Operation Brushfire

De: Rhett C. Bruno, James Wolanyk

Narrado por: Lou Diamond Phillips

He’ll do anything for the truth. They’ll do anything to bury it.

Henry Stasik, an Internal Affairs agent for the globe-spanning Coalition, is no stranger to crooked agents or scandals. He's a truth-junkie. An addict. But when international celebrity Anastasia Danicheva specifically demands his presence at a police station, everything changes. The Coalition, which has brought peace through uniting the world under a single banner, wants her dead. But none of their case against her adds up.

Stasik can’t help but need to know why.

Hours after taking her under his department's protection, a cybernetically enhanced hitman nips at Stasik's heels. Witnesses disappear or turn up in pools of blood. And lurking above it all, guarded by a genocidal AI construct, is a secret that threatens to dismantle a perfect world and–Stasik himself.

Man in the High Castle meets Blade Runner with a dash of The Man from U.N.C.L.E. in this breakneck sci-fi spy thriller set in a drug-fueled alternate history from the number one Audible best-selling author of Titanborn, Rhett C. Bruno, and James Wolanyk. Performed by award-winning actor Lou Diamond Phillips, star of Prodigal Son, Young Guns, and La Bamba.

©2021 Rhett C. Bruno, James Wolanyk (P)2021 Podium Audio

Reseñas de la Crítica

"A dynamic tale filled with shocking action, devious subterfuge, and compelling characters. Lots of fun and highly recommended!“ (Jonathan Maberry, New York Times best-selling author of Relentless and V-Wars)

"Operation Brushfire is a stylish thriller with Cold War era paranoia pervading its alternative history setting. National security, surveillance, and artificial intelligence twist together...a great and timely read." (Matthew Mather, international best-selling author of Cyberstorm)

“A pulse-pounding sci-fi thriller that really makes you question the nature of humanity. I couldn’t put it down!“ (Nicholas Sansbury Smith, New York Times best-selling author of Hell Divers)

What a wild ride

First things first. Lou Diamond Phillips does an amazing job on the narration. His voice acting skills will draw you in and becomes part of the story.

Ok the story has the feel of a slow burn at the start but it ramps up with some intense action. The twists and turns in the story kept me engaged and wanting to keep listening just to find out what was going to happen next. There were a couple of times I would sit in the driveway for a little longer because I wanted to hear a little bit more of the story.

Over all a fantastic story and a very high quality audiobook.

The master returns...

Rhett C. Bruno can’t seem to write a bad book. I’ve read all his works and now working with James Wolanyk, there’s this familiarity mixed with something... new.

It’s a nice change of pace from some of Rhett’s other work. We can see James’ influence in this Cyberpunky thriller, but the Bruno element still remains.

Add to that, Lou Diamond Phillips—a great actor who I had no idea could voice act this well—and I think this is one of the best listens this year.

Meh. I guess this just wasn't my cup of tea.

I was incredibly excited to see Mr Bruno had a new audio book out. That about as far as my excitement went. Story was ok, but forgettable. The "twist" at the end was predictable and about as mediocre as the rest of the story. Rhett C Bruno is still one of my favorite authors, and Mr Phillips narration was great. But just like the headline said, meh. Look forward to his next title.

An Alternate History BLAST!

I usually have a hard time when a synopsis of a book compares it to other things that I love. But, in the case where that description is dead on… the book is excellent. Just like Operation Brushfire was. I thought “how on earth could Bruno and Wolanyk make a story that combines Man in the High Castle and Blade Runner?” But by god they did it, but they nailed it.

Operation Brushfire threw me right into the action. I wasn’t sure which side was up. I knew who a few characters were and I definitely knew that someone wasn’t okay. The “truth-junkie” Henry was fun to follow, especially as he starts to question things. But even though we meet her in the intro for a few fleeting moments, Anastasia was such a character that I completely understood why Henry was doing the things he was doing.

Operation Brushfire was one of those books I thought would let off the gas a bit as the story finally took hold, but I was wrong. Bruno and Wolanyk jammed the accelerator into the floor and never let up. They kept throwing new things at Henry and I kept thinking “there’s no way he’s getting out of this” –but he would. A few times I was pretty sure I had either the scene or the ending guessed and I was wrong.

I kept hovering between a 4.5 and a 5 just because of the different twists and turns. The ending was not what I expected and I thought for sure if it ended in a way I wasn’t expecting I would give it a 4.5 – but Bruno and Wolanyk surprised me so well that I have to give them the 0.5 stars back. They earned it.

Now, I feel like I can’t say much about Lou Diamond Phillips that hasn’t already been said – but good god is he a great narrator. He absolutely took this already 5-star book to another level and really made it shine. His narration was perfect for this story and I couldn’t have asked for a better narrator.

Excellent Narration Brings a Dark Noir Sci-Fi Story to Life

I’ve been a fan of Lou Diamond Phillips from when he broke out in La Bamba in the 1980s to his recent stint as Henry Standing Bear in Longmire. That range of acting experience serves him well as narrator of a varied cast of characters in this first-rate alt-history Sci-Fi noir tale of international intrigue. All the familiar noir tropes are here—the kind that make a story feel comfortable, not stale—the femme fatale, the conflicted leading man who’s honorable at his core, the conspiracy of lies that threatens them both. Sift that through Bruno & Wolanyk’s prose—taut, tight, and tongue-in-cheek sometimes—and then toss everything into a bin of alternate history where the familiar ISN’T always comfortable, and you get a great story. Henry Stasik’s obsession, his need-to-know the truth acts as a proxy for the listener/reader and drives the story forward to a breath-catching climax. Recommended by candlelight, with a glass of wine nearby and no need to get up early tomorrow morning…