A Thousand Cuts: A Max Starkey Thriller

by Gregory Poirier

From Hollywood screenwriter Gregory Poirier ( National Book of Secrets, Rosewood, Knox Goes Away ) comes an espionage thriller with the grit of Lee Child, the emotional punch of S.A. Cosby, and the atmospheric intrigue of John le Carré. A Thousand Cuts introduces Max Starkey—disgraced CIA operative turned underworld fixer—whose past loves, rivals, and indiscretions are coming for him in the jungles of Southeast Asia.

From the steamy streets of Bangkok to the suffocating depths of the Laotian rainforest, A Thousand Cuts is a high-octane thriller about loyalty, betrayal, and redemption. Blending emotional depth with explosive action, Gregory Poirier’s debut novel introduces a new hero who bleeds, breaks, and doesn’t back down.

Max Starkey walked away from the CIA after a mission in Laos went wrong—horribly wrong. Seven years later, he’s living in the gray spaces between criminals and justice, earning a living recovering stolen goods for villains who know better than to ask questions. But when he’s lured to Bangkok under false pretenses, Max realizes his past isn’t done with him.

288 pages, Paperback

Published April 28, 2026

Reviews

[Janine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is an action thriller in the manner of the Grey Man and Jack Reacher vein. It’s crisp precision of words, plot line and action keep you on the edge of your seat.

The book introduces Max Starkey, former disgraced CIA operative and now independent fixer agent. He’s quite the man of action in this book. The author ha teamed him up with Guiliana Abara, a sharp-tongued FBI agent who has her own secrets. Starkey had been lured back to Bangkok under false pretenses. Seven years ago a raid he was assigned to went wrong, so the going back has been off Max’s radar but he’s a fixer and what he’s been told, he gives the green light. It turns out, however, that he has been set up by his former love, Kelly Riggs, and her husband, Derek Moss. The goal is to get a lot of money out of the country but stuck in an unstable country, how to get out now is the name of the game.

Max is strong, sensitive, and loyal as described by Kelly (and I would agree as a reader) but his love of Kelly in my view was missed placed But I liked Giliana and see promise in her relationship with Max - if a sequel comes. This is a great novel filled with all the things you want in a thriller - betrayal, survival and redemption.

I’d like to thank NetGalley and Diversion Books for allowing me to read this ARC.

[Szilvi_Tamas · Rating 4 out of 5]

This turned out to be an exciting action thriller—the debut novel of a well-known Hollywood screenwriter.

The book’s protagonist is Max Starkey, a former CIA agent who now operates in the gray zone. He takes on a job that draws him back to Bangkok, where a mission went wrong seven years earlier and changed his life. The assignment: smuggle a shipment of gold out of the country through the jungle, alongside former colleagues who have since betrayed him—while everyone involved is trying to double-cross each other.

I really liked that the story unfolds across multiple perspectives. It’s unpredictable, full of twists, sometimes brutal, and constantly surprising. At the same time, the plot remains clear and easy to follow, which is the most important thing for me.

Besides Max, I especially liked Giliana, and I hope to encounter her again in the next book—if there is one.

[Kandace · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley for this ALC.


Max Starkey, a disgraced CIA agent operative turned underground unofficial operative, is back to work seven years after a CIA mission went wrong in Laos. He’s lured to Bangkok by rival and his former love (who is now married to said rival). The job? Steal over a hundred million dollars from a dictator before a coup begins. Easy. But there’s plenty of double-crossing going on, and it’s all against Max. Oh, and undercover FBI agent Giuliana is there too. Max has to navigate this complicated job, all while hopefully keeping his life.


4.5 stars rounded to 5. This was quite the thriller!!! It started slow at first and I nearly put the audiobook aside, but I’m glad I finished because it was a wild ride!! Everyone got the ending I think they deserved.

[Cindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This action thriller alternates time periods from an operation gone wrong some seven years ago to a new operation that is headed in the same direction. In the first part of the novel, all the characters are unlikeable. They lie, they cheat, they steal. In fact it wasn’t until the end of the novel that Max felt the least bit heroic, in that he helps take out a really bad guy. There’s a lot of grit and action from a male-first point of view. In other words, none of the female characters is well developed, despite their somewhat pivotal roles in the story.
The story is fast paced and the audiobook well narrated. 3.7 rounded up.
My thanks to the author, publisher, @DreamscapeMedia, and #NetGalley for access to the audiobook #AThousandCuts for review purposes. It is available now.

[helandherbooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Big thank you to NetGalley for letting me listen to this book!

This book...If you want something that will keep you on your toes the entire time, then I recommend that you read this. It had everything that I yearned for in a Thriller/Mystery book. There were several times when this was my facial expression while listening. :O