The Fifth Angel

by Tim Green

Jack Ruskin believed in the letter of the law. Until a criminal shattered his llife and walked out of court a free man. Now in his big, empty suburban house, Jack must act on his grief, anger, and outrage. A former prosecutor, Jack is sure he can get away with murder. And he knows he can find the right people to kill...

A thousand miles away, FBI agent Amanda Lee pursues a case some people don't want solved: the methodical murders of sex offenders across the country. But as she relentlessly searches for the killer, danger begins stalking her own family. In a violent twist of fate and a desperate race against time, the hunter and the hunted will come together—to destroy each other, save each other, or make their own choices between the ultimate right and wrong...

Genres: Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, Mystery Thriller, Crime, Legal Thriller

348 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published February 18, 2003

About the author

Tim Green, for many years a star defensive end with the Atlanta Falcons, is a man of many talents. He's the author of such gripping books for adults as the New York Times bestselling The Dark Side of the Game and a dozen suspense novels, including Exact Revenge and Kingdom Come. Tim graduated covaledictorian from Syracuse University and was a first-round NFL draft pick. He later earned his law degree with honors. Tim has worked as an NFL analyst for FOX Sports and as an NFL commentator for National Public Radio, among other broadcast experience. He lives with his wife, Illyssa, and their five children in upstate New York. Football Genius is his first novel for young readers. For more updates, visit www.facebook.com/authortimgreen

Reviews

[Leo · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. It had a winning premise and while I liked reading it I almost forgot about it after I've read it. Finished pretty quickly but have forgotten to review it and mostly what happened. But it was a good book nevertheless

[Х. И. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Всяка история си има герой и злодей.. Във тази Джак Ръскин е и двамата..
Джак Ръскин се провалил като баща. Той не е можал да опази неговото момиченце от лапите на извратен педофил и макар дъщеря му да успява да избяга, тя е настанена в психиатрична болница. Изнасилвана и измъчвана Джанет изпада в кататонично състояние, а за капак на всичко извършителят Юджийн Тап получава лека присъда, заради пропуски в съдебната система. Това прелива чашата и изпълнен с омраза и жажда за отмъщение огорченият баща започва своя собствена вендета срещу най-лошите сексуални насилници на деца.. Джак Ръскин приема ролята на отмъстител – находчив, безкомпромисен и умен, бившият помощник прокурор отлично познава съдебната система и знае как да не оставя следи след себе си..
Аманда Лий е опитен федерален агент и майка на две прекрасни деца. Тя работи в отдела за тежки престъпления на ФБР и залавя най-лошите сред престъпниците- серийните убийци и изнасилвачи. Макар да и е трудно да съчетава работа си и родителските си задължения Аманда някак си се справя. Съдбата на Аманда се преплита с тази на Джак, когато упорит детектив открива сходство между няколко убийства на педофили и изнасилвачи и тя е привлечена в разследването..
Детектив Макгрю е упорито арогантно ченге, за което залавянето на Джак Ръскин е приоритет номер едно и той няма да се спре пред нищо, за да го тикне зад решетките..
Образът на Джак е този, който движи сюжета – той е чувствителен и увреден герой, чувства се безпомощен, защото не е могъл да опази дъщеря си. Възприема себе си като отмъстител и иска да предпази други родители и децата им от това през което е преминал той и дъщеря му. Определено му съчувствах и макар Джак да беше този който дърпаше спусъка, действията му бяха отражение на една не функционираща съдебна система..
Стилът на авторът е директен, а героите интересни и добре изградени по всички правила на жанра. Главите са кратки и динамични, правейки книгата истински Page Turner. Сюжетът държи под напрежение и макар да е клише от тази книга би излязъл страхотен холивудски екшън..

[Jessica Saam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jack Ruskin is an attorney who turns to murder after his teenaged daughter is kidnapped and raped. Amanda Lee is an FBI agent, torn between her job and her family, who is investigating the murders.

This book was definitely fast paced, although I found it pretty unbelievable. McGrew is pretty much the worst. I get that he is supposed to be cocky, brash and full of himself, but I think Green overdid the negative attributes. I found his character to absolutely dreadful and obnoxious. Amanda is more like able, but she is supposed to be a rising star in the FBI, yet she freezes while her partner gets murdered and falls asleep on a stakeout?

The book had a good ending. There was plenty of tense scenes. There was a lot of action. I would probably read another Tim Green novel.

[Cheryl · Rating 2 out of 5]

Weakly written thriller.

[Fauner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well worth picking up...I couldn't put it down!

[Danai · Rating 3 out of 5]

It wasn't good, nor was it bad. Interesting characters, decent plot. A fair amount of predictability on some actions and outcomes. It was a little bit too constructed to fit perfectly, and I didn't find myself tense with anticipation or anything like that.

The writing style was respectable and the pacing of the story spanned well - not too short, nor too long. Overall it was a quick, relatively easy read.

Considering some of the delicate topics (rape), compared to other thrillers I've read that have covered the same or similar themes, it was relatively tame overall.

I would've liked to feel a bit more while reading - there was no particular thrill or attachment to the characters, I felt no anger towards the rapists, and the main characters were all cookie-cut a little too perfectly to fulfill their roles I the narrative, and didn't feel realistic to me. Although, admittedly, I loathed McGrew - what a slimy guy, yuck.

[William Howle · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story of a man whose daughter is raped and tortured. Her attacker is given a light sentence based on the judicial system not allowing some evidence not to be used because of a law that protects evil doers at the expense of the victims. The man decides to become a one person avenger against evil. Involved is an FBI agent and a police detective, Mcgrew who is more interested in getting headlines than justice. The detective has some political clout which he lets people know.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

3-star book for borrowing the Charles Bronson/Bruce Willis "Death Wish" plot, but 4-stars for an exceptional, action-packed thriller...perfect for the Spring Break beach...neat confluence of the hunted & the hunters leaves us with an exceptionally satisfying thriller as Jack Ruskin, a father of a daughter damaged by a serial rapist, hunts serial sex crime criminals...good stuff!!!

[Phyllis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great mystery read. Jack Ruskin, the main character, is a successful lawyer whose 15 year old daughter was kidnapped and raped. He becomes the Fifth Angel of the Apocalypse in seeking justice for families sharing similar experiences. Follow the works of FBI agents Amanda Lee and McGrew as they identify and pursue Ruskin.

[Don · Rating 1 out of 5]

Difficult to believe in too many areas. If the point was making the local police and FBI look inept, it succeeded. The narrator of the audiobook has such a monotone voice that it really took concentration not to just block everything he was saying completely out.

[Bethany · Rating 5 out of 5]

While maybe not the most realistic (and is that truly the basis we should generally rate thriller books by?), it was vastly entertaining. There were several subtle twists that I didn't see coming and kept me engrossed during a very distract-able time, so job well down for me.

[Joyce · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good serial killer and bad serial killer. Author has some imagination.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Couldn't put it down. Fast read. A good thriller.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

First novel by Green that I've read; it kept my attention throughout. I would read another novel by Green.

[Michelle Behr · Rating 3 out of 5]

Parts of this book really grabbed me and made me want to keep reading. Others dragged. Overall a pretty good book. A nice unexpected twist at the end.

[Ernie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good easy fun read. I love Tim Green’s style.

[Deanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was good, took a few chapters to get into it, but then it got better. The ending felt rushed, and was a little bit of a let down.

[Crystal Robinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of action but left loose ends.

[Brett Wallach · Rating 1 out of 5]

Convoluted, slow, stupid, and in its way, incredibly sexist.

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written, interesting plot and interesting characters.

[Earl · Rating 3 out of 5]

thinks a shotgun 'slug' to the shoulder is like a bee sting. weird, writers love to write about firearms and never get involved with any. their editors must be just as dumb.

[Hot · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars...

[Donn Lorber · Rating 3 out of 5]

Murdering pedophiles as revenge for a family tragedy is the basis for this thriller. Well done

[Dr Susan Turner]

Not a bad read with a still topical theme but oh the US fascination with guns is overwhelming. A tame ending too after all the gore

[June · Rating 3 out of 5]

"The Fifth Angel," was an average book. The story ran along predictably. There's nothing to really gripe about, but nothing to rave about either.

[Brent · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.8

[Katy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this when I was 12 or something, and I really liked it back then.

[Laci]

I read this book in 2010 when I was 15 years old. I don’t know how well I remember it but I am HAUNTED by it all these years later

[Djakata Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of twists and turns. Enjoyable, easy read. Definitely passing it on to my friends

[Ron Ehley · Rating 5 out of 5]

satisfying. Among best I read in 2025