Tuesday 12 July 2022

Die Twice - Andrew Grant - David Trevellyan Book 2

Die Twice
David Trevellyan Book 2
aka Andrew Child
Minotaur Books
ISBN 9780330535229
eISBN 9781429926669


This is the eighth volume I have read by Andrew Grant, I have read the two he wrote with his brother Lee Child, published under the name Andrew Child. And prior to this I have read one in each of his series, and his single standalone novel. I believe he has 9 books published under the name Andrew Grant, and two contributions to anthologies. He has also contributed to one anthology as Andrew Child. I am currently reading his series sequentially. I have read the first in each series, and this is the first series that I have read book two from. There was previously a Kindle edition but I can no longer find in from either the US or UK imprints. 

I stated previously that “if I had not known that Andrew Grant was Andrew Child and had read this story, I would have stated that it reminded me a lot of the Reacher novels. Except this time David Trevellyan if still active duty for the Royal Navy and home office. But his style, panache, and focus are similar to Reacher’s.” The story begins almost immediately after Even. At the beginning David expects he is on his way home to England. But he is stopped and redirected to Chicago. He reminds a superior that they never work on the same continent back to back. But he is overridden. He ends up being tasked with tracking down a fellow rogue agent, and some missing chemical weapons. But all is not as it appears. And our own suspicions are likely to trigger shortly before David’s about what might really be happening. Part of the description of this book states:

“Obliged to leave New York City in the aftermath of his previous mission, David Trevellyan is summoned to the British Consulate in Chicago. To the same office where, just a week before, his new handler was attacked and shot by a Royal Navy Intelligence operative gone bad. Assigned the job of finding the rogue agent and putting an end to his treacherous scheme, Trevellyan soon finds that once again, his only hopes of saving countless innocent lives lie not within the system, but in his own instincts and skills. Trust is an illusion—trust the wrong person, and it could get you killed.”

This story has a lot of action, some significant risk, And something that is just off. David must navigate a new city, coordinate with a new liaison office, a former field agent, and prevent some very dangerous chemicals from being used on foreign or locally on American soil. 

Many readers would make comparisons to Reacher, If I was push to, I would say it is a more polite and subtle version of Reacher. More akin to Reacher’s nephew in Diane Capri’s Hunt for Reacher novels. David Trevellyan does not lack strength, skills or smarts. In fact he might be off the chart for skills and smarts. He also is a little short on empathy, but that is what makes him so good at what he does. He has a job and he will do it to the best of his ability, or die trying.

This story was a good read. I have now picked up all of Grant’s works, and plan on about 1 a week until I have finished them. If you want a good crime thriller with great action this is a book for you. I am certain fans of Reacher, Bourne, Jack Ryan, And Jason Bourne would appreciate David and how he gets the job done. As I have read several of the volumes published under the name Andrew Grant, I can only hope that he returns to some of the characters and series he started before he started co-writing the Reacher novels with his brother. All the books published as Andrew Grant predate that collaboration.  A highly entertaining read. 

Books by Andrew Grant:

David Trevellyan Series:

Detective Cooper Devereaux Series:

Paul McGrath Series:

As Andrew Child with Lee Child:
Jack Reacher Series:

Books Andrew Grant Contributed To:
In the Company of Sherlock Holmes
Murder and Mayhem in Muskego




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