The Watchman

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Chris Ryan

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Pages: 432 (Paperback)

ISBN: 009940608X

Pub: Arrow Books Ltd

Pub date: 2007-10-04

Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 2992

Editorial Review:

Readers of Chris Ryan thrillers know exactly what to expect: gritty, pared-down prose with regular doses of bone-crunching action and a hero not usually given to introspection. His books do not inhabit the same atmospheric world as such thriller writers of the past as Graham Greene and Eric Ambler, and he lacks the political sophistication of such current writers as Gerald Seymour. But Ryan knows exactly what his readers want and can always be counted upon to deliver a tough and fast-moving package. And that's very much the case in this latest thriller.

The theme in The Watchman is a duel to the death between an SAS soldier and the man who trained him. Ryan's protagonist, the resourceful Alex Temple, has been recently commissioned from the ranks, and returns from a hostage rescue mission in Sierra Leone to find that someone has been gruesomely murdering MI5 officers, Hannibal Lecter-style (a skinning knife is involved). The security services believe that the killer is an insider, SAS-trained, and Alex is ordered to track him down. As he gets closer and closer to the eponymous Watchman, the body count rises inevitably. This one will glean no literary prizes, but the legion of Ryan fans will devour this as eagerly as they did The Hit List and Zero Option. The villain, too, is a memorably nasty creation. --Barry Forshaw

Reader Reviews:

A Cracking Read!! (0/0 people found this helpful)

If you want an escapist triller to take your mind off the humdrum day to day problems of life - this is it. You find yourself wondering just how much that Ryan writes about has really happened. How much is Autobiographical? Clearly most of his heroes have similar problems to him ie marital issues, psychological problems although unlike his unfortunate character Geordie Sharp, I believe Ryan got things back together again. A lot of the real events described in "The One That Got Away" have found their way into his other stories BUT this book is more of a departure from this pattern. The shady world of MI5 and MI6 combine with SAS skills and infiltration of the IRA in this adventure but does this reflect any real life events? I wonder?

watchman/hardman (0/0 people found this helpful)

First couple of books I have read by Chris Ryan, loved them. I've always been a fan of "one man against the system/authority" stories and these books were read in a week, pretty quick for me. Recommended. (the other title was "Stand by, Stand by", great ending!)

A brilliant book (0/0 people found this helpful)

This was the first chris ryan book that i have read but i have to say that its brilliant. The attention to detail is amazing and Chris Ryan's history in the SAS gives the story an authentic feel. The story line gets you hooked straight away and if your like me and you love action then you'll love this as the story has plenty of it. The whole thing has so many twists and turns but you never lose track of what is going on.
All in all I would highly recommend this to any reader who loves books that involve lots of atcion and are connected with the army.

Simply the best (0/0 people found this helpful)

Far and away Chris Ryan's best book - and those who, like me, are old enough to have lived through "The Troubles" will not find the plot as implausible as some of our younger co-contributors here.

Recommended.

Outstanding (0/0 people found this helpful)

Mr Ryan gets better and better. This is without a shadow of a doubt the best he has written. An outstanding novel that gripped my attention from start to finish. He gives his reader a deal to ponder, but then Chris has been there, done it and got the T-shirt.
It will be hard to improve on this one.
Well done, Chris Ryan.

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