Although initially intimidated by the length, it turned out to be a non-stop thrill ride. Excellent book with engaging characters. Even though the s..Show More »ubject has become slightly dated it is still very much captivating. Superb reading by Scott Brick.

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Nelson DeMille begins with the horrendous crash of TWA Flight 800 and takes us through an investigation, five years after the fact. Retired NYPD dete..Show More »ctive John Corey, previously appearing in Plum Island & The Lion's Game, attends the memorial service on the fifth anniversary of the crash with his now wife FBI Agent Kate Mayfield who was involved in the initial investigation of the TWA Flight 800 tragedy. Agent Mayfield was not satisfied with the "official" explanation of the crash but has been warned by her superiors not to further question this explanation or the CIA's animation which supposedly illustrated what "really happened".

DeMille does a brilliant job of walking us through an investigation, examining fact and theory within the framework of the novel to create a book which not only entertains but also informs. And what great entertainment it is. Different aspects of the official investigation have been woven into the story in a way which enhances the listener's understanding the aircraft accident investigation procedures without being over technical and bogging down the story line. DeMille handles the topic with sensitivity for the families of the victims of Flight 800 while taking you on a roller coaster ride of plot twists and turns which culminates with Sept. 11, 2001. Don't start this book without plenty of time to listen because you will not want to put it down.

Scott Brick, as always, adds his superb narrative skills to the audio book. Brick is a virtuoso who captures nuances of accent, dialect and timing which most narrators cannot master without being overdone. He is particularly adroit at bringing female dialog to the listener without it being distracting or turning into a vocal caricature as is often the case when a male narrator attempts female dialog.

The talent of the author and narrator left me wishing that the story would not end. DeMille has an extraordinary talent for creating addictive storylines.

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Basically I liked the book and the narration. DeMille is a good writer, and that alone is worth a star in today's best seller market. It's a decent th..Show More »riller with a timely and almost believable premise couched in humorous writing with a couple of charming protagonists and some wickedly psycho bad guys. I'm surprised Hollywood hasn't found John Corey and Kate Mayfield yet.

A couple of criticisms, though. John Corey is famous for his sarcastic humor, but it has become a bit forced. He's still funny, but in the "The Lion's Game" his humor was his defense in the complicated flow of the story. Here he often seems like a stand-up comedian, telling jokes just to be funny. At worst, he seems like a bully with his constant sarcasm, and that was not part of him in "The Lion's Game." The writer is trying too hard to accentuate what made John Corey popular, and losing some of the character's complexity and gravitas in the process.

Also, the bad guy is believable, and somewhat original once past another billionaire-reshaping-the-world cliche, but DeMille at times seems disturbingly sympathetic to his more racist rants,and has his protagonists agreeing with things no hero should agree with.

So it's forced, and maybe a bit out of touch with the moral compass, and the characters aren't impressively complex, but the prose is great, the humor is enjoyable, and the suspense lasts until the final moments. And there are some emotionally satisfying moments of tenderness and revenge, and even a couple of viable moral dilemmas.

Overall, a good read, a good listen--the narrator is brilliant--and the flaws are more warning signs for future John Corey books than fatal weaknesses in this one. On the other hand, if you haven't read a John Corey novel yet, start with "The Lion's Game."

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Scott Brick has been a long time favorite narrator of mine. I relistened to The Lion's Game before listening to The Lion. Scott is fabulous in the f..Show More »irst but I didn't even recognize him in the second! He sounds like Howard Cosell!! Scott, please go back to your regular John Corey voice if there is another in the series!

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Nelson DeMille, Scott Brick and the character they both bring to life are simply the best! I love the look back AND getting something to tide me over..Show More » until The Panther is released.

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I admit this book could have been cut down, probably by about 100 pages. DeMille shovels a gigantic amount of background information about Yemen, the..Show More » Middle East over all, drones, and U.S. defense efforts against terrorism. This information is necessary, but I get the sense editing was tossed aside. Still, I enjoyed this John Corey entry despite it being the weakest in the series. Corey is still a wonderful character, filled with with and sarcasm, which is how I like my heroes. I really do like Kate, John Corey's wife, but she is reduced to acting like his mother this time around. Which is to bad, because Kate is as strong a character as Corey. You get patriotism, really evil bad guys, betrayal and loyalty. Those who give this story 1 star do it a disservice because it is still a fun time.

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