I absolutely loved this fast-paced spy story full of international crooks, government and politicians, and it is skillfully written. The plot was very intriguing although complex at times so I had to pay attention. It is not a "fluff" read for a beach day! I love the female protagonist who is smart as can be and knows how to do her job! Of course, you can't have a fantastic spy plot without a lot of suspense, twists, and turns, and this author/and book does not let you down in that department. I was invested the entire time I was reading and never got bored nor lost interest along the way. I have to admit that this is one spy book that was notputdownable!

I had the audiobook to listen to and I loved the narrator. I both read and listened to it, sometimes I only listened to it while doing other things, and the narrator held my interest.

I highly recommend this book! This is my first book by Andrew Kaplan, but it won't be my last. I will definitely be reading more of Andrew Kaplan's work!

Audio version of this book 📕- I just couldn’t get into this book but after listening to it for 30% I had to give up as I just couldn’t listen to the narrator any longer 😬 as his voice was so monotonous the storyline itself switched so often between characters and places it got a little too confusing! The narrator was the author of this book and maybe if an actor had done the narration I might have been able to have listened to it

Intriguing and great action. This audiobook takes you into the story deep and with the twist and turns really keep you guessing what will happen next. I love the brief backstories on the characters to help identify with them as you follow the story. The music and sounds really help with setting the mood. The only negative part is the begining of the story was a little hard to follow but after the brief start then the action starts happening with the character stories. I would definitely recommend listening to this book.

I just finished the audiobook Blue Madagascar by Andrew Kaplan. This book starts at the end and then works its way forward, which I love in a book, it gets you hooked because then you want to know who-did-it.
The narrator is Andrew Kaplan himself, he does a great job of keeping the characters voices different enough that you know who is speaking and they are brought to life.
The characters themselves are thoroughly developed and brought to life both by the writing and by the speaking.
As I said earlier the plot pulls you in in the first chapter by telling you the end of the book (who dies) and then takes you back in time to explain who, how, and why. By the time you're 30 pages in you are into the book hook line and sinker. I don't want to give too much away, lets just say that someone important dies and we as readers, want to know how, who did it, and why they did it, by the end of the book you'll have all your answers.

Enjoyable read that entertains throughout. The characters are well played out who throw a lot of energy into the tale. Great twists along the way and overall a thoroughly good book. Recommended!

I am not sure how to review this audio book it was very intense but a slow start to begin with. I did enjoy it once I got into it and it was very energetic (I think that is best word to describe it) like a roller coaster.

This was my first exposure to this author and narrator and now I know what to experience it will definitely not be my last.

Thank you to the publishers and netgalley for my audio copy but the review is entirely my own.

Blue Madagascar: A Fast-Paced, High-Octane, Spellbinding Thriller by Andrew Kaplan
Narrated by Andrew Kaplan
Publisher: Smugglers Lane Press
Publication Date: June 17, 2021
Genre: Mystery & Thrillers | Politics

Blue Madagascar by Andrew Kaplan is a standalone international mystery/thriller.

Overall, I enjoyed this audiobook. The story was interesting and very detailed. There were a lot of moving pieces and I enjoyed seeing how they came together and intertwined. The characters were fascinating and interesting.

This moved a little slow for me. I think because there was so much going on I was waiting for it all to come together. With that being said, the author wove the tangled web together beautifully and when it came together I was blown away!

I enjoyed the narration by the author. There were some weird parts when foreign words were used. They felt like there dubbed in my another speaker and broke up the flow of the story.

Overall, I enjoyed this and look forward to reading other books by the author. I had previously read his 2 Homeland books and enjoyed those.

I'm so grateful to Andrew Kaplan, Smugglers Lane Press, and NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this ARC ebook in exchange for my honest review.

Great thriller with so many twists and turns you won’t see coming! If you’re looking for a page turner or edge of your seat listen this is it.

This is my first book by this author and it's one in a series. I had high hopes, but I could not get into the story. I think if I had been following the series I would have enjoyed it but I was just lost. I didn't connect with the characters or the situation.

The reader is good at keeping a level tone, but his voice is a little gravely for me. This is my personal taste and doesn't mean he isn't good at reading. His modulation is good.

I would recommend this to Kaplan's readers who are invested in the series.

Not my typical genre, it took be several chapters to get hooked by the story and author Kaplan's style. Lots of layers and subplots in this book that will really keep you on your toes, wondering where it is going. With some pretty terrific characters, this is still a plot driven book. Lots of puzzle pieces, slowly revealed, to come together in an exciting adventure.

I received a copy from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for and honest review.

This one had me scratching my head (sort of) trying to figure out who all the characters were. We start off with a BREAKING STORY with the senator who is ahead in the polls and about to be elected president apparently and allegedly committing suicide (without formal confirmation), a video of a woman (who is she) and then we are in Europe at a jewel heist. Then back in the states where Special Agent Casey Ramirez is being accosted to take on an assignment. So many twists and turn and the hunt across the world begins. Who will find the clues first. I found myself listening to this audiobook trying to piece all the clues together. The author was his own narrator and did a great job.

Blue Madagascar is fantastic. It's a little hard to get into at first. There are a lot of characters introduced very quickly and the book is a little confusing. Once Kaplan finds his groove and the story takes over, it's hard to put this one down. Casey Ramirez is a great protagonist who is as tough as nails. Exotic locations, plenty of surprises, and international intrigue abound. The plot is complex and while Kaplan is juggling a lot of balls here, he keeps them all in the air admirably. The ending was thoroughly satisfying, and creates an opportunity for a potentially engaging sequel. Unfortunately, I listened to the audio version read by Kaplan himself. He isn't the most engaging reader, but even this flaw couldn't take away my enjoyment of Blue Madagascar. Thanks to Netgalley for the audiobook.

I did not finish this book. I did not like any of the characters. The main character just ends up in different countries at the beginning of chapters with no transition. The author is the narrator and I did not enjoy his narration. It seemed like he was reading in a monotone and not comfortable. It was unnecessarily gruesome and had no redeeming qualities. I made it about half way before I decided I had better things to do.

Blue Madagascar
Andrew Kaplan
I really wanted to like this audiobook but the narrator made it impossible. I could hear him making sounds throughout this tale. I could hear hi swallow, wet his lips (they sounded as if they were sticky or stuck together.) His voice was monotone.
The story had great potential but fell short of my expectations.

I really enjoyed listening to Blue Madagascar by Andrew Kaplan. I appreciated that the author, himself was the narrator. He has just the right voice for this a fast paced political suspense novel He was also able him to control the pace and the energy, of the story, just right. K.C., the main character is likeable and smart. She's a Homeland Security Special Agent and she suddenly finds herself dealing with several of the Three Letter Agencies. Next thing she knows is she's running for her life while traveling the world and has no idea who she can trust. She meets quite a few interesting characters, along the way,and some that she would have rather done without.

An interesting work on what a simple jewelry theft could turn into. Vincent the Cat gets his entire world turned around when one of his accomplices kills what seems an innocent man. Turns out the dead man was not so innocent after all. This audiobook has several more twist and numerous murders before Casey the protagonist solves the riddle only to be surprised again. Read by the author it is a good audiobook, however, there were a couple of sections in which the author’s voice cracked or croaked that made listening difficult. I really enjoyed the whole experience, especially the twist at the end. Highly recommended…SLT

I have over 900 audiobooks I’ve bought over some years. I listen to books every day and I can usually manage poor narrators if I’m enjoying the story. I’m sorry to say that in this case, the narration has defeated me and I can’t listen to the story.

I don’t know if it’s author vanity that compels some authors to think that they’re going to deliver the heart of the tale. Andrew Kaplan’s monotone, languorous drawl has knocked the stuffing out of this book. I became so fixated on his style and voice I couldn’t actually listen to the story and after around an hour, I gave up.

I have downloaded the kindle version and that’s a totally different experience. I’m only part way through and it’s a fast paced thriller which is holding my interest; quite an achievement given the experience with the audio version. So far, based on what I’ve read, this is a four star thriller. But the rating here is for the audio version and I’m afraid it’s a single star. I’ll post an Amazon review in due course, based on the kindle unlimited version I’m reading.

I expected a good political action thriller, and that’s exactly what I got! I thought it was pacy and Andrew Caplan certainly knows how to keep the action going at full clip.

I’d recommend this to anyone who likes a solid political action thriller. The author narrated it himself, which I think is always a brave decision. His voice is low and husky so it adds something to the drama, but I had to speed it up to 1.5x as it was a little slow in the reading for me. 4*

Overall, this was a great read with interesting characters, build up, plot twists and turns. I do recommend this book to anyone interested in action, thrillers, espionage and plot twists.

My main criticism is for the narrator. If I understand correctly, the author is narrating his own book here. To me, the author seems unmotivated, not invested in his own book, to the point that I felt it detracted from the action. I was able to speed up the read to 1.5x which helped a bit. To all reading this, I do recommend the book, whether in text or audio form. If in audio form, give it a chance, it will be worth it!

Thank you NetGalley for my free copy! The comments above are mine without influence.

I have a lot I could say about the half hour of this 11-hour audiobook, but I will keep it short and sweet.

Normally when authors narrate their own book, they do very well. After all, they wrote it themselves and had some semblance of the pace and phrasing. However, this seemed to be Andrew Kaplan’s first (and only) try at reading his book in a professional setting. Sad to say, he missed the mark terribly and turned me off completely to what seemed to be a well-received story. His narrating was monotone and he took awkward pauses to catch his breath. I believe he introduced about 5 characters and I had no idea who anyone was. I will not be wasting my time to try to finish this one for sake of a review. I would suggest a professional narrator next time.

Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!