The author once again entertains and beguiles the reader with the exploits of Mitch Rapp and the CIA. They defend America by breaking every rule of law and always get good results. The situations created by the author support the validity and necessity of their actions to defend freedom. A different set of possible circumstances would mean the USA would be using torture, theft, illegal wiretap, cybercrime assault, illegal breaking and entering and murder against innocent people. However, in the starkly obvious world of fiction, where mistakes are never made, the actions of the CIA are fun to read and we can hope they are as accurate in the real world as in Rapp's fictional universe.

2006

"For years, Mitch Rapp's bold actions have saved the lives of countless Americans. He has killed with impunity, tortured to avert disaster, and shown he will do whatever it takes to prevent terrorists from fulfilling their bloody wishes. His battles for peace and freedom have made him a hero to many, and an enemy to countless more. In the tangled, duplicitous world of espionage, there are those, even among America's allies, who want to see Mitch Rapp eliminated. They have decided the time has come. Now, the powerful father of a dead terrorist demands vengeance in its simplest form -- an eye for an eye, and Rapp instantly becomes the target of an international conspiracy. This time, he must use all of his vigilance and determination to save himself before he can turn his fury on those who have dared to betray him. " ( )

Fiction, Thriller

Saeed Ahmed Abdullah holds Rapp personally responsible for the death of his son, a terrorist whose plot against the USA was foiled by Rapp. Abdullah wants revenge; with the help of his friend Rashid a plan is set in motion to assassinate Rapp. Once a hunter, now Rapp the hunted must rely on his sharp instinct for survival….

The writing, plotting and pacing made the story of this book grabbing from the start. There is lots of action, impressive suspense throughout. This book was quite a ride, lots of emotional ups and downs and many surprises. All of Flynn’s characters are intensely vivid and have a terrific personality. Rapp is shown a little more human and less a superman this time as he goes through a personal crisis. In this sequel to Memorial Day the political gamesmanship does not stop, very entertaining. ( )

Vince Flynn has become one of my favorite authors and Mitch Rapp one of my favorite characters. Consent to Kill find both at the top of their respective games (well, given that Mitch requires knee surgery, he might not be at the top of his game). Mitch continues to do to the "bad guys" what we all wish we could do to the them. In addition, this novel included several interesting new characters. Finally, Flynn provided a very surprising plot twist that was as gut-wrenching as it was unexpected. Bravo to an author in the thriller genre that is willing to take a chance that will have an emotional impact upon the reader. My main criticism of Flynn remains that, from time to time, he gets a bit "preachy" with his world view. ( )

Not the best of action books but it is an entertaining read. ( )

Another A+ book from Vince Flynn. Flynn is one of my favorite authors and never holds back in his books. Fantastic from top to bottom ( )

Review by Jeremy Taylor

Can a professional killer have a soft side? Yes, he can, according to Vince Flynn’s latest Mitch Rapp novel—his best to date.

Mitch Rapp is known and feared the world over for his daring exploits in the service of the CIA. He has many powerful friends, most notably the president of the United States. But in his work he has also managed to accrue a number of very powerful enemies.

One of these is a Saudi prince who believes Rapp is responsible for the death of his son (referencing events that occurred in Flynn’s previous novel, Memorial Day). The prince is determined to see Rapp brought down for his sins, so he hires a German contract killer to take care of the American once and for all. The German subcontracts the job to a pair of ruthless assassins who have a 100-percent success rate. What follows is a breathtaking international manhunt—but this time, the good guy is the target.

Flynn spends most of his energy developing plausible action scenes rather than character depth, so readers are required to draw on snippets of information presented in previous books to discern certain characters’ motivations and drives. Even so, the character of Mitch Rapp comes across loud and clear, as do his motives for personal revenge after his would-be assassins’ first attempt on his life goes awry.

One of Flynn’s great strengths as a novelist is his ability to ascribe realistic and believable motives to his villains. As many scenes are written from the points of view of either the hired assassins or their Saudi backers as are from Mitch Rapp’s perspective, with the result that by halfway through the book, we feel almost as sympathetic for the killers as we do for the protagonist target. Yet never does the narrative allow the reader to mistake the twisted values of the villains for anything other than what they ultimately are—pure evil.

Consent to Kill is the most thoughtful of Flynn’s thrillers so far, and the added depth pays off. By giving all the main characters a good deal of introspection, Flynn is able to explore the various moral dilemmas that arise in the field of international espionage. Mitch Rapp in most cases makes decisions that go against civilized sensibilities, but on the other hand, it’s important to know that there are people in the real world who have to do difficult, unpleasant, and sometimes horrible things in the interest of national security and relative global stability. The closing scene leaves Rapp facing a choice between his humanity and his sense of human justice—and will leave readers panting for more.

Flynn’s books have almost no spiritual content, Christian or otherwise, and Consent to Kill fits right into that mold. On the other hand, the novels take place in a setting that necessarily includes moral right and wrong—and very often good and evil—as essential components of its underlying structure. The violence is often intense but never meaningless; language is sometimes harsh but rarely superfluous and never out of character.

The world Flynn writes about is sometimes a bleak one, but it’s the one in which we all live, and we all know it has its dark sides. Flynn writes about that darkness, but he doesn’t dwell on it. Rather, he focuses on the efforts of a few dedicated individuals to bring some light and order into the chaos. Christians know that the only real hope for true light and order in the world comes from Jesus Christ—who came “as a light to shine in this dark world” (John 12:46)—a point Flynn’s characters miss completely. But they do their best, given the purely secular worldview that the novels express, and the result is realistic and often moving entertainment.

(http://www.cerebralexchange.com/books...) ( )