All right, so I appear to be hunting for a specific character: from Jack Reacher (Lee Child), to Jonathan Quinn (Brett Battles), onto John Rain (Barry Eisler). From ex military, to cleaner, to assassin.

How do we as readers gain empathy for a killer? Simple enough, join John Rain in his voyage from assassin for hire to conscientious killer (kill bad guys) to wanting to get out of the business...but unwilling to leave his perspective of the world (no worries, this transformation takes place across many books, more than enough to satiate the most avid genre reader)

I devoured these books as I did the others above (more to come as I continue hunting). You'll just have to see for yourself.

P.S. If you've read this review, you've read all my John Rain reviews. There are no discrepancies in Eisler's work. Every novel is top notch, provided you share my predilection for this sort of character.

HR

I read this as an ebook 8 years ago & reviewed it here. It was out of order & is on its third title, so no wonder there is some confusion. I hate it when books are renamed. In my other review, I gave it 3 stars & doubted I'd read it again. I am because now I'm listening to the books in order.

It was pretty good this time. It helped having the background of the first 2 books. Rain is a very careful character who is aging a bit & coming to terms with that plus other complications in his life. Kind of a sad guy in many ways since he can't fully trust anyone. Good, twisty adventure he's on, too.

Sei que levei imenso tempo para ler este Livro, mas a Culpa não é do Autor, mas sim da Gravidez que me dá um Sono Desgraçado. Gostei Muito deste Livro, especialmente das partes passadas em Macau um país que muito me fascina e que desejo um dia visitar. Vou procurar por mais Livros deste Autor em especial os com o Personagem John Rain. Recomendo. Leitura leve, mas empolgante.

Well done. My third of the John Rain Series and, so far, all have been equally well-written and enjoyable reading. Thanks again to David for his recommendation.

I've got to like John Rain. He's a stone cold killer - assassinating someone never ruins his day. The broken necks are many, the martial arts skills thoroughly honed. But the true skill demonstrated here is how Eisler is able to develop Rain into a sympathetic character, one who appreciated good Scotch Whiskey, who loves jazz and who is thoughtful and caring in his relationships with women. It probably shouldn't work but it does.

I can't get too excited about the story this time around - I drifted off rather when the rationale for the 'hit' was being discussed. It's all rather confusing and, I think, secondary to the real value of reading these books. The strength is in watching Eisler develop Rain into fully three-dimensial character, filling gaps in our knowledge of him and providing insight into his motivations and his life ambitions. These sections are brilliantly crafted and I found myself wanting to know more and more about this complex man.

The action sequences, too, are very well written. There is a lot of martial arts language (none of which I understood) but the action feels real - brutally so.

I will return to the series because I want - no, I need to - know what happens to John Rain.

Another nail-biting installment in the Rain series I'll skip to the 5th now as already read no. 4.

Another excellent installment of the John Rain series. This time John is tracked down and given a job. He soon finds he has competition and gets the feeling that his own people may be in on this job, and not to help him. Trust issues abound and John must pick and choose who and when to trust. Will his latest job get the best of him? Will he finally be able to walk away? I must say that this protagonist has the best ways to do someone in and he makes killing people an art form. I truly enjoyed this installment of the Rain series and look forward to the next.

Action packed from the beginning until the end. Keeps the reader engaged at all times. Very entertaining.

Rain Storm / Choke Point / Winner Take All is set in a time just after 9/11, with a late 40's main character connected to Vietnam and Afghanistan conflicts. I've enjoyed the series so far, though the reading has been *very* spread out.

The author's expertise in martial arts comes out clearly in the realistic and accurate fight descriptions. Locale descriptions are also lovingly done; the reader gets a real feel for the place. My favorite character in this book was Dox, and I'll be as interested in what happens to him in future books as for the main character, John Rain.

One of the strong points of emphasis in the first book were Rain's three rules. These are mentioned here, but otherwise ignored. While working for the CIA, can Rain stay independent enough? I thought his detour towards the end of the book was problematic, but it may be important for future plots. Hard to remember the previous book, but I didn't like this as much as the first one. 3½ stars, rounded down.

May tackle book 4 a bit sooner :)

"From Macao to Acapulco from Havana to Seville
We'll see monoliths and bridges and the Christ up on the hill"
--Pogues "Drunken Boat"

I'm a completist, so you'll see the other John Rain sequels appearing on my summer reading list. The series is getting better as the side characters start to play a larger role. This is in part due to their appearance in small sections of each book. John Rain is a pro, but he is a lot more interesting when he has to deal with people in other ways than his special talent.

I still appreciate the author's ability to write about cities and neighborhoods to firmly place the story in our world...though I haven't been to these places, so I can't tell you how strong the replication is. I can say that he creates a strong sense of place for me as I read the books.

Still a hundred pages to go, so final thoughts in the next couple days.
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One last thing to add. I think I liked this book a bit more because more exposition happens in the field rather than in debriefs with the handlers. Rain actually has to go figure some things out and work with other people. That makes for a more interesting set of interactions.

It gets 3.9 stars...and I'll round up for the continued improvement in the series.

It was fun, contemporary spy/assassin novel. I think this was the second book with Rain in it & I haven't read the first. It stood alone well & was pretty good. There were a few too many digressions with Rain philosophizing over his life & situation, feeling sorry for himself due to the way he is cut off from having a close relationship with a woman. It got old by the end, but it was the major theme of the book & the overall hook. The paranoia in his life was severe & he did find he could trust one person, much to his surprise. The lead to it was a bit heavy handed, though.

I doubt I'll ever want to read it again, but it was an enjoyable diversion.

Update March2017: Rereading as an audio book (Review Here) as I go through the series in order. This is the third book, not second. Since it is now on its third title, I'm not surprised there is some confusion. I hate it when books are renamed. It's hard enough keeping all of them straight.

A good fast read that takes us from the beaches of Rio to the casino in Macau, with one of the best parts set in the Virginia suburbs of DC, featuring one of the most intriguing characters I've read about-John Rain, Japanese-American assassin.