Deadlock

By: Iris Johansen

Narrated by: Jennifer Van Dyck

It begins with an innocent mission...

Emily Hudson is an artifacts expert for the U.N. who travels to war torn countries attempting to save their priceless treasures from destruction. Her best friend and partner, Joel Levy, is always at her side - until one day her entire crew comes under attack. Joel and Emily are held hostage by a ruthless and evil captor who is determined to find the missing link to a legendary treasure. For weeks they struggle to survive against terrifying odds, pushed to their limits - and beyond.

That turns into a quest for revenge...

John Garrett has worked for the CIA, MI6, and whoever else was willing to pay for his services. Now Washington is calling and desperate. The mission: save Emily Hudson and Joel Levy.

But there may be more to the job than they reveal...

And soon, his connection to Emily has him questioning everything he thought to be true. Can Emily help him get to the truth behind a bigger conspiracy? Or will they both die trying?

With lightning-fast pacing, plot twists and shocking betrayals, Iris Johansen is at the top of her game in a thriller about vengeance and trust; friendship and loyalty; good and evil.

©2009 Iris Johansen (P)2009 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Caveat emptor!

The only thing good about this book is that the plot is interesting and the charactors in it are appropriate to the story. Unfortunately, they suffer because they are forced to communicate with each other. An editor would not know where to start in cleaning up the mess. The reader, if possible makes the situation worse.

Couldn't wait for it to end

For a time, during my chauvinistic period, I wouldn't touch female writers or female readers. The Stephanie Plum series changed my mind, but this book made me regress. Women in general have more problems with male voices than men do with female voices. In this book, the reader feels that to do a male, she must talk as fast and loud as possible. She also has very little difference in her voices, so I had trouble telling who was talking. The author created a heroine that constantly grated on my nerves. Her idea of being a strong woman was to be a stupid woman who constantly took unnecessary risks. If the bad guy is coming after her with ten heavily armed men, she is incensed when the man dares to suggest that they get out. If the bad guy abducts her friend and threatens to harm unless she comes to him to be killed, she is perfectly willing to do it. (Hello? Do you really think he is going to release your friend?). The end was predictable, and it just went on and on. A really dissapointing book.

Insipid

If you're looking for an insipid romance novel in the guise of a less than mediocre suspense thriller -- here's the book for you. Plus, the female protagonist is completely unlikable, and she's "coupled" with a "hero" who keeps dragging the story line into his pants. The reader is OK considering the shallow material she has to work with. All things considered either go with the Romance genre or the Mysteries & Thrillers genre but avoid this mushy alliance of the two.

The Bickersons Hunt a Killer

I should begin by saying that I have been a huge fan of this author for years. This particular book is, however, a disappointment. The plot is interesting and the narrator is excellent. The characters are, however, obnoxious, and they bicker constantly. Emily, the beautiful, smart heroine is kidnapped and her colleague is tortured to death. Garrett, the dark, strong, brilliant, rich,dangerous type rescues Emily from a similar fate. When he sees bite marks on her nipples, he vows to help her kill her kidnapper. The rest of the book is like a bad episode of "I Love Lucy". Garrett, a killer himself, wants to kill the bad guy, but Emily just wants to be in the show. Every time Garrett makes a move without Emily's permission, she bickers, pulls back, pouts, until he apologizes. Probably the most common word in Emily's vocabulary is "No". She is demanding, unlikeable, and the bickering is constant. The dialogue detracts from the plot. The characters are exactly the same as Eve Duncan and Joe Quinn, and the dialogue is almost lifted from the author's last book, Quicksand. I read for entertainment, often to avoid bickering and arguing in my own life. This book was obnoxious. I wish Joe Quinn would shoot Emily, or Garrett would shoot Eve Duncan. And then Joe and Garrett could shoot each other. "No! Not without Emily/Eve's permission!" She pulled away from his touch...Maybe it's just chick-fiction, and I don't get it. I'll probably buy the next book this author writes, because I have enjoyed so many of her novels in the past. I will not, however, devote as much time to a book with this much dialogue.

annoying narration

I was truly looking forward to this book, I have enjoyed many of Johansen's novels, but....the narrator manages to portray many voices, but insists on using a whispering tone for the two female characters. I was constantly fiddling with the volume to adjust between the loud voice of the males and then try to decipher Emily's whispering. I am not sure if it was the dialogue or the tone of the narration but even the characters sounded annoyed.

The story is so-so, complicated but predictable at the end, add the narration and I can't wait for this story to be done.

Disappointing

I can't wait to finish listening to this book ... not because it's a good "read" but because I don't think it will ever end so I can start on something better! Not up to Johansen's Eve Duncan series at all!