Kill Zone

A Sniper Novel

De: Jack Coughlin, Donald A. Davis

Narrado por: Luke Daniels

An American general is captured by Islamic extremists in the Middle East. They threaten to behead him within days. One strange fact: Moments before he is rendered unconscious during the attack, the general notices that his unseen captors speak American English. What's going on?

Gunnery Sergeant Kyle Swanson, a top level marine sniper, is vacationing on a boat in the Mediterranean when he receives orders to mount a top-secret mission to rescue the general. But as he and his men prepare to land in the Iraqi desert, they immediately come under ferocious attack, and Swanson is the only man left alive. How did the enemy know details of a mission known only to a few top government officials?

Swanson takes off across the desert alone to find the captured general and realizes he is fighting a particularly ruthless and dangerous enemy: American mercenaries working for a very high-level group of American officials with ties to the White House itself, part of a clandestine conspiracy whose hidden agenda is nothing less than total control of the American military. Their sworn enemy is the captured general whose fate now rests in Sniper Swanson's hands.

Full of the kind of action author Jack Coughlin lived during his career as a marine sniper, Kill Zone marks the debut of an extraordinary writing team.

©2007 Jack Coughlin and Donald A. Davis (P)2015 Macmillan Audio

Okay second half but this didn’t click for me

This book started rather slowly for me. There was a lot of cringe, groans, tropes and rants to begin and if this book had still been in my return window it might have been a DNF. But I persisted and the second half was okay with fairly constant action. What I like was the relatively constant action in the second half. What I didn’t like was several things. First, I really didn’t like the Kyle Swanson character - he just didn’t click for me. There were no other lead characters that I cared about either. Second, there was a lot of unrealistic behaviors. Of course you have to suspend your sense of reality with thriller books like these but there were several instances in which characters didn’t respond in the way they would certainly have in those situations. Third, there was a pervasive feeling of juvenile joke cartoonishness, as if the author was trying a bit too hard to appeal to a certain kind of reader. That said, if you do read this book, plow through because it does get better. Still I doubt that I will continue this series. There are a lot of better options in this genre. Lastly, I have to say that I did not like Luke Daniels as narrator. His voice for Kyle Swanson only made Swanson sound even more annoying than he otherwise would have, and many of his other characters sounded cartoonish.

Good read

Enjoyed the book. Narration was great and the story was well written. Kept my interest and can’t wait to start the next one

Regretfully Late to The Party

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

ABSOLUTELY! If you like the Mitch Rapp books by Vince Flynn or the Scot Harvath series by Brad Thor you will love this series of books featuring Kyle Swanson. Kill Zone was a great lead-off book!

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

Yes! I listen to audiobooks while putting in long miles on a bicycle. The suspense the authors built up had me so totally lost in the story I missed turns and forgot where I was. The story was very well executed and full of twists and turns.

What does Luke Daniels bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Very easy to distinguish between all the voices of the characters. He brought just the right amount of emotion to each character where appropriate.

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

I listened while riding the bike, commuting in the car, doing laundry, vacuuming and even through a speaker while in the shower so yes, I guess you could say it was close to in one sitting!

Any additional comments?

I am so sorry I'm so late to this series. Finished book 2 which was just as good and have book 3 ready to go after I finish re-listening to The Wastelands Dark Tower 3. Highly recommend it!

Great book. Well written.

A fantastic story. Well written, Marine. I plan on listening to the next book. I hope it’s as good as this one.

Love the gritty tale

Excellent company while working. Loved the plot line, tech and main character profile. Worth checking out!

Well Done!

I was looking for a book to listen to on a drive, came across this one and decided to give it a try. I was a bit concerned after a few chapters that I made the wrong choice, but stuck with it - I still had hours to go. Glad I did. About 1/3 of the way in the story hit its stride and was well done. I enjoyed the characters, action and detail. I would like to listen to more but there are no more unabridged Kyle Swanson/Sniper books, I hope audible changes that soon. The second book is available but is abridged. I have no use for abridged stories, what is the point?

I love a book that starts out with a bang

I love a book that starts out with a bang and keeps getting better. This one does that and more.

In the Middle East an American General has been kidnapped and his personnel have been murdered. General Middleton realizes that the kidnappers are speaking American English. They are not Arabs! Then he is knocked out with an injection of drugs. This starts a series of events that bring the general and Gunnery Sgt. Kyle Swanson back together.

Kyle Swanson is on vacation in the Mediterranean with friends aboard a yacht. He is testing a new type of sniper rifle and spending time with his girlfriend. Kyle is one of the highest scoring snipers in the Marines. When word gets out that a General has been snatched, Kyle is ordered to join up with an elite team of Marines for a rescue mission.

The rescue fails leaving Kyle as the only survivor. Now it is up to Kyle to rescue General Middleton. Middleton considers Kyle a mental case and has serious doubts about Kyle’s abilities.

At the same time in Washington the plot thickens. A billionaire, Gordon Gates IV is bankrolling an attempt to take over the military. His man in power is National Security Adviser, Gerald Buchanan. Buchanan keeps the mercenaries informed about the actions of the military and Kyle.

There is a little romance involved but that has an unhappy ending. The characters are well done. This is one really great read. Loved the way Kyle problem solved and saved the day. The interaction between the two men was interesting. Kyle had the experience to keep them alive and Middleton thought he knew best. Ha.

The cover is right on. The sniper and the background of desert is reflective of the harsh and lonely environment.

Read by Luke Daniels and he did a superb job. His voices were perfect for the characters. I especially like the way he voiced Kyle. Sort of a gravely growl. It was great. I listened to it almost non-stop.

There were no production issues – the quality was good and flawless.

Audiobook purchased for review by ABR.

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

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The violators of trust

I really liked the characters...the primal ruthlessness of men under extreme survival conditions. The webs of deception were well planned by both the villains and the good guys. Also I appreciated having the author make the point that more often that we would like to admit about our gov. The right hand doesn't have a clue about the left hand. All in all by the end doesn't have riding off into a glorious sissy.
Also the reader did a very good.. Keep your ears up, you'll get a kick out of the staff sergeant she is pure entertainment .

Kill Zone Rocks!!!

On the positive side, the story has lots of action and is filled with terrific detail that only a real-life sniper would be able to add. The descriptions were vivid and you felt like you were really there. The book itself works well but I think it might be a bit disjointed at times, and I would view the end as being a little bit too rushed, it was more like tying up loose ends than a natural finish to the plot.
Luke Daniels was excellent.

I wish there were more stories

I plan on listening to the entire series again but still wish there were more stories in the series. Surely Mr. Coughlin can come up with more adventures. I can only hope.