The American (Ryan Kealey, #1) in SSG: Spy/Spec-Ops Group

Jan 02, 2012 Brittany rated it liked it · review of another edition

I'm not going to write a novel, but I WILL write a brief consensus about The American. I liked this book well enough because I was looking for something that could compare to Vince Flynn or Brad Thor. As far as the plot is concerned, I was extremely happy with this book. Britton had obviously done his research and the book was really well written. The plot moves at the perfect pace... not too slow so you are bored but not too fast so that details are skipped over. Although a lot of the resolutio I'm not going to write a novel, but I WILL write a brief consensus about The American. I liked this book well enough because I was looking for something that could compare to Vince Flynn or Brad Thor. As far as the plot is concerned, I was extremely happy with this book. Britton had obviously done his research and the book was really well written. The plot moves at the perfect pace... not too slow so you are bored but not too fast so that details are skipped over. Although a lot of the resolution comes from Kealey's intuition, it isn't so farfetched that it is unbelievable. I liked the book quite a bit, although the characters annoyed me pretty much throughout the entire novel.
I like the character Ryan Kealey well enough, although I kept getting annoyed with him flying off the handle and beating the hell out of everyone when he has been given explicit directions to NOT do that. It seemed a bit cliché- "I'll give you permission but you have to pinkie-swear that you won't hurt the person you are interviewing". Then, Kealey gets pissed, time is running out, blah blah blah, beats the crap out of the guy and everybody seems surprised. It was pretty annoying.

Also, what's with the female characters? Katie was immature and clingy. "Is she prettier than I am?" REALLY? Your boyfriend is working for the CIA to stop a terrorist plot and you are concerned that the other CIA agent is too PRETTY? Then, she leaves Ryan because it is "too hard" to be in a relationship when he is off saving the world. Give me a break. Naomi is equally predictable. She is the try-hard from the CIA who insists on being a stone-cold bitch, yet secretly just wants to be accepted by her male counterparts. Then, she obviously seems to fall for Ryan as well, despite Katie's existence. I typically never notice things like this, but this book couldn't have been any more stereotypical if he had planned it that way. I don't want to be the crazy feminist who writes only about female characters because I really enjoyed the book, but Britton could have tried a little harder to make his characters more well-rounded. As well written as the book is, I thought that it lacked a certain finesse that the other authors I enjoy are able to write.
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Jul 07, 2012 Lee rated it really liked it

Shelves: andrew-britton, fiction-spy-covert-op-books

A great 1st novel in the genre of Thor and Flynn introduces us to Andrew Kealey a retired CIA and Delta Force legend. After the Chairman of Senate Arms Service committee is brutally murdered along with his security detail Kealey is brought back into the fold to track down one of his former soldiers who has gone over to work for Al Queda. Teaming with a female analyst Naomi Kharmai they struggle to track down the assassin before he kills the Presidents of the US, France and Italy. Non stop action ...more

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