The Game

Victor the Assassin Series, #3

By: Tom Wood

Narrated by: Rob Shapiro

Length: 11 hrs and 57 mins

Publisher's summary

Victor the assassin is living a solitary, peaceful life in Iceland when he's drawn into a job for an unidentified Swiss broker. Having passed the test, he's introduced to a group of mercenaries and killers who are tasked to perform the ultimate assassination.In this group, Victor meets someone from his past, someone who recruited him to the life he now knows-someone he thought was dead. And when he wants out, it's too late-his former mentor has other plans for him...

©2013 Tom Hinshelwood (P)2013 Tantor

VICTOR....IS......THE......BEST

I'm going to do this for every book in this series...These are, hands down, the best assassin novels written and the last 3 are not on Audible! We need to petition Audible to bring every Tom Wood book to Audible USA. Victor is the best......period.

More suspense than usual but still a fun read.

Before I start the review I'd like to ask the aether why no one has mentioned the description's blaring error. What mentor? Who on the team was Victor's mentor that he thought was dead? I haven't read anything about this in any of the reviews and it surprised me no one noticed. Oh well... (I suppose no one cared but it should still be fixed)
Back to the book. Obviously, if you like Victor and the previous 2 books you'll really like this book. I normally hate it when information is withheld for too long but the way the author handled the story I think he did an awesome job building the suspense without going overboard. I especially liked the last several chapters. Most books are at their best approaching the end but Victor was in perfect form once everything is finally revealed. Sure, it gets a little Sherlock Holmsy (apologies to Sir Doyle the boorish use of his character) the way Victor always deduces everything spot on but that is part of the fun in the Victor the Assassin Series.Tom Wood is at the top of his game in this book. I think this is my favorite out of the 3 books so far. I can not wait to start book #4 to see if the author can maintain this level of enjoyment.
I had no reservations or compunction at all giving this book a lot of stars. They are well deserved in my opinion.
Lastly, the narrator, Robert Shapiro, is excellent. He is becoming one of my favorite narrators. He does an awesome job and I found no reason at all to complain about his narration. To be honest, for me he did what I wanted him to; he made me forget someone was just reading me a story. I bad narrator can never do that and it can make finishing a book a real chore. I hope that makes sense (it does in my head. :) )

3 out of 3 wonderful Thriller

Read my review of Book 1 of 3. This writer is outstanding! Get all 3 and you will be happy. I can't wait for the next book. Same satisfaction as "Mitch Rapp" who works to protect our nation, but this character works for money as an assassin but has a conscious and "monster skills"(weapons, strategy, technology, intelligence). Fun and exciting.

Another thrilling Victor mission

The plot had numerous unexpected twists. A thrill a minute ride. Great read by Rob Shapiro. Victor is such a complex character, we would really like to see his "back story".

I loved the game

Great story and Shapiro was excellent.Wood at his best Victor doing what he does so well

Best of the series but it takes time to get moving

Unlike the first two, it takes more than half of the book before any 'strong' action is taking place. There are some action scenes but nothing that would keep the reader/listener engaged like previous books.

Had I not listened to the two previous, I might not have listened enough to get to the main part.

I kept attempting to figure out what the lady and little boy had to do with the plot but it all fits in later.

As others stated, the narrator is excellent and makes even the most boring parts, exciting. There are a few parts where it seems Victor is beyond Superman and entered into a cross between many different Superheros including Spiderman but overall, it is an entertaining listen.

The author does an amazing job building the characters and describing them in a manner that the mental picture is more real than any movie could display. It becomes very easy to despise the ruthless killers and feel the pain of the captives. What I continue to find interesting is that although Victor is a hired assassin, the picture is painted so well that I root for his victory {pun intended}.

Through the three books, Victor has gone from an assassin to someone comparative to a CIA agent. {Maybe he actually is one.}

A He-Man's Book

Thrilling story dominated by a larger than life lead character who at times came across as too fantastic to be credible.

Fan

Another one marked off my list as I eagerly wait hear/read the next book in line.

A Quick Read - Review Contains Spoilers

The first 75% of the book was 4.5 stars. Then the author wrote Victor into a situation where there was no believable way for him to survive. Not that there weren't some other unbelievable parts in the book, but the suicide vest situation was preposterous. In most fiction books where there is a suicide vest involved, it is wired to denotate if removed or tampered with in case the bomber gets cold feet. For all the planning that Leeson and Hart had done, it is hard to believe that Victor could just take off the vest.

Some have mentioned the author was too descriptive, but I didn't think so except in one place. For some reason at the height of the climax, the author went into a lot of detail on the locale which interrupted the flow at a crucial point. I had more of an issue with the abrupt demise of Leeson in the Phantom. I also found the scene with Hart in Iceland and the carbon monoxide a weak ending to the book. I was actually hoping Victor and Hart would cross paths in a future book. There weren't any twists and it was predictable, but I enjoyed it. I will continue reading the rest of the books in the series.

The narrator had a perfect voice for both of the calm, cold, calculated killers, Victor and Hart. He is still a little inconsistent with the characters' voices so that's why only 4 stars. Otherwise, he's an excellent narrator.

Another Great Victor Story

Wood's writing and Shapiro's narration have produced another fine listen. Victor behaves a bit out of character from the first 2 in the series (meeting people face to face for example), but his cold calculating ever stratigizing mind is still a strong characteristic. The story is a different twist than the usual assassination character novels - nice to see something new. I can't wait for the next in this series.