Customer Reviews

Deliver Us from Evil (Shaw and Katie James)

5 star:		(54)
4 star:		(37)
3 star:		(37)
2 star:		(16)
1 star:		(94)

 

 

Review of DELIVER US FROM EVIL - David Baldacci

WARNING - This story contains several extremely detailed scenes of torture and violence. It is not for the squeamish or individuals with a weak stomach or vivid imagination. They are not so frequent that I was unable to finish the book, and they are essential to the story so that it is difficult to skip them and fully comprehend the horror that is the basis of the narrative. However, if I had not been a fan of Baldacci and had not thoroughly enjoyed THE WHOLE TRUTH, the earlier novel in which the mysterious Shaw and his controller Frank were introduced, I might have chosen not to finish the story since I am not a fan of the type of gruesome scenes scattered throughout this book.

The focus of this story is the battle between good and evil. If the prospective reader has not read THE WHOLE TRUTH, I recommend that be read first to get the detailed backstory of Shaw; in addition, one of the key incidents in that book which changed Shaw's life irrevocably is an integral part of this story and thus reading this book would destroy much of the emotional impact of that story if read later. Shaw and Frank develop a plan to capture Evan Waller, a totally immoral Canadian businessman who is both a trafficker in human beings and has a new sideline of selling nuclear material to terrorists. They plan to neutralize his omnipresent bodyguards and kidnap him while he is on a rare holiday in Provence. Meanwhile, a parallel operation is planned by a secret unofficial rogue vigilante group operating out of England who hunt down and execute unapprehended war criminals, and which knows that Waller is actually a deep cover identity for a Ukranian war criminal who faked his own death and disappeared decades ago. This group includes several members with various talents; however, the point person for this op will be Regina "Reggie" Campion, a young woman of steely determination the reason for which is only gradually revealed. Of course, the plans and motives of each operative are unknown to the other. Thus, there are three intertwined stories within the one novel. First, the backstory of Reggie and her team and their attempt to capture and execute Waller in a certain prescribed manner which will make him aware of the reason for his death while maintaining the invisibility of their organization. Second, the parallel efforts of Shaw and his group to capture Waller and achieve their goal of diverting the nuclear material and neutralizing the terrorists' plan. Third, and equally intriguing, the gradual realization on the part of both Shaw and Reggie that the carefully constructed covers of each are just that and that they both have some relationship to Waller's activities and how they attempt to carefully work around each other despite a mutual attraction.

I thought that the storyline was very well constructed, and while there were a few unbelievable coincidences even given the latitude I allow an author, they were minor and did not detract from my enjoyment of the book. Waller was truly evil personified, and his actions throughout were consistent with that portrait. The term sociopath hardly does him justice. The toll that Shaw's career has exacted on his life was notched up even further, Baldacci's implicitly sympathetic portrait of Shaw's plight is a window into the lives of many undercover operatives. The events in Reggie's life are both the definition of "tragedy" and a tribute to the ability of the human spirit to not only survive but also cope. And there is a thought provoking implicit and at some points explicit undercurrent to the story involving the examination of the morality of the tactics employed by such organizations and individuals in the pursuit of such objectives as justice or the elimination of terrorist attacks.

After much debate with myself I decided to rate this book five stars because I enjoyed the story despite the violence and thought that the plot was very clever. The author created enough tension that I was anxious to finish it for several reasons. First, I wanted to discover who lived and died, since the ending of THE WHOLE TRUTH was definitely bittersweet, with not all the `good guys" surviving and even those who did psychologically damaged. I assumed that the bad guy would eventually get his "just desserts", but assumed that not all would end well for Shaw's and Reggie's teams. Second, I was anxious to discover if Katie James reappeared and if so if a relationship developed between she and Shaw in light of the introduction of Reggie Campion. Third, I was interested in whether Baldacci could create and sustain the supposed tension implicit in the incomplete knowledge of both Shaw and Reggie regarding the motives and plans of the other team, while the reader was omniscient in that regard although not with regard to author's handling of the eventual outcome of the story. My satisfaction with regard to all three points is the reason for my high rating and why I anxiously await an inevitable sequel, while wondering what direction it will take and who the central characters will be. If you want a well written traditional thriller with action filled suspenseful twists and turns and you don't mind gruesome violence, I recommend reading THE WHOLE TRUTH and then DELIVER US FROM EVIL. But beware - in order to bring the evil Waller to justice, the "good guys" will experience significant physical and psychological collateral damage.

Tucker Andersen 4/20/2010

I'm not a Kindle owner, so I'm not involved in the price issue that makes up so many of the reviews currently. So, this is mostly just my thoughts on the story.

I did, however. read parts of this on a Sony eReader, and was surprised to find that the ebook has extras - like an alternative ending not found in the printed book. After the review of the story, I've added my thoughts separately on these.

Short Summary: Woman who's a part of a group of international vigilantes goes after people like ex-Nazi's and KGB agents who have slaughtered masses. Her path crosses super-secret spy agent Shaw's as he goes after the same guy for a different reason. Will they get him? Or will he get them? And, will Shaw get the girl in the end?

Here's the ups and downs of it to me:
1. Fast-paced international plot and action:
As always, Baldacci keeps the plot and action just zinging along - and this time on a globe-trotting trip through Europe the U.S., and a trip down world history memory lane. That along with his ability to keep the twists and turns coming,kept me turning the pages.

2. Interesting, occassionally over-the-top cast of characters:
Reggie is a highlight, as the dedicated hard-core vigilante with a heart. She's a nice match-up for Shaw. The evil guys are really evil, and enjoy wallowing in their evilness. For me, this went over the top sometimes, creating bad guy caricatures. It seems torture scenes and violence were thrown in, just to be sure we get that head evil guy is REALLY, REALLY evil.

3. I really had to force myself to suspend disbelief on this one:
Half-way through the book, I realized the complicated plot the vigilantes use to trap the bad guy vs. other options is just ridiculous. On top of that, the characters just keep making such unbelievable and dramatically stupid choices (like all of them riding into a known set-up by the REALLY EVIL guy with no back up plan). It became a bit frustrating. Add on a big over-the-top EVIL, EVIL GUY with GOOD GUYS against incredible odds ending, and it really brought the whole thing down a bit for me. This has been a problem for me lately w/ his books. If you've thought his last couple were great, you'll enjoy this one more than I did.

4. Not really a stand alone book:
Do you remember the story from The Whole Truth? Who Anna is and what happened? Who Katie is and what happened betweeen her and Shaw? I read it and could only vaguely remember - and you probably need more than that to get full enjoyment of this one.

The Enriched ebook: The ebook version is for people who want a behind-the-scenes look at how a book is written. It has pictures of the actual places Baldacci used for characters homes and settings, an alternative ending, hand written outline, first draft manuscript pages, etc. It even has web links to some of the art showings and other things discussed in the book (that my ereader can't access). Still, I loved this! It's like the Directors cut of a DVD.

Bottom Line: An entertaining, fast-paced action thriller with some over-the-top characters, implausible action and references to a book I couldn't remember well - that brought it down to just an above average thriller, and less than I want from Baldacci. Still, for a light read on the beach or an airplane ride - it'll keep the pages turning and make the time fly. And, if you loved his last one -you'll love this one.

Baldacci is usually an interesting read so this was a complete and total disappointment. There are plot holes, completely cartoonish characters, lousy dialogue, and the book takes entirely too long to set up the action. The most glaring plot hole might be the fact that there is a mole inside Reggie's "Shadow Organization". This is brought up numerous times before being dropped without identifying said mole. Probably setting up a sequel that I will most certainly not read.
Baldacci has been gradually going downhill since his outstanding early novels. Unfortunately the speed of his descent seems to be picking up as he has started to churn out a couple of books a year. Memo to David - take your time go back to releasing one book a year rather than a couple of lousy reads.
The spy game does not seem to be Baldacci's area of expertise, one wonders if there was any research done here at all. If you want to read a spy novel try Daniel Silva or Vince Flynn. If you want action try Lee Child.
A final complaint with Baldacci is his Pattersonesque two and three page chapters. Absolute Power his first book has twenty nine chapters. Deliver Us From Evil has over one hundred chapters. Three pages is not a chapter - it makes the book incredibly choppy. My guess is that the publishers wanted four hundred pages so the easy way to get there is to have a ton of blank space every third page when each "chapter" ends. Maybe Baldacci wants to be the next James Patterson and release as much junk a year as he can but if he wants to write books that you remember more than five minutes after you finish them, then he needs to take a hard look at what direction his writing and editing have taken.

In David Baldacci's new thriller "Deliver Us from Evil," the story starts off with Reggie Campion--a femme fatale who murders an elderly ex-Nazi and returns to her secret agency which specializes in carrying out justice, for a new assignment. She is assigned to travel to Provence where ex-KGB agent and mass murder of the Ukranian people--Fedir Kuchin, nowadays a legitimate Canadian businessman who goes by the name of Evan Waller--is due to spend his vacation. Reggie rents a villa next to his, and waits for his arrival.

Meanwhile Shaw, who works for a rival agency, has similar orders. His boss Frank portrays Waller as a human trafficker who kidnaps young girls from Asia and sells them into the sex industry. Most bothersome is Waller's connection to nuclear remnants from the former Soviet Union and his plan to sell them to Muslim fundamentalists, to make explosives. Shaw's plan involves tackling Waller during his guided tourist excursion in the caves.

As Shaw travels to Provence to carry out his own agenda regarding Waller, he meets Reggie who is posing as a rich and clueless socialite. Unaware of her true purpose, Shaw also plays the game and poses as a lobbyist. Suspicious of each other, they form a brief bond until the arrival of their target changes everything. Soon enough, Reggie is dangerously flirting with Waller as Shaw is becoming increasingly nervous about their safety. Meanwhile, Waller has a near-death experience of his own while meeting with his nuclear buyers, and vows to carry out revenge.

Overall, the plot is interesting if a bit predictable. I enjoyed the love triangle between Reggie, Waller, and Shaw. Baldacci succeeds in portraying his characters as either sympathetic or evil. Reggie has a secret family history, becoming an orphan after her father murdered the family. Shaw's life is shaped by the loss Anna--a woman he loved whose death was related to the dangers posed by Shaw's work. Disappointed that he was unable to protect her, Shaw is unable to get on with his life. Waller is a chameleon who blends in perfectly with his new identity, while treasuring his old one. Unable to trust anyone and vengeful towards his enemies, he lives his life as a warrior. Though a bit slow at times, the action kept my interest. The writing is graphic and easy to visualize.

Evan Waller is evil personified. A former war criminal responsible for the deaths of thousands under the communist regime, he now earns a living as a sex trafficker. Intel suggests that Waller has terrorist ties and is looking to enter into a new venture that could kill millions more worldwide. The mysterious agent/operative known as "Shaw" has been tasked with capturing Waller to bring him in for interrogation. As he closes in on the enemy he discovers another covert group that wants Waller dead. Both sides must find a way to work together because Evan Waller is proving to be far more dangerous than they anticipated.

David Baldacci consistently churns out high quality thrillers that raise the bar for other writers in the genre. Deliver Us from Evil continues that trend in grand fashion giving us not only a tightly knit plot, but some well crafted characters that really carry this story. We've met Shaw in Baldacci's previous release, The Whole Truth, and his character is just as mysterious and even more engaging. The star of the show is easily Reggie Campion, a beautiful, yet tough covert agent who goes head to head with Shaw. Their scenes are easily the best written with some clever dialog and some fun back and forth that Baldacci somehow manages to seamlessly weave into the story.

Never fear, there are some great action sequences and just the right amount of suspense. Indeed, Shaw is a force to be reckoned with and it never gets old as he finds new and inventive ways to take down the bad guys. Even Waller is the perfect villain: on one hand the kind of man you love to hate; on the other, a smooth talker that draws you in with his charm and intelligence, despite the harsh reality of the monster he truly is.

At its core this is a story of good versus evil and the sacrifice that must be made for good to win. Baldacci brings all the elements together to bring his fans another top notch thriller, and easily one of his best. I hope more novels with Shaw and Reggie are planned for the future, because fans will be demanding it after this superb offering.

I was tempted to give this five stars just to balance some of the irrelevant pricing dings, but three stars is fair. It lost one star for some of the plot's outlandishness, and another for the pedantic passages that finally got to me.

The tale is reasonably well told and the sentences are full, complete and adult, very adult. Hope that makes sense, but some of the popular material being published these days seems written on a fourth grade level. The basic plot is fine; two different groups chasing one sociopath. One of the groups is amateurish, underfunded and undisciplined close to the point of incredulity. The other's an unspecified US government/multi-national agency. It's believable the amateurs could run down targets with limited resources, but the one they tackle here is clearly out of their league. Ambition is good; stupid may be noble, but also tiresome. It's melodramatic and unrealistic when the good guys and the bad guys get to a crucial decision point and want to banter with each other. The evil one's a sociopath, there's no point in trying to hang a guilt trip on him.

The novel drags with pedantic recitations about the evil target. It seems like every chapter includes a couple of pages of this guy's history or thoughts; it's overdone. One of these early on was enough to convince a reader he's a monster and shouldn't be walking the face of the earth. The bigger problem is the wrap up. It's irritating when people, especially professionals and en masse, do something that's so stupid, so absurd, so obviously suicidal and so hopeless that the only way out is contrived, disappointing and at least in the general sense entirely predictable. (I had correctly concluded there were either of two characters within the sociopath's organization who would provide one of two solutions) Baldacci's worked hard to develop the twin protagonists and they deserve a better last couple of chapters. It's tempting to conclude the author needed to meet a deadline and was struggling with the end.

I stayed with this novel through to the end. Criticisms, aside I wasn't tempted to hang this one up. It's just not one of Baldacci's best and not a worthy follow up to The Whole Truth. I'll buy Baldacci again because his prior writing has been better and this was acceptable. I'd like to see Shaw and Reggie again.

mythoughts

If you are looking for a thrilling, fingernail biting suspense thriller...then look no further. David Baldacci has done it again with "Deliver Us From Evil". I really enjoyed the story line...the good vs. evil. But, I have to admit that there were some parts that had me reading through them very, very quickly. They were a definite part of the story line in that they helped to formulate the "essence" of the most evil character that could possibly be, Evan Whaller. But they were difficult to read because of their intensity, the description and the fact that my mind just can't comprehend that level of depravity.

Evan Whaller is a business man with a horrendous past. An individual without a soul or compassion for anyone or anything. His entire life is devoted to domination. He msut be on top and as his motto goes "If he gets hit...he'll hit back harder". Needless to say he does and has repeatedly. So...while the descriptions were graphic they did paint the picture of the evilness inside of Evan very clearly. I have to warn you there was one specific part that was extremely graphic. During Evan's interrogation of a Terrorists...I was tempted to read the passage twice because it so crazy...but I chose not to because I didn't want those images blazoned in my mind. If you are at all squeamish...you may want to skip those pages. So what makes Evan so evil? The better question would be what DOESN"T make Evan evil. The descriptions of his deeds, motives and goals in life will make you sick to your stomach and thankfully that this is just a story. I could not put the book down but was drawn into the intense web of secrets.

As a reader I enjoyed the descriptions David Baldacci included of his main characters: Shaw, Reggie, Frank, Katie and Evan. I was able to create a true image in my mind as I read their story. Reggis is a tough, strong women that has overcome more obstacles and monsters then most people will EVER encounter. When she meets Shaw it is clear that while there is a considerable age difference the sparks will fly. How could they not? Both strong, attractive, and ready to fight the evil Evan Whaller. While it takes a few chapters before they realize that while on opposing teams they are truly fighting the same opponent.

Giving a glimpse into Reggie's past helped me to understand her unnerving desire to go after the "monsters" of the world. She is desperate to prove that a "monster" does not live within her as well. In proving this she must fight for those who could not fight for themselves.

Shaw was a bit of a mystery to me as I have not read the prior book where his character was created. He comes across as combination James Bond, Terminator and Professor all at once. Tough, debonair, smart, strong and witty. Just like a hero should be. At the end of the book....I had wished for a slightly different outcome....but realized that really that was the only outcome that could possibly happen between Shaw and Reggie.

This is a great read...unless you are a very squeamish person.....but if you are not? Pick it up...you'll only put it down when you are done.

I thought baldacci's earlier books were pretty good. his character's were realistic and story line believable. first off if you are going to write a action book that extensively uses props such as firearms... the author should at least have fundamental knowledge of his material... example: his description of ' cracking the polymer barrel of a glock pistol and making it unusable' and then going into the background of the said pistol was fundamentally incorrect.... all glock pistols have steel barrels with some polymer parts such as frame etc... furthermore describing a 'steel jacketed bullet'... a shell casing of steel maybe but not the bullet unless you want to wear the barrel out or have ammo that is quickly rusting... these examples may seem trivial ... but to me they diminish the creditability of the author and story, just as if a book's story extensively referred to musicians and their musical instruments and described a electric guitar with nylon strings.

the characters were one cliche after another and fairly unrealistic and stupid. basically the entire book felt like it was written by an assistant using a preset formula and completed in 24 hours. overall a waste of my time and money.

overall... this book would of been better served in a format of all pictures with 'bubbles' of dialogue attached to the characters.... like a comic book.

added this later and thought appropriate to this book... a bit tongue in cheek... but for what its worth

recipe for a popular action/drama book of fiction
WARNING. POTENTIAL SPOILER

ingredients.
one non-official 'black' govt. agency
one or more morally corrupt organizations
numerous and various tools and methods of bodily harm
one flawed heroic character with issues
one or more secondary characters with issues
one extremely flawed villain with no redeeming characteristics
one or more secondary villains with little or no redeeming characteristics
one of more personal/romantic attachments

in one bowl combine the character ingredients with moral/personal/romantic conflicts and then add to in a larger bowl the following ingredients:
one or more examples of middle eastern type terrorists and nuclear weapons.
one or more examples and organizations historically connected to inhuman or genocide type actions.
one or more examples of current morally corrupt endeavors such as child slavery
numerous examples of unrealistic tactical and strategic actions

flavor with.
various and numerous examples/descriptions of the character's attire

place in oven at high temp and cook until over done.

I almost never abandon a book I have started -- but this dog is a rare exception. In the past I have enjoyed many of Mr. Baldacci's books, but this one fails to grab the reader up front like his prior work. In short, the characters are not interesting and the plot is not engaging. For Kindle readers, the font is entirely italics, which is annoying to read at long stretches. Save your money.

I have been a big fan of David Baldacci's from the very beginning with Absolute Power. But it seems like the more prolific he has become, the more the quality of his books has decreased. Deliver Us From Evil isn't good writing, it's not good fiction and it's beyond lame.

Two different agencies are after Evan Waller, a Canadian industrialist. One agency is an independent vigilante group. They are intent on killing Waller because he is actually Fedir Kuchin--the butcher of Kiev. Reggie Campion is a tortured young woman who will be doing most of the contact work with Waller as he vacations in Provence. The second group is a shadowy-bunch that is working for G-8. A. Shaw (from The Whole Truth) is trying to kidnap Waller to make him a deal: they want him to stop selling nuclear supplies to the Iranians. Campion and Shaw run into each other in Provence and they begin a relationship of sorts. They each suspect that the other is not who they say they are, but they are trusting nonetheless. Waller immediately takes to the beautiful Campion and becomes jealous of Shaw. Although the vigilante group has been successful in the past, they begin to look like the not-ready-for-prime-time-players. Things go terribly awry and it's a question of who is to blame. Is there a mole in one of the groups? Is there someone in Waller's posse feeding them false information? Is it really possible to bring such an evil man to justice?

Deliver Us From Evil is hokey from the very beginning. Most thrillers have an element of disbelief, but this one is a stretch from start to finish. If there is a decision to be made, you can guarantee that the characters in this book will make the wrong one. It was especially bad after just finishing Daniel Silva's wonderful book, The Rembrandt Affair. Both books covered similar topics (selling weapons to the Iranians, evil characters from World War II, famous journalists, etc.), but these books are like night and day.

I suggest that David Baldacci stop publishing two books a year and spend a little more time on future efforts. Otherwise, he's going to start losing his fan-base (which has probably already started).