Guardian of Lies, by Steve Martini

This audio book was obtained from Overdrive Audio through the Alachua County Public Library. It was 14 hours and 13 minutes long and was narrated by George Guidall.

This is 10th in a series of novels about Criminal Defense attorney Paul Madriani and his partner, Harry Hinds. The early novels were really good, but they fell off a bit in quality for awhile. So it was an act of hope that I downloaded this one and I am very glad I did.

This begins as a murder case and ends up as international espionage as Paul Madriani's client turns out to have ties to an old Russian nuke that is being recommissioned by Jihadists for a terrorist attack on America. This is only plausible in a world in which we are all connected by networks, but we do live in a world where we are all connected by networks. It's well-told, and the characters are believable and we have been set up for a sequel. I will get it. I give this one 4 stars.

The Defector, by Daniel Silva

This audio book was obtained from Overdrive Audio through the Alachua County Public Library. It was 10 hours and 58 minutes long and was narrated by Phil Gigante.

The most recent of the Gabriel Allon series. Gabriel is an Israeli secret agent and assassin who restores old master paintings as part of his cover. He is in the middle of a piece commissioned by the Vatican when his pleasant life is interrupted by the call to duty because a Russian defector has been kidnapped in America. This defector is believed to be a re-defector, and that he has been acting as a double agent, and is just going back home. Gabriel knows better, because the man is a friend who saved his life in the last book.

Although Daniel Silva's stories are well-written, Gabriel is the weak point. He just isn't a very engaging character. Some of his co-stars are more interesting and human, but Gabriel never becomes more than a really competent covert agent that no one wants to cross. Over all, it was a 3 star book.

The Hunted, by Brian Haig

This audiobook was 18 hours and 13 minutes long, and was obtained from Overdrive Audio through the Alachua County Public Library. It was narrated by Scott Brick.

A better than average story with below average heroes and above average villains, this novel about a young Russian billionaire has enough bright spots to keep you engaged, but could have been a lot shorter.

Before the dissolution of the Soviet Union, capitalism is beginning to get a foothold, and young Alex Konevitch has made a fortune in arbitrage and banking. He has used his substantial fortune to back Boris Yeltsin, thus helping the fall of communism in a big way. Angry, vindictive KGB officers want to know who has been helping Yeltsin, and when they discover what Alex has done, they begin to use their connections and ruthlessness to ruin him.

After being kidnapped, tortured, and forced to sign over his holdings to a former KGB general, Alex and his wife, Elena, escape and spend months being hunted from Europe to the US, and then persecuted by the FBI, whose politically opportunistic director wants to trade them to Russia for a favorable working relationship.

There is a line between the plausible and the laughable, and this story crossed it just enough times to make it a disappointment. Still, some of it is really good, so that salvages 2 and 1/2 stars for it.