Okay. I may as well start with my usual confession - this may be book three but it is the first book in this series I have read. This is one time where I think that I really might have benefitted from reading the other books first, not least because based on this one, I've missed a treat, but mainly because there are aspects in this particular novel that reference things in protagonist, Jake Boulder's past that have particular bearing on his present. It wasn't an insurmountable problem, and you get enough about Jake's personal circumstances to make it work as a stand alone, but I'm guessing I'd have much better context into his personality and whether or not what he has to undertake in this novel is 'normal' or, as I suspect some of it is, really pushing him to his limits.

Now, on the face of it,Jake has two rather simple tasks to achieve in the course of this book. The first - find someone on behalf of an old acquaintance to advise them of their inheritance and, as part of the process, uncover a deeply buried secret with far reaching consequences. The second, a touch more personal, is track down his absentee father to see if he is a match to give his half brother a life saving donation. Neither one seems particularly dangerous but then Imam guessing, that had I read the first two books, I'd be expecting that this would be a far from simple mission. In fairness, this is a thriller series and although I don;t know the character well, it is very clear that Jake Boulder is no shrinking violet, and where he leads mayhem seems set to follow. Graham Smith does a brilliant job of scene setting and it is soon very clear how dangerous this task is going to end up being, even though Jake has no idea what it is he is really walking into.

This book is packed with action, and is paced perfectly so as to keep the reader turning the pages at speed. I was quickly drawn into the story and utterly engaged in Jake's story and mission. Despite certain appearances, he's a family man and loyal to those he loves and who can resist those qualities in a character. The author is able to instil a sense of authenticity in his personality, even down to those times when he is forced into a position of defending himself and those he cares for using weapons and tactics he is not really trained for. There are scenes in this book tinged with tragedy, moments that spur Jake into a rage that will power him through the challenges and battles that are ahead. And in a book that is filled with organised crime enforcers, assassins and the like, there are many battles,

I could feel the emotion that poured from the page at times, and the adrenalin that pulsed from it at others. There are times when this book turns particularly violent, and scenes where even I was caught somewhere between an ewwww and a fair play reaction. I have a real issue with eyes. If you know, you know. But the story is not really about the violence. It's 'necessary' in as much as violence ever is, but not gratuitous. The initial mystery intrigued, although it turned secondary and almost inconsequential in respect of what else happened, and it was Jake's quest for vengeance really held my attention.

I definitely feel I need to read the rest of the series, so I'll be making it my mission to do just that very soon. For fans of good honest action thrillers, with a regular kind of hero at its heart, this could well be the series for you. Why not give it a go?

Past Echoes is the third book in the brilliant Jake Boulder series. I would recommend reading them in order, just because you will get a better understanding of Jake. The book was a thrilling, gripping read that just happens to blow your mind by the explosive ending!
Highly recommended.

past echoes by Graham Smith.
an absolutely fantastic read. jake Boulder is back. this time he is off to new York with his girlfriend Taylor. he is on 2 missions. to find his estranged father for a life saving transfusion the second is to find the beneficiary and reveal a dead woman's secret.
And her secret may be Deadly?
Will Jake and Taylor get out of this alive?
loved the story. Didn't like Cameron Jake father he was not nice. jake was my favourite character. what a twist I didn't expect that. what a read. 5*. highly recommended.

This book went from 3 stars (my max) to 2 and back to 3. I’t about Jake Boulder, whose father left him, his mother and sister when they were still very young. So he cannot really commit to anyone, until he meets Taylor, the love of his life. Together they go to New York, for a wedding of some of her nieces. In the meantime Alfonse, his best friend and a computerwhizz, is looking for his father who could possibly be the only one able to give a bone marrow transplant to his half-brother who is dying from leukemia. By chance, this father is also in New York and he goes to meet him. Then things get terribly wrong, and it got a bit too violent for me with a lot of shooting, fighting, killing. But I was on the bus back home and did not want to start a new book so I continued. At times it still got too violent (and gorey) for me, but in the end I was really glad that I read until the end.

This series goes from strength to strength. The pace is fast and furious. In this book the action extends out to New York and we get to meet Jake'"s flaky father. I am looking forward to the next in the series already!

Right, so there I am reading Past Echoes, quite happily ... enjoying the tension, savouring the adrenalin, lapping up the excitement, just heading to the half way mark ... when ... WHAM! ... out of nowhere Smith sends a curve ball that still has me reeling. I jumped up from my seat yelling 'How Could You?' to the absent author.

The cats scattered and, were it not for my instinctive need to protect my kindle at all costs, I'm sure it would have been flung at the window. The upshot of this, though, is that it is this sort of suspenseful, twisty writing that makes the Jake Boulder books so compelling ... so despite my disbelief it's hats off to Graham Smith.
In Past Echoes, Boulder is tasked with hunting down a beneficiary in a friend's will which will reveal some startling information about key political figures in New York. Alongside this, he must make contact with his father in order to save his half brother from certain death. Past Echoes shows us another side to Jake Boulder. Completely out of his comfort zone and facing personal trials that no man should ever have to face, we see Boulders vulnerable side ... and I like it. Alongside this we see Boulders mum in a different light. Their converging backstories are illuminating and serve to soften Jake's harder edges as well as his mum's brittleness. Insight into Boulder's Sottish heritage is heart warming and thought provoking. This is a well rounded read with a hell of a lot of oomph!

Fast paced, energetic and jam packed full of surprises Past Echoes is not to be missed. I'm already eager to see what Smith will do with Boulder in the future.

Not one for me……

This is the third in the Jake Boulder series but can be read without knowing anything about the previous two thrillers although, as is often the case, it will help if you have done so. On this occasion, Boulder and his sidekick foil, Alphonse, become involved in a search of a very personal nature. To say much more would be to give away spoilers but, as the title suggests, the investigative duo delve into Boulder’s past and, unsurprisingly, what they find there does not suggest that he has a fully functioning family.

I didn’t enjoy the read and at one point threw down the book in frustration and disgust. I fully appreciate that the whole series has had excellent reviews and Graham Smith deservedly has a loyal band of fans but I have been asked for my opinion and will give it even though I might be a lone voice. Boulder is a violent, boorish thug with few, if any, redeeming characteristics.

The characters were two-dimensional and the dialogue so staccato that at times it barely exceeded the odd grunt. On the plus side the action is fast and furious and the plot is well thought through and executed but I need to be able to empathise with at least some of those in the plot.

So, if you want an action thriller where you can suspend total belief and don’t want any emotional involvement then this is the series for you. It certainly has its place in literary fiction and romps along at a tremendous pace but, personally, I would have preferred a little less action and a few more descriptive passages so I could build my own, more complete, picture.

mr zorg

Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review.

I am such a fan of this series. If you want an entertaining, action-packed read then pick up a Jake Boulder thriller. Just to prove my point, here are my reviews of book one Watching the Bodies and book two The Kindred Killers.

I was eagerly anticipating book three in the series, particularly as The Kindred Killers finished on such an explosive note. And oh boy, I was not disappointed. In my opinion, this is by far the best Jake Boulder book in the series so far. I was completely entranced from start to finish. The main plot point in Past Echoes reveals a more emotional side to this lean, mean, fighting machine. And, in a strange way, I thoroughly enjoyed seeing Boulder's softer side. Although it didn't last very long and he was back to planning revenge missions and beating the 'you know what' out of people in no time!

Past Echoes starts by referring back to the events of The Kindred Killers. I asked myself whether this would hinder a new reader to the series, diving straight in with book three. It always helps when you start at the beginning of a series but I am well known for accidentally (sometimes on purpose *snigger*) starting part way through. My advice is, and will always be, start at the beginning. Watch the characters grow, find out their backstory. Don't MISS anything. But, saying that, Past Echoes 'could' be read as a standalone but only because Smith does an excellent job of filling in the gaps for new readers. Although I can guarantee, if this is the first Jake Boulder book you pick up, you WILL want to read the first two in the series as well. Guaranteed!

One of the things I enjoyed the most about this book was the way the author sets up the story so you think it's going to go in one particular direction. He then completely wrong-foots you so you're suddenly on this unexpected, intense and utterly thrilling rollercoaster ride of terror and reading delight. I loved it.

Before I sign off I would like to mention one more thing. The inclusion of Cameron MacDonald, Boulder's estranged father. A stroke of genius on the author's part because if you didn't love Boulder before, once you've met his @r5e of a father, you won't be able to stop yourself from feeling a little for him. Cameron is the lowest of the low. He plays a key role in Past Echoes but I hope this is the last we see of him for some time. I always enjoy it when an author includes a character for us readers to hate. In this case, Cameron fits the bill perfectly. The tension, the unpleasantness MacDonald brings. Oooh, he's a nasty piece of work...

Would I recommend this book? Most definitely. Plus book one, plus book two. Buy the set, they're superbly gripping with a lead character you can't help but love. Easily Smith's best Jake Boulder novel! I couldn't tell whether Boulder was going to live, or die in a blaze of burning bullets and that kept me on the edge of my seat from start to finish. Raw, evocative and deliciously intense. I loved it!

Five out of five stars.

I chose to read and review an eARC of Past Echoes. The above review is my own unbiased opinion.

I’m a fully paid up member of the Jake Boulder fan club so was delighted to have the opportunity to read and review the third novel in this series. In Past Echoes Jake is tasked with solving a mystery that Ms Rosenberg (the brash but likeable journalist from the previous books) has left for him to solve and to find his estranged father Cameron to “persuade” him to be a donor for his half-brother John.

The tagline for this novel could easily be “This time it’s personal” because as events snowball Jake is taken on a heart breaking journey. A journey which results in some of the bloodiest fights we have witnessed in the previous books. The events in Past Echoes change Jake Boulder into a different man and I definitely wouldn’t want to be on the wrong side of him!

As with Watching The Bodies and The Kindred Killers we are given a little bit more of an insight into Jake’s past and can see how these events have shaped him. In being introduced to his father Cameron I could definitely recognise similar traits in Jake but thankfully the tough love of his mother seems to have rounded off the harsher edges of this likeness.

Featuring political corruption, the New York underworld, family drama and a chilling hitman called The Mortician, Past Echoes is the most nerve-racking book that I have read in a long time. I’m interested to see what is next from Jake Boulder and if he can ever get over the life changing events he has been put through. Graham Smith has a talent for writing characters that are so personable and I do wonder if my emotions can handle much more! A fantastic addition to the Jake Boulder series; five stars from me.

My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for my review copy.

This is the third instalment of the Jake Boulder series but is the first of the books I have read. After reading this one I am definitely going to go back and read the previous two.

This book has 2 stories which interlink. Firstly Jake has to find a man who has been left an inheritance from a lady who hasn’t seen this man for over 40 years. The lady has also left Jake some clues to find evidence of corruption, which includes a New York Mayoral candidate and the mafia.
Secondly Jake needs to find his long lost father in order to save his brothers life.

Will Jake be able to save his brother and uncover the corruption ? If he does at what cost will it be ?

This is a fantastic read with lots of twists and turns. A great crime based book.

This is the third book in one of my favourite series to date. Jake Boulder is the epitome of the anti hero. He is violent but only when necessary and he is willing to go to the extremes when it is needed. I am always looking forward to more on Jake Boulder andnthis was no different and you finally get some of the family information which made this even more interesting. More to be posted as part of blogtour

Past Echoes is the third book in the brilliant Jake Boulder series. Personally I would recommend reading them in order, or at least The Kindred Killers before reading Past Echoes, not just because you will get a better understanding of Jake but because they truly are great reads.

I loved Watching The Bodies and The Kindred Killers is one of my favourite books of 2017. I have to admit I was slightly worried how the author would be able to beat or match the previous books but I should have had more faith in him. What the author has given us is something that is quite different to the first two books in the series. This one is personal. Well it is when it comes to Jake.

It's hard to say to much about the story as it really would spoil it for other readers. What I will say is that it certainly takes some surprising turns that I had not envisioned that had me constantly holding my breath. There is still plenty of action that I have personally come to love from this series but it was also more emotional than I had bargained for.

Past Echoes I think will take Jake Boulder fans by surprise and I mean that in a good way. The author really gets the readers emotions going so that we are very much invested in what is happening to Jake and he will literally have you on the edge of your seat praying for the bad guys to get their comeuppance. Brilliant!

This is the third book in the Jake Boulder series, the action in this fast moving crime thriller never stops.
Jake has to locate a man who has been left a fortune by a woman who 40 years ago fled New York.
Following her death she left Jake a set of clues leading to the discovery
of documentation she has gathered. Enclosed is the proof of links between the New York mayoral candidate and the mafia.
Jake is also trying to find his estranged father Cameron, so that he can donate bone marrow to Jakes half brother John.
In his efforts to find the two men Jake finds himself being pursued by the men who control the New York underworld.
Will Jake survive against the mafia?
This is a great edition to an excellent series, I would definately recommend reading the others in order.

The Jack Boulder series by Graham Smith is well-written, exciting and very readable. This is the third in the series and we see a different side of Jake when his personal life collides with his work. The violence is stepped up, perhaps to the detriment of the plot, but a very enjoyable book nonetheless.