Consent to Kill: A Thriller (Mitch Rapp Novels)

Arab terrorists, international assassins, and politically appointed nitwits, Vince Flynn's newest thriller delivers everything you have come to expect from the Mitch Rapp series. There is lots of action, impressive no nonsense black ops professionals, and edge of your seat suspense-filled plotting. As you might expect, Consent to Kill begins with Rapp doing what he does best, tracking down and killing a dangerous Islamic cleric with direct ties to suicide bombers. This little sidebar to the main story is meant to demonstrate Rapp's technical skill and sense of justice. In that respect it forcefully succeeds. Unfortunately Rapp has now reached that stage in his career where his reputation is legendary and his enemies are both numerous and extremely powerful and resourceful.

Until now Mitch has never had to face an opponent of equal talent, but that's what happens when a fundamentalist Arab billionaire places a twenty million dollar bounty on Rapp. Predictably he lives to fight again but only after losing everything that is precious to him. Now everyone who was involved in this attempted assassination is on the run as Rapp tries to piece together exactly who to blame. Rapp is the proverbial loose cannon that not only has the terrorists ducking for cover, but also has the chicken-hawk politicians trying to put him on ice as well.

Vince Flynn has another exciting eye-for-an-eye thriller that is sure to be enjoyed his many fans. My complaints are few, but I will list them here; the book could have been maybe 50 pages shorter without as much needless explanation; there are some loose ends that should have been tied up since most readers will be left wondering; and some of those 50 pages that could have been cut should have been devoted to better character development. But these are minor criticisms and on the whole the book is thoroughly enjoyable and matches Flynn's earlier fiction.

If you enjoy this book, then you might also enjoy the similarly themed/styled books of Daniel Silva and Brad Thor.

If you have never had the privilege of reading one of Vince Flynn's novels, you are truly missing out. From Term Limits to Consent To Kill, Flynn has finally proven to the world that he is a force to be reckon with in the political/espionage genre.

From the streets of Washington D.C. to Afghanistan, Mitch Rapp, America's top counterterrorism operative (assassin) is on the hunt to find out who took a contract out on his life. He will stop at nothing to rid this world of pure evil and with the help of an elite team, he takes the fight to his enemies and shows what true 'dimplomacy' is all about ;).

If you enjoy a good read, this is it! Not only does Flynn weave an entertaining story, but it will also wake you up to the realities of Islamic extremism and gives you a unique insight into the minds of these terrorists.

Flynn is at that top of his game and has now set the standard for what a political/espionage thriller is all about.

It's been over a year since Flynn's previous book, but it was worth the wait as this is certainly one of the author's best books. Unlike the previous ones, the story here is more character driven with less of a focus on action. Mitch Rapp is at his most human and realistic in the series, as are the other characters. A powerful Saudi hires two assassins to kill Mitch Rapp following the death of his son during the events in the previous book. The assassination attempt fails, but at great personal cost to Rapp, and Mitch hunts down everyone involved in the conspiracy, including a Saudi prince, former Stasi officer, and French assassins, and wages his own, private and very ruthless war against terrorism for the first time. There's lots of good stuff here, and the last quarter of the book especially is easily some of Flynn's best writing.

I've only read 2 Vince Flynn books, but they've been enough to pique my curiousity and now I will go back and read the earlier Mitch Rapp novels to catch up on this assassin's history. I like Flynn's writing for the sometimes atypical bents he puts into the characters. Mitch Rapp is an assassin, straight-up, and almost never conflicted about his job. He is NOT a Jack Ryan (as some have likened) and we rarely get any moral pause in the action in these books. If you're squeamish, be forewarned that Flynn does detail the kills. I was shocked a time or two in the first book - Flynn took me a little past my comfort zone - but now know what to expect. I would liken it to a roller coaster you've never ridden before. A twist or turn will be too much - but then you get to the end and yell, "Wow - that was great! Let's go again!" The last few chapters of Consent to Kill are fantastic. Flynn does not take Rapp where I thought Rapp would surely go. Supporting characters are also terrific and you're left hoping to have them reappear in future Rapp stories or even to get stories of their own. Love Rapp's loyal friends. Wouldn't surprise me if Flynn has one or two turn out to be not so loyal in future books, but hey, let's just enjoy the "good guys" while we can. They kick butt (and never kiss any either!). I highly recommend this read!

I've always liked Flynn and have read all of his books. I bought and read Consent to Kill this weekend and was, as I always am with the very best storytellers (of which there are far too few!)really upset to have finished it. This was masterful story-telling at its very best. I read anywhere from 4-9 books a week. Many of the murder-mayhem-mystery and Flynn spy-and-terrorism genre go too fast, with inattention (or a simple sad shortage of talent and skill!) to the pace and the flow of the story; to one-dimensional characters; and to frustrating short endings (like a short landing in an airplane!). In this book I could FEEL the smooth, rich, balanced pace and flow of the story with every word on every page. I could feel the strength it took to exercise the patience and devotion to develop the characters and narrate what they did. The characters were all three dimensional with great depth (not just the most important characters) woven in vivid, gripping colors and I felt as though I knew them well, and cared for them, or not, realistically and passionately. Flynn kept a lot of balls spinning in the air simultaneously and so smoothly that I never felt lost or let go of, or annoyed. (Believe me, there are a lot of stories I have read where I feel all three of those things!) I can picture family members sticking their heads in the door of Mr. Flynn's writing room, and calling softly, "Vince?" or "Daddy?" and I can see him, after a long wait, slowly lifting his head and looking around, like a bear coming out of hibernation... puzzled to find himself in that room with that person in that world. I loved this book and can't wait for the next one in October. (Although I warn you, this one is going to be very hard to top.)