What do you think?
Rate this book
Marks and Lip #1
Proportionate Response
A mysterious threat, known as Client 487, is intent on planting seeds of dissent that will dismantle our very way of life. The more Marks and Lip discover, the more they realize this has been going on for some time.
And it’s ugly.
And it’s ugly.
515 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 10, 2012
91 people are currently reading
376 people want to read
About the author
Dave Buschi
5 books47 followersDave Buschi is a bestselling technothriller author. His literary works include LUCKY HIGH, REALITY RECODED, INSIDER X, PROPORTIONATE RESPONSE, and THE BACK DOOR MAN.
He writes thrillers and sci-fi novels that grip you from the start, which readers tout as being unputdownable.
He lives in Milton, Georgia with his wife and boys.
You can follow him on Twitter @davebuschi, on Instagram @davebuschi, or check out his blog at www.davebuschi.com
He writes thrillers and sci-fi novels that grip you from the start, which readers tout as being unputdownable.
He lives in Milton, Georgia with his wife and boys.
You can follow him on Twitter @davebuschi, on Instagram @davebuschi, or check out his blog at www.davebuschi.com
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
May 14, 2012
Very enjoyable story. I read Back Door man first and then moved onto Proportionate Response. If the author reads this, Just want to say that I hope you continue writing and I would definitely follow a Marks/Lip series. I read about 2 books a week, typically in the mystery/thriller genre (Daniel Silva, Lee Child, Vince Flynn, Stephen Hunter, Brad Eisler, Michael Connelly, Brett Battles, etc..) Both of these books I found to be as entertaining and captivating as their peers. Well done & please keep up the good work. Good series' are hard to come by.
February 28, 2012
If you like Brad Thor, Brad Taylor or an action packed read, this is for you.
September 16, 2015
Amazon freebie when acquired. A lot of tech stuff with the espionage; China's stealing U.S. secret information across the spectrum. A few guys are out to change this before the next election. I enjoyed the book. I imagine techies would understand it better.
Interesting and realistic backdrop, frightening actually.
Some grammatical, spelling and other writing errors, for example:
1. In U.S. English, ALWAYS, the comma or period goes INSIDE THE QUOTATION MARKS.
2. would of, should of, could of; these should be "would have" [would've also works], etc.
3. trust explicitly; should be trust implicitly
4. alarm peel; peal
Thanks to the author for making this available. I would probably read a sequel to this story. I have a suspicion about who the man in the white mask is, but I'd like to see him revealed.
Interesting and realistic backdrop, frightening actually.
Some grammatical, spelling and other writing errors, for example:
1. In U.S. English, ALWAYS, the comma or period goes INSIDE THE QUOTATION MARKS.
2. would of, should of, could of; these should be "would have" [would've also works], etc.
3. trust explicitly; should be trust implicitly
4. alarm peel; peal
Thanks to the author for making this available. I would probably read a sequel to this story. I have a suspicion about who the man in the white mask is, but I'd like to see him revealed.
July 11, 2017
Could've Been a Five Star
Lots of action and a great plot. Characters were first rate with the exception of the computer expert's continual complements of the Osama Obama and his administration. Although only four of obama's eight years of disastrous rule was covered, no one could be so blind and dumb as this author in thinking obama was anything but an anti-American. China is definitely more of a threat to us than anyone else and it will take an extremely strong President, like Trump, to deal with them. If the author could leave his liberal leanings behind and focus only on facts while writing fiction, then he would get five stars continually.
Lots of action and a great plot. Characters were first rate with the exception of the computer expert's continual complements of the Osama Obama and his administration. Although only four of obama's eight years of disastrous rule was covered, no one could be so blind and dumb as this author in thinking obama was anything but an anti-American. China is definitely more of a threat to us than anyone else and it will take an extremely strong President, like Trump, to deal with them. If the author could leave his liberal leanings behind and focus only on facts while writing fiction, then he would get five stars continually.
August 16, 2018
Outstanding action thriller with heavy emphasis on ‘action’. This is a nonstop terminal velocity bucket of fun. Marks, former Force Recon, and Lip, a wise-cracking NSA badass, put on a display of grit, toughness, funny and genius. I want these guys on my team when the sh** hits the fan. And sh** the fan it does in this story. From its rocket start (the scene in Starbucks is intense... I dare you to try and set your Nook/kindle down) to the later action scenes... this book is pure adrenaline, rocket fuel or your liquor of choice. Mr. Buschi, I’m a fan!
April 12, 2013
As was the case with The Back Door Man, I found it hard to put this novel down and would likely have stayed with it continuously had I not had to pause to recharge my tablet! The action is non-stop, and full of plausible cyber espionage scenarios. I was captivated to the very end, which also like the Back Door Man ended rather abruptly. Even though pure fiction, I could have done with some speculation as to the aftermath.
July 15, 2015
Action-packed, relevant action story
While Lip and Marks aren't the typical heroes you'd imagine in an action thriller, the pair of protagonists are both humorously illustrated and the type of guys you want to root for. The plot is solid and events relevant to today's world events. Buschi may be an independent author, but he writes like he has spent time on the NY Times Bestseller list for years. Kudos for an entertaining read. (C.L.Rivers, author of "PrinceFall")
While Lip and Marks aren't the typical heroes you'd imagine in an action thriller, the pair of protagonists are both humorously illustrated and the type of guys you want to root for. The plot is solid and events relevant to today's world events. Buschi may be an independent author, but he writes like he has spent time on the NY Times Bestseller list for years. Kudos for an entertaining read. (C.L.Rivers, author of "PrinceFall")
March 24, 2012
Fantastic book with a fast start, great factual context, and a lock yourself away plot. You won't be able to put it down. He has clearly got "IT" early and compares with Nelson DeMille or Stuart Woods. A definite must read for us.
September 19, 2012
This book reminded me of a fast moving action movie that was so much fun to watch, you purposely try not to dissect the story line and probability of the events in the story so as not to ruin what you experienced. Loved it. It was just the kind of book I needed.
May 31, 2015
Modern techno thriller.
A story that could happen in real life, some degree it's happening already. Military and ex military personnel, computer geeks will enjoy this book.
A story that could happen in real life, some degree it's happening already. Military and ex military personnel, computer geeks will enjoy this book.
June 10, 2022
Opinion:
.
A particular woman is described as being perhaps the most beautiful and desirable of all women.
“…She cast a big shadow…was all woman. Marks had often thought that two thousand years ago she would have been worshipped as a goddess. She was a living breathing fertility doll. An exaggerated hourglass, more on bottom than on top. All curves and she flaunted them. Didn’t matter what she was wearing. In this case it was a dress. Big sack of a dress, but she filled it up….
“…She had a big round beautiful face. Some Asian in there from the Hawaiian side, the rest all African American….”
“…She walked with one of those bump-de-bumps walks. Quite a sight and she knew it. She glanced back at Marks and busted him. ‘Whatcha looking at?’ she said with a smirk on her face. Marks felt his face flush. She hooted….”
“…[her] enormous booty pressed against the sink, expanding like fresh dough. The sink was one of those big white porcelain sinks. Almost as deep as a tub….”
“…Behind that pretty face and that very full figure was a woman who knew what she wanted, and more often than not usually got it….”
Are you a fan of “enormous booty?”
You can look up this following bllsht:
“…He took hold of Vlad’s head with both hands. The man had a muscular neck, but it didn’t matter. With a violent corkscrew twist Marks snapped Vlad’s neck. The man slumped. Marks waited for about thirty seconds and checked for a pulse. Finding none….”
This past scene is just more Hollywood-type bllsht.
Contains lots and lots of “sipped” and “sip,” and “padded,” and “good to go,” and “it’s good,” and “we’re good,” and even a “pinched the bridge of his nose.” All EXTREMELY annoying “literary” devices to replace actual thought or reality.
PLEASE MAKE IT STOP !!!!!
At Page #337 I stopped paying attention and just skimmed….
At page #345 I just quit reading and dumped the so-called, “book.”
.
.
A particular woman is described as being perhaps the most beautiful and desirable of all women.
“…She cast a big shadow…was all woman. Marks had often thought that two thousand years ago she would have been worshipped as a goddess. She was a living breathing fertility doll. An exaggerated hourglass, more on bottom than on top. All curves and she flaunted them. Didn’t matter what she was wearing. In this case it was a dress. Big sack of a dress, but she filled it up….
“…She had a big round beautiful face. Some Asian in there from the Hawaiian side, the rest all African American….”
“…She walked with one of those bump-de-bumps walks. Quite a sight and she knew it. She glanced back at Marks and busted him. ‘Whatcha looking at?’ she said with a smirk on her face. Marks felt his face flush. She hooted….”
“…[her] enormous booty pressed against the sink, expanding like fresh dough. The sink was one of those big white porcelain sinks. Almost as deep as a tub….”
“…Behind that pretty face and that very full figure was a woman who knew what she wanted, and more often than not usually got it….”
Are you a fan of “enormous booty?”
You can look up this following bllsht:
“…He took hold of Vlad’s head with both hands. The man had a muscular neck, but it didn’t matter. With a violent corkscrew twist Marks snapped Vlad’s neck. The man slumped. Marks waited for about thirty seconds and checked for a pulse. Finding none….”
This past scene is just more Hollywood-type bllsht.
Contains lots and lots of “sipped” and “sip,” and “padded,” and “good to go,” and “it’s good,” and “we’re good,” and even a “pinched the bridge of his nose.” All EXTREMELY annoying “literary” devices to replace actual thought or reality.
PLEASE MAKE IT STOP !!!!!
At Page #337 I stopped paying attention and just skimmed….
At page #345 I just quit reading and dumped the so-called, “book.”
.
Read
April 21, 2022Fun story if you don't expect too much realism.
I enjoyed reading this u, but it is crude, the fratboy humor left me cold. The author spent far too much effort in trying to be cute. (the sequence where Mei stripped them was more distraction than story progression.) The constant use of the nickname "Johnny Two-Cakes" got very old very quickly. All adults that I know would use a nickname occasionally but not exclusively. For more realistic action adventure / thriller, the reader would do well to look elsewhere to better researched writers. That said: it was a fun and entertaining read, I will likely read more from this author, but doubt that I will recommend these stories to friends, unless they are particularly lowbrow.
I enjoyed reading this u, but it is crude, the fratboy humor left me cold. The author spent far too much effort in trying to be cute. (the sequence where Mei stripped them was more distraction than story progression.) The constant use of the nickname "Johnny Two-Cakes" got very old very quickly. All adults that I know would use a nickname occasionally but not exclusively. For more realistic action adventure / thriller, the reader would do well to look elsewhere to better researched writers. That said: it was a fun and entertaining read, I will likely read more from this author, but doubt that I will recommend these stories to friends, unless they are particularly lowbrow.
July 18, 2018
Utterly awesome! What a ride! This book started fast and never let up. Marks and Lip are a hoot. Tough, funny, crass-mouthed and made for the big screen. I could totally see this book being made into a movie. In a way I was reminded of the Lethal Weapon series, but I liked the chemistry between Marks and Lip even better than the chemistry between Riggs and Murtaugh. Sign me up for more of these books. I can't get enough of Marks and Lip. Hope the author writes another!
July 6, 2018
This was such a fun book! LOVE and I mean LOVE Marks and Lip!!!!!!!!! They are great good guys. The kind of good guys you hope are really out there fighting for the USA. The nasty bad guys were absolutely horrible. You so wanted them to get it and get it they do. Can’t wait to read the next one!
March 3, 2021
Another exciting-to-the-finish work by Dave Buschi. The plot takes place set against a background of electronic hackers, geopolitic intrigue, global financial markets, and issues pertaining to the U.S. election. Although the book was published in 2012, I find this ‘fictional’ novel eerily descriptive of 2020.
April 23, 2022
Tedious
Poorly written. Way too much explanation. Feels like a few bad episodes of the TV series Burn Notice. An irritating show that feels the need to explain everything to the audience.
Poorly written. Way too much explanation. Feels like a few bad episodes of the TV series Burn Notice. An irritating show that feels the need to explain everything to the audience.
August 27, 2018
Best duo action team i’ve read ever. Tradecraft, weaponry knowledge is up there with best espionage writers. New favorite writer
October 1, 2024
Incredibly well done thriller that I was unable to put down. The storyline is edge of your seat good. Marks and Lip are the best! Loved every bit of this!
January 7, 2016
Come on in.... This book invites the reader to world only few sick minds could imagine and from the opening pages rushes the reader down deep, dark corridors and past glimpses of manmade horror. It is a two pronged narrative with one common (no make that two) denominators. Marion Claiborne calls her husband’s old friends, as per instruction, and asks them for help. Their willingness to help was never in doubt as Thomas Lipkin and Leonard Markston were once very close to Johnny Two-cakes. Starting with a national crime perpetrated by international thugs, the net of deceit, terror and mayhem soon assumed an international character. Lip is a pudgy computer geek with a strange sense of humor and extremely fast hands. Living with his mother (also a very colorful character) he manages to hack and manipulate everything eventually; give him a couple of hours and it is done. Mark is more of a hands on guy. As an ex-marine he is expert with multiple weapons and has an admitted affinity to blowing up things. Johnny Two-cakes is a little of both.
It is a fast paced story that is bound to keep you on the edge of your seat. Liberally seeded with dry (and sometimes off-colored) humor it is sure to keep you entertained. Its 150 chapters can attest to the short chapter format so successfully employed by writers such as James Patterson. With the employment of choppily fragmented sentences, truncated phrases, acronyms and technical jargon takes some time to get used to but soon becomes almost unnoticed. I think this narrative will appeal to a large reading crowd and I think this writer has all the talent and style to make it to the very top of his profession.
It is a fast paced story that is bound to keep you on the edge of your seat. Liberally seeded with dry (and sometimes off-colored) humor it is sure to keep you entertained. Its 150 chapters can attest to the short chapter format so successfully employed by writers such as James Patterson. With the employment of choppily fragmented sentences, truncated phrases, acronyms and technical jargon takes some time to get used to but soon becomes almost unnoticed. I think this narrative will appeal to a large reading crowd and I think this writer has all the talent and style to make it to the very top of his profession.
June 9, 2015
This was one of those free books with a great cover and I thought let me change up my reading pattern read this book. What a was a great decision. Mark & Lips are a HOOT and I loved every page, every minute of this book. This is a MUST READ...
Dave just made my must read Author's list. He's a keeper.
Dave just made my must read Author's list. He's a keeper.
February 22, 2016
An amazing read
From its inception, this book moved from page to page with a rhythm that makes me want to read all Dave Bushi's books. He is as good as it gets. I am proud to be one of the minions who enjoy his adventures.
From its inception, this book moved from page to page with a rhythm that makes me want to read all Dave Bushi's books. He is as good as it gets. I am proud to be one of the minions who enjoy his adventures.
August 7, 2012
Entertaining and still informative - computer tech talk with humor. Interesting characters. Enjoyable quick read.
September 3, 2013
I could not believe the factual nature of this compelling must read.
June 4, 2015
Well wrote mystery!!
June 11, 2015
Really poor writing. But I always liked revlution...
July 26, 2015
Wow good book
I really enjoyed this book the best was the way it ended hope ever one like I did by by
I really enjoyed this book the best was the way it ended hope ever one like I did by by
December 25, 2015
Began like a 4 then deteriorated to a 2. Slow after the first few chapters.
April 5, 2017
Attention Captured
The book is very fast paced and exciting as well as informative. Quite an enjoyable read. I think you may like it.
The book is very fast paced and exciting as well as informative. Quite an enjoyable read. I think you may like it.
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews