Ballistic

A Gray Man Novel

By: Mark Greaney

Narrated by: Jay Snyder

Length: 14 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's summary

Ex-CIA assassin Court Gentry thought he could find refuge living in the Amazon rain forest. But his bloody past finds him when a vengeful Russian crime lord forces him to go on the run once again. Court makes his way to one of the only men in the world he can trust - and arrives too late. His friend is dead and buried.

Years before, Eddie Gamboa had saved Court's life. Now, Eddie has been murdered by the notorious Mexican drug cartel he fought to take down. And Court soon finds himself drawn into a war he never wanted. But in this war, there are no sides - only survivors....

Listen to another Gray Man novel.

©2011 Mark Strode Greaney (P)2011 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Bourne for the new millennium." (James Rollins, New York Times best-selling author)

"The story is so propulsive, the murders so explosive, that flipping the pages feels like playing the ultimate video game." ( The New York Times)

Get this novel while it on sale for $4.95!

For those who have not listened to audiobooks in the Gray Man/Court Gentry series by Mark Greaney you are missing what is possibly the best espionage thriller series written by the author who is at the very top of his art. I listened to Ballistic almost 5 years ago but have not reviewed it until now. Ballistic is novel #3 in the 5 novel series. I strongly recommend all books in the Gray Man series. Back Blast, the February 2016 release, is in my opinion the best thriller released this year. Narration of all 5 novels is by Jay Snyder who is superb.

Lancelot in the 21st Century!

Pain....."Lancelot" in the character of "6" endures pain. Yes, he is an assassin. But he is an assassin who only wants to kill bad people....."Lancelot"....the "Impossible Dream"("to fight, for the right, without question or pause, to....")...I enjoyed the three book series. At times, some of the scenes were hard to endure(torture). But.....I had no regrets. I will reread(listen) to all three books in the trilogy in about 6 months. Our hero is a patriot and a modern day Lancelot. I enjoyed the series immensely

Almost pure vigilantism... And that's a good thing

ahh... a book with pure vigilantism. No need to worry about hearing a lecture, and no trying to figure out if there's a moral here... there isn't. It's simply toe-of-boot (or more accurately tip-of-gun) meets bad guys' heads. Rinse and repeat until only our hero and his girl are left standing.

That being said, however, the ending - specifically, the resolution of the relationship between the hero and his girl - was a bit on the lame side of the fence. Oh well, she was really just in the book so he'd have a reason to blow things up. And that's why we read this kind of book, right? To watch a good guy do bad things to bad guys for a good reason.

Were the bad guys stereotypical? Sure. Were all of the characters other than the Gray Man cardboard cutouts? Sure... does any of that interfere with the butt-kicking action, nope, not at all.

I think it was my favorite of the Gray Man series... it was a smidge over the top how he manages to survive certain things, but not nearly as extreme as the earlier books in the series. There's not much I can compare it to, except maybe Lee Child's Jack Reacher series (though, those are not as violent).

The story is wrapped up within the book, but there are enough questions left about the Gray Man's future that I can see how another book in this series would not go amiss - and if there was one, I'd certainly buy it.

The best one yet.

This is easily the best Gray Man book so far. The Latin American setting is a nice change of pace, and allowed for some pretty interesting dynamics. Gentry seems more human now after his mistakes in the previous book, and his new vulnerability made me like him more. Greaney is getting better each time. Worth a credit for anyone that likes a good story.

Perhaps the best of the Gray Man books

Any additional comments?

All the pieces fell together - and the humanity of the gray man was striking. Parts of the other books I've read in the series made sense. Plus the fact the book is very fast paced and the personalities of the characters come alive and I cared.

Exciting

This story had a lot of action. It took place in Mexico rather than the Middle East. It is amazing how many scrapes the Gray Man can get out of.

Fantastic! My Favorite in Series Love the Gray Man

Would you listen to Ballistic again? Why?

I've read it twice and MAY listen again but it will be in the distant future.

What did you like best about this story?

I LOVE the 'REAL' , yet tortured hero. Men who have done the unthinkable, but necessary for their country only to be written off by the government for which they worked.

This book has a believable hero with a believable storyline that seems to be accurate to what is going on re: corrupt Mexican police intertwined with drug cartels. There is a lot of action, plenty of heroic, nail-biting escapes and just a tiny feel of romance.

Ex-CIA assassin Court Gentry thought he could find refuge living in the Amazon rain forest. But his bloody past finds him when a vengeful Russian crime lord forces him to go on the run once again. Court makes his way to one of the only men in the world he can trust - and arrives too late. His friend is dead and buried.

Years before, Eddie Gamboa had saved Court's life. Now, Eddie has been murdered by the notorious Mexican drug cartel he fought to take down. And Court soon finds himself drawn into a war he never wanted. But in this war, there are no sides - only survivors...

Have you listened to any of Jay Snyder’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Yes I've heard him in the other Gray Man books, he IS Court Gentry. I am SO glad he is performing book 4 as well.

The only reason he doesn't get 5 stars is because of his portrayal of women-but the guy does a fantastic MANLY job with Gentry and to do female voices in Spanish-it has to be difficult! 4.5 stars!

Any additional comments?

I got this book early on during a sale-so I read the series out of order-it doesn't matter. Each Gray Man book is stand alone. The only thing that a reader may care about is the continuation of who is hunting Gentry but there is ample explanation in each.

I liken these books to the Mitch Rapp books by Vince Flynn...this is a HUGE compliment.

NOTE*: A LOT more gore than I'm used to (but it is described in short spurts) and some strong language.


*This reader usually listens to trashy romances but do like my action/adventure to shake things up on occasion-so the gore won't bother the 'typical' Vince Flynn, Tom Clancy, etc. reader.

At times a nail biter

Would you consider the audio edition of Ballistic to be better than the print version?

I love both - the feel of paper but i also love the idea of being able to do housework and still listen to a brilliant book

What did you like best about this story?

reminded me a lot of Matthew Rileys Scarecrow...but both are unique in their own way.

Have you listened to any of Jay Snyder’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

N/a

Fantastic!

I am completely addicted to the gray man. All I can say is "can't wait for the next book"

Much better

Any additional comments?

Nice recovery from the author. I was disappointed at book 2 but this 3rd story in much improvement. Action packed and more enjoyable.