The Echelon vendetta

Audio CD’s of David Stone’s Echelon Vendetta have been my driving companion for the past few weeks. It’s my first experience with Stone, and I came upon the audio book by chance rather than plan. Based on what I’ve heard, Stone is one of the most impressive new (to me) writing talents I’ve encountered in the last decade. His descriptive passages are superbly lyrical. His characters are well developed, quirky but rarely over the top. His dialogue reminded me of Hammett and Chandler (no, people don’t really talk like that, but we wish that they did). All of this is played out in plot studded with incredible gore and gruesome crime. I could have done without some of the blood-spatter, but the psycho-thriller genre now seems to show more have that degree of nastiness as a norm. The book is performed by Firdous Bamji, who is outstanding. I’ve already ordered Stone’s sequel and hope he kept up this high standard. show less

Most books I get free off the internet are worth about what I paid for them, so my expectations were not high coming into this. I expected it to be another generic thriller, just something to pass the time. I was pleasantly mistaken. I liked the characters, no matter how despicable. The scenery was described in wonderful detail without getting long-winded, and the action was well paced. I think my favorite part was the snarky ghost (or maybe he was just a hallucination) who haunted the main character as he attempted to solve the ghost's murder. There was a good balance between humor and drama. I read in a review somewhere to remember David Stone's name because he will be known for excellent thrillers. If this book is any indication of show more his future work, I think that's a definite possibility. show less

This is one of those bargain pick ups at B&N. Been sitting around a while so I checked and found it was a first in a series and decided to give a it a try as I wanted something different to read. I'm not into all the CIA and spooks genre in general, so I was pleasantly surprised at this one. It got very dark and a bit gory right off, but Stone was able to throw some ridiculous moves in there and some wickedly funny tension breakers as well. I really like how he described the physical aspects of the characters, yet you were left not really being able to pick them out of a lineup. That was a nice touch.

I read The Echelon Vendetta shortly after reading several thrillers that are more 'pulp' in their writing style, so adjusting to David Stone's more literary style took a bit of adjustment. In addition, certain events in the early part of the novel (which carry on throughout the story and into the next story as well) turned me off at first. Only later, as I began to get a better understanding of the protagonist Micah Dalton, did these events become easier to accept and incorporate into the character's personality and reality. The book took many twists and turns and kept me surprised throughout much of the story, which is a feat in an espionage-based thriller. By the end of the book, my initial trepidation was gone and I couldn't wait to show more start the next book in the series. show less

This was my transition book for 2008 into 2009. The main characater Micah Dalton is a "cleaner". He is brought in when a undercover operation goes wrong. This time its personal when a friend dies under mysterious circumstances. There are interesting characters, great locations and enough twists, turns and surprises to keep you interested until the end. It was a first time read of David Stone for me, and I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

I certainly hope that David Stone comes out with more novels. It was an incredibly suspenseful read and I have to tell you that there are a number of twists and turns so it never gets dull or boring. If you like suspense, mystery or novels featuring "the Company," this one will keep you on the edge of your seat for a long time.

I'll give you the basics (no spoilers, don't worry) but I can't do justice in a short synopsis, so you'll have to just go read it.

Micah Dalton works for the CIA as a "cleaner," and his job is exactly that...when things go wrong in undercover ops, he steps in to take control and clean up the mess left by the situation. Ostensibly he works for a British financial firm, but he's really a company man. So when his show more very good friend Porter Naumann is found dead (in a not so nice manner) in a small town in Italy, Dalton is sent to survey the situation. He's told by the authorities that it's suicide, but of course Dalton doesn't believe it. So he begins investigating and his findings lead him from Italy to England and then back to the US, trying to figure out why anyone would have wanted to kill Naumann; along the way he uncovers other deaths that connect up with that of his friend. The only link is something called Echelon, but it makes no sense to Micah.

The meat of this story is Dalton's search to unravel the enigma and it's a great ride. I loved this story and I will definitely buy anything else from this author in the future.

Highly recommended for those who enjoy suspense...you will not be let down at all. I do have to say that there are parts of this book where Dalton is visited by Nauman's "ghost;" do not let this put you off. Once you understand why, just take it in stride. show less

I had to read this for a project....I could not get past the first 100 pages. I restarted the book about 4 times and I just could not get into it. Maybe it's just me?