Beatrix Rose will stop at nothing to find her missing daughter, Isabella. When the ruthless Triad overlord, Michael Yeung, offers to help in exchange for a small favour, Beatrix is forced to venture into the treacherous jungles of Venezuela to take down a local bandit terrorising an illegal goldmine run by the vile Aurelio Rincon.
But as she battles her way through the jungle, she uncovers a dark secret that pits her against a private army and corrupt government officials. Caught between the rebels who believe she has been sent to save them and her own troubled conscience, Beatrix must make a choice that could cost her everything she holds dear.
As the violence escalates and the true extent of Rincon's empire is revealed, Beatrix must fight to survive and protect her daughter at all costs. Will she emerge victorious, or lose her soul in the process?
Mark Dawson was born in Lowestoft and grew up in Manchester and Chicago. He has worked as a lawyer and currently works in the London film industry. His first books, "The Art of Falling Apart" and "Subpoena Colada" have been published in multiple languages.
He is currently writing two series. Soho Noir is set in the West End of London between 1940 and 1970. The first book in the series, "The Black Mile", deals with the (real life but little known) serial killer who operated in the area during the Blitz. "The Imposter" traces the journey of a criminal family (think The Sopranos in austerity London and you'd be on the right track).
The John Milton series features a disgruntled special agent who aims to help people to make amends for the terrible things that he has done. Mark, as a child of the 80s, will freely admit that he watched a lot of The Equalizer in his youth.
This is one of Beatrix Rose’s most dangerous assignments. It is strange when I read a series I like to read them in order but I think the first three are a trilogy then Mark Dawson has some stand alone’s within the same series 🤔🤔🤔
Somehow this is so much more dangerous. Her main motivation is to find her daughter Isabella who was so cruelly ripped from her by the secret government department called ‘Group Fifteen’ she is working for a Triad overlord Michael Yeung who knows where her daughter is. But nothing is straightforward with him. She needs to do him a favour.
This favour sees her going to Venezuela into the jungle to take someone out. But this changes when she uncovers dark secrets and corruption on the highest scale and at the heart of it is greed. Anyone who gets in the way is bumped off.
So she wants justice for the people suffering but she wants to find her daughter. We see her at her absolute best with everything thrown at her. There are gunfights, torture, knives, grenade’s but when Beatrix improvises it makes for a thrilling showdown that made me fear for her as the odds are stacked against her taking on the most dangerous of targets and not just one.
My 51st Mark Dawson book sees an addition to the series featuring Beatrix Rose, ex-government assassin now under control of a Hong Kong triad. this one jumps back in chronology and sees her sent to Venezuela to carry out an assignment in a remote mining area.
John Milton boasts about his book writing ability but I think this book demonstrates that he probably needs to spend more time on each book. It seems as though he is paying fairly inexperienced assistants to do a lot of writing. The baddies are never clever enough to hold Beatrix when they capture her and they all seem to be very bad shots. Very simplistic storyline
I'm not sure how to review this book because I'm kind of confused myself. What do I mean by that? Well, I am a huge fan of Mr. Dawson and there are currently three series that he has going on right now (well, maybe there are more, but there are 3 that I'm reading).
The problem comes with the fact that I am sometimes confused with the timelines of each particular series. There are 20 something books in the John Milton series (with some crossover with the Beatrix series) and I must say that Milton is my FAVORITE of the three. Then there are like 5 or 6 books in the Beatrix series...actually, I think there's a lot more...I don't remember. Then, there is the Isabella Rose series - her daughter - and there are like 5 books in that series.
Sooo, when we start this book (which is a very recently published book- like June 2023) I had a hard time remembering where in the time spectrum everyone was? I mean, without going into spoilers, if you've gotten past the first couple of books in the Isabella Rose series, you know that something has occurred with Beatrix....see, silly stuff like that that was confusing for me. But, obviously not enough for me to stop and look it up so I guess that's a good thing. Good in the fact that I was interested enough to just barrel through because the story was interesting.
Okay, this story has Beatrix Rose still looking for her daughter (see- must be in the past...) and to be able to get her location from the jerk boss she has worked with in the past, she has to do a job for him. That job involves being dropped in the jungle somewhere to "take care of" someone.
Easy enough. But once she is there, she realizes that things are not what they seem and before she knows it, she is involved in something way more involved than the original job.
I enjoyed the story. It was fast paced, action packed and as usual, Beatrix pretty much kicks butt from the very beginning. I listened to most of this on audio and Gemma Whelan did a good job with the narration. It was nice to see a bit of Beatrix "back in the day" when she was a force to be reckoned with.
So nice to have an adventure with Beatrix as she attempts to reunite with her long lost daughter Isabella, but the motivations and stakes involved seem impossible to fathom. To risk life and limb to potentially find out information as decisions are all made based one greedy bad guy after another seems to be piling it on a bit. Why any of the security detail she embarrassed would hang with her in the lawless jungle seems odd as well. It is enlightening to be reminded there are many people in the world tying to survive such squalid conditions whether in work camps or refugee camps as land and resources are plenty as well as amassed riches of countries leaders. It is no wonder people would leave these oppressive lands and make hazardous journeys to far away countries to find a better life. At any rate it would be nice to have more Beatrixes out there to defend the poor, maybe that will be saved for another story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
I've read and enjoyed the first few Beatrix Rose stories, but this one falls flat for me. The mechanics of the thriller are fine, though the bad-guys are very stereotypical. Beatrix does her thing half-heartedly, repeatedly saying that she just wants to get out of there. There is very little emotional connection or build-up anywhere. Even when she gets hurt, it seems "normal". Things happen in sequence, almost predictably. There are a few twists, but they are presented neutrally. The only aspect that was well described was the hot and stinky Venezuelan jungle.
I will stop here unless someone says that the following books get better.
Exciting, fast-paced, adventurous book with Beatrix Rose sent to assassinate a rebel who is harassing a mining company. Mark Dawson weaves his story so compellingly to keep your attention throughout the book. I could not put this book down. You must read this book to see how it unfolds. Looking forward to the next Beatrix book! Happy reading! 😊
CANT BE BEATEN Mark Dawson The Man for every top read
I was son0leas3dvWhen Mark came out with Pistolero Betrecia Has always been an interesting character we went straight into and exciting non stop adventure The story was really a great little read it takes no time to read, won't tell you anything else, get it, and enjoy it like I did. There is another book coming in the series all good news
Pistolero was the first novel by Mark Dawson that failed to meet his very high standards. The novel moved forward in a straight line of plot with no character development (cardboard heros and villas) and no sense of place (just a Google maps/Street View approach to location). The author is a lot more talented than this work. Let's hope his next book demonstrates his ability once again.
This is a fast read and moves along at an amazingly organized manner as do most profile or outline books which those that put out books often seem to usually follow. They have a hero or two, an emergency, are hired to solve the problem, are captured by the bad guys, get away by unimaginable methods, kill the bad guys, save the good guys, and as heroes go on to the next adventure or fade into the sunset in glory! This is the usual rather boring book of that type but it keeps you barely awake during long evenings.
Another great novel by Mark Dawson. I never get tired of reading his books. I always want more stories. Beatrix has to perform an impossible task. Her reward is to see her daughter once again. I thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone who loves a great novel.
This was a descent read. It had elements of intrigue and tension and it was rather fast moving. Beatrix had some close calls but came through in the end. Hopefully she will reunite with her daughters. 4.8
What a shame,no real substance to this release.Feels like it was written in order to satisfy a contractual obligation and rushed in order to hit a deadline. Unfortunately I have to say not up to his normal standards.Sorry Mark,just my honest thoughts.
Disappointed, Not a fan of prequels which this was. not much intrigue, just moving from one firefight to another. The bad guys die and some good guys to. No conclusion your left hanging. First book of Mark Dawson that I haven't raved about.
Man it was great to read a new book featuring Beatrix. True Mark Dawson fans know her story and this was an outstanding, highly packed adventurous nightmare, but unputdownable!! Grab a seat belt, a cold soda and dive in!!!
This was an awesome story !!! It shows how much Beatrice would do to find her daughter. Mark as always just a great job of story telling as always!!!! You are one of my top authors!!! 10 stars plus !!! Thanks, Carl Clause
Excitement from the first chapter, builds into a great story with very likable characters as the goodies and some realistic baddies. I read it in three sittings. More like this please!
Mark Dawson’s books are fast paced, filled with clear cut baddies and good guys. The BAD GUYS are extremely bad and it is lots of fun to see them get what they deserve. They are well written and compelling. Beatrice Rose is the perfect hard ass.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
I struggled to get into this book, but I persevered and was greatly rewarded by the whole concept. I think part was a bit convoluted and overplayed but the same thing happens throughout life.
A trip to South America to help her boss's friend turns into something completely different. Pistolero is an action packed thriller that will keep you in its grip.
Another brilliant read from Mark Dawson. Once I started I couldn’t put it down which happens every time with all his books - I’ve read them all. Can’t wait for the next John Milton! Thank you Mark.
Another Excellent Story by Mark Dawson this time set in South America. Great story line and some very well crafted characters. A story that kept me gripped from start to finish and looking forward to reading more.