Masters of War cover art

Masters of War

Danny Black Thriller 1

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Masters of War

By: Chris Ryan
Narrated by: Jamie Parker
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About this listen

 In Paris, an elderly man is assassinated as he takes his morning walk. In the war-torn cities of Syria, government forces wage a bloody war against their own people. The Russians are propping up the government, the French are backing one rebel fraction and the British are backing another. And in north Africa, young SAS trooper Danny Black is coming to the end of a gruelling tour of duty, or so he thinks. Danny has a new mission. An MI6 agent needs to make contact with Syrian rebel forces, and also with the private military contractors who are - unofficially - training this rebel faction as it struggles to bring down their government and establish a new regime that will be favourable to British business interests. As they travel deep into rebel heartland, Danny will learn who the masters of war, the men who call the shots, really are. As Danny finds himself sucked into the murky orbit of the private military, he discovers a world where death is dispensed by the highest bidder and individuals will betray anybody if the price is right. And where a secret lurks that will change the course of Danny's own life, however long that might last...

(P)2013 Hodder & Stoughton©2013 Chris Ryan Action & Adventure Espionage Genre Fiction Mystery, Thriller & Suspense Spies & Politics Suspense Thriller & Suspense War & Military Fiction Military War Government

Critic Reviews

This Newcastle-born former SAS sergeant is firmly established as one of our most popular action authors.
Chris Ryan is as hard as nails.
Relentless pace and gritty brutal realism... accurate descriptions of modern warfare... this is a book that could only have been there by someone who has been there, done that and got the T-shirt.
Praise for Chris Ryan
'This Newcastle-born former SAS sergeant is firmly established as one of our most popular action authors. It is not difficult to see why in this bleak story centred on SAS man Joe Mansfield, who happens to be in the compound in Pakistan when the Americans descend from their Black Hawks and kill Osama bin Laden... This is a far darker, more complex tale than Ryan's more familiar tales of derring-do, for Mansfield is plunged into a world of treachery. The pace never flags for a moment, and Ryan's insider knowledge is to the fore, but even the SAS's skills are no longer quite enough. New, less honourable talents are required. Bravery is not the only solution.'
Praise for Chris Ryan:
Nobody takes you to the action better than Ryan, because he's the real deal, and this muscle-and-bone thriller will have fans' blood pumping
'The books are masterpieces of social realism. [Chris Ryan] has lived the virtual life he writes about - and that makes him the right kind of war novelist for this generation. These storylines are dependent on a bustle of verbs that lead in every instance to blood and explosions, desperate screams and increasing levels of difficulty: it is never long before we find things and people being zapped, fried, crunched, toasted and skewered, as the bad deeds of the world are comprehensively avenged'
'Relentless pace and gritty brutal realism... accurate descriptions of modern warfare... this is a book that could only have been there by someone who has been there, done that and got the T-shirt.'
'Chris Ryan has always been underrated as a novelist of ideas... a welter of treachery and mayhem.'
'A shockingly authentic tale to keep your adrenaline pumping as fast as the blood on the pages.'
'Bone-crunching action races to a denouement that Frederick Forsyth would be proud of. Ryan's Boy's Own bravado is tempered with sharp political insight and a neat line in treachery.'
All stars
Most relevant
Actioned packed from start to finish. You just can’t stop listening. Helped by a few wonderful performance.

Perfect book for a long drive

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very easy to listen to. greatly written. I highly recommend this book. kept me on the edge.

Best book yet!

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Reasonable story but had some ridiculous parts. Ie 7.62 rounds in an Apache chain gun, stops to have a conversation in the middle of a fire fight. The list does go on. All in all it kept me entertained and I will listen to the next one in the series.

Reasonable SAS fiction

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Fast paced and exciting. Well written and narrated. Definitely recommend for those who love action stories.

Great listening

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On a scale of “better than wheel of time” to 10, I would give it a 4. The main character has a real lack of personality. Maybe it’s because I’ve just read Billy Billingham and Phil Campion’s novels, which are bursting with personality and witty prose. Whatever it is, the characters in this story are weak.

The other major problem is the plot. It’s written from the perspective of the main character, who has no idea what’s going on in the plot. Or if he does, the reader gets little insight into what he’s thinking. I had essentially no idea what was happening throughout the story. No idea where the story was going or what the end goal was. That lack of feeling of progressing towards a goal is hard to enjoy.

Finally, the military element just didn’t feel authentic. You don’t want a story set in the modern real world to feel fictional. That’s exactly what it felt like.

Not impressed

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