Greed

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Chris Ryan

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Pages: 400 (Paperback)

ISBN: 0099432226

Pub: Arrow Books Ltd

Pub date: 2004-05-27

Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 115195

Editorial Review:

Pull on those camouflage fatigues, slip that knife into your boot, check your sidearm and get ready for another walk on the wild side with Chris Ryan. Greed is not particularly different from any other Chris Ryan thrillers you may have read, but that is precisely why his devoted army of followers devours each new book. Sharp plotting, flinty characterisation and (most of all) kinetically orchestrated action are par for the course with this author, and Greed delivers them all in spades.
Matt Browning has left the SAS, and life is not treating him well. For a start, he's up to his ears in debt, and if he doesn't pay the £500,000 he owes, he'll be dead. Then, out of the blue, he is given a lifeline: a carefully targeted hit on al-Qa'eda, with the full cooperation of MI5. Matt's job is to bring together a close-knit team of ex-SAS men to lift $10 million in gold and diamonds from the world's most lethal terrorist organisation. Along with MI5's clandestine assistance, there's another bonus--there will be no charges made. Needless to say, this isn't the perfect crime. The money is stolen, then the killing begins. A panther-like assassin is tracking down the team one by one, bloodily slaughtering both them and their families. Matt realises that he has to take the fight to the enemy if he himself isn't to join the dead.

We've read similar stuff before (even from Ryan), but why not another helping? Anyone who begins Greed on a train or a bus is more than likely to miss their stop, such is the unyielding grip that this latest Ryan novel instantly exerts. --Barry Forshaw

Reader Reviews:

A good read, spoilt by errors (0/4 people found this helpful)

I like Chris Ryan's books, and the story in Greed is just the kind of thing you'd expect. His characters and plot are believable, the dialogue realistic, and it is by any definition a good read.
But someone is falling down on the job - either Chris Ryan isn't checking his facts as he goes along, or the editor is slipping. The Secret Intelligence Service is known commonly and incorrectly as 'MI6' and is often referred to as 'Six' in the trade. 'Five' ALWAYS refers to the Security Service, MI5. The author on several occasions refers to SIS as 'Five', which makes no sense, and one of the characters sports a Baretta pistol - the real weapon is a Beretta. Very sloppy, and to some extent that spoils the story.

Greed is brilliant (5/5 people found this helpful)

Excellent.The second book I have ever read because i do not read normally but i could not get enough of "Greed". Once I picked it up i couldn't bring myself to put it down. Its the only book i have ever read by Chris Ryan and after reading it i ordered another. I hope in some way i have influenced you to go out and buy it because it is really worth a read.

What you'd expect really (1/6 people found this helpful)

The book is probably worth a read if you have time to kill and enjoy rough-tough macho SAS type stories. The plot is good and the assassin sent after Matt Browning is quite sinister. There's also a pretty good twist 3/4s of the way through.

My only problem with the book was the ending - the final conclusion is perhaps a bit over the top and I wasn't convinced by it. Still if you're stuck on a plan/train journey then there are worse ways to spend the time.

A Gripping, Fast-Paced Novel That Never Slows Down (7/8 people found this helpful)

I first got this book a number of weeks ago on a friend's recommendation, and I wasn't sure if it was my thing as I had never read any of Chris Ryan's books before, but having completed 'Greed', I am certain I shall be seeking to read more of the genius' work.
The story seems to be very well researched and the fast-paced style of writing which makes it virtually impossible to put the book down resembles that of the author Dan Brown (another genius whose work is always worth reading).
I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good tale with plenty of action, guns and gore. An excellent read!

not a patch on his others (3/7 people found this helpful)

Unlike the other reviews on this page, I have to say that, as a keen follower of Ryans books, I was disappointed. All his other books genuinely are action start to finish but I was half way through this book (if not further) before things started to hot up. The plot I found was lacking, the outcomes predictable, and the closure a let down. furthermore, it seems to be written in such a different style to the rest of his work that it could have been done by someone else. I'm now torn on whether to buy his next book - I probably will, if only to give the bloke a chance but if it's not a marked improvement on this one, Chris will be consigned to my list of has beens. At the very least, I've always kept Ryan's books close to hand because they're the type that I can read again and again - I don't think I'll read Greed again.

my final view? buy it if you must because others seemed to have enjoyed it and maybe I'm in the minority. I think Chris is so much a better writer than this and it seems as if he's exhausted of ideas. Don't get me wrong, it can't be easy coming up with new material book after book but there comes a time.....

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