy Canadian businessman who has earned his pile human trafficking - selling Asian women into prostitution and sex slavery. When Waller stepped into the arena of international politics and terrorism by deciding to sell smuggled highly enriched uranium to a middle eastern terrorist cell, Shaw's controllers knew enough was enough and Waller became a takedown target. What Shaw doesn't know is that Waller is actually an alias for Fedir Kuchin, a savage, blood-thirsty, post WW II ex-KBG officer responsible for the deaths of thousands of Ukrainians in the period following WW II and Stalin's iron-fisted rule over Russia. As such, Kuchin aka Waller is the current target of a second undercover group whose mission is the termination of war criminals who have evaded justice and slipped through the world's cracks.
DELIVER US FROM EVIL tells a remarkable, hair-raising story of two undercover groups working unbeknownst to one another toward a similar end. And what they don't know about one another might be enough to allow a vicious, sadistic soldier who has obviously learned to survive against all odds to evade capture once again.
As you are relentlessly pulled through the story, take note of those side-bar essays - a brief history of a relatively unknown genocidal event, the Holodomor, the relentless "death by hunger" of thousands of Ukrainian dissidents and civilians; the technical details of the use of HEU (highly enriched uranium) versus plutonium in tactical nuclear weapons; the evolution of the bizarre artistry of the Spanish painter, Francisco Goy; a remarkable, vivid description of the bleak, semi-polar landscape of the coastal tundra of Labrador; and more.
It's worth observing that at the close of the novel, every last plot thread is tied up and closed out superbly. But there are a couple of open-ended ideas concerning the development of Baldacci's characters that would lead one to believe that Baldacci has a third novel in the series in mind. I'll look forward to that.
Highly recommended.
Paul Weiss
June 19, 2010
He was an experienced military man trained to capture and extract dangerous arms dealers to hand them over to the world court.
She was a stone-cold killer, dedicated to hunting down ex-Nazis and giving them the death they deserved.
Is there really much more you need to know?
*Let me warn you. This review may become more about me expressing my angst then actually providing a fair and thorough discussion*
The absurdity of this novel was apparent from the get go, and for the first time my philosophy of “Reading is always beneficial, even bad books teach you something” (stolen from some-one wiser than me) was almost dropped. In the first scene we are introduced to a bad-guy who literally sits around reading communist manifestos to ‘enjoy the descriptions on how the populace is subjugated’
Of course he is also brash arrogant, mean and everything else a bad guy should be ‘Reggie’ our Nazi-killer quickly dispatches him.
Then the novel suffers the superman problem – we already have characters established as being experts at taking down the bad-guys, we already know they hunt histories evilest baddies. So where on earth can any literary tension come from?
By the way the Mr and Mrs Smith love story between was only unpredictable in terms of how drawn out and annoying it was.
Anywho, D.B. tries to make our antagonist more compelling with some torture scenes (he tortures some Muslim terrorists who betrayed him, it seems the D.B. perhaps wasn’t quite brave enough to have the ultimate evil bad-guy a Muslim but was happy to have them closely associated though). But really just ticks the same boxes that every other bad guy does. Including using James Bondian plots that allow the heroes to escape – justified with the explanation that the baddie wanted to milk the satisfaction of killing the heroes.
Rather than continue I will just sum-up. Deliver Us From Evil is effectively the aftermath of a failed James Bond plotline with all the research, effort, good humour and style sucked out of it. Normally when I read a book I don’t like I at least accept that some people may be into it however, in this case I would not recommend this book to anyone.
She was a stone-cold killer, dedicated to hunting down ex-Nazis and giving them the death they deserved.
Is there really much more you need to know?
*Let me warn you. This review may become more about me expressing my angst then actually providing a fair and thorough discussion*
The absurdity of this novel was apparent from the get go, and for the first time my philosophy of “Reading is always beneficial, even bad books teach you something” (stolen from some-one wiser than me) was almost dropped. In the first scene we are introduced to a bad-guy who literally sits around reading communist manifestos to ‘enjoy the descriptions on how the populace is subjugated’
Of course he is also brash arrogant, mean and everything else a bad guy should be ‘Reggie’ our Nazi-killer quickly dispatches him.
Then the novel suffers the superman problem – we already have characters established as being experts at taking down the bad-guys, we already know they hunt histories evilest baddies. So where on earth can any literary tension come from?
By the way the Mr and Mrs Smith love story between was only unpredictable in terms of how drawn out and annoying it was.
Anywho, D.B. tries to make our antagonist more compelling with some torture scenes (he tortures some Muslim terrorists who betrayed him, it seems the D.B. perhaps wasn’t quite brave enough to have the ultimate evil bad-guy a Muslim but was happy to have them closely associated though). But really just ticks the same boxes that every other bad guy does. Including using James Bondian plots that allow the heroes to escape – justified with the explanation that the baddie wanted to milk the satisfaction of killing the heroes.
Rather than continue I will just sum-up. Deliver Us From Evil is effectively the aftermath of a failed James Bond plotline with all the research, effort, good humour and style sucked out of it. Normally when I read a book I don’t like I at least accept that some people may be into it however, in this case I would not recommend this book to anyone.
February 16, 2012
This is a sequel to The Whole Truth, which really does not have to be read first but it probably would help. Shaw, still working for an unidentified US government agency under the control of Frank (who has a scar across the top of his bald head where Shaw once shot him, perhaps in some book I have not yet found) has a new assignment: to capture a despotic Canadian who is planning to provide some Muslim terrorists with some heavily enhanced uranium smuggled out of the collapsed Russian empire, so that they can build an atomic bomb. Unknown to him and the US agency, however, there is a privately-funded British group also targeting the same bad guy, because they have discovered through research that he actually started life as a brutal Russian colonel who killed thousands of people under Stalin’s reign, and this group’s mission in life is to hunt down former Nazi evildoers and kill them; since they seem to have run out of former Nazi officers, they’re branching out. It also happens that their lead assassin is a beautiful young woman who has problems in her own past. Inevitably, of course, the two groups wind up doing their operations at the same time, which adds to the confusion--which is complicated still further by still a third element that wants to see the evildoer’s life to end for a different reason.
I find Baldacci’s plots a little overcomplicated, and the characters sometimes do things that just do not seem natural--as though the actions were written more for cinematic effect, although I am not personally aware that any of Baldacci’s novels have been made into films. For that matter, the whole thing about why Shaw keeps working for Frank or why Reggie, the news heroine for this novel (although the heroine of the previous one is still hanging around, too) does what she does remains unfathomable. Despite these things, the story moves fairly well and holds the reader’s interest right to the end … and the end after the end … and the non-ending after that. There clearly will be another sequel.
I find Baldacci’s plots a little overcomplicated, and the characters sometimes do things that just do not seem natural--as though the actions were written more for cinematic effect, although I am not personally aware that any of Baldacci’s novels have been made into films. For that matter, the whole thing about why Shaw keeps working for Frank or why Reggie, the news heroine for this novel (although the heroine of the previous one is still hanging around, too) does what she does remains unfathomable. Despite these things, the story moves fairly well and holds the reader’s interest right to the end … and the end after the end … and the non-ending after that. There clearly will be another sequel.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,586 reviews