• The Cleaner

  • By: Brett Battles
  • Narrated by: Scott Brick
  • Length: 12 hrs and 28 mins
  • 4.0 out of 5 stars (3,218 ratings)

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The Cleaner  By  cover art

The Cleaner

By: Brett Battles
Narrated by: Scott Brick
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Publisher's summary

Meet Jonathan Quinn: a freelance operative with a take-no-prisoners style and the heart of a loner. His job? Professional "cleaner". Nothing too violent, just disposing of bodies. But in Brett Battles' electrifying debut novel, Quinn's latest assignment will change everything.

The job seemed simple enough: investigating a suspicious case of arson. But when a dead body turns up, and Quinn's handlers at "the Office" turn strangely silent, he knows he's in over his head. With only a handful of clues, Quinn struggles to find out why someone wants him dead...and if it's linked to a larger attempt to wipe out the Office.

Quinn's only hope may be Orlando, a woman from his past who may hold the key to solving the case. Suddenly, the two are prying into old crimes, crisscrossing continents, and struggling to stay alive. But as the hunt intensifies, Quinn is stunned by a chilling secret...and a brilliantly orchestrated conspiracy.

Furiously paced, filled with superbly drawn characters and pitch-perfect dialogue, The Cleaner confirms Battles' place as one of the most exciting new talents in suspense fiction.

©2007 Brett Battles (P)2007 Books on Tape

Critic reviews

2008, Shamus Award

"Brett Battles makes a grand entrance into the thriller scene with this unputdownable spy novel. The Cleaner has it all: exotic locales, James Bondian derring-do, and ingenious plot twists that will keep you sweating all the way ’til the end.”—Tess Gerritsen, bestselling author of The Bone Garden

“This book is a pure delight. Protagonist Jonathan Quinn is a unique and welcome addition to the world of crime fiction. The Cleaner is a brilliant and heart-pounding thriller; I’m on the edge of my seat, awaiting future installments of Quinn’s adventures.”—Jeffery Deaver, bestselling author of The Broken Window

“A page-turner that may remind some readers of the cult TV spy series Alias . . . .Quinn [is] a compelling protagonist. . . . Admirers of quality espionage fiction can look forward to a new series worth following.”Publishers Weekly

What listeners say about The Cleaner

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

excellent from start to finish

This book is excellent from start to finish. You will not want to break from the non-stop action. Its one the best book I've bought from Audible since I started this service 30 months ago.

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160 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • cb
  • 07-19-07

Well, huh.

This is a book about totally unlikeable people who kill a lot of other people and then kind of try to save the world-- but only because there's something in it for them. In the end they have good reasons for the people they kill in this story-- but this doesn't remedy the fact that nothing is done to make them likeable. The Sopranos made likeable and complex characters out of Tony, Silvio, and so many other people, but this book, IMO, does very little in that regard. On a more positive note, I did listen the whole way through, because I cared enough to see what happened in the end. If you're looking for action and danger and you're completely bored with character development, great... otherwise, keep shopping.

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46 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

Good Grief

I should have known by the comparison to the TV. show "Alias" that I was going to dislike this book but it looked like fun. It wasn't.

It is, however, unoriginal; the Cleaner in Le Femme Nikita is far more interesting. And it is disappointingly predictable; the twists and turns were less like a roller coaster ride and more like an uncomfortable get-away in the back of a jalopy Ford on a pot-holed road.

I gave it a chance and listened to it through the end but I couldn't wait for it to be over. It was one eye-rolling-you've-got-to-be-kidding-me moment after another. I'm dousing myself with Le Carre as an antidote.

The production value, however, is excellent. Scott Brick is a reliable and consistent reader.

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39 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

Pay attention to the other reviews...

I wish I had and not wasted a credit on this book. I love intelligent, witty and suspenseful books. This looked as if it may fit the bill. It doesn't, not even close. The other reviews warned the characters are not interesting, the action is slow and the narraration (sorry Scott Brick) is tedious. I believe someone compared his reading to William Shatner....I wished I took the advice of others and skipped this clunker.

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25 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

Needs some good help...

Who cares? None of the good guys are interesting. None of the bad guys are interesting. Never thought I'd applaud a reader for being melodramatic, but Scott B.'s read is the only thing that kept me listening to this endless tale. The ending reminds one of the kiss at the end of a sexless romance novel, but rather than embrace, the two just walk away. Won't be trying to find out if they ever meet again.

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23 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

Par for the Genre

This story follows the adventures of Jonathan Quinn - a private espionage specialist with a jaded past. The plot is about average for thriller in this genre - lots of action, foreign settings, conspiracys, and even has a few interesting twists.

Personally I felt that the writer should have edited this work a little harder. As it is, there are all sort of useless parts where the main character checks his email, eats, makes casual conversation and does other hum-drum stuff that doesn't advance the plot. Hence the story has some good meat, but you have to chew around a lot of grizzle. A good editor would have cut a lot of this out, leaving the good stuff. Perhaps the abridged version would be better.

The narrator puts far too much emphasis on "performing" the story, rather than just reading it. His tone borders on annoying at times.

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21 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Keep with it!

This is an action packed second book in the Quinn series. One should read the 0.5 start when Quinn was made Quinn. We had a fun interaction between himself and his apprentice. Then we see an interesting development of biological terrorism. And a very bad guy reappearing. And ultimately we see betrayal.

It appears that either people love or hate Brett Battle's writing. And yes. This is not for everyone. That is the beautiful thing with Audible's guarentee. I have had to use it a few times but it is excellent. I highly recommend this service. It is great to listen and multitask.

As always Scott Brick is excellent. I have heard of the FOSB issue. Fear Of Scott Brick. I suppose some suffer from it. I pity them. They miss some very good hours of a talented reader. I am looking forward to the next in the Quinn series.

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20 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Couldn't stop listening...

Top notch plot, excellent character development, fast pace, lots of twists and turns and WHAT AN ENDING ! You can't go wrong with this one.

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20 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

The Cleaner, 'Cleaned' Up!

Great, action filled, smart book!
Surprise ending making the roller-coaster ride that much more exciting!
Can't wait to move on to book 2 in this series!
Scott Brick, as usual, is an incredible narrator! He hits everything he does right on the mark!:)

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17 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

Boring, Dumb

The reader Scott Brick is great as usual but he can't save a bad story. Simplistic thriller writing with almost no thrills. Wooden predictable characters that seemed to be copies some cheap detective stories from the 50's or 60's. Don't waste your time or money.

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14 people found this helpful