The Instructor

The Instructor by T. R. Hendricks
Derek Harrington #1

Immediate immersion in a compelling story that deals with current issues related to counterterrorism within the USA, ex-military dealing with returning to civilian life while dealing with PTSD, and more. This book had me reading rapidly to find out what would happen.

What I liked:
* Derek: military veteran, decades of service, divorced, loves his son…and his ex-wife, anger issues, PTSD, father has dementia, financial difficulties, wants to provide for his family, in deep when a potential solution appears
* The plot, pacing, and writing
* That it was believable and written by someone who knows what he is writing about
* That Derek is not perfect
* Being able to admire Derek as a warrior, show more leader, and human being
* Derek’s wife who wants to keep her son and herself safe but also wants Derek to get help she feels he needs
* That there are black, white, and shades of gray in this story
* The introduction to the series that provides a lead character I want to know more about

What I didn’t like:
* Who and what I was meant not to like
* The manipulative people, the cult-feel of Sanctuary, that people who believe in a cause can be so deluded…and wondering how many people in the world are taken in by those like Marshal and his henchmen

Did I like this book? Yes
Would I read more in this series? Yes

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Publishing for the ARC – This is my honest review.

5 Stars show less

I learned something reading -- or trying to read -- this book, and that is the following: Third-person, present-tense narration ("Derek looks into the eyes of the charging rhinoceros. He tries to read its intentions toward him, but the beast is inscrutable. He wishes that he was back in Connecticut, having a barbecue, not alone in the Serengetti.") grates on my brain like fingernails on a chalkboard. I made it five pages, closed the book and stepped quietly away.

If you don't have that reaction to third-person present, there might be a workmanlike outdoor thriller to be had here.

[Note (in case it wasn't obvious): There were no rhinoceroses in the first five pages, nor did those pages take place in East Africa]

Well-written and likely interesting to segments of the population that don’t include me. I can tell that my feelings about this book are personal only, and that for what it is, it’s a solid premise and well-executed. Very heavy on details about weapon particulars, military tactics, etc., and less on character development (everyone was who they were, without any change, etc.; they were much more "character"--almost Player Character--than people).

This was exciting! I was hoping that this would be an action-filled story and I was not disappointed. Derek was a great character. He is flawed but he wants to do what is right and cares deeply about his family. He’s the guy that you want in your corner when things take a turn for the worse. This retired Marine finds himself dealing with a group and he is unsure of their motives. He turns to his friend at the FBI and goes undercover to find out what is really going on. He thinks that he has everything under control but it may be more dangerous than he first believes.

This book had all of the action that I had hoped it would. I loved the fact that there were some pretty big surprises worked into the story that made it hard to put down. show more I loved just how capable Derek proved to be even when he found himself in situations that appeared to be impossible. Derek was a great character and I really wanted to see things work out for him.

I listened to the audiobook and thought that Jay Snyder did a fabulous job with the story. I believe that this is the first time that I have had a chance to listen to this narrator’s work and I was impressed. He did a great job of bringing this action-packed story to life. I found his voice to be very pleasant and was able to listen to this book for hours at a time.

I would recommend this book to fans of military thrillers. This book was incredibly exciting with great characters and plenty of situations that kept me guessing. I was very impressed by T. R. Hendricks’s debut novel and look forward to reading more of his work in the future.

I received a review copy of this book from Forge Books and Macmillan Audio. show less

Derek Harrington , Book 1