The Silent Man (A John Wells Novel) [Kindle Edition]

Alex Berenson (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Bestseller Berenson's well-plotted and thoughtful third thriller to feature CIA agent John Wells (after The Ghost War) finds Wells and his fellow CIA agent and fiancée, Jenny Exley, living happily together in Washington, D.C., content to devote themselves to fighting the forces of evil. One morning, while stuck in traffic on their way to CIA headquarters, men on motorcycles attack them in their minivan. Exley suffers a serious gunshot injury in an act of revenge by minions of Pierre Kowalski, an enemy from an earlier book. Meanwhile, jihadists bent on destroying America steal two small atomic bombs. These extremely clever villains, per Berenson's style, aren't mad dog idiots but credible characters with reasons, at least from their own perspective, to be doing the great evil they're planning. Fast and furious when it needs to be, this is a welcome addition to an excellent series. Berenson won an Edgar for his first novel, The Faithful Spy. (Feb.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

John Wells saves the world for the third time in as many books, but we wouldn’t have it any other way. Islamist jihadists manage to steal some fissionable material out of a remote Russian weapons depot, intending to build a crude atom bomb to unleash on the great Satan. Meanwhile, Wells’ love interest is nearly killed by an old enemy, sending our dour, driven hero eastward on a one-man mission of vengeance, even as the terrorists head steadily westward with their awful freight. Wells has lost some of his promise as a devout Muslim action hero (The Faithful Spy, 2006), an intriguing premise completely jettisoned here. But while Wells has grown two-dimensional, the supporting cast of holy warriors and their reluctant assistants (such as Gregor, a pathetically hulking weak link on the weapons depot’s payroll) are fleshed out and motivated far more than your typical baddies. Oddly enough, it is the terrorists’ desperate nuclear caper, plausibly detailed and convincingly problematic, that keeps the reader caring, and guessing, until the end and that keeps this series in the first rank of international thrillers. --David Wright

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Format: Kindle Edition
• File Size: 548 KB
• Publisher: Jove (January 26, 2010)
• Sold by: Penguin Publishing
• Language: English
• ASIN: B001Q8V6NK
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (90 customer reviews)

More About the Author

As a reporter for The New York Times, Alex Berenson has covered topics ranging from the occupation of Iraq to the flooding of New Orleans to the financial crimes of Bernie Madoff.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Somewhat Interesting But Too Formulaic, April 8, 2009

By 

Burgmicester (Pittsburgh) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Silent Man (A John Wells Novel) (Hardcover)

(What's this?)

Alex Berenson has created the John Wells character who is not dissimilar from the Mitch Rapp creation by Vince Flynn. However, on the Wells character, Berenson has not fully developed a personality that engages the reader. The storyline is good enough, but the modern thriller formula is in full swing: pages 1-50 are the introduction and reference the past stories, 50-150 introduce the bad guys occasionally getting back to the good guys, mixed in is an event that is the catalyst to the story. Then half way through the book begin getting into the good stuff. I found myself skipping quickly through the write ups of why each Muslim decided to hate Americans. The first 200 pages could have been reduced to 25 and moved right into the meat of the story. Let's face it, it isn't the writing style that makes us want to read these types of stories, it's the story telling.

However, this thriller never really engages the reader in the meat and potatoes of the story either. It is contrived and stretched into something that doesn't feel real or exciting. I found myself hurrying through the book just to get to the end and to see what happened. There wasn't anything along the way that I found interesting or compelling. The characters were cardboard and standard issue. Some of the dialogue between Exley and Wells was forced.

There are many serial character storylines out there. This is just another that could be plugged and played with the others. Nothing special here, but if you are so inclined, it is a quick beach read.

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Alex Berenson and John Wells a Winning Team, March 2, 2009

By 

Daniel A. Cotter - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Silent Man (A John Wells Novel) (Hardcover)

Over the last several months, I have read the thee John Wells novels that Alex Berenson has written. In Wells, Alex has created a character that is sure to be in the list of great recurring spy characters.
In The Silent Man, John Wells is pitted against terrorists who have acquired two bombs from Russia and are planning to set a bomb off on US soil. Wells, a CIA operative who we meet in the first Alex Berenson novel as having infiltrated Al Qaeda, becomes involved when chasing down a nemesis from the second book. Wells is in a race against time as nuclear destruction is about to be inflicted on the US.
The CIA often does not know what to do with Wells, who "goes off the ranch" from time to time.
The writing of Berenson is taut and this book and the other Wells books are page turners. Highly recommended reading.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars invigorating spy thriller, February 3, 2009

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Silent Man (A John Wells Novel) (Hardcover)

In the DC area CIA Agents John Wells and Jennifer Exley are driving to work when traffic comes to a standstill because of accidents on two bridges. John thinks it is too much of a happenstance and quickly is proven right when three assassins on motorcycles start shooting at them. They kill their attackers, but Exley is critically wounded in the crossfire. When he knows she will live, John goes to Russia to obtain proof that arms dealer Pierre Kowalski put out the hit on him for embarrassing him and marking his face in a duel years ago.

The mission fails but Kowalski is deathly afraid that Wells will come after him. In Russia, two nuclear warheads are stolen from the secure Facility in Ozersk and placed on board a freighter heading to Canada where Jihadists wait for the arrival to drive them into the States. They intend to nuke DC on Inauguration Day led by Sayyid Nadiji whose family was killed during the Iraq War and occupation. Kowalski is asked to deliver beryllium to give to a third party who will supply it to those targeting Washington. He tells Wells to maintain the peace between them. John runs with the information, which is the first step in finding and preventing Jihadists from devastating DC.

This is an invigorating thriller that will frighten readers as the scenario is plausible with the terrorists capable of the theft, delivery, and destruction on a scale that could make 9/11, London and Madrid seem minor. John is a dedicated agent risking his life to keep the world safe while his beloved Exley wants him out of the deadly field game that he cannot walk away from even if it means losing her. Fans will enjoy the latest spy thriller, as Alex Berenson continues to deliver top rate realistic tales (see THE GHOST WAR and FAITHFUL SPY) on a par with Le Carre and Silva.

Harriet Klausner