Diamondhead

I have read or listened to all ten of the Robinson’s novels in the Arnold Morgan series. The last “To the Death” was a horrible close to the ten. I am sad to say that the first of the Mack Bedford series is even worse – something I never thought possible. One of the most interesting parts of Robinson’s novels was his humanization of the obstacle character. He forced you to get to know the bad guy and at some level sympathize; and then when the bad guy would slither away and ultimately get killed -- I was conflicted. Sure I wanted the bad guy to get what was coming, but there was still emotion there. The stories were complex, with many characters. So many characters that you sometimes needed to take notes and they resurfaced like old friends throughout the novels.

All of these reason for loving his works gone. Diamondhead is a flat story with very little thrill and thin non-existent conflict. I couldn’t connect with the plot and the main character never seemed to be in any bodily danger and just cut through challenges; by the three quarter mark I was begging for it to be over. There were no auxiliary characters of note, certainly none that I want to hear from ever again and the mission just made no sense and just doesn't tie my mental model of a Navy Seal. More laughable, the French bad guy Andre Fosch, was about as impotent bad guy as you can conjure – even his wife was flat and her backstory added nothing, was unresolved, and a yawner.

The narrator, Charles Leggett did not succeed in bringing any interest to the story. His voice was monotone, uninspiring and undifferentiated.

Maybe I’ll read the next just to see if Robinson got off on the wrong foot; but this is strike two Robinson. It will take me six months to recover from this poorly conceived and sloppily executed work of uninteresting fiction before I'll consider reading the next installment. If you had been a fan of Robinson, like me, skip this book and try the next – maybe it will be better; but I am not counting on it. All in all – a disaster.

Probably my favorite audiobook yet. The reader does an awesome job with the different voices and its nearly impossible to tell that its the same person doing the narration. Gripping story and very hard to put down. It kept me wondering what was really going to happen next instead of being abe to forecast the future. Listened three times and loved it everytime

Patrick Robinson delivers a solid military thriller in Diamondhead on par with his early books. I admit that I do like this sort of thriller. But, it's not for everyone. I had grown tired of Robinson's characters, which had become somewhat stale. So, it was with some trepidation that I purchased this book. I was pleased.

Our hero is Navy SEAL Mack Bedford, who finds himself on trial for his actions after watching his comrades attacked by a banned weapon. Mack returns home to a dying son, a strained marriage, and a town in trouble. Circumstances push him to make difficult decisions. One does have to put up with a bit of political and military propaganda, as with other Robinson novels. But, that's part of the admission price.

Normally, I would give this book only three or four stars as it was solid, but not spectacular. The narration is performed wonderfully by actor Charles Leggett. He brings all the characters to life perfectly. Leggett somehow captures different accents, different attitudes, different emotions in all of the characters. His performance adds a sense of strength and intensity to this specific story that is distinct from his other narrations. The scenes really do come alive. I listen in the car and I was excited to continue the story. I am sold on Leggett as a narrator!

I am doubly disappointed. I listen to a lot of mystery/ suspense novels and I bought this book on the recommendation of Audible. I don't see how anybody who actually read or listened to this book can recommend it. The subtitle on the cover of the book says "A Novel Of Suspense" and it's good they put that there because you would not know it was a suspense novel from listening to it. The entire first half is dedicated to setting up a tedious and ridiculous backdrop that I found myself saying "Come on, already!" several times in the car.
I am 3/4 of the way through and will not listen to it any more.
The narrator is the only good thing in this book. Even though his narrative style highlights the incredibly bad writing, his accents are prettty good.

Patrick Robinson got you hooked on the situation with the Diamondhead missle, the character development of the Seal Team and then hooked you into siding with the plan. I started listening while painting a room in our house and found reasons to keep doing more so I could keep listening!

Mack Bedford is the type of guy we all want to be, act with your convictions ... OK, in this case becoming a potential assasin is a little extreme, but he is an awesome character.

This was a first for Leggett for me, and I was impressed with his ability to switch voices so often and to stay in character. His Swiss accent was so bad I think because the author made it that way for Mack Bedford ... and Leggett went along with it. His Maine accent was more Boston, but we will forgive him, it is hard to imitate a downeast accent unless your grandparents had it, like mine.

The extreme reaction I had was to not want to put it down until I was done.

I did not read the book. This is a large work and the Audible version was interesting, entertaining and hard to take a pause.

The author Patrick Robinson does spectacular character development. All to often in these types of thrillers the characters are like cardboard with no depth and simply carictures. These are living, breathing real people that come to life. The story is very interesting and the action well-paced and yes thrilling.

This is a very well written novel by a very accomplished and successful author. There are excellent details on a sniper kill, covert travel and stalking a target. This book has an excellent pace and structure that propels the listener at a fast, but not out of control pace. The plot is very creative and the action is uniquely interesting.

The narrator did a fine job.

A Relentless Revenge Thriller

Kept my attention most of the time

too much Navy Seal chest beating for me.

This was a decent listen, a little too much Navy Seal chest beating for me, but worth the time.

The book, at its core, is about loyalty of a father to his son, and of a Navy Seal commander to his men. Patrick Robinson has written some fine submarine stories, which is how I found him. Now, he's moved to the Seals, and done so in fine fashion.
I was telling friends about Audible this weekend, and how great the readers are at different accents and voices. This one was superb, as our protagonist travels from Maine to Ireland and France

The jump from a six-story window into the water below!

It would be neat to read more of Mac Bedford. Maybe Robinson has some more adventures in mind?

Not my favorite Navy Seal book but a great listen and keeps you entertained till the end of the story.

The first half of the book is a waste of time. 2nd half of book very good but come on.... Narrator - Excellent