Courier

Freelancer, Book 1

By: Terry Irving

Narrated by: Bill Powers

Length: 8 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's summary

Rick Putnam is running for his life. A Vietnam veteran riding a motorcycle for a national news network, he's picked up something too hot to handle. So hot that a reporter and a camera crew has already been killed and a rogue CIA kill squad is on his tail. Stick with this charismatic character as he fights his way all the way to 1600 Pennsylvania in his battle for the truth.

©2014 Terry Irving (P)2015 Ronin Robot Press

a spy thriller with an ordinary man as the hero

Rick Putnam is a shell-shocked veteran doing the best he can.  His photographic memory won’t let him forget a single moment of the terrible events he suffered in Vietnam.  His only relief is the time spent on his motorcycle at top speeds negotiating the busy streets of Washington, DC as a news station courier.

It is the height of the Watergate scandal in the early 1970s and everyone is hyper sensitive to conspiracy.  Rick delivers a certain roll of film back to his news station, its disappearance and the death of the reporters raises more than a small warning.  Now the same men are after him and he must find out why or become collateral damage in a much bigger cover-up.

The action continues almost non-stop through this 1970s thriller.  Jack is an ordinary young man thrown into an impossible situation.  He is pretty lucky, even though he doesn’t see it that way.  The listener can empathize with his flaws and skills.  He practically lives on his motorcycle, so when the bad guys try to run him down, the action is at its most intense.

There are several interesting characters in the story and they sound believable enough.  The bad guys are two dimensionally evil, they just “do their job.”  But Jack is really the focus of the story and we are deep inside his head; nightmares, doubts and even delusions.  The little stability he has in his life crumbles around him quickly and we share his paranoia and anguish as the story unfolds.

The novel is performed by Bill Powers.  His deep voice is a pleasure to listen to and his characters are clearly discernible.  There isn’t a lot of variety in his portrayals, but it is never an issue.  He’s got a great voice and does an excellent performance.

Courier Freelancer is a spy thriller with an ordinary man as the hero.  We can relate to the military skills forced upon him from Vietnam and his post-traumatic stress disorder because of it.  There is an interesting conspiracy twist in the Nixon investigation that seems highly probable.  Overall, a highly entertaining espionage thriller full of action and intrigue.  Recommended.

Audiobook was provided for review by the author via Audiobookboom dot com.

Please find this complete review and many others at my review blog

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Deadly Cover Up

The time is early 1970's. Nixon is president. Watergate is breaking news.

Rick is a courier for a news station and he is tasked with bringing back the news film footage from a recent interview with a whistle blower. Little does Rick that the news team has uncovered a scandal which will make Watergate look like a harmless party.

A rouge CIA assassin is hell bent that the film and any one who knows about the scandal will not tell the tale. The news crew dies in an accident en route back to the station. There is a convenient gas link at the informant's home and the film which Rick turned in to the station has gone missing.

Rick is a Vietnam vet who suffers from ptsd. After he gets run off the road a few times he suspects that someone is out to kill him; although he also figures that he may just be paranoid.

Rick works with his geeky nerdy house mates and a Native American
activist to discover what is on the film which is worth killing for.

Rick and his friends have to stay ahead of and outwit the well connected rouge CIA assassin and find a way to expose the terrible truth that the film portrays.

This is high octane edge of one's seat thriller. For me it was also nostalgic as Rick is of my generation.

The book was also well narrated and performed.


“I was provided this audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review via AudiobookBlast dot come”

A good mystery

This is not a story I would normally seek out but I did enjoy

This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBlast dot com.

1970's Jason Bourne

I really enjoyed this one. I found myself getting more into the book as it went on. Being an 80's baby I got a glimpse of what the 70's had to offer and it definitely delivered. The action and the development play well off eachother and give this book just that little bit extra something that a great book has. The cast of characters were very diverse and worked well together within the plot. The narration was excellent and the quality was great. I found that the narrator changed pace with the changes in scene and plot which made it more of a thrill ride. I can't wait for the next one. Overall, this was a great book and if not provided for free definitely worth a credit.

This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator or publisher at no cost for an honest review

Good Thriller Set in the Seventies

Retro and strange, this audiobook was like a vacuum. It kept pulling me deeper and deeper into this mysterious world of the motorcycle riding courier with his Vietnam past haunting him as well as being stalked by someone who wants something he has. I think Terry Irving is a great author and I definitely look forward to book two in this series. This was an exciting thrill ride.

Bill Powers' narration was was very cool. I really liked his approach and his deep cautious voice which went with Ricks character and the story. It was perfect. I also liked the other characters voices as the way they were introduced gave this story a multi-dimensional sound and feel. This was a great job by both author and narrator.

"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Blast."

Intriqueing suspenseful and well written

I received a free audio version of this book to write a review.

The Story is set in 1972, a Vietnam vet trying to survive past all of the nightmares & flashbacks, works as a courier for a TV station. When he picks up a roll of film that others don't ant to be exposed he begins "the dance" (as he calls it) of trying to stay alive.

It is a well written, attention grabbing conspiracy novel.

The narrator did a good job of highlighting the dramatic without going overboard.

Would definitely listen to more from the author and narrator.