Customer Reviews

An Act of Treason (Kyle Swanson Sniper Novels)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

US Marine Corps sniper Kyle Swanson and his girlfriend CIA agent Lauren Carson are on a mission in Pakistan. However, they have been exposed by someone in their chain leading to Kyle's incarceration and Lauren blamed for the fiasco; she is accused of turning traitor by selling her boyfriend out and giving top secrets to an al Qaeda supporter.

Swanson and Carson need to extradite themselves from the mess they are in as the pair trust no one. Both share in common their high regard for CIA legend Jim Hall, who mentored each of them and was Lauren's lover at one time. They would have expected him to mount an extraction rescue, but he sent them on the mission that has the pair tied in knots. Neither wants to believe that Hall set them up to conceal his selling top secret information to a Pakistani warlord who supports converting al-Qaeda into a political party and to possess a nuclear arsenal. Hall has one problem; he must kill his former apprentice.

The latest Swanson Sniper tale (see Clean Kill), An Act of Treason is a terrific espionage thriller as an idolized hero turns traitor shaking Swanson's soul more than al Qaeda can. The story line is fast-paced though linear as the audience anticipates a sniper showdown, which happens in the Alps.

Harriet Klausner

"An Act of Treason", the newest entry in the Kyle Swanson series by Coughlin and Davis, is the best book yet in a very fine series.

For those who may not know, author Jack Coughlin is one of the top living Marine snipers, with an excellent combat record in the Sandbox, and he brings that expertise and experience into play in these novels to give us a believable hero in Kyle Swanson.

Swanson's certainly not a Superman, at 5'9" and slight build, and can't perform superhuman stunts of derring-do, unlike some of the central characters of other series. He gets hurt; he gets captured. He sometimes loses fights to other characters.

But what he does do is persist, and he manages to use his hard-earned military skills to ultimately prevail in these books in a believable manner. That alone puts him a cut above much of the other offerings in the genre.

In this book, Coughlin and Davis skillfully blend sniper/military thriller with political and espionage elements to give us a novel with a wider-ranging focus than a simple shoot-`em-up. Locales range from Pakistan to DC to the Swiss Alps, with other stops along the way. The action's fast-paced and tightly plotted. The characters are fully realized, three dimensional, and consistently act believably (a major failing in many other books in the genre).

The crux of the story revolves around the treason and betrayal committed by Swanson's former friend and mentor Jim Hall when Hall decides to "retire" from the CIA by using his knowledge and background to support a Taliban takeover of the Pakistani government (nothing there that's not on the book's flyleaf) while padding his own pockets with untold wealth.

How Swanson takes on his own "old friend" is what you have to read for yourself. I promise you'll love it. Best Swanson book yet, and I can hardly wait for the next entry.

I really loved this latest installment in the Gunny Swanson saga. He gives Stephen Hunter a run for his money. I didn't give five stars because of the last chapter. While necessary, there was feel of "I'm coming up on deadline so I better wrap this up". The rest of the book flowed nicely and was a very enjoyable read. I read it in two sittings.

This is the fourth in the series and I felt it was trying to be more mainstream. The story line was fine but the execution was lacking. Several things just happened with no explanation. It felt to me like a few extra chapters would not have hurt. This was not the best of the series and I hope the next one goes back to what made this excellent entertainment.

great series of books,,,but i found several errors..technical errors.
they need to get a gun guy to proof read.
one does not "leave empty(50 cal) cartridges" at the shooting hide....
one may leave "empty cartridge CASES" at the shooting hide.

a flash suppressor will not reduce the sound of a shot.

a suppressor(silencer/noise suppressor)will reduce both noise and flash....

there were other errors.....
so get a tech advisor on your team

mike in co

The fourth book in the series and the best so far. A massive improvement on the previous one to which I gave a tepid three stars.

This hits a few high points with only one significant low point. Our sniper hero, Kyle Swanson, is betrayed by a former mentor (also a sniper, what were you expecting?) and left framed for an attack in Pakistan. Helped by his chums in the Trident black ops team, he escapes capture and takes the fight to his former mentor.

I enjoyed this, the balance of plot and action is a massive improvement on the previous two books, there are a few interesting characters (and no caricature Muslims or gung ho right wing US politics thank Goodness) and I liked the scenes and individuals from Trident. The sniper stuff is not too invasive (as it has been in previous books) and the blend and logic felt right most of the time. Swanson is not an absolute all action hero able to jump tall building with a single bound and it was nice to see him needing support.

The down side is an AWFUL love interest with a female CIA agent. She and Swanson fall for each-other at first sight, and it feels wrong and it feels clumsy and was totally unnecessary. Apart from that, it does what it says on the tin, and does it pretty well.

Never heard of Coughlin or his main character Kyle Swanson before so I didn't know what to expect. WOW. I am a big Vince Flynn/Mitch Rapp fan and this is just as good. After reading this book I went back and read all his other books in order. Can't wait for his next novel. This book is action packed from start to finish.

I absolutely loved this book. I have to say that the pair (Coughlin & Davis) really know how to hook you. Kill after kill this book will keep you reading till the last word, hoping for an excerpt from the next. I have never found a series that makes me actually want to keep reading but man, this book entertains you and leaves you wanting more. Hope there's more Kyle Swanson to come!

Great book!!! I've read all of Coughlin's books and this is up to par with the others. A page turner and exciting read. Can't wait for the next instalment of the "Swanson" searies. If you like the Stephen Hunter, "Swagger" novels you will enjoy this book.

Jack is a more mature writer now. An Act of Treason was his best work yet. Excellant story, descriptive prose, a WHOLE LOT OF ACTION!!!!!!!!!! I just loved it....and I am a woman. ACSpirit2