Beijing Red

He reminded himself not to break the cardinal rule of modern espionage: Thou shall not be separated from one’s tech.

Alex Ryan
Beijing Red

Format:
Audiobook

At the time of this review – the audiobook is available to borrow through Audible Plus.

Publisher’s Synopsis:
Ex-Navy SEAL Nick Foley travels to China to find purpose and escape the demons of his past, but instead stumbles into a conspiracy his Special Forces training never prepared him for. When a mysterious and deadly outbreak ravages a remote area of western China, Nick finds himself the lead suspect in a bio-terrorism investigation being conducted by China’s elite Snow Leopard counter-terrorism unit.

To clear his name and avoid prosecution, he must team up with beautiful Chinese CDC microbiologist Dr. Dazhong “Dash” Chen to find who is really behind the attack. As their investigation proceeds, their budding friendship is tested by nationalistic loyalties and suspicion. 

In a race against time, Nick and Dash must risk everything to stop a mad man before he unleashes the world’s next super-weapon in Beijing. 

Rellim’s Thoughts:
Sons of Valor isn’t out until June 8th and I’m pretty sure listening to the Tier One series for the 5th time in as many years is a bit much… so I decided to dig into Andrews & Wilson’s backlist. I found Beijing Red written under their (not at all a secret) pseudonym, Alex Ryan. Bonus – it’s currently included in the Audible Plus plan. Yay!

I will admit I did give this a bit of the side eye because I wasn’t sure how I felt about a plot involving a bio-terrorism threat originating in China. While this 2016 book may seem creepily foretelling of 2020 – the similarities were superficial and I was able to truly enjoy this fast pace and engaging book.

Nick, a retired SEAL working for an NGO finds himself in the middle of a race to discover the origin of a mysterious illness and thwart the people responsible. He teams up with Dr. Dazhong “Dash” Chen in what turns out to also be part political thriller. As with other books from this writing duo, female characters turn out to be intelligent, capable, and valued members of the investigation. Dash, in particular, is an equally important and respected addition to the group fighting for answers.

I loved the action scenes and that while I managed to guess a few times where things were going – it wasn’t predictable. I’m looking forward to jumping into book 2, Hong Kong Black. (also in Audible Plus)

Narration:
MacLeod Andrews narration style compliments the story and writing well. He gives all the characters distinct voices and consistent accents. I was totally immersed in the story and finished it in two days.

About the authors:
ALEX RYAN is a pseudonym for the best-selling coauthor team of Brian Andrews and Jeffrey Wilson.

Brian Andrews is a US Navy veteran, Park Leadership Fellow, and former submarine officer with a psychology degree from Vanderbilt and a masters in business from Cornell University. He is the author of three critically acclaimed high-tech thrillers: Reset, The Infiltration Game, and The Calypso Directive.

Jeffrey Wilson has worked as an actor, firefighter, paramedic, jet pilot, and diving instructor, as well as a vascular and trauma surgeon. He served in the US Navy for fourteen years and made multiple deployments as a combat surgeon with an East Coast–based SEAL Team. The author of three award-winning supernatural thrillers, The Traiteur’s Ring, The Donors, and Fade to Black, and the acclaimed faith-based thriller War Torn. He and his wife, Wendy, live in Southwest Florida with their four children.

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About the narrator:
MacLeod Andrews is an Actor. Narrator of many books. Wyatt in They Look Like People. Currently the TV Whole Foods VO. Producer of a couple films. Chocolate chip cookie aficionado.

You can connect with MacLeod Andrews here:

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My Favorite Quotes

“The suit and mask are not for our protection”, he said gravely, “It’s for theirs.” – Beijing Red by #AlexRyan @LexicalForge @JWilsonWarTorn @bAndrewsJWilson #Audiobook narrated by @MacLeodAndrews @BlackstoneAudio #AudiblePlus #NickFoley #TerrorismThriller #Thriller

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The last thing he needed was to be a political headline on CNN. – Beijing Red by #AlexRyan @LexicalForge @JWilsonWarTorn @bAndrewsJWilson #Audiobook narrated by @MacLeodAndrews @BlackstoneAudio #AudiblePlus #NickFoley #TerrorismThriller #Thriller

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What’s scarier than Ebola to an epidemiologist? – Beijing Red by #AlexRyan @LexicalForge @JWilsonWarTorn @bAndrewsJWilson #Audiobook narrated by @MacLeodAndrews @BlackstoneAudio #AudiblePlus #NickFoley #TerrorismThriller #Thriller

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He reminded himself not to break the cardinal rule of modern espionage: Thou shall not be separated from one’s tech. – Beijing Red by #AlexRyan @LexicalForge @JWilsonWarTorn @bAndrewsJWilson #Audiobook narrated by @MacLeodAndrews @BlackstoneAudio #AudiblePlus #NickFoley #TerrorismThriller #Thriller

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She was like a blade after finishing, first quenched to be hard and now tempered for toughness. – Beijing Red by #AlexRyan @LexicalForge @JWilsonWarTorn @bAndrewsJWilson #Audiobook narrated by @MacLeodAndrews @BlackstoneAudio #AudiblePlus #NickFoley #TerrorismThriller #Thriller

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There was no such thing as being a part-time spy. – Beijing Red by #AlexRyan @LexicalForge @JWilsonWarTorn @bAndrewsJWilson #Audiobook narrated by @MacLeodAndrews @BlackstoneAudio #AudiblePlus #NickFoley #TerrorismThriller #Thriller

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