• The Finish

  • The Killing of Osama bin Laden
  • By: Mark Bowden
  • Narrated by: James Lurie
  • Length: 8 hrs and 55 mins
  • 4.2 out of 5 stars (484 ratings)

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The Finish  By  cover art

The Finish

By: Mark Bowden
Narrated by: James Lurie
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Publisher's summary

"There wasn’t a meeting when someone didn’t mention Black Hawk Down."
—A senior Obama Administration official, as quoted in The New York Times, on May 2, 2011

From Mark Bowden, internationally best-selling and acclaimed author of Black Hawk Down and the preeminent chronicler of the actions of our military and special forces writing today, comes an intensely gripping account of the hunt for and elimination of Osama bin Laden. With unprecedented access to key sources and his great gift for storytelling, Bowden takes us inside the rooms where decisions were made and on the ground where the action unfolded. The story focuses on Bin Laden, who maintained a stream of despairing correspondence in hiding in the year before his death, and on President Obama, perceived by many as an anti-war candidate, whose evolving views and enormous responsibilities have turned him into one of the most determined warriors to ever inhabit the White House.

Bowden's book is an unrivaled account of the most high-profile special-forces operation ever to have been undertaken, and a pause-resistant narrative of how the man behind 9/11 was finally brought to justice.

©2012 Mark Bowden (P)2012 Audible, Inc.
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: History

What listeners say about The Finish

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
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    235
  • 4 Stars
    158
  • 3 Stars
    55
  • 2 Stars
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Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
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  • 3 Stars
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  • 2 Stars
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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Listen to No Easy Day...much better

Would you try another book from Mark Bowden and/or James Lurie?

No

Would you ever listen to anything by Mark Bowden again?

Very disappointing. I found Black Hawk down far more compelling.

Would you be willing to try another one of James Lurie’s performances?

Absolutely not....I had the volume turned up and still couldn't hear him clearly. What was the need to whisper.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

Not really, thought No Easy Day was very interesting and compelling.

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14 people found this helpful

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

No need for the liberal political bias.

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

The author could have stuck to the facts and the story, instead of dedicating nearly the entire book to promoting his pro-Obama agenda.

I never write bad reviews on here, it's pretty rare, so you know it's bad.

Has The Finish turned you off from other books in this genre?

No, other authors in this genre don't write a book in the hopes of getting their candidate elected. Most are unbiased and care about the "facts."

Would you be willing to try another one of James Lurie’s performances?

No, he was quiet...unless the preview shows better.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from The Finish?

Probably 80% of it. Nearly the entire book is a "rah rah Obama!" pep rally.

Any additional comments?

I was really really disappointed as Mark Bowden's book on the Mogadishu incident was so much better. I've known that Mark Bowden is clearly a Democrat, and that's fine, but wow, this book is just sad. I can't recommend it.

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11 people found this helpful

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

Speak up please...

What did you love best about The Finish?

Another excellent book from Mark Bowden. Gripping and fully of suspense.

What did you like best about this story?

The inside stories from the actual players at White House, Special Ops and CIA

What aspect of James Lurie???s performance would you have changed?

He spoke like he was telling a secret. The entire performance was practically whispered.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes.

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7 people found this helpful

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

Bowden's lost his writer's mojo

Would you ever listen to anything by Mark Bowden again?

I'd definitely purchase "Killing Pablo" because I read the book, but his later work "Worm" (and "The Finish") is like being stuck in the land of diminishing returns. The quality and style have weakened significantly. That really is a disappointment because I wanted to enjoy this, but couldn't.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of James Lurie?

Scott Brick, Bronson Pinchot, Campbell Scott, Will Patton - I agree with one of the other prior complaints - in addition to everything else, that narrator reads the entire book in a tone as if he's revealing a very hush-hush secret. Bizarre. Throws off the pace of the story completely.

Any additional comments?

Sorry guys, I'm returning this one.

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6 people found this helpful

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

The story is in the Details!

What did you love best about The Finish?

The story is about everything that lead up to the now-famous raid.

What did you like best about this story?

I like the details of the intelligence hunt. It was very interesting.

Which scene was your favorite?

The parts about the highly technical computer programs!

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes.

Any additional comments?

Bowden does it again!

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6 people found this helpful

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

Bowden is great as usual, but the narrator sucks

What made the experience of listening to The Finish the most enjoyable?

Mark Bowden tells a really great story, and he obviously had very good source access.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The descriptions of how the Obama team made the decision to kill bin Laden and why were fascinating and a very good look into national decision making on critical issues facing our country. McRaven comes off looking like a badass.

How could the performance have been better?

The narrator thinks that whispering makes him sound more mysterious. Or maybe he just likes to whisper. Anyway, his voice acting contributed nothing to the story and eventually became distracting from it.

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5 people found this helpful

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

Political Agenda

I downloaded this book, because it said, if you liked No Easy Day, then you'll like The Finish, or something like that. But I didn't find the two books alike at all. No Easy Day focused on the operators, the preparations, and the mission. The Finish seemed like it had more of a political agenda, and focused more on the politicians....just in time for the elections too.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Great disappointment

What disappointed you about The Finish?

A great story ruined by a sycophantic obsession with making President Obama out as the great hero. This came out too near the election for me to believe that this was a coincidence. There were a lot of dedicated and brave people involved in getting Osama, not just the President!

Would you recommend The Finish to your friends? Why or why not?

Very unlikely!

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4 people found this helpful

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

Nothing but an Obama love fest

Would you try another book from Mark Bowden and/or James Lurie?

maybe

What could Mark Bowden have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Give the credit to the people that did the hard work

What aspect of James Lurie’s performance would you have changed?

not slobber all ove Obama

What character would you cut from The Finish?

Their wear a lot of good Americans that died getting us to the point, that made it possible to kill bin Laden.

Any additional comments?

there was a good story that could have been told but they preferred to make it political

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3 people found this helpful

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

great book! A little biased in favor of Obama

Great details of the event before during and after. the author is clearly biased in favor of President Obama, but otherwise a very good detailed account of this historic event.

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2 people found this helpful