Barry LancetKirja-arvosteluja

Jim Brodie, a San Francisco dealer in art objects and a man with deep roots in Japan, becomes entangled in the investigation of the murder of an entire family of Japanese in San Francisco. There is some real intricacy and excitement in this story, but there is also an awful lot of over-the-top, clichéd "unstoppable secret society" ninja-type stuff that smacks more of 1980s potboiler action movies than real life. I read a lot of crime novels set in Japan and I approached this one with hope. It was not remotely a distressing experience, but I spent far too much time in the course of reading saying, "So what?" to myself. There are characters who are world-class experts at various activities who happen to be whiling away their time in inconsequential work until they just happen to have answers the protagonist desperately needs, and there are absolutely, indubitably trustworthy characters who turn out to be rats just because someone had to be the rat. It was a nice time-passer of a novel, but nothing more. I won't be returning for others in the series, of which this is the first.

I really wanted to give this book 5 stars but there are two reasons why I didn't.
First the good. This reminded me of old Dirk Pitt books, lots of action and ingenious bad guys. I also like the introduction to Japanese culture and the way the Japanese behave.
The two downsides were:
1. The bad guys behaving like those in James Bond movies where instead of just shooting Mr Bond they talk forever, giving Bond time to escape and or kill them.
2. Any of the chapters with the Brodie's kid in them. I was like enough already. Jenny the lead character's 6 year old was annoying, and the dialog between daddy and daughter was cloying, so much so that if she had played a bigger part, I doubt I would read other books by this author.
That said I will continue with the series, hoping the daughter is not a part of future plots.

Even better than the first book, more action, but it was less superhuman especially for an antiques dealer. The book again obviously takes place in Tokyo but it also goes to America and beyond.
Thankfully the daughter has a much smaller role in this book.

When five members of a rich and powerful Japanese family are gunned down assassination-style at a pedestrian mall in San Francisco's Japantown, Jim Brodie is consulted by SFPD. He is a part time antique dealer and part time PI, owning 50% of a successful firm in Tokyo started by his father. A single, highly complex Kanji character left on a scrap of paper at the scene is identical to one left at his wife Meiko's murder. This leads him back to Tokyo, where his best operative and he join forces, and find themselves battling a powerful, secretive clan: the Soga, who have been assassins for hire for many centuries. Lots of action, but rather predictable, and a strong need for suspending believability.

This is my first book by Lancet. Good thriller. I will be looking for others.

Decent thriller-esque mystery. I recently reread Crichton's [b:Rising Sun|7668|Rising Sun|Michael Crichton|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1165637857s/7668.jpg|2045220], and while it's not a bad mystery it reads preeeeety racist. I first read it in junior high, and I had a vague memory of really liking the story because of the Japanese characters. I think it was probably just new territory for me as a reader, so it left a solid impression. This time around it left me rolling my eyes at the didactic THE JAPANESE ARE COMING tone of the story.

Since then, I've been looking for something with a similar mystery/thriller feel that incorporates Japanese culture without feeling too appropriative, and Lancet's book wasn't a bad choice. It has a whiff of exotification, but it didn't set my back up as badly as Crichton's work. I'm still looking for something intriguing enough to really hook me and maybe teach me a bit about US/Japanese business relations though. I feel like the number of thrilling books about business relations is PRETTY LOW, so this is probably a stupid quest, but whatever.

My does these books getter better and BETTER! I liked the way Brodie took the little boy in his arms to comfort him when he saw his dad lying dead on a art sculpture and he had been told that the boy stayed with his dad all night as he chanted over and over Brodie's name in Japanese. Brodie had been the key to uniting the countries of the Pacific Rim together for a major art showing. Once he learned that not only that the boy's dad was a target but his long time friend and the boy's grandfather was targeted as well! I liked Jim Brodie from the moment he appeared on paper, and I hungrily await his next book!

This was my first read of this author. I don't know how I missed him but I will definitely go back to book 1 in the Jim Brodie series. This international thriller held my interest with its fast pace while providing informative tidbits about the Far East culture as well as insight into the darker side of our own government. Recommend for thriller, espionage fans.

This was good but I had a hard time keeping the chapters from repeating. I felt that i was seeing something I have read in the past before.

TOKYO KILL BY BARRY LANCET is the second book in the series as well as the second book of his I've read. I read the first book and thought wow the author cant top this but in TOKYO KILL he did manage to top it.
Mr. Lancet writes a book that hits the ground running. Fast paced, and twists and turns that keeps you off balance to the very end.
Jim Brodie, mild mannered antique dealer & kick ass owner of a Japanese detective agency gets mixed up with the worst of the worst, the triads who are gang members on steroids when it comes to killing and maiming. His client a WWII Japanese officer who is the triads target.

This Jim Brodie series is a must read for thriller lovers.

I recieved this book free in exchange for a honest and unbiased review.

A good page turner. Lots of interesting places and things in Japan. In fact, for aficionados of Japanese culture, the 'About Authenticity' at the tail end of the book is a rich vein to mine.

We meet Jim Brodie and his friend Detective Frank Renna, when Frank calls Jim in the early morning to help with a crime scene. A man is dead and a young Japanese boy who doesn’t appear to understand English is at the scene and keeps repeating the same phrase over and over like a mantra. Since Jim does work for the police as a Japanese interpreter he gets this one. Not to mention, it turns out there is a more personal connection to the dead man and his son. They are the son and grandson of Jim’s great friend from Japan.

The dead man appears to have slipped in some oil and died when he hit his head on a sculpture. Once Jim calms the boy, they discover he was murdered and left that way to throw off the police. The autopsy confirmed what the boy had said.

Shortly after Jim’s friend comes over to collect his son’s body, both he and Jim are shot at as they leave the Mayor’s office, only Jim’s reactions save them both from dying on the steps. After the latest attack, Jim worries about the rest of the family and calls to warn them.

Besides being an art dealer and a Japanese interpreter, his father left him Brodie Investigations, so he has some resources and abilities to look into the matter. It turns out that there were quite a few possible avenues for people wanting revenge. Though one of the most promising was the daughters crusade, fighting the corrupt energy mafia in Japan. Jim gets a tip that the legendary Steam Walker is rumored to have been hired to kill the family, and since Jim had thwarted 2 attempts, he was also added to the list.

This is the 3rd Jim Brodie book though the first one that I have read. I thought this book had an interesting view into Japanese culture and really enjoyed reading it. I have put the earlier 2 books onto my wish list. The mystery was good, the story was very engaging and kept my attention. I was fairly surprised at who dun it. Good mystery worth the read.

An exciting thriller - plan to read others in the series.½

Even better than the first book, more action, but it was less superhuman especially for an antiques dealer. The book again obviously takes place in Tokyo but it also goes to America and beyond.
Thankfully the daughter has a much smaller role in this book.½

I really wanted to give this book 5 stars but there are two reasons why I didn't.
First the good. This reminded me of old Dirk Pitt books, lots of action and ingenious bad guys. I also like the introduction to Japanese culture and the way the Japanese behave.
The two downsides were:
1. The bad guys behaving like those in James Bond movies where instead of just shooting Mr Bond they talk forever, giving Bond time to escape and or kill them.
2. Any of the chapters with the Brodie's kid in them. I was like enough already. Jenny the lead character's 6 year old was annoying, and the dialog between daddy and daughter was cloying, so much so that if she had played a bigger part, I doubt I would read other books by this author.
That said I will continue with the series, hoping the daughter is not a part of future plots.

Note: Even though this is Book 3 in the series, it works fine as a stand along novel.

Jim Brodie’s passion is art and he loves his life as an art dealer. However, he inherited another life from his father, one that is inextricably tangled in his deceased father’s security firm. The son of his good friend Ken Nobuki is dead and a week later an attempt is made on Ken himself. Local San Francisco politicians put pressure on Jim and the local police department to solve the two cases quickly. But this mystery will take Jim across the nation to DC and then on to Japan and back. All his skills will be needed to catch the killer.

Jim Brodie is a fascinating character. At first he comes off as a kind of bookish man with his love of art and as a widower taking care of his young daughter. Then we learn that he’s fluent in Japanese when the local PD ask him to act as interpreter. His surprisingly quick reflexes from years of martial arts training are put into use when an attempt is made on Ken Nobuki’s life. Then he calls in members of his security firm to guard Ken in the hospital while he travels to DC and then Japan to secure the Nobuki family and hopefully track down the killer. It’s a very interesting skill set and all sorts of seedy characters are pulled into the story via both the art world and the security work.

The plot was awesome. Naomi Nobuki, Ken’s daughter, is a journalist and anti-nuclear power activist. Of course, Jim is immediately worried that her activist activities may be the reason behind the targets on the Nobuki family. Jim races to Japan to wrap the Nobuki family up tight in security and there he hears his first tale of the legendary Steam Walker. I won’t spoil it for you because it is pretty freaking awesome. Just know that Jim and his friends have met a worthy opponent.

There’s a touch of romance in the story. On a previous trip to Japan, Jim met Rie Hoshino, a Tokyo cop. So far, their personal relationship has been kept under wraps. They have some lovely moments together that may one day lead to something more. She’s a martial artist herself and handles herself in conversations but, alas, the author never shows us her other skills. In fact, she has to be medically assisted once and rescued at one point. I hope the author chooses to do more with her character instead of giving her these cliched moments during the action scenes.

I was kept guessing throughout the tale. There’s plenty of Japanese culture wound throughout the story and it is done well. I never felt that the author had fallen into teacher mode and was giving a lecture. Even once our main characters have a solid idea of who their killer is, there is quite the chase to catch him. And this killer has yet more surprises for our heroes. I really appreciated the final note from the author noting what elements of the story were fictional and which are real. It speaks volumes to the research done by the author.



I received a copy at no cost from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

The Narration: I think this is one of Scott Brick’s better works. I have listened to many of his SFF narrations but it has been a while since I picked up a book narrated by him. His female voices were quite believable and each distinct. He did a great job with all the Japanese sprinkled throughout the story.

Pacific Burn (Book 3)
By: Barry Lancet
Published By: Simon & Schuster
Copy Courtesy of Goodreads Giveaway
Reviewed By: tk

An international thriller delivered by the unique and exceptional talent of Barry Lancet.

PI Jim Brodie is about to embark on another incredible adventure. From San Francisco, Tokyo and beyond, Jim has no idea how to quit. He must save his friend and their family from be killed where the stand. Sounds fairly easy right? Find the person or persons responsible and that should take care of the problem. Brodie is now involved with CIA, FBI, and any other agency that wants a part of the action. Continuous action and unnerving possibilities, and did I mention a killer as legendary and lethal as no other human on earth, Jim Brodie will be challenged at every turn.

Some say the writers write what they know. I would have to say Barry Lancet has the true edge here. His phenomenal life experiences, along with an incredible mind for imagination is epic in his novels. Japantown, and Tokyo Burn are excellent and Pacific Burn is over the top. I truly can’t hardly wait for the next adventure. I am envious of his amazing talent and hope that you will enjoy them as much as I have. It is not required that you read them in order, however you won’t be disappointed to read them all.

5/5

Lancet did a very good job writing this book. The characters were well drawn out and the plot just thickened and thickened. Enjoyed reading it very much because it was a "full bodied" mystery, not just a quick read. Obviously this is a book in which the main character has been written about in other books.

J. Robert Ewbank author "John Wesley, Natural Man, and the Isms" "Wesley's Wars" "To Whom It May Concern" and "Tell Me About the United Methodist Church"

Suspense with quite a bit of blood and gore. Shadow power, conspiracy theories, ninja-like assassins! The writing is quick paced, but this is a bit shallow and a few too many plot twists and coincidences.

Tokyo Kill (A Crime Fiction Thriller)
By: Barry Lancet
Simon & Shuster Pages. 330 September 2014
Copy Courtesy of The Reading Room
Reviewed by: tk

An imaginative non-stop thrilling action adventure. The pages will turn so fast that the book is finished, and leaves you wanting more…

Jim Brodie is owner of Brodie Security Detective Agency, deals with antiquities and collectables, a single father raising a young daughter, but also seems to collect his own series of unfortunate events along the way to solving an international hidden treasure hunt.

The unrelenting talent, research and personal experience this author brings to the reader is astounding. The descriptive narration is so complete that you can see it in your mind eye as the events take place. The many talents of Jim Brodie are endless, yet believable. Along with his supporting cast of colorful characters, they will take you on an incredible journey.

Barry Lancet offers you a unique look at his personal travels, his knowledge of the Japanese culture, collectibles, and historical references are what really places this story in a class of its own. Sit back and enjoy! 5/5

While Japantown takes place primarily in the US, Tokyo Kill is predominately set in Japan, with a thoughtful look into its past. Having the mystery set among something that the Japanese don’t like to talk about lends a familiarity about the subject to foreign readers. Top it off with plenty of action, characters that aren’t infallible and an exciting finale, Lancet will leave you wanting more.

Free review copy.

I was fortunate to win this book through Goodreads First Reads giveaways. This is an ARC version.

I liked Japantown. It was a quick thriller with copious amounts of action and the evilest bad guys.

Barry Lancet's bonus to the story line was the international setting of Japan. Some reviewers felt the Japanese scenes were not always necessary and sometimes too long. I appreciated the historical aspects that Mr. Lancet shared in the story. To this reader, these informational pieces remade the typical suspense/thriller genre. Without the history, the story line would have no real basis.

I do think since the novel was written in a 7 day format, parts of the story were rushed and left under developed. Some characters also were victims of this haste and turned out flat. The ninjas were super-cool (although extremely evil and cold-hearted).

What I don't like about suspense/thrillers is the cliche of the evil guy spilling his guts before 'killing' the protagonist. It seems to be an inevitable part of the genre.

Overall a decent read.

Found as 2015 Shamus Award Finalist. BOOK is not in Merlin. Second in series. Sample available.Read sample chapters and didn't like them enough to continue.

Found as 2015 Shamus Award Finalist. First in series. BOOK is in Merlin.