A Talent for Killing

By: Ralph Dennis

Narrated by: Shawn Compton

Length: 9 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's summary

Long Before Jason Bourne, There Was Kane

Kane was a top CIA assassin until he suffered traumatic physical and psychological injuries in a mission that went horribly wrong. The Agency wiped his memory, gave him a new identity, and retired him to a life of mundane, anonymous domesticity. But his training, and his talent for kiling, came back with a vengeance. He created a new life for himself as a killer-for-hire, righting wrongs for people who can't find peace or justice any other way. He doesn't know that his memories are fiction, or that he is always being watched, or that he's been targeted for death by a rogue faction within the Agency. 

A Talent for Killing

In this brutal, fast-moving thriller from Ralph Dennis, the author of the legendary Hardman series of crime novels, Kane finds himself caught between the mob, Cuban revolutionaries, and his own government as he seeks retribution for a man murdered for uncovering small-town corruption...and justice for another man on death row, falsely convicted of raping and murdering a child.

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A bit disjointed but action packed

I received this book for free. I am voluntarily posting this review and all opinions expressed herein are my own.

I love the Ralph Dennis Hardman series. And this one is somewhat similar but the plot seemed a bit disconnected and just didn't gel. At the end of the book, you are informed that this is a book which resulted after two manuscripts found after the death of Ralph Dennis were combined - now it makes sense why I felt it didn't quite work. However, it is very well written and action-packed. The story occurs in the seventies and was likely written around that same time period -- the vernacular is from that time, as well as, many of the ideals of that time as it relates to women and races. As always, Shawn Compton does a great job as the narrator.

A little disjointed but enjoyable

A throwback thriller that has a quick pace and a great setup for a series, but sometimes feels like some unfinished stories mashed together. Kane is an exciting protagonist and the story moves at a clip and keeps Kane on his toes and in constant motion throughout. The narration by Shawn Compton was pretty solid and thought he did a good job with all of the characters and their delivery. An overall entertaining listen with a good character and fun setup.


I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review

Excellent flash back in time

A Talent for Killing. ..
Ralph Dennis's talent is very apparent in this book that was only published after his death.
Atlanta in the seventies and the writing makes you feel as if you're there both in the action and in Atlanta. Listening to the audiobook is a flashback to that Era.
Shawn Compton's narration is excellent.
Highly recommend this flashback to the 70's.
I received a free copy of this audio book at my own request and voluntarily leave this honest review.

Interesting premise

This is a rather innovative premise as assassin thrillers go. It's not very plausible, but it makes for a very exciting and interesting story. The characters are fairly well drawn and voiced distinctly by Shawn Compton. However, it is quite dated with pay phones rather than cell phones and much more smoking than you'd find in today's novels. Thankfully, the story is complete with no cliffhanger.

NOTE: I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Action packed fast paced thriller

Kane is a former CIA assassin that got his memory wiped after a mission. He starts a new life as an assassin for hire unaware of those after him.

The story is full of action and was very fast paced. The writing was quite sharp and quick adding to the pace of the action packed thriller. There were various elements contributing to the main story which made it quite interesting. It would have been nice to have a bit of a breather at times through some sort of romantic or other element to vary the action somewhat.

Shawn narrated well, and was a good fit for the feel of the story.

Note: This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this objective review voluntarily.

Great thriller!

This volume is my first exposure to the writing of Ralph Dennis, and it has been a pleasant one. The dark noir atmosphere reminded me of a Jack Nicholson or even Humphrey Bogart detective movie. The only thing missing here is a love interest for our protagonist Kane. Between the CIA, the Cubans, and the client’s requirements Kane has his hands full and the action is non-stop from the beginning. The writing is sharp and concise, the characters feel real. After the epilogue, it is noted that this book started out as two unpublished manuscripts that another writer edited and combined. There are two separate stories, but they are run together quite nicely. Shawn Compton, the narrator did a great job. Four.point.five. I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

More Ralph Dennis, please!

I received this from the published through Audiobook Boom in exchange for an honest review.

This one confused me; it seemed like it was very disjointed and didn't flow well. And then I read that it was actually two books blended together. It would have been helpful if there was a break between the two plotlines.

While not as good as the Hardman series, Ralph Dennis writes well in this book. Shawn Compton's narration was very good, but there were times when the characters' voices all seemed to blend together, making it difficult to determine who was speaking.

Felt Like The Equalizer & Mad Men

This book made me feel like I was listening to a version of The Equalizer; not the movie, but the T.V. show back in the day. It also felt a bit like Mad Men with the conversations and the era that this whole story took place in.

The action was pretty good in some parts of the book, but others were not as exciting as I wanted them to be. Because the story was written for the 60's and 70's, the action was definitely more in line with those years. Had it been updated for today, the action would have been much more violent and creative.

The narrator read the story in a way that made me feel like I'm watching/listening to the cast of Mad Men. I wasn't expecting it, so it was a nice touch.

I can say that I would recommend this book out to some people based on their taste for the 70's style of action.


*** NOTE: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review

Fun Jaunt

This is a great example of a 70's era spy/crime pulp novel because, well, it is. I didn't really research the genesis of this book, and it turns out it was written in the late 70s, but only published this year. It was a fun jaunt through spy and crime worlds with the proto-typical superhuman assasin. It is a little Jason Bourne, a little of Clancy's Agency (of course, written before either of those). The language and cultural references (role of women in spying, view on minorities, etc) reflect the times in which it was written and can be a bit jarring at times, but looking past that, it was a fun book.

Now, the obligatory, "I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review."

A thriller from another era.

This book is set in the 1970’s and it keeps that 70’s pulp vibe throughout the entire book. If you like pulp thrillers from that era this is a decent book for you. I will say it felt a little disjointed and almost slapped together. The end of the book explains it all. This book was written by Ralph Dennis sometime between the 1970’s and his death in 1988. It was left in his estate as two unfinished pieces. The publisher took those two manuscripts and turned them into this book. This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review.

You want somebody killdd¿

Kane, a man with no memory, no past, does what he does best - he kills leople. Once a VIA agent, a trained assassin, he'd been traumatically injured on an assignment, emotionally as well as physically, so, his memory wiped of his entire last and a new background identity installed in his mind he was relocated and found an innocuous occuption. But something approximating to muscle memory crew him away from this safe life, back to assassination, working for a different organisation. But he was watched, his own termination only prevented by the man who originally recruited and trained him.

This book is really two stories in one,lone following the other, the connecting link between the two tales that which Kane himself does not know - his true pathway and identity. It has a noir, mix twentieth century feel, the characters never developing much beyond two dimensional. Hey it hold the reader's attention with that outsider fascination of knowing more than the story participants understand. Narration by Shawn Compton is good, in keeping with the book's style, well paced and articulated.

Whilst the detective stories contained within A Talent for Killing are somewhat convoluted, even confusing, at times - who, exactly, is working for who? - and not really plausible, they are still enjoyable reads. My thanks to the rights holder, who at my request, freely gifted me with a complimentary copy, via Audiobook Boom. A combination old style detective, murder with a hint of spy thriller, and recommended for the novelty of several agencies spying on each other. Enjoy

great book

Kane was a top CIA assassin until he suffered traumatic physical and psychological injuries in a mission that went horribly wrong.
great book