Vengeance Calling: A David Rivers Thriller (American Mercenary Book 4) Kindle Edition

I am just going to write a few quick thoughts for this review — NO spoilers here!What would you do if you had to choose between two evils? What if you were also determined to do anything and everything to free your only surviving friend/teammate?I was hooked from the beginning of this riveting "international thriller" and was held hostage until the end... I was left gasping for breath more than once when the story was moving along at a breakneck speed... The book was full of rich details, I could visualise places like the little cabin where David spent six months in isolation and the cave in Laukkai... There were Intense, nerve-wracking battle scenes and firefights with tons of realistic action taking place in Myanmar... As always, there are Mr. Kasper's trademark high-octane, adrenaline-fuelled, loop-de-loop, in-your-face action sequences to keep the reader glued to the pages... I was thrilled to see one person get what was coming to them and shocked by other betrayals... I did not expect the twist at the end, it was a huge surprise — I just did not see that one coming... The glimpses into David's inner psychological musings and the explorations of his personal demons continue to fascinate me...Mr. Kasper, as always, I could not put the book down once I started reading — and I took the liberty of offering your most sincere apologies to my boss the next morning!AfterThought: I am addicted to David Rivers and I am already looking forward to the next book...

This is the fourth book in Jason Kasper’s series, a series that to this point has been very good. Briefly: it follows the recent life of a guy named David Rivers, an Army veteran who served in combat and then was medically discharged from service just days before graduating from West Point. His life is wrecked and he passes his time by alternately drinking way too much, contemplating suicide, and pursuing adrenaline-elevating dangerous hobbies.He gets recruited as a hired gun by a highly secret, seemingly invincible criminal organization, and goes on various missions to different countries as assigned by the “Handler”, the head of the organization. Although he tries to appear loyal, his underlying drive is to get close to the Handler and kill him as revenge for the Handler ordering the deaths of his teammates, his friends, and his lover. The first three books are very well written and follow David’s triumphs and failures, both in his personal life and his new professional life. He finds himself close to the Handler, but sudden changes in events (that are truly well hidden by the author) prevent him from carrying out his vendetta.In this book, Rivers continues under the thumb of the Organization. The Handler suspects that there is a traitor in his midst and assigns him the apparently suicidal task of confirming the identity of the traitor. He becomes entangled with a beautiful member of the group who appears to be working to remove the Handler, and for most of the book he is on a dangerous mission to recover an item that may lead to the Handler’s demise. At the end, another unforeseen turn of events occurs and David once again is thwarted in his mission.Like the previous three books, this one is exceptionally well written. The author is highly articulate and his descriptions of events, places, and motivations is quite vivid and engaging. The text is gratifyingly correct in grammar and structure, and the pace is perfect: fast enough to keep interest high, but detailed enough to paint a clear picture of what’s happening.However, there are two issues that I identify as sentinels presaging the ruination of the series. First, David does not appear to be encumbered by his destructive habits like he was in the first three books. It is possible that time has healed some of his wounds, but the amount of time between military discharge and the start of this book is quite short, and the author’s lack of focus in this area is unsettling – is David ‘all better now’ or is this a fatal flaw in the author’s continuity of David’s character?Second, a recurring theme seems to be developing. In this book, as in previous episodes, David very clearly intends to kill the Handler, and only at the very end of the story do events prevent him from doing so; instead he aborts his plan and ingratiates himself with his former target. This is odd since the Handler is known for killing his enemies as easily as he kills flies; it seems that David would not get very many second chances. This theme can only occur so many times before the books become predictable and lose their appeal.In any case, book four is still highly entertaining and is quite readable. So far I can easily recommend this series. I only hope that the author does not fall into a rut and depart from the path that made his books so enjoyable.

Another great read by Kasper. Spoiler alert.This one starts in the Mist Palace. Home of the Handler. A man David Rivers has been trying to kill.David missed his chance when the gun he smuggled in was unloaded without his knowledge. He also found Ian, one his few friends, bound in front of The Handler.David has three bullet holes in him from his fight in Rio de Janeiro where he saved The Handlers daughter. The Handler has a proposition for him. He knows he has a traitor in his midst and wants David's help to find him or her. Ian is the prize.The Handler provided medical treatment for David and three weeks later David is brought to a room in the Mist Palace. His left arm is in a sling pinned to his side. His other bullet wounds have been tended to as well. David will be having dinner in this room Ishway, the man who escorted him off the plane three weeks ago is also there. Though he won't be dining. This is where David will attempt to kill The Handler and be headed for execution.Sage will save his life. Unknown to her it was a ruse. The Handler is looking for his betrayer.David will spend months in a cabin in the Canadian wilderness. In those months he dries out his need for alcohol. He also recovers physically. Seems Sage has plans of her own and David will be going to Mynmar which was called Burma to retrieve a package.On arrival David finds that the fee is being returned because only half the package was recovered. The other half is in a building that has been taken over. David will have to hit that building on his own to recover the other half of the package.So begins one damned fine read.This one has David, Sage, the people who will help him get the other half of the package, a fight, a captured David, a David who escapes with some help, the package, a package Sage needs to kill The Handler, a Sage who totally underestimates David Rivers, a Rivers who makes it back to the Mist Palace, and David Rivers doing his best to fulfill the contract, save Ian, survive and stay alive. One with a twisted ending.Five Stars.

Wasn’t sure what to expect after the awesome reviews. I found the books mostly a slow start, taking me time to get into the story. However, the action geared up and I couldn’t stop reading. The cliffhanger endings assured my immediate purchase of the next book in the Series. I will impatiently await the 5th Instalment.

Excellent hard to put down story.Good suspense and plenty of intrigue.Keep the good stories coming. I already have the next one

Love the author

Great thriller

Nothing very special about this book. TOO SHORT.