Customer Reviews

The Hunted (Thorndike Basic)

5 star:		(29)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Brian Haig is the best all-around writer in today's thriller community. His novels are well thought out, with a degree of plot complexity and engaging characters that we all embrace and look forward to enjoying. And his character, Sean Drummond, is a breath of fresh air in the company of Mitch Rapp, Scot Harvath and Jack Reacher, all great series characters, but without the wit and wisecracking charm of our favorite JAG lawyer.

After a half dozen Sean Drummond novels I looked forward to watching Haig step away from his proven character and try his hand at something new. He certainly has the story-telling ability, rhetorical skills and stylistic virtuosity to expand his repertoire successfully.

So, I'm puzzled over "The Hunted."

Based on real-life events in the collapsed Soviet Union of the early 1990s, "The Hunted" is a sparse tale of political corruption, aging spies and a not altogether likable man-on-the-run. Since the story is necessarily predictable, Haig's challenge is to create interesting characters, explore their motives, and perhaps throw in unexpected plot twists to propel his characters toward their already-known conclusion.

Unfortunately, Haig fails on all counts.

In "The Hunted" his characters are utterly predictable, two-dimensional caricatures: Alex Konevitch, the brilliant young entrepreneur who becomes a multimillionaire at age 22 through his smarts and timing; Elena Konevitch, Alex's "stunningly beautiful" wife who loves Alex for himself, not his money; Golitsin, the corrupt former KGB deputy director and his cabal of sadistic out-of-work KGB operatives; and the list goes on. As "The Hunted" unfolds, not a single character develops in any way whatsoever: each does little more than embody a stereotype sprung full-grown from the time he is introduced.

Motive? Simple: greed. Not millions, not hundreds of millions, but "billions," as Nicki, the dark double of Alex's wife, Elena, says: "Nicky adored that word 'billions.' It rolled out of her lips so beautifully. She could repeat it as often as she liked." And she does: again and again and again.

Brian Haig creates Sean Drummond with wit and humor, sprinkling the page with aphorisms that make the reader laugh out loud and bring his character to life. It's odd, then, that in "The Hunted" everyone from Konevitch's arch nemesis Golitsin through the most minor KGB knuckle dragger manages little more than to be called a "moron" ("Listen closely, moron. Wherever you run, I'll find you.") or an "idiot" ("So long, Boris, you idiot."). "Idiot" is actually used 37 times (so my Kindle tells me) to describe a character or his actions, enough that it stands out in memory and becomes an annoying verbal twitch. Likewise, in "The Hunted" Haig slips carelessly into verbal gaffs, such as "His President could care less about anything that didn't register in national polls and outside Hollywood." It should read "couldn't care less," not "could care less: if he could, he would.

Perhaps I'm holding my expectations too high, but I think not. Brian Haig is the best writer currently working the thriller genre. His skills certainly allow him to explore beyond his Sean Drummond character to create other memorable characters and stories.

The problems with "The Hunted" are more basic:

1) It relies on narrative summary, rather than character interaction to tell the story. I haven't counted, but I'd guess that 80-85% of the book is spoken by the narrator, rather than the characters themselves.

2) The characters are thus two-dimensional and not very interesting. At the end of the day, we don't really care about any of them.

3) If the characters are not interesting to us, I suspect they were not very interesting to Brian Haig, either; hence, he allowed himself to take the easy way out: calling a character an "idiot," rather than showing why he's an idiot.

I'm certainly not going to write off Brian Haig because of "The Hunted." After a half dozen books or so, too many authors fall into formula, cut corners and and count on their following to sell their books (e.g., Vince Flynn's "Extreme Measures" and Brad Thor's "The Apostle"). I don't think Brain Haig has done that with "The Hunted." He took a chance, stepped beyond his proven character, Sean Drummond, and took a stab at something new. That indicates growth as a writer, and it should be encouraged.

Rendered one of Russia's wealthiest men for his entrepreneurial talents, financial genius Alex Konevitch ill-advisedly hires the KGB's former deputy director to handle his corporate security and subsequently loses his company before fleeing with his wife to America, where he struggles for survival amid false accusations and a contract on his head.

I didn't actually realize this was based on a true story till I came to the end of the book. Fascinating. That being said I found this to be one of those rare thrillers that truly kept me engrossed the whole time. A captivating and emotional thriller with authentic and convincing characters. One of my favorite novels of the past few months.

Highly Recommended to all thriller fans!

If international intrigue keeps you turning pages you'll find yourself completely absorbed in The Hunted, a tension propelled thriller that takes place at the time of communism's fall in Russia. Peopled with some of the most savage characters to imaginable the gritty dialogue sparks as the fast paced narrative shuttles between countries.

He may be only 22 but Alex Konevitch is brilliant, blessed with an unflagging entrepreneurial spirit and a beautiful wife, Elena. Furthermore he's worth over 300 million, the richest man in Moscow. Of course, at that point in time wealth meant you were an enemy of the state, even worse he was detested hated by former KGB chief Golitsin, a man filled with hatred and greed, one who relished the sound of another's physical suffering.

Konevitch secretly poured his money into backing Boris Yeltsin in hopes of establishing free enterprise in his native country. Golitsin wants to know where this bounty is coming from, and is enraged when he finds that it is Konevitch. Nonetheless, life seems perfect for Alex and Elena, a golden couple.

But contentment turns to disquiet when several of Alex's top men are murdered. Fearing for the safety of Elena and himself, Alex hires a coterie of bodyguards, and employs Golitsin as his chief of security. That was a bit like inviting a crazed killer into your home.

Despite being surrounded by protection the couple are kidnaped, and Alex is tortured mercilessly until he signs over his companies to an unknown person. He feels somewhat secure as his account and security numbers are needed before a dollar can be accessed. But even more important than the money - how can Alex save Elena and himself? His captors would take pleasure in killing them as slowly and painfully as possible.

Thus begins a cross world odyssey that pits Alex not only against his Russian enemies but also against officials of the United States when Golitsin is clever enough to have Alex declared a criminal for stealing from his own company, the very crime of which Golitsin is guilty.

Haig based his incredible story on the life of Alex Konanykhin, a once wealthy man victimized by the Russian government. The Hunted is a thrill packed tale, and a frightening one.

- Gail Cooke

Brian Haig has definitely "turned the corner" from very good to great, having written an outstanding thriller that stands equal to the best work of my other favorite writers: Vince Flynn, Brad Thor, David Hagberg, Sean Flannery, and Ralph Peters. The characters are fascinating and the plot development is expert. The dialogue is rivetting. Brian's stories have consistently reflected current events. So the fact that THE HUNTED it is based on a true story makes it even more tantalizing. Like the other reviewer, I do miss Sean Drummond. But the writing is oh so good, that I quickly "got over it."

A fast pace, edge of seat fictional fact based thriller revolving around the kidnapping of a Russian entrepreneur being pursued by the KGB and Russian mafia. One of the best new books to come out this summer. After signing over his $300 million company to an ex KGB agent and escaping with his wife from KGB hired Russian Mafia killers in Hungary. Alex and Elena escape to New York and seek asylum in Washington to evade further torture and eventual murder in Russia if returned to their homeland. Little do they realize that their protectors in America, a politically corrupt FBI Director and the INS form an unholy alliance with the Russian mafia and Russian Justice Ministry officials to pursue and persecute Alex and Elena. One of Brian Haig's finest works.

I thought I'd miss Sean Drummond .... but after reading Brian Haig's latest, I'm convinced I'd like anything he would write.

This book is simply a wonderful story, rich with assorted, believable characters - those you love and those you love to hate - and a fascinating plot that keeps you engrossed until the end, then wishing there was more. You can not help but wonder, as the tale unfolds, which parts are truly factual and which are the product of a creative writer.

For readers of suspense/mysteries/thrillers and those that like a little legal thrown in, plus possibly some foreign intrigue, this book is the best of the year - thoroughly recommended.

Perhaps, Alex, the star of the book, or his attorney, MP Jones, could hook up with Sean Drummond in a future story?

This is a complex international thriller. It takes place in the early 1990s, amid the chaotic capitalism and corruption of the "new" Russia after the failure of the Soviet system.

Alex is a very successful young Russian capitalist who provides extensive financial backing for Boris Yeltsin's rise to power. Former KGB goons are very unhappy about this. They want a return to the old ways, when the KGB had unlimited power. They torture Alex and then frame him for the theft of hundreds of millions of dollars, which actually goes into their own accounts. After this, Alex is supposed to die with the blame on his head so the real thieves can enjoy all that money. But he and his wife keep thwarting the plans of the various factions trying to destroy them.

After Alex and his wife escape to America, a lot of international logrolling ensues--all of it nefarious. At times it seemed to me that the author was a little over the top in his portrayal of the bad guys--both Russian and American. But then I read the Author's Note. The book is based on a real Russian couple who lived an even worse version of this story.

I've been a big fan of Brian Haig novels for awhile. His characters are true to life and the stories are generally suspenseful. I enjoy his pace and wit.

This novel is not part of his series. It is based on a true story. The story is centered around the fall of the Soviet Union and some of the politics involved. This is not a political book however; more of a story of abuses of power. The story of an international conspiracy against one young Russian couple. The victim of this story actually requested Haig write this novel. Enough said.

I had trouble starting this novel. (that happens to me some times) If you have trouble engaging at first, keep going. Trust me, about a third of the way in it becomes hard to put down.

If you like action/adventure this is a great book. (Can't believe it's not a movie already.) If you survived the cold war, you'll enjoy it that much more.

This is a wonderful and intelligent book. The book resounds with revelancy! The gifted writer so creatively presents what could be tomorrow's front page story of the New York Times. All students of Russian History could really benefit from reading this marvelous book. It is perhaps the best written novel about current Russia. Brian Haig rates as one of the most writers, along up there with Henry Porter, Daniel Silva and Robert North Patternson. I loved this book. I read it non-stop.

I finally got around to reading the book. I also managed to read a lot of reviews, mostly negative ones. It seems that everyone was trying to compare this book to the Sean Drummond series (which I dearly loved), however this was a completely different approach for Haig. The Russian characters were realistic and extremely believeable. The plot was lengthy but fulfilling. All in all, I think it's one of Brian's best works.

Keep it up fella'...at least you'll know that one fan will always be there for you!!