Thank You for the opportunity to listen to The Spy by James Phelan.

The story was like a movie about US spies or soldiers fighting terrorism alone. So, it's like a mini-series or movie packed into a book.

Nothing new as such but not bad.

I wouldn't say you will miss anything if you do not read this book but if you do, that's also okay.

The Spy may win the award for having one of the longest prologues ever. But it's a good one, setting the stage for what's to come as agent Jed Walker, tracking a bomb-maker, is betrayed as the man assigned to escort him tries to kill him, and when that doesn't work, the whole place explodes in a drone attack. Faking his own death, Jed becomes a ghost, searching the world to find out who ordered him dead. While Jed remains a fairly static character, as is typical for the genre, he's an interesting one in a Jack Reacher sort of way, and there is plenty of action and espionage to keep the story flowing. This book is not for the faint of heart, though--there is a ton of acronyms and agency jargon that only someone well-versed in spy-speak can easily follow. A couple of the twists near the end felt like twists for the sake of a twist, especially when the book is not so much about the mystery but about Jed fighting for redemption and revenge.

The audiobook is well-narrated by Mulraney Adrian, with the dialogue sounding natural and each character distinct. Thank you to the author, Blackstone, and Netgalley for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Jed Walker is one of a kind!

Part vigilante. Part ex-CIA. 100% Tough Guy. 100% Attitude.
??Part Jack Reacher??
And not bad looking at all!
He’s just the type of guy you’d want on your side if/when you were ever in a jam!

Cue the lights!

We actually begin the book with the team involved on the hit that took Bin Laden’s life…and then continue on from there…

There’s some awfully strange things going on around here…

And people keep dying. Friends. Enemies. Some targets are people in high places… Terrorism?
Wait! How can this be happening? Jed kinda thinks he’s seen it all, but maybe not…

Being as Jed is a ghost, he’s literally perfect for the job!! But…he’s basically working alone. As a ghost. Can he get the job done?? Can he rely on ANYONE to help him?

When he finds out that the ‘mission’ is called the Zodiac…well, he begins to worry. Does that mean there could possibly be that many targets??

Lots of action. Lots of killing. Lots of stuff he’s not quite comprehending…yet.

And, as we globe trot around the world, well, we find that he’s everywhere! He’s calling in favors from the past, as well as meeting new people (accomplice’s? / enemies??) And…trying to dodge his own death along the way!

Great first book in a new series! If you like Jack Reacher, You’ll like Jed Walker!
And the ending??!! 😮😮😮

Still haven’t recovered from the last couple of chapters…but so looking forward to the next books!

Thanks to #NetGalley and #BlackstonePublishing for an ARC of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review! I was so happy to receive it on 8/22!!

This was already released, so you can look for it on shelves now!

4.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 for me, rounded up to 5!

#TheSpy by #JamesPhelan and narrated nicely by #RobShapiro.
Book #1 in the new series!

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I am going to start off by stating that I listened to the audiobook. Rob Shapiro narrates and does a good job, however I do not like the length pauses at the end of sentences. You can't really speed it up for that. It is a pet peeve.

Now, I mentioned that I listened to the audiobook because I feel that it negatively impacted my feelings about the book. Why? The sheer number of agencies and characters involved. It is so hard to go back and find something in an audiobook, so I was forever getting everyone confused. Had I read a print copy, I could have flipped back. I also would have had the visual name recognition to help me out. But I only listened.

I am not saying the audiobook is a terrible idea- just for the way I process things, it made it very hard to keep things straight. I should have assumed and kept a cheat sheet to refer back to. But I didn't.

Had I read this in print (or created my own reference sheet), I think I would continue the series. But based on my audiobook experience, I do not have plans to move forward at this time. In a few years when I forget enough about the plot to not be terribly bored with a re-read, I may revisit and keep track of people.

I received an audio copy in exchange for an honest review.