The Break Line
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3.8 • 8 Ratings
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- £8.99
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- £8.99
Publisher Description
'BREATHLESS, COMPLEX AND SERIOUSLY HARDCORE' LEE CHILD
Officially Max McLean doesn't exist.
Sniper. Spy. Assassin. His job is top secret, deadly... and often Max is the only thing keeping his country safe.
Fortunately, he's bloody good at it.
But Max is growing tired of unquestioned loyalty to his political masters. And when his latest job takes him deep into West African jungle, where a remote village has been quarantined after a sinister virus takes hold, it's time for answers.
As the mission darkens further than he ever thought possible, Max faces a perilous, breath-taking quest for the truth, that will call into question everything that he once believed in, and leave the fate of humanity itself in his hands . . .
The Break Line drips with authenticity, menace and first-hand knowledge of the frontline. Smart, unputdownable and packed with jaw-dropping plot twists, this is a thriller like no other.
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'Beautifully written and extensively researched, The Break Line is a riveting page-turner, a gruesome delight, and a study of what lies in the shadowed corners of the human heart' Gregg Hurwitz, author of Orphan X
'A thriller of an unusually classy calibre. Eloquently written, intensively researched ... Brabazon has crafted hugely gripping, thought-provoking yarn' Financial Times
'War correspondent James Brabazon brings his experience of the world's most dangerous places to this brutally compelling thriller . . .' Mail on Sunday
'A taut, razor-edged thriller, packed with granular detail and authenticity' James Swallow, bestselling author of Nomad
'It is insanely immersive, brilliantly blurring the lines between fiction and reality. I couldn't put it down' Tom Marcus, bestselling author of Soldier Spy
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
British documentarian Brabazon (My Friend the Mercenary: A Memoir) makes his fiction debut with an adrenaline-charged thriller. Soon after Max McLean, who has been an off-the-books assassin for the British government for more than two decades, decides not to kill his target in Caracas, Venezuela, he receives another assignment. He must travel to Karabunda, a jungle outpost in northern Sierra Leone, and kill the white leader of an insurgent force without backup or access to the usual intel. Max poses as a doctor to scout the remote area, only to discover that the military has closed off the entire region, claiming a cholera outbreak. He learns, though, that the dead have been savaged, some dismembered or eviscerated, with human bite marks left on the bodies. Later, in Freetown, he recovers a message left for him by a comrade-in-arms with a phrase in Irish that translates as "kill them all." Brabazon's inventive violence, mix of combat styles, and slowly revealed truths will keep readers on the edge of their seats.)
Customer Reviews
Gruesome and graphic but action packed!
The last James Brabazon book I read was My Friend the Mercenary and I found it interesting but terrifying. The reality of war is never pleasant and often graphic. And Brabazon does not shy away from depicting graphic and disgustingly gruesome scenes.
The Break Line is an action packed thriller with a bit of everything including the creation of a “superhuman” weapon.
At times this was enthralling and left me unable to put it down but at others, it was slow and drawn out. The main protagonist is an assassin, not someone you would necessarily like but you can’t help but root for him to triumph in this messed up mission.
The writing style was ok but sometimes felt broken and used too much military jargon for my taste. The plot was well planned out, with strategically placed plot twists to keep me on my toes but felt a bit fantastical and unreal on occasion.
If you’re a fan of this genre and of writers such as Andy McNab I’m sure you’ll love this book, however it’s not for the faint-hearted.
For me it was a 3 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ read.
The Break Line releases on 26th July 2018.
Thank you to the NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy. All opinions are my own and provided willingly.