Call of the Reaper

by Anthony Hulse

Frank Maxwell, a normally subdued man, when discovering he has months to live, concocts a plan to defraud a number of banks before fleeing overseas. Pursued by debt collector, Dhani Gupta in Goa, Maxwell is besotted by the beautiful, mysterious Rupali.
Adam Beck is a disgraced RAF pilot; his farm and air courier business in disarray. Approached by Albanian, Bashkim Luka to supposedly fly freight cargo to various destinations, he becomes embroiled in a drug cartel. Temptation prompts him to steal two million pounds from the cartel, resulting in the brutal revenge killing of his girlfriend and brother. Beck sails to Sri Lanka, assuming to have eluded the cartel.
Maxwell and Beck coincidentally meet in Thailand, their lives intertwined by a terrorist attack in Phuket. The enraged Luka tracks Beck to Thailand, intent on recovering his money and punishing the Englishman.
A turbulent journey encompassing enchanting India, Nepal, and Sri Lanka, concludes in a bloody scenario in Thailand.

Genres: Book Club

274 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 14, 2019

About the author

I am an author and live in the north east of England. After working thirty-two years as a steelworker, I retired early to concentrate on writing. I have been writing approximately eighteen years and have written and published thirty-four novels and over fifty short stories. My main genre is psychological thrillers and horror, but I have published a biography of a late friend and a war novel concerning the Holocaust.
My impatience with the mainstream publishers and my former publishers folding prompted me to self publish. i have rewritten and republished my books with KDP in 2022 and 2023. When purchasing, I would advise the latter editions. I appreciate all feedback. Thank you.

Reviews

[Peter May · Rating 5 out of 5]

I always look forward to a new Anthony Hulse book and once again he's delivered with Call of the Reaper. Fully fleshed out characters, part crime novel, part travel adventure, (this time taking us to Sri Lanka, Nepal and Phuket) Anthony's created another fantasticly gripping page turner.

[James Murray · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Travelogue and an International Thriller Rolled into One ~
Frank Maxwell, a usually quiet man down on his luck, defrauds several banks to fund seeing the world. Adam Beck, a retired RAF pilot who takes on an illegal charter flight scheme and eventually steals millions from an Albanian drug cartel, runs for his life halfway across the world with his stolen stash.
These two men have never met, and their journeys have nothing to do with each other. However, their parallel stories of deceit and spending the spoils of their deceit culminate in a chance meeting in Thailand at a bar, and that’s when the adventure and thrills go into overdrive as the pair become intertwined as they outrun Adam’s nemesis, Luka of the Albanian drug gang and Luka’s wet work man, all the while Frank tries to evade the international debt collector unto his trail.
The last few chapters especially read like a James Bond movie, and an interesting twist in a surprise ending happens that I never suspected.
Author Anthony Hulse certainly teased my mind with this one and I will now read more by this prolific and talented writer.

[Peter Samuels · Rating 2 out of 5]

I gave it 3 then 2 then 3 then back to 2 , couldn’t get any interest in the characters they seemed so “ matter of fact “ with no emotion .

Spoiler alert , if you are quite close with your brother and get told over the phone that he was mutilated and murdered then you would react a bit more than if you were told there was no cornflakes in the shop today .

Angie and boyfriend get told Franks on the run and then we never see them again ,

Just didn’t connect with me , shame as when reading the cover it did sound great