The Driver

John Milton, Book 3

By: Mark Dawson

Narrated by: David Thorpe

Length: 9 hrs and 35 mins

Publisher's summary

John Milton has started to hope that he might have a future.

He has a job driving a taxi around the streets of San Francisco. He has his anonymity and his solitude. Being invisible has become a comfortable habit. He doesn't want to be found.

But when a girl he drives to a party goes missing, Milton is worried. Especially when two dead bodies are discovered, and the police start treating him as their prime suspect. Milton is a fugitive from the British Secret Service, and a man in his position needs extra attention like he needs a hole in the head.

As unpleasant secrets leak out, and the body count rises, one thing is for sure. Milton might just be the right guy in the wrong place at the wrong time.

The Driver is a taut, nail-biting adventure which once again stars Mark Dawson's irresistible hero, the maverick ex-MI6 assassin John Milton. Mark Dawson has worked as a DJ and lawyer and currently works in the London film industry. His first books, The Art of Falling Apart and Subpoena Colada have been published in multiple languages.

©2014 Mark Dawson (P)2015 Audible, Ltd

Another good listen

John Milton is Jack Reacher, John Wells, and The Grey Man all rolled into one. David Thorpe also does a great job. He is slowly becoming one of favorite narrators.

Narrator's accents, British idioms

Thorpe does an excellent job normally but his Texas and Southern accents are painful. And in all his American words that end in 'a' he adds an 'r' like idears. 'Sawr' was irritating as well. Place names in the Bay Area were mispronounced.
The author also used British idioms from time to time, like it will be 'sorted' ‐‐ not an American expression. Otherwise not bad.

You can drive me, John Milton!

John Milton is likable. He is an ex-SAS assassin who got tired of the blood and decided to go straight and only help people out. His home office doesn't want him out there with all his knowledge of procedure and missions and personnel, so they keep sending assassins to kill him, or bring him in. Thus he must be on the run constantly. Milton is also a recovering alcoholic who attends AA meetings but doesn't believe he can ever atone for his sins. In every town he lands in he ends up finding trouble and causing nearly as much as he smooths. In this book, he is looking for a missing hooker he taxied to a "party", and trying to find out who killed the other working girls.

At least in this story, none of his new, short-term friends get offed while John is trying to atone. It is interesting all the way through, and we live for the spec ops skills John brings into play. His newest sometime partner, bounty hunter Bo (or Beau, I don't know) reappears to our delight, even though he can not take the place of the lamented Rutherford from book 1.

The narration constantly amazes me. Thorpe's default voice seems to be that of a slightly nerdy, prissy English prig, but he did the English thugs and druggies superbly in book 1, Mexican drug lords in book 2, and now he does Americans of all accents and social levels. He seems to change height and weight as his voices change.

If you like the genre and the premise, this is a good series.

Good story

The narrator is English & has the worst American accent I've ever heard. He thinks there is only one generic accent for all Americans. It's appalling

Starting to get predictable

I hope the next couple of books prove me wrong, but the plot line is: ex-agent John is on the tun from Control, meets damsel in distress, feels obligated to assist her, kicks some ass, moves on to new place.

loved this book, was a great read.

If you like Jack Reacher you will love Milton. Action packed with great detail and we'll developed characters.

Good Audio Book

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

I thought the character development was good and the story was interesting. I would recommend this audiobook.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Milton (John). The mystery behind him, his quiet strength and his caring nature.

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

Different accents

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

It could be...I listened while driving to work (30 minutes one way)

Any additional comments?

I would listen to other books by this author/reader

Unusual hero

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

The character development of his humanity

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

The plots against the main character. Just as one is developed another develops making his survival in doubt throughout the book

Have you listened to any of David Thorpe’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Yes! I am hooked on the series

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The death of his friends

Amazing!

Would you consider the audio edition of The Driver to be better than the print version?

I love audio books. The narrator is fabulous and gets you into the story.

Milton, a great alternative to Reacher.

I am hooked into this series! Enjoy the storyline and the performance by David Thorpe, the narrator.