Edge

Maybe it's the monotone and tired narrator or the schoolboy obsession to mundane and irrelevant detail (not only do we get the make and model of every bit of kit but it's price and it's competitive place in the market place), maybe it's the one dimensional and sanctimonious character of the lead or the constant implausibility of the twists and turns that make this book so flat. Disappointing listen from someone who usually rarely disappoints.

I too find the narrator seriously distracting. He has a very flat voice. There is a lot of internal dialogue in the book, explaining the thought processes of the main protagonists. This is delivered in such a flat monotone that I find it impossible to accept the main character as a plausible figure. I also found that some of the narrators idiosyncratic pronunciations set my teeth on edge over time (`moble' for `mobile', `colm' for `calm', pri*ma*ry with a stress on the second syllable, and these are just those returning most frequently).

Yes, there are a number of twists in the plot, and some of them stretch credibility. However, I find myself so distracted by the narrator that I feel I cannot fairly review the book on its own merits. I was never really drawn in, and that is fairly rare for me when listening to a Deaver novel. Maybe I'll read the book some time to see what it is like without an ever-present irritant.

To everybody considering this audio book I would strongly recommend trying to listen to an excerpt first.

I'm only on chapter 6 and the story is as engaging as one would expect from Deaver. I am, however, annoyed by the narrator's repeated pronunciation of the word 'weapon' as 'wheapon' with a loud and clear 'h'. It really is setting my teeth on edge.

I've never read a Deaver book before, but he appears to be one of those authors who writes screenplays, rather than books. By using madeup names for things that already exist (things like Google Maps, Photoshop etc) he sells out the world he's created. It's chewing gum; very American, and written by a chap who really wants his agent to be selling more film rights.

And the reviewer who mentioned the grating narration is bang on. 'Skip' seems to think words like weapon and aware are pronounced with a 'wh' sound. He also makes no attempt to distinguish one character voice from another. And by the way, Nissan. That's how it's pronounced. Not 'niece aughn'. Just sayin'.

I am a keen reader of Jeffrey Deaver's Lincoln Rhyme detective novels so I thought I'd give this one a go. It's a good listen and as usual well researched which I found very interesting as I knew little about 'shepherds'. Unfortunately it lost me a bit at the end when the twists became too numerous and the reasoning behind how the culprit was discovered needed a few 'rewinds'!
Not his best but worth a listen.

Interesting and different spy thriller with a lot of militaristic terminology which hard-headedly treats death lightly so putting you in the mood for danger! Each chapter is a different story and I find it hard to follow the various plots but do enjoy the overall sense and tone of the writing.

I was first gripped by Jeffrey Deaver's Lincoln Rhyme series which, as with many 'series', went off the boil somewhat. I loved 'The Blue Nowhere', a non-Rhyme novel, so I thought I'd give this a try. I'm out-of-step with some other reviewers here, as I thought this was Deaver back to his best. Yes, I caught on to a couple of things early on, but I was sucked in by some red herrings. The number of plot twists in such a single-strand story was awesome, but above all, the characterisation of Corte, the hero and narrator, drew me in. And the final twist? Wouldn't have seen it coming in a million years! Yes, I could pick at the reader's aspirated 'wheapon', but I loved his voice. This was the most gripping audiobook I've listened to for some time; very highly recommended!

A new hero from Deaver, kind of like the guy in the tv show "Hard Target". He is a bodyguard you'd definitely hire as he knows exactly how to protect you, no matter how fiendishly insane the opponent is.

A policeman is endangered and the hero and his team swoop in to save him and his family. Numerous twists and tense action scenes keep you gripped.