I have heard about the author Ben Coes but have never read any of this books. I jumped at the opportunity as a good espionage story is a great diversion from my normal genre of history and historical fiction.

As noted by other reviewers, the formatting was a bit of a challenge but after a bit, I was able to pick up the pattern and had not problem.

As the first in what looks like will be a series, I expected some background information to help set the stage. What was frustrating was the reference back to another series as well as too much information on appearance. Yes, it was a quick, mindless read. At one point I felt the author was trying to create a younger version of a Jack Reacher, though not a loner. Coes missed the mark on that. Maybe I will look into reading one of his other books to see if this happens to be a fluke or just his writing style.

Rating: 2.5 rounding up to 3.

Thank you St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for an early access edition in exchange for an honest review.

Not really a suspense book based on how this was written. So much wasted space describing how people are dressed, what their hair looked like, what kind of cars they drove, etc. Choppy and awkward dialogue and sentences. This book was pretty blah.

I wish I could have actually read this entire book. Unfortunately, the formatting broke up the text frequently and had a variation of number consistently sprinkled throughout. I tried on several different devices but couldn't get into the story-line completely due to these issues.

This was my first book by the author. I thought, being the first in a new series, that it would be easy to understand. However, I found the author repeatedly referred to events that occurred in his previous series, and it left me feeling confused as to what I missed.
It's an okay book. Quite typical of the Vince Flynn/Brad Thor genre. There was plenty of action, and the plot moved along rapidly. A few too many cute coincidences and unrealistic situations for my taste. The ending was rushed, and disappointing.
Good summer reading for the beach.

Thank you to NetGalley, Ben Coes and St. Martin's Press for this ARC.

This was a decent enough story, but it wasn't great. It says "Rob Tacoma #1", so maybe the rest of the series will be better?

I was very excited to get this ARC of the Russian and it did not disappoint. I have read all of the Dewey Andreas series and knew about the Rob Tacoma character but it was great to get a new book to learn about his background and set up a new series about him. The pacing of the story moved along well, the plot was very timely and the action was non-stop. The violence in the book was necessary but not over the top and did not dominate the plot to the point of being gratuitous. I am definitely looking forward to the next installment in this spin off series.

Action packed! I’m not one who usually grabs an espionage novel, but this spy thriller had me from the first chapter.

First sentence: Rob Tacoma sped the Italian sports car across downtown Washington DC.

Sentence that hooked me: But what he thought was the flickering of a light was something altogether different.

This is my first time reading Ben Coes work and I loved it. The story premise was current and flush with history at the same time. It took a fun and creative approach to how the CIA could operate on American soil and the action and intrigue just kept building from there. The ending left me satisfied and wanting more so I am glad that this is the start to a new series.

The characters are fantastic. They immediately grabbed my attention with personality, entertaining dialogue and intriguing backstories. After finishing this book I saw that Dewey who came in at the end has a whole series so I will be checking his story and series out shortly.

As a fan of political intrigue and action stories I found this story entertained and provided me with good for thought regarding skill sets, historic trends and government agencies. I love it when a book captures my interest so quickly and fully. Looking forward to what happens next and how this task force addresses the ending of this story!

Thank you NetGalley, Ben Coes and St. Martin’s Press for
The chance to read this book and share my opinion.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Beyond amazing I enjoyed this book so very much. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Could not put down nor did I want to.

Another thriller with the Russian "mob" as the baddies. It's serviceable and a quick read because it's all action, very little plot. The most interesting plot device is a secret codicil to the U.S. Constitution that allows the president, in dire emergencies, to unleash the CIA on American soil. Actually, of course, this is forbidden. Thus unbound, our hero, Rob Tacoma -- an unfortunate name choice that sounds like a directive to loot a major city in Washington State -- becomes a Russki-seeking missile. The story gallops along, taxing credulity but not the brain, and provides blood-soaked thrills and patriotic satisfaction. Towards the end the writing seems to taper off, a kind of verbal exhaustion that mirrors the sharp taste -- but empty calories -- of this un-novel novel.

Almost DNF this book. As I do not like unfinished books, I forced myself to get through it. This thriller fell short for me for a lot of reasons.
1) It is description heavy, everything was overly described often on several occasions and mostly had nothing to with the overall story.
2) This foul language was abundant in this story. The F-word was used liberally. Which was a bit uncomfortable for me.
3) The character's felt flat. I want to care about SOMEBODY in a book, and this did not have this element in it.
4) It was boring, a bit predictable, and the plot twists just did not work.

Now I love a good thriller and spy novel, but this one just didn't do it for me. Thankfully I didn't waste any money on this one, as I got an ARC from the publisher through NetGalley.

This is a great new series that builds on Ben Coes earlier work with Dewey Andreas, this series is with Rob Tacoma which some already now from the other books. Several characters from the books about Dewey appear in this one also. I really enjoyed it and will ofcourse continue and follow these adventures. I must thank #Netgalley and #StMartinsPress for letting me read #TheRussian

The Russian was barely palatable for me. This book was heavy on descriptions of everything from Rob Tacoma's hair (multiple times) to the fancy cars, to the helicopters and planes and to the guns that people were using with regularity. What it was not heavy on was character or plot development or good dialogue. Rob is tasked with wiping out members of the Russian mafia after two high profile politicians are murdered. What follows is a bunch of murders by Rob and others as he climbs his way up the ladder of the destruction. One of the few female characters is supposed to be one of the top guns-for-hire in the country and yet she has a scene that is completely helpless, hysterical female. And the end of the book is completely open-ended. While it's the first in the series it feels more like a TV season cliffhanger than the end of a book. Pass on this unless you love the formulaic James Patterson type novels.

I felt like I was watching a movie as I read this book. I kept trying to picture an actor to play Tacoma. This is a super-charged thriller about the ruthless Russian mob that has infiltrated the US and has murdered high-profile politicians. Can Tacoma find the leader before it’s too late.? Read this fast-paced book to find out!

I'm not able to post a review because it is not available yet.
This novel has a compelling plot and great character descriptions and twists, but gets bogged down by some shifts from high points to less compelling parts or flashbacks right as the action is building. Also, it could use some editing, as many things are described multiple times with similes or adjectives that could be pared down to more concisely convey meaning -- as it is, the multiple descriptions or descriptors often muddle the message as they contradict or are redundant. Also, it is a bit strange that so many people in the covert or underground worlds would be so flashy with their cars or behavior when trying to fly under the radar. Overall, lots of fun and different types of action and settings as a plot builds to avenge assassinations tied to organized crime.

The Russian was absolutely awesome. I had difficulty putting this one down as I wanted to just keep reading. I hope Ben Coes does more with this character as I would definitely read them.

I love a new series and this doesn’t disappoint!

This read is gritty and has some politics but is a fast read. There could be more character development so I would be more invested in the characters but I enjoyed overall.

Thank you Netgalley for the great read!

Exciting and intriguing. I enjoyed the storyline. It took me a little time to get into it but once I was hooked, I finished it in one sitting. Very believable concept in the current day and time. There are so many factions fighting for control of our country right now that we could use a hero like Rob to eliminate some of the more dangerous ones.

First, thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the Advance Readers Copy of THE RUSSIAN. This is Ben Coes' 1st Rob Tacoma novel, and it's an auspicious start to the new series. Never fear, Dewey Andreas does make a cameo appearance, but the focus is on Rob this time. The Russian Mafia has decided to take out 2 of it's most ardent opponents, and Rob is tasked with taking the fight back to the Russians. In this debut of a new series, Coes' writing is a little more uneven than usual, but perhaps that's because the book is not yet quite in final form. The action sequences and technical details are, as always, outstanding. Based on this, Rob Tacoma definitely deserves his own series, and I look forward to many more Rob Tacoma novels, along with a continuation of the already fantastic Dewy Andreas series.

When two prominent politicians are assassinated after pursuing action against the Russian mafia, the president realizes that it calls for a strong response. Using an unknown codicil to the constitution, he issues an Executive Order allowing a team from the CIA to act on American soil. A task force consisting of two men chosen by the director of the CIA are to find those behind the assassination and exact justice. Before Rob Tacoma can meet with his partner on this task force the assassins strike again and his partner is murdered.

Tacoma has a team to advise and support him with intel, but he is working alone against a virtual army. From tracking the assassins, he must work up the chain to find the identity of Kaiser, the leader of a large branch of the mafia. This puts him in one deadly situation after another.

Ben Coes introduced Rob Tacoma in his Dewey Andreas series. This is the first in a new series that will appeal to fans of Jason Bourne and Mitch Rapp. The action scenes will leave you breathless and eagerly looking forward to the next book in this series. I would like to thank NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing this book in exchange for my honest review.