I Am Pilgrim

A Thriller

By: Terry Hayes

Narrated by: Christopher Ragland

Length: 22 hrs and 41 mins

Publisher's summary

“I Am Pilgrim is simply one of the best suspense novels I’ve read in a long time.” —David Baldacci, #1 New York Times bestselling author

“A big, breathless tale of nonstop suspense.” —Janet Maslin, The New York Times

“The pages fly by ferociously fast. Simply unputdownable.” —Booklist

A breakneck race against time…and an implacable enemy.

An anonymous young woman murdered in a run-down hotel, all identifying characteristics dissolved by acid.

A father publicly beheaded in the blistering heat of a Saudi Arabian public square.

A notorious Syrian biotech expert found eyeless in a Damascus junkyard.

Smoldering human remains on a remote mountainside in Afghanistan.

A flawless plot to commit an appalling crime against humanity.

One path links them all, and only one man can make the journey.

Pilgrim.

©2014 Terry Hayes (P)2014 Simon & Schuster

A story of superlatives

I thought writers knew better than to lavish superlatives, but apparently some writers—including this one and like-minded scribes that work on soap operas) are happy to stay in that comfort zone, where the hero is the most intelligent, the most disciplined (even more so than one of the "baddest" terrorists in history), the most affluent, etc. And any character that outsmarts him or earns his admiration through her/his efficiency, whether in the service of good or evil, is blessed with similar traits and becomes an object of wonder. So although the story was competently plotted (despite the handful of egregious coincidences that are central to this story) and the hero/narrator (NOT Mr. Ragland) did his best to leave bread crumbs at the end of many chapters to guide us pedestrian readers along, this is not an author whose work I would be interested in exploring any further. Mr. Ragland seemed an even match for the story, despite the occasional mispronounced foreign words/names (e.g., dacha; Thessaloniki, etc.).

Wish I could rate 10 stars!

Would you listen to I Am Pilgrim again? Why?

With all the story lines several reads would just enhance what I get from the book each time.

What was one of the most memorable moments of I Am Pilgrim?

Since I really like Turkey, the story line set there. Anything else would give away too much

What does Christopher Ragland bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

His narration & the life he brings to all the characters. I'm looking forward to listening to more books with his narration.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

For love of God and Country...how far would you go?

Any additional comments?

This is a roller coaster of a story with an excellent narrator who just brings all the characters to life. I wanted to find out how the story ends but didn't want it to end. One really great read, full of action, suspense and regrets. Definitely a ten star read!

Knocks thrillers out of the park

Unexpectedly complex but clear and directed at the same time. Excellent fare for those who want it all in an audio book

great first novel

First time author for me, debut novel for the author, this is a good one, a page turner although what is the equivalent terminology when you listen to a book and there is no page to turn? You can't put it down? I digress. The author's background is as a journalist, like many authors, but he wrote some of the big screen adaptations of the early Mad Max movies so you could surmise he knows how to write intense fiction, which this book certainly is.

In the book you have a top US intelligence agent who is tasked with finding and stopping a super secret, super efficient Jihadist whose goal is to unleash a vaccine resistant small pox virus on US soil, something in our wildest fears we wouldn't want to happen but which is a real possibility. A lot of this book is set on the southwewst coast of Turkey. I had never really thought about the Turkish coastline being a Mediterranean hot spot but after this book I've learned it is. If you like the international spy thriller genre, you would certainly want this on your to read list.

Excellent

I rarely take time to write reviews but this book is outstanding, I just have to take the time. Characters where well developed and believable. Plot kept my attention and kept me engaged. For the first time in along time I was glad for mundane housework

meh

not worth the time or effort
maybe could have had A better story line. PREV ratings suspect

Great!

Great story, excellent naration, thanks Mr. Hayes & Mr. Ragland. I'll be watching for more.

So Amazing, it’d Scary it’s Real

I am a big fan of thrillers, whether is police, spy, legal, etc.
And I Am Pilgrim is simply one of the best that I've heard in a long time.

The breakdown of the parts and chapters are refreshing and very easy to follow.
Not to mention the narration by Christopher Ragland makes the story believable and engaging.

The storyline deals with all the possible relevant “what ifs”.

Hope "Pilgrim" will appear in other books down the line.

Pilgrim’s story carries you to the future

One of the best agent books I have ever read. I couldn’t put it down. How vulnerable we humans are to our ability to destroy.

Masterpiece

Just buy it. It’s the best book I’ve ever read….and I read A LOT