Customer Reviews

Fault Line: A Novel

5 star:		(50)
4 star:		(30)
3 star:		(22)
2 star:		(21)
1 star:		(18)

 

 

Brothers Alex and Ben Treven are as different as two brothers can be. Alex is a brilliant, up and coming lawyer in a Silicon Valley law firm and Ben is a government assassin who hasn't had contact with Alex in over seven years. When an inventor Alex represents is murdered Alex begins to question if the murder has anything to do with the new encryption program his client was working on. Then within hours the patent clerk working on the invention coincidently dies of natural causes and Alex himself is attacked in his home. With no where else to turn he calls upon Ben for help in staying alive.

Ben grudgingly returns home and together with associate lawyer, Sarah Hosseini who was also working the on the case, the three are forced into hiding to try and figure out who would murder to keep the program from ever seeing the light of day.

I really enjoyed this book. It's the perfect combination of action and adventure mixed with technical expertise. Some of the plot was a little predictable but it didn't take away from my enjoyment of the story. I read the entire book in one day because the action kept the pages turning.

I especially liked the character interaction between the two brothers. They each felt the other was at fault for the rift in their family stemming from a tragedy when the boys were in high school. At different times in the book I'd find myself rooting for one brother or the other while hoping for reconciliation. The ending was realistic and not too over the top or too "happily ever after" which annoys me. I highly recommend this book for all suspense/thriller lovers.

This novel is not bad as a departure from the Rain series but it lagged badly when it tried to get overly psychological, which was often. The plot is good and backed up by interesting technical detail regarding software and web security. The older brother is a good start as a tough but flawed action hero. But I got very frustrated with the other brother and his repeated inner battles regarding his feelings for his brother, which seemed to go on and on, over and over throughout the book. Given the realities of the plot (people trying to kill him, asking his brother for help) his petty and childish actions were, to me, a real logic flaw in the book. It eventually seemed so very unlikely for a real person to act that way I started turning pages when the plot got to those places. Overall I'd say the book can't decide if it's a straight-up action thriller or a study of family dysfunction. I think it fails on the latter count and the author should have soft pedaled this aspect or drawn the characters more realistically.

Thought all of Barry Eisler's previous books were superb. This one, sadly, is not. First, there are only momentary glimmers of the gripping action that are the hallmarks of his other books. Second, there is much too much exposition--the back stories should developed--woven as part of the plot--not told, as if someone is working on a film treatment. There is so much repetitive telling, that, frankly, I merely skimmed those parts. Third, in my view, all but one of the characters are so wholly dorky and unrealistic as to be without humanity, despite their constant angst. Finally, the ending is puerile and unrealistic. I give the book two stars (and then only because of the occasional tautness), but hope that Eisler is able to find the thread of his art--an art that has, until now, served him so well. Bring back John Rain!

I read the negative reviews of this book and let me say this, this isn't a John Rain book, get over it. At the same time, it isn't a total departure for Barry either, he still covers all the stuff you love about the Rain books, field craft, combat tactics, and an interesting character arch.

I liked this book most because of the way he talks about and addresses many issues currently facing us today, issues like FISA, Homeland Security, and Cyber Terrorism.

I found the main character to be very believable, maybe because I knew people like him in the military or maybe because I've been exposed to a lot of interesting training. Whatever the case, I found him conflicted, likable, and perfectly developed for the story.

Now, I like many would have liked to see a little more of the detail that you get in the John Rain novels but I think every author has to experiment with style and tone if he is going to be more than a one trick pony.

I got into the book fast and was drawn quickly along and deep into the plot. I had a hard time putting the book down, so hard in fact I agreed to an outing to Chuck E Cheese with my five year old daughter and her friend so that I'd have an hour and a half to read while they played!

If you are an Eisler fan, you'll like this book ... a lot. If you this is your first experience, dive immediately into the Rain novels, you'll love them.

Personally, I can't wait for the next book!

Barry Eisler has done it again. I didn't know what to expect with this new novel. However, I rated every one of the John Rain books by Barry Eisler as excellent, so I thought I would give it a try. I found it hard to put this book down once I started it. The 2 brother concept and their very different backgrounds coming together was what made the stroy line so interesting to me. You often wonder how two men with the same parents and upbringing could turn out so differently.

I highly recommend this novel. Barry Eisler continues to be one of my favorite authors.

I have read all of the John Rain books and was a little disappointed that Eisler's new book did not have my beloved characters. But, he had me after the first page. I honestly had to put the book down a few times so that I could savor the book and enjoy it longer. It has a good general story line, with even better side stories. Eisler does a great job of introducing the characters and having them all come together. Not only does Eisler do a great job of writing an interesting story, but I enjoy how he includes political views and confronts social issues of today. Great read, you'll enjoy it.

Fans that were hoping to see Japanese-American assassin, John Rain, in a followup to Eisler's bestselling series will be in for something slightly different in Eisler's first stand-alone thriller, Fault Line. The first paragraph opens up with a hook that will lock in Eisler's fans and many more. Readers unfamiliar with Eisler's work will be instantly drawn into a page-turning experience.

The story focuses on a young patent lawyer, Alex Treven, who expects to strike oil when his latest client, Richard Hilzoy, presents him with a revolutionary technology called Obsidian. Alex anticipates being the talk of Silicon Valley and becoming partner in the firm. However, Hilzoy is murdered in an apparent drug deal, the patent examiner dies, and Alex barely escapes with his own life after an alleged burglary in his own home. When the police offer little assistance, Alex turns to his estranged brother, Ben--a special-ops soldier--for help. Ben rushes to Alex's aid and forces Alex's Iranian-American associate, Sarah Hosseini to go underground with them because of her knowledge of Obsidian. Ben distrusts Sarah and believes that she is working for clandestine powers that are bent at stealing Obsidian. As a result, Alex is thrown head first into Ben's world and must follow his brother's rules in hopes of surviving further attempts on his life by the forces they hope to expose.

Ben's paranoia and methods of survival are reflected in Eisler's experience as a covert operative. Eisler has mastered the art of creating situational tension while weaving in character tensions. Ben's main objective of keeping Alex and Sarah safe is complicated by unresolved family issues that led to Ben's estrangement. Further complications also result from the animosity Ben and Sarah have towards each other. There is excellent character development that is not overdrawn. There are also interesting plot twists which make Fault Line a gripping and easy read.

by Russell Brooks
Author of Pandora's Succession.

I recently became an Eisler fan and in less than 10 days read ALL of his Rain series novels. Well written & a time well spent.
Fault Line is nowhere near the caliber of Rain's series.A step in the wrong direction.It would be interesting to see where he goes next after this hiccup.

OK, so the guy has an incredibly sexy resume: ex-CIA Directorate of Operations, attorney, and movie-star looks to boot. Is that what it takes to get published? I haven't read any of the Rain series, so I only have Fault Line on which to base an opinion. And that opinion is that Eisler writes eminently readable, fast-paced books that you'll forget about as soon as you put the book down. He gets you into the book, but the book doesn't get into you.

First, what I liked: good action sequences and clear, inside knowledge of spycraft, such as how to "case a joint." The main character, Ben Treven, is well-drawn and multi-layered; alas, he's the only one in the book.

The problems lie with the other characters and the general writing style, which alternates between clinical discussions of proper assassination techniques and floridly over-the-top emotional outbreaks. The younger brother, Alex, is a twerp. Any tension between the brothers that we're supposed to feel as readers was greatly diminished for me because of Alex's largely unsympathetic character. Sarah is, at best, two-dimensional. She's along for the ride and gets to participate in a laughably written sex scene that I had to read aloud to my wife, who thought I was making it up. The writer makes more than one reference to "feelings building up inside" Sarah, yet we never learn what those were. There is no "bad guy" per se, and the absence of a villain detracts from the tension. Someone's out to get Alex, and by the time we find out who, some of us might no longer care.

I never relized how perfectly shallow the characters were in the Rain novels until I encountered Eisler's latest effort involving a series of utterly perfect characters who are just flawed enough to make for a cliched simplistic plot. The stereotypical rich handsome Silicon Valley lawyer, his fabulously beautiful assistant, his bitter phenomenally dangerous brother and the bad bad way bad guys. I've always loved the Rain novels but I am now soured on Eisler. Simplistic, predictable, boring. The tragic family side plot with a car accident and suicide and cancer added the final touch of boring stereotyping. Mr Eisler you blew this one.