Hunting Gods

by David McCloskey, Tim Campbell (Narrator)

Sunday Times bestselling author David McCloskey delivers a darkly satirical thriller aboard a luxury cruise, where a writer contends with his billionaire uncle’s whims and the dangers they court.

Elliott Adams is a struggling writer. His uncle Otto just acquired a discounted superyacht. It’s not hard to recognize the disparities. Even so, Elliott accepts an invitation to join the family on a cruise, hoping for inspiration. What he gets is attacked by kamikaze drones, when the Russian oligarch and previous yacht owner returns for the priceless cargo he left there … if Otto’s willing to give it up.

David McCloskey’s Hunting Gods is part of Pursuit, a gripping collection of short stories that explore what it means to be predator and prey … and what it takes to gain the upper hand. Read or listen to each pulse-pounding story in a single sitting—and an intense adrenaline rush.

2026 by David McCloskey. ℗ 2026 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Genres: Short Stories, Thriller, Audiobook, Mystery, Fiction, Action

Audible Audio

Published October 27, 2026

About the author

David McCloskey is the author of five books, including London Station, The Seventh Floor, and The Persian. He is also cohost of the podcast The Rest Is Classified. A former CIA analyst, he worked at Langley and in field stations across the Middle East. He lives in Dallas, Texas.

Reviews

[Marcie Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

🔎 𝗜𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝗱 𝗺𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗴𝘂𝗲𝗱… 𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗹 𝗶𝘁 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻’𝘁.

The beginning drew me in, with lots of interesting, different characters, and I was curious to see where the story would go. Unfortunately, I kept waiting for it to develop into something more substantial, but it never really did. I also couldn't see the dark satire or figure out what was supposed to be funny.

The action-thriller side became more prominent towards the end, but it wasn't enough to make up for what was missing in the story.

Tim Campbell's narration was fantastic, with so many distinct character voices. I'd still try another David McCloskey book, but this one left me wanting more.

Thank you to David McCloskey, Brilliance Publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to and review this ALC. All opinions are my own.

🎉 𝗛𝗮𝗽𝗽𝘆 𝗣𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗗𝗮𝘆, 𝗗𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗱 𝗠𝗰𝗖𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗸𝗲𝘆! 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗮𝘁 𝗕𝗿𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗣𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆'𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲! 𝗜 𝗵𝗼𝗽𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝗻𝗲.

[Sean Peters (A Good Thriller) · Rating 3.5 out of 5]

An advantage of reading a short story, read a new author, see if you like. which I have done with this book.

The pursuit series, is a wide variety of authors, interesting short stories, a hint of the authors writing, maybe a bit short.

Sunday Times bestselling author David McCloskey delivers a darkly satirical thriller aboard a luxury cruise, where a writer contends with his billionaire uncle’s whims and the dangers they court.

Elliott Adams is a struggling writer. His uncle Otto just acquired a discounted superyacht. It’s not hard to recognize the disparities. Even so, Elliott accepts an invitation to join the family on a cruise, hoping for inspiration. What he gets is attacked by kamikaze drones, when the Russian oligarch and previous yacht owner returns for the priceless cargo he left there … if Otto’s willing to give it up.

David McCloskey’s Hunting Gods is part of Pursuit, a gripping collection of short stories that explore what it means to be predator and prey … and what it takes to gain the upper hand. Read or listen to each pulse-pounding story in a single sitting—and an intense adrenaline rush

3.5 stars. I feel hard to give a strong review on such a short read.

[ObscureVi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

In my last review (that was also a different Amazon Original Stories short), I said that I'm usually lucky with them and enjoy probably 9 out of 10 I read... well, I had to jinx it, haven't I?

Probably the main reason why I decided to pick this one, was the part of the blurb, where it promised to deliver a darkly satirical thriller. I'm genuinely not sure if it was one of those moments, something didn't fully work out, or if it was more of a "me" situation and there was nothing wrong. I couldn't find a single part that made me laugh or made the corner of my lips twitch, but I did notice that it was trying to be funny, it just didn't work in my case.

I was really hooked at the start, but the more we went in, the more it started to lose the spark and it left me feeling... meh? I can't find a better way to describe it, unfortunately. The premise sounded great, but for most of the story nothing really happened, just for everything to drop on us near the end.

[Mari · Rating 3.25 out of 5]

“Hunting Gods” is a highly entertaining thriller about men with far too much money and far too little sense or conscience.

David McCloskey clearly had great fun dropping these oversized egos into a world where wealth can buy almost anything except wisdom. The result is tense, fast-moving and just unsettling enough to feel plausible. Tim Campbell's narration keeps everything humming along nicely.

My only complaint - I wanted more of the main characters' backstories than is feasible for a short story. The glimpses we get suggest lives every bit as interesting and complicated as the plot itself.

Thank you to Brilliance Publishing, NetGalley and David McCloskey for an advance listening copy of this book.

[Abibliofob · Rating 4.25 out of 5]

David McCloskey has written an exciting short story called Hunting Gods. It's part of a six book collection from Amazon with some really good authors. I recommend that you get them all.

[Mari · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 ***

KU read & listen

[Britt · Rating 3.5 out of 5]

Rich People, Ridiculous Problems, and Absolutely No Consequences

ARC received by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really thought I was going to love this one, but unfortunately, Hunting Gods and I got off to a rocky start. The pacing felt slow for such a short book, with a lot of narration and buildup before things finally started happening. When the action arrived, it definitely picked up, but the premise itself became my biggest issue.

Without getting into spoilers, the central conflict revolves around an extremely wealthy Russian billionaire, a yacht, and something so ridiculous that I had to sit back and question how we got here. I could appreciate the commentary about powerful people believing they can do whatever they want without consequences, but the situation driving the story was so over-the-top that it overshadowed the message for me. Uncle Otto had me questioning some of his decisions, too. I understand standing up to someone who thinks money and power can make everything right, but the way this situation escalates had me questioning everybody's judgment. At some point, I needed somebody to make a sensible decision!

The ending leaves you with something to think about, particularly when you consider the story's framing and what we're being told. I won't say more because this is a short book, and I want other readers to experience it for themselves.

Ultimately, Hunting Gods had moments that held my attention, but the slow start and increasingly ridiculous central conflict kept this from being the book I hoped it would be. I don't regret reading it, but I definitely expected more.

3.5 out of 5 stars

[Ian · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fast complete short story by McCloskey. It's 37 pages, readable in about 40 minutes but it's fun and very much a McCloskey story.

Elliott is a writer, struggling to find great stories to help him rise above the average journo. His uncle Otto is a mega-billionaire and out of the blue invites him on a 3 week cruise in his new mega-yacht. Private jet and helicopter trip later Elliott boards the ridiculously named boat: C-Men! The crude play on words is more significant when the action unfolds later on.

The boat used to be owned by a Russian oligarch who has fallen out of favour with Putin (McCloskey loves writing about the Russians). The American Government had confiscated it amongst a host of Russian debris, allowing Otto to buy it on the cheap, a cool two hundred million.

Having a slap at mega-billionaires and their thirst for toys and bigger is better to show off, McCloskey amps up the action as Otto has a sense of indestructibility as he "hunts for Gods', to be god, as is the mega-billionaire's curse,

If you've never read a McCloskey story this might be a good introduction but I'd encourage you to start at the beginning with Damascus Station. He's become one of my go-to authors now.

I appreciate being able to access these Amazon special editions via NetGalley. They disappear from the NG App the moment you finish it so it doesn't take up any room on your Kindle or NG App.

[Elaine · Rating 4.75 out of 5]

It's a Novella.
It'a another great read!

Picture a very wealthy man... his two kids, and his nephew... along with a full crew...
Aboard a mega ship for his birthday celebration!!
But, his nephew surprisingly learns that some of the crew are actually military... like special ops! Why??

And then, the boat is breached.
Three men enter under darkness and start killing...
And no one knows why...

Yep! That's the gist. And, that's all I'm giving you!

#HuntingGods by @DavidMcCloskey and narrated wonderfully by @TimCampbell.

4.75 bold, scary, crazy, mixed-up stars for me! 🌟🌟🌟🌟💫💫💫

This one has just been released, so look 👀 for it on shelves now!

Thanks so much to #NetGalley, @BrillilancePublishing and @AmazonOriginalStories for an ALC of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

You can find my reviews on: Goodreads,
Instagram: @BookReviews_with_emsr and/or
My Facebook Book Club: Book Reviews With Elaine

Thanks so much for reading! And if you ‘liked’ my review, please share with your friends, & click ‘LIKE’ below… And, let me know YOUR thoughts if you read it!!

And as always, thanks for reading along with me! 📚⭐️📖🩷

[Adrian · Rating 2.75 out of 5]

2.75 stars
Thanks to Net Galley and Brilliance Publishing for the early preview of this audiobook.

This is another book in the “pursuit collection” of short stories/novellas. Much like the first one (Bushido), it was very short and was a ‘thriller’. I liked that this story was not told from the point of view of the “tough guy”. It was told by the writer who happened to be maybe in the wrong place at the wrong time (or perhaps quite the opposite, read the book to find out). But I didn’t enjoy this one as much as I enjoyed the first one. It just wasn’t for me. There may have been too many characters in too short of a time.

Audiobook narrator Tim Campbell rating: 3.7 stars
Much like the first book in this series, the narrator was pretty decent at changing his voice with different characters and accents.

[Manuella · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley, Amazon Original Stories and David McCloskey for the opportunity to read this book early in exchange for an honest review.

This was my first time getting in touch with McCloskey's reading and it certainly won’t be the last. I love Amazon's collections of short stories because they always give me a chance to get in touch with new authors that I end up becoming interested in and this was no exception.

Hunting Gods was a fast-paced story full of action and its only flaw is that it was, unfortunately, too short and I wanted more. With eccentric characters, a satire of billionaires in the modern world, and an author character who is narrating the story, there was little that could have gone wrong. I will admit I was not a huge fan of the ending, but I was very intrigued to the end.

Can't wait to read more of McCloskey's work!

[Yanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve been hearing a lot of great things from friends about David McCloskey’s books, so I finally gave in and decided to read some of his work, starting with Hunting Gods. Honestly, it took me a few pages to get into his way of writing, but once the story got moving, I was hooked. For a short story, it's a really catchy, fun read—you've got a struggling writer trapped on a superyacht in the middle of a brutal drone attack. It’s fast and has this great streak of dark humor running through it. As my first intro to his writing, I loved it. Perfect if you need a quick, high-adrenaline read. Looking forward to read more of his books!
A big thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

[Clayton · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick, wild sprint through the depravity of the über wealthy.

Thanks to David McCloskey and NetGalley for the advanced copy of this short story.

A regular guy that has a billionaire uncle finds himself invited to his uncle's ultra yacht of nefarious origin. His cousins are all there, snobbish elite twits, that they are. Along comes a high seas encounter with the yacht's former oligarch owner and here we see the satirical view of the ultra wealthys' narcissistic views of others beneath them. The disconnectivity of them vs the rest of humanity, and theindset of being to rich for consequences and polite society.

Obviously a very quick read, a lot to digest in a short amount of packages, but McCloskey wrapped it all up relatively well.

[Tim Getwellsoonjaymee · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Step Back

I enjoyed the Pursuit series so far (especially Bushido). I enjoyed Mccloskey's Damascus Station. I was excited for this one. The story started out strong but seems to lose a little steam at the end. The ending wasn't quite as satisfying as I hoped.
It's a good short overall. I would give it 3.5. I think the detractor for me was the protagonist has a conceit and vanity that I just don't care for. More cock than cocksure. I liked the story but it was harder to root for someone with that smug, arrogant, I'm -just-better-than-others, big government vibe that is common among the Obama and Panetta crowd David worked under.
I'm still a fan. I just think his previous work indicates the story could have been better.

[lori pennington · Rating 3.5 out of 5]

Many thanks to NetGalley and Brilliance Publishing for the free audiobook in exchange for my honest review. Tim Campbell does a great job narrating this story.

A struggling writer is invited to spend time on his uncle's discounted superyacht hoping for inspiration. When the yachting party is attacked by kamikaze drones, they quickly figure out that the former yacht owner, a Russian oligarch, left something behind and wants it back.

I was drawn in initially with the disparity between then characters and the whole superyacht setting. But as Ikept waiting for something to happen, the story ended. But at a total of 50 pages, I found myself wanting more.

[Jordan Anderson · Rating 3.5 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Finding Gods asks what happens when you have a weird uncle who somehow gets entangled with an ex Russian oligarch and tags you along.

The answer: a lot of death, destruction, and an ending that’s not great for anyone.

Of the Pursuit series (up to this point at least), this is the weakest, yet that’s not saying it’s bad. McCloskey’s sardonic and sarcastic take on the thriller tropes is fun and entertaining, and a bit of fresh air in a genre that can take itself far too seriously, but at the same time, the lack of seriousness can make it feel kind of goofy.

And as a short story, there’s not a lot here. As a full length, this could have been even more fun.

[Daniel Kinney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting Plot

McCloskey had me until the end. The end instead of answering questions brought more questions. The book felt incomplete. Why would Uncle Otto sacrifice his entire family? He brings them all together for his birthday, supposedly because he cares (?) then sacrifices all of them. I didn’t quite understand that. Where did it come from? To reveal in the end that Elliott was writing this story from a lifeboat did add some redemption to the story. I would have loved to have seen an epilogue on the rescue and what happened to the survivors. Maybe he was limited to the length of this novel.

[Jeff · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was just recently introduced to the writing of David McCloskey and immediately became a fan. Seeing this short story, part of Amazon’s Pursuit series), I couldn’t wait to dive in.

My only problem with this short story is that it is a short story. I am hooked. I want to know more details about the characters. I want more of what was going on behind the scenes. I want more of the action.

But that is part of the brilliance of this story. Well done, Mr. McCloskey.

I received this ARC from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an unbiased review.

[Natalie · Rating 3.75 out of 5]

Took a bit to understand what was happening but around the 40% mark things really picked up. I have not read anything by McCloskey before so this was a nice intro to his writing. This is a short story and he did a good job of making me feel invested even though it was so short. I want to know more about how our characters got to be in the situation they were in.

The ending was unexpected and I actually really enjoy it even if it wasn't exactly a clear cut resolution.

Thank you to the publisher for the ARC via Netgalley

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short stories sometimes fail because they need to be fleshed out and don’t get the proper fleshing out in their abbreviated form. This one wasn’t too bad, but there still could be some of the plot expanded upon - or perhaps a sequel.

This book was like if Titanic was set on a warship turned superyacht stolen from a Russian oligarch. It was quite a ride, I’ll say that.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the eARC.

[G G Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've really enjoyed David McCloskey's first four books and have London Station in my To Read queue, so looked forward to reading this novella. It's a bit different than his books, as this one isn't set in the spy world, but the story is interesting, the writing is good, and I was eager to find out what would happen next as I was reading. If McCloskey made this into a longer story, I'd look forward to learning more about the characters, their backstories, and what happens after this story ends.

[Kristen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This was really entertaining for such a short story. I loved how this ended on a big cliffhanger. It would have been awesome to have this story be a full novel because these characters seemed to be selfish and unlikable so it would have been interesting to have more time with them to learn if there was more to them.

[KazReads · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s a short story that takes you into the eye of the storm. You see how the world narrows to a single person in the eyes of one who has everything at their feet. Themselves. It’s so easy to not care when nothing can touch you, about your own life, and more importantly, about anyone else. So long as you win.

[Shadden · Rating 3.5 out of 5]

Review of an advanced copy from
NetGalley

Usually I’m drawn into McCloskey’s books right away, but this is read very much like a graphic novel, and the plot seems scattered. Not really sure I’d recommend this one. The narrator goes off on tangents, and I wasn’t really sure what was happening ing aside from there’s a Russian on the ship.

[Carrie Miller · Rating 3.5 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and Brilliance Publishing for the advance audio copy in exchange for an honest review.

I didn’t realize this was a short story when I started, so the ending felt very sudden and caught me completely by surprise. I also have to admit, the superyacht named Sea-Man and the container of the previous owner’s “seamen” hidden aboard absolutely cracked me up. 😂

[Cindy · Rating 3.5 out of 5]

This short story took a bit to get going because of the contrivances needed to support its far-fetched plot. Oligarchs, super-yachts, and a struggling writer invited on a family cruise by his uncle? Once the drone attack started, I had to go with the flow and not try to figure out why the author made the choices he did. The second half had a lot of action, and we eventually learn why the yacht was under attack. It was interesting, and the audiobook is well-narrated, but it just didn't hold together all that well for me. 3.25 stars,
My thanks to the author, publisher, @BrilliancePublishing, and #NetGalley for early access to the audiobook of #HuntingGods for review purposes. It is now available as part of Amazon's original series, Pursuit.

[Hank Wu · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received an advance reader copy of this book and am voluntarily providing an honest review.

Premise
A journalist got invited to his billionaire uncle’s birthday party on his new super yacht

Liked
* Bombastic villain
* Hapless main character
* Opulent and exotic setting
* Fun twist ending

On Second Thought
* I am not on board with the uncle’s motivation and behavior at the end
* Action over too quickly

Closing Comments
The story set up a battle between titans for a finale, but the core motivation from some of the participants isn’t quite believable. Nevertheless an interesting attempt.

[Greville Waterman · Rating 4.5 out of 5]

Short and sweet. I am not normally a fan of short stories but this grabbed my attention from the outset and never let go. It just could have done with a couple of hundred more pages to flesh out an intriguing plot and some interesting characters.

A good read nevertheless less!

[Mike · Rating 4.5 out of 5]

Review of an advance copy received from NetGalley.

I enjoyed this short but intriguing story. The authors wastes no time with only 37 pages. I wast sure what to think of these but after reading I look forward to the others. I do recommend to pick this up and give it a read when it comes out!

[Mike Lyons · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fast paced, interesting short story about what happens when two extremely rich persons, neither of whom have any normal limitations and constraints, butt heads. The proverbial irresistible force meets the immovable object, or Godzilla vs Mothra, spoiler alert - calamity follows.