The Strategist

Grisham & Sullivan, Book 1

By: John Hardy Bell

Narrated by: Diane Lehman

Length: 10 hrs and 21 mins

Publisher's summary

Camille Grisham was once a decorated field agent with the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit. Her job was to solve the country's most complex and violent crimes, often with little more than a textbook profile of the perpetrator to go on. No one did it better. But after her partner's death at the hands of a sadistic mass murderer, she has become a broken shell of her former self.

Forced to leave the Bureau under the weight of guilt, Camille returns to her hometown of Denver, hopeful that the presence of family and friends can heal the wounds that time could not. Unfortunately, a change in scenery does not bring about a change in fortune. Less than 24 hours after her arrival home, Camille is left to deal with yet another tragic loss - the brutal murder of her best friend in an apparent home invasion.

For local police, the case is open and shut. For Camille it is anything but.

Desperate for answers, she becomes an unwitting participant in an investigation that winds through the darkest corridors of wealth, power, and political corruption. All the while a killer waits patiently in the shadows, watching Camille's every move.

With the help of a young homicide detective whose doubts about her department's case increase by the second, Camille must race to uncover the true motives behind her friend's murder, even though she knows that doing so will put her on an inevitable collision course with a past that she desperately wants to leave behind.

©2013 John Hardy Bell (P)2017 John Hardy Bell

Diane captures essence of John's story!

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

I loved the print version and felt the audio version brought the story to the next level!

What did you like best about this story?

Throughout the story the details were so well written and the suspense kept me on my toes until the last page.

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

Her voice brings light to the well written characters

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

this book made me think about possible outcomes of the twists and turns. I dont usually like surprises but this book kept me guessing, intrigued and connected. I wanted to see it to the end!

Any additional comments?

I have been a fan of John Hardy Bell's writing since this book was released in hard copy. I have read his other stories and the new story by his pen name E.M. Parker. He is a talent and I look forward to seeing what he releases next. His plots, details and execution of story telling is exceptional.

Narrator is awful

Bad story slow slow slow
Horrible narrator monotone
Waste of time to listen too
Bad

This book was slow

I did not like this book. it took forever to get going, the story never got compelling and it was narrated terribly. Sometimes you just need to tell the story and not pretend you can act. Her voice was annoying and so slow that I had to speed up the tempo dramatically in order to pay attention. Plus she gave the main characters pathetic character voices that ruined the image the author was intending. I am surprised Patterson put his name on this embarrassment.

Narrator is awful

Story was pretty good. the. narrator was awful. She failed miserably to sound even remotely like a man. Detective Graham's voice was something out of a 50's melodrama that made him sound like a caricature and not a real person. It is so bad it's hard to stay focused in the story. Nails on a chalkboard. Just narrate the book. Reader does not need attempts at different voices. Sullivan, Paul Grisham, Brandt, etc. All were pretty bad. thank God she uses her own voice for Camille or I could not have finished it.

Not genuine John Grisham but not bad.

It took me awhile to get into this book. By the third chapter my mind drifted off and I started over 3 or 4 times before I got involved with the story. I’m sorry, Ms Lehman, you are a good narrator but my personal preference is to listen without the ‘voices,’. It’s a good story line and I would buy a Grisham & Sullivan book 2.

Great story but the profanity was unnecessary

extreme unnecessary profanity
narrator was good
story line was good but the extreme foul language made it where I could not recommend it!

Great story

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

The book was very well written and the story overall was very enjoyable, but the narrator's versatility really brought it to life. Her characterizations were amazing. Even the male characters were believable.

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

The story was well-paced with just enough character development to make me care.

Reader

Didn’t care for the reader at all!!!! Need to find someone else to do the job.

Voices

I really enjoy This book. Kept me wanted to know what was going to happen next.
Some of the voice performances were really tacky.

Not great

The voices for the characters was off putting and unrealistic. Didn’t consider it a great read.