bibliobabe94's review
4.0
Quinn's second appearance. At the start of his latest job, he finds the body of a friend, and finds that the guy's girlfriend is missing too. Lots of twists and double crosses with a great surprise ending.
ambercristofaro's review
3.0
Good thriller. Not quite as exciting as the first one but still a solid read.
blood_rose_books's review against another edition
4.0
This is the second novel in Brett Battles' Jonathan Quinn series and while I think it could be read as a stand alone novel, the first book, The Cleaner, really does introduce all the characters and how they are connected in the second book (plus you get some background history on Quinn) but not too much is directly related back to the first. Still the first is a great read and I recommend it.
Brett Battles is back with his second novel in his Johnathan Quinn series, where an old friend leaves him a note that he never wanted to receive
Anonymity. Trust. Professionalism. In his world, Jonathan Quinn has a few rules. Quinn is a cleaner, he will get rid of bodies that need to disappear and nothing will be traced back to him, but his latest is job will test all of his rules. Quinn finds himself in a shipping yard where he is staring at the body of one of the few people he trusts and calls a friend, a former CIA agent. One thing that is also known about Quinn is he holds his friends in high regard and he will do anything to find out who killed him. Quinn is out of his element as he is not a tracker but a cleaner and this mission is based on revenge. Quinn, Nate and Orlando race across the world to follow the trail that has been left for them, but they do not know who they can trust or not. But one thing is for sure they are not going to come back whole.
The Deceived starts out with a bang that will grab your attention and make you not want to put the book down as you feel the need to follow the trial with Quinn and see where it is going to lead you. You never really know 100% what is going on and you are piecing together the puzzle together with Quinn which is what I really enjoy about this series. One thing that you will discovered in Battles' books is that just when you think you have it all figured out, Battles knows how to throw in a curve ball (or two or three or twelve) that has you looking in a totally new direction but still makes sense and flows with the story and it does not come out of left field. This keeps me continually guessing, which i think all thriller/mystery novels should. I am not a fan of series where you know too much information or information that your main character does not know and you always feel like you are waiting for them to catch up to you. I have not had this problem with either of Battles' novel. They are full of action, mystery, intrigue and thrills right from the very beginning and Battles has created a cast of characters that you care about.
I like how in the first two novels Battles has taken time to show bits of Quinn's past and his work as an apprentice cleaner as well as when he started out on his own. I feel like this allows the reader to know Quinn better before he became a full fledged cleaner and you can see some of this earlier cleaner in Nate. I personally find Quinn's past very intriguing and there are always small clues dropped about who he is but never really anything concrete I look forward to the novel where someone is after Quinn and things in his past just to learn more about him. I am also like how Quinn and Orlando's relationship is developing, and how they will be there for each other no matter what, but they both realize that the job and Garrett are the most important aspects in their lives and they don't want to do anything to jeopardize that.
Once again there is a sense of realism within Battles' novel that can be downright frightening. I do not want to give too much away, but you will know what I am talking about when you read this novel. It is entirely plausible and not unrealistic for it to happen as I am sure that it has happened throughout history so why not now as well.
I'm so happy that I picked up the Cleaner last year. I had never heard of Brett Battles or his novels but I know if I pick one of his books up its going to be an awesome ride. I look forward to reading the next book in the Jonathan Quinn series and i'm going to have to try his other series as well.
Enjoy!!!!
Brett Battles is back with his second novel in his Johnathan Quinn series, where an old friend leaves him a note that he never wanted to receive
Anonymity. Trust. Professionalism. In his world, Jonathan Quinn has a few rules. Quinn is a cleaner, he will get rid of bodies that need to disappear and nothing will be traced back to him, but his latest is job will test all of his rules. Quinn finds himself in a shipping yard where he is staring at the body of one of the few people he trusts and calls a friend, a former CIA agent. One thing that is also known about Quinn is he holds his friends in high regard and he will do anything to find out who killed him. Quinn is out of his element as he is not a tracker but a cleaner and this mission is based on revenge. Quinn, Nate and Orlando race across the world to follow the trail that has been left for them, but they do not know who they can trust or not. But one thing is for sure they are not going to come back whole.
The Deceived starts out with a bang that will grab your attention and make you not want to put the book down as you feel the need to follow the trial with Quinn and see where it is going to lead you. You never really know 100% what is going on and you are piecing together the puzzle together with Quinn which is what I really enjoy about this series. One thing that you will discovered in Battles' books is that just when you think you have it all figured out, Battles knows how to throw in a curve ball (or two or three or twelve) that has you looking in a totally new direction but still makes sense and flows with the story and it does not come out of left field. This keeps me continually guessing, which i think all thriller/mystery novels should. I am not a fan of series where you know too much information or information that your main character does not know and you always feel like you are waiting for them to catch up to you. I have not had this problem with either of Battles' novel. They are full of action, mystery, intrigue and thrills right from the very beginning and Battles has created a cast of characters that you care about.
I like how in the first two novels Battles has taken time to show bits of Quinn's past and his work as an apprentice cleaner as well as when he started out on his own. I feel like this allows the reader to know Quinn better before he became a full fledged cleaner and you can see some of this earlier cleaner in Nate. I personally find Quinn's past very intriguing and there are always small clues dropped about who he is but never really anything concrete I look forward to the novel where someone is after Quinn and things in his past just to learn more about him. I am also like how Quinn and Orlando's relationship is developing, and how they will be there for each other no matter what, but they both realize that the job and Garrett are the most important aspects in their lives and they don't want to do anything to jeopardize that.
Once again there is a sense of realism within Battles' novel that can be downright frightening. I do not want to give too much away, but you will know what I am talking about when you read this novel. It is entirely plausible and not unrealistic for it to happen as I am sure that it has happened throughout history so why not now as well.
I'm so happy that I picked up the Cleaner last year. I had never heard of Brett Battles or his novels but I know if I pick one of his books up its going to be an awesome ride. I look forward to reading the next book in the Jonathan Quinn series and i'm going to have to try his other series as well.
Enjoy!!!!
jmcguoirk's review
3.0
Nice twist at the end. If you're into goofy movies... the end reminded me of the scene in The Big Hit (1998), with the trace buster to bust the trace... but to counteract act that, you need a trace buster buster. Thanks BB.
ericwelch's review against another edition
4.0
I read and enjoyed the first Quinn novel. Quinn is a cleaner, a person hired to remove bodies and clean up after assorted mishaps. In this 2nd in the series, Quinn has been hired to get rid of a body in a shipping container. He discovers that it’s an old friend Steven Markoff, a CIA operative who once saved his life. On the wall of the container, Markoff had scratched a series of numbers and two letters: LP.
As a way of honoring his old friend, Quinn decides to contact Jenny, Markoff’s girlfriend, only to discover she has disappeared and is on the run. She is being sought by numerous people who always seem to be just behind Quinn and when he tries to discover the meaning of LP, people shut down and tell him to immediately drop his investigation. The conspiracy grows and they soon find themselves battling numerous foes in Singapore where Markoff’s clues have led them.
In the end, Battles has taken his series off in a slightly different direction, a little more like a Tom Cruise movie rather than the cool undercover professional in The Cleaner. It works and is still a very fast and enjoyable spy novel, just a little different than the first book.
As a way of honoring his old friend, Quinn decides to contact Jenny, Markoff’s girlfriend, only to discover she has disappeared and is on the run. She is being sought by numerous people who always seem to be just behind Quinn and when he tries to discover the meaning of LP, people shut down and tell him to immediately drop his investigation. The conspiracy grows and they soon find themselves battling numerous foes in Singapore where Markoff’s clues have led them.
In the end, Battles has taken his series off in a slightly different direction, a little more like a Tom Cruise movie rather than the cool undercover professional in The Cleaner. It works and is still a very fast and enjoyable spy novel, just a little different than the first book.
lc8558's review
3.0
It's the 2nd in a series about Jonathan Quinn. Quinn is a cleaner and been hired to dispose of a shipping container. The container includes the body of a man that Quinn calls friend, Steven Markoff. Turns out Markoff's girlfriend Jenny is missing. Quinn and friends begin a journey to find Jenny and make sure she is safe. A fast paced thriller. I really like the way Brett Battles lets you know only so much about what is really going on. He keeps me guessing.
skinnypenguin's review
3.0
Quinn is asked to perform a job as a "cleaner" and realizes when he goes to dispose of the body that he knows the guy and he was a friend. He starts looking into how his friend died and finds the girlfriend is missing. He starts looking for her and it leads him across the country and to the orient. She worked for a congressman and it appears that she is hiding from people trying to kill her.
Quinn involves his apprentice, Nate, and his colleague, Orlando. He calls in a few other favors from different people in their search. Lots of technical information about bugging devices and computer searches. Quinn works hard in an effort to pay back an old debt to his friend.
Quinn involves his apprentice, Nate, and his colleague, Orlando. He calls in a few other favors from different people in their search. Lots of technical information about bugging devices and computer searches. Quinn works hard in an effort to pay back an old debt to his friend.
vkemp's review
4.0
Jonathan Quinn is a cleaner. He takes care of crime scenes for his employers, whoever that might be. He was trained by another cleaner and now he has his own apprentice, Nate. He also has Orlando as an ally, who was trained by a different cleaner; she specializes in computer issues. Quinn is hired to clean the scene of a shipping container containing a very dead body, except the body is one of Quinn's few friends in the world, Steven Markoff. And, his girlfriend, Jennifer, has gone missing. Quinn knows he should never make it personal, but this case hits him hard. He follows the leads to find Jennifer and runs into Tracy, who claims to be Jennifer's best friend, but Quinn has questions. Nate, Quinn and Orlando end up in Singapore, where the crate began its journey. What he uncovers there will change his life completely. The last half of this book is nonstop action, which is Battles' signature for this series. Somehow I missed reading it when the book first came out. If you like action anti-heroes, Quinn is your man!
leok's review
2.0
This book just fell flat with me, specially after considering the first in the series. The first introduces the reader into Jonathan Quinn character, a well seasoned cleaner with a calm and calculating demeanor. Either Battles forgot who his character was or he decided that Quinn needed to be spiced up. Unfortunately, his attempts into adding some kind of depth into Quinn just fell flat in this novel. What looked like an attempt to add some kind of an emotional range to Quinn's personal just felt force. What looked like miscalculations on Quinn's part came across more of irrational decisions taken in haste. And what felt like an attempt to make Quinn feel more human by having him slip on various puddles, just came across as being slapstick. At some point during the book's final confrontation, I was waiting for Quinn to chase his foe around the shipping container yard to the tune Yakety Sax.
Like I said, this book simply fell flat with me. Not by far the worse book I've read, but it's definitely not the caliber of works I know Battles will eventually grown into. I know this is one of his earlier published works, which is why I'm not giving up on the series. I glad I was introduced to battles through his Eden Series, otherwise, this book might have question my decision to continue with the series. Then again, seeing that the series in currently 10 books long, and the overall good reviews others have left behind on this site, I might have stuck it out.
Like I said, this book simply fell flat with me. Not by far the worse book I've read, but it's definitely not the caliber of works I know Battles will eventually grown into. I know this is one of his earlier published works, which is why I'm not giving up on the series. I glad I was introduced to battles through his Eden Series, otherwise, this book might have question my decision to continue with the series. Then again, seeing that the series in currently 10 books long, and the overall good reviews others have left behind on this site, I might have stuck it out.