Dark Harvest

I hate giving two 5 stars reviews consecutively, I don’t want people to think I’m going soft! But this book was just so freaking good. It was full on action/adventure but the two main characters were also really well fleshed out. After the prologue which is set in ancient times, Jordan takes the real life mystery of the mysterious deaths of 9 experienced Russian hikers in the Dyatlov Pass in the Ural Mountains and weaves a nail bitingly tense story of international intrigue and an existential threat to humanity.

Cameron Becker, former army ranger and CID is now a private military contractor (PMC) in Iraq charged with ferrying Russian businessman, Belikov, into the green (safe) zone in Baghdad. Only their vehicle gets T-boned and Belikov is snatched in a daring manoeuvre. Becker and his 2 team members hurry to their safe house and, along with their tech guy, set about finding Belikov who has a GPS tracker hidden in his clothing.

Meanwhile Dr Lori Dalton, an epidemiologist also in Iraq with the UN learns of a disturbing occurrence at a village not too far away. There is a report of all the villagers being dead with their eyes bleeding their mouths frothing. Dalton is alarmed and wants to investigate. Her boss vetoes this strenuously but Dalton defies him and takes a small contingent of medical and army personnel to see what is going on. It’s like a zombie apocalypse as not all the villagers are dead and they swarm the investigating team.

Becker and Dalton hook up and work together to stop this menace. It turns out that Belikov is actually Ivanov, a brilliant researcher who has weaponised the Dyatlov virus strain. His kidnappers are forcing him to perfect the strain. But saving the world is not easy and they have to fight for every inch of progress. Arrayed against them are huge resources. It’s a race against time and the zombie like infected. Both Becker and Dalton are in deep do-do with their respective bosses but they soldier on. The pace was cracking throughout, there was no letup and I read this in one sitting. It also made a pleasant change from serial killers, abusive husbands, revenge plots and locked room mysteries. No frills - pure adrenaline! Opinions are divided on this book but I really enjoy the odd action thriller and this was definitely that. Many thanks to Netgalley and Blackstone Publishing for the much appreciated arc which I reviewed voluntarily and honestly.

Dark Harvest is concrete proof that zombies aren’t cliched if they’re done right. Will Jordan packs a marvelous punch with regards to storytelling and action sequences that work in tandem to create a riveting experience for thriller and non-thriller readers alike.
When a Russian businessman is abducted from the protection of ex-soldier-turned mercenary Cameron Becker in Iraq, Becker will stop at nothing to rescue his charge from unknown forces with a baleful agenda involving a mysterious biological agent that turns those infected into bloodthirsty zombies. With the future of the whole world at stake, Becker teams up with a WHO medic to put a face to the enigmatic antagonists and stop them from unleashing an apocalyptic plague.
Will Jordan’s fast-paced but fleshed out writing perfectly encapsulates the chaotic mood of the story as the twists and turns keep coming at a machine-gun pace, never faltering from the bullseye aim of keeping you on the edge of your seat. Cameron Becker easily becomes a likable and distinctive protagonist who you feel like you’ve known for much longer than the length of the narrative. This pays dividends when the story calls for readers to follow Becker through the gates of hell in harsh, fantastic, and unforgiving situations from shootouts in Iraq to close quarter combat in the snowy mountains of Russia. Ultimately, it’s the strong and emotionally resonant characters that help elevate the excellence of the story, augmenting the high-powered action along with the exciting uncovering of the mystery with intriguing breadcrumbs expertly set up at each chapter as readers get a horrifying glimpse at how the biological threat came to be, a plot unlike anything I expected.
Dark Harvest is a fresh breath of non-linear storytelling with idiosyncratic characters and shocking turn of events that will have you glued to the book for a one-sitting read through and through.

Full review at https://www.bestthrillerbooks.com/kashif-hussain