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Stone Cold #1
Stone Cold
A twisted kidnapping.
A diamond heist like no other.
And a hitman, driven by revenge.
Harvey Stone is a contract killer like no other. As the adopted son of a renowned crime boss, the opportunities to hone his skills and perfect his bloody craft have come thick and fast. But the criminal life has taken its toll and his sights are set on retirement.
But, before he can put down his bloody weapons for good, Harvey must complete his life’s mission by avenging his sister’s brutal murder. All he’s missing is the name of her killer—a secret his allies are finally ready to reveal.
To claim his reward, Harvey must eliminate a rival gang and assassinate the ruthless crime lord, Terry Thomson, before the two gangs clash in a priceless diamond heist.
If Harvey succeeds, then the ghosts of his past will be laid to rest and the freedom he desires will be his. However, failure will lead to torture, death, and a turf war that will tear London’s organized crime world apart.
With one final hit standing between Harvey and freedom, the stakes have never been so high. And with his sister’s death to avenge, he’ll need his killer instinct to succeed.
A diamond heist like no other.
And a hitman, driven by revenge.
Harvey Stone is a contract killer like no other. As the adopted son of a renowned crime boss, the opportunities to hone his skills and perfect his bloody craft have come thick and fast. But the criminal life has taken its toll and his sights are set on retirement.
But, before he can put down his bloody weapons for good, Harvey must complete his life’s mission by avenging his sister’s brutal murder. All he’s missing is the name of her killer—a secret his allies are finally ready to reveal.
To claim his reward, Harvey must eliminate a rival gang and assassinate the ruthless crime lord, Terry Thomson, before the two gangs clash in a priceless diamond heist.
If Harvey succeeds, then the ghosts of his past will be laid to rest and the freedom he desires will be his. However, failure will lead to torture, death, and a turf war that will tear London’s organized crime world apart.
With one final hit standing between Harvey and freedom, the stakes have never been so high. And with his sister’s death to avenge, he’ll need his killer instinct to succeed.
246 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 12, 2018
2621 people are currently reading
322 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews
March 5, 2019
Q:
“You’re in the light.”
“I am the light, Mr Stone.” ...
“Would you mind shining somewhere else then?” (c)
Ughhhh.... Frankly?
Rating (we start at 5 stars):
Well written enough (+1 star) laid back heroes even though I haven't become a convert of this series or anything. My major grumbles are lots of grafics, some plotpots weirdness. way too dragged out revenge, some plot entanglements (-1 star) that led to nowhere (like Julio is the bodyguard... ok, he is, and? he's still dead, somehow), (-1 star) cardboard police cutouts (hello, Frank, are you even a live person?).
Q:
He knew that clutter and mess did not allow him to think as clearly as he needed. It was like acting without a plan, and hoping for the best; it just wasn’t conducive to a successful outcome. Success required patience, planning and execution. (c)
Q:
He sat in the sand with a bottle of water and watched the sunset for the second time in two days. A habit, he told himself, that he should maintain in his new found freedom. (c)
Q:
Maybe the dust would settle and present him the opportunity he needed. Life was funny in that sense; things had a way of turning out. (c)
“You’re in the light.”
“I am the light, Mr Stone.” ...
“Would you mind shining somewhere else then?” (c)
Ughhhh.... Frankly?
Rating (we start at 5 stars):
Well written enough (+1 star) laid back heroes even though I haven't become a convert of this series or anything. My major grumbles are lots of grafics, some plotpots weirdness. way too dragged out revenge, some plot entanglements (-1 star) that led to nowhere (like Julio is the bodyguard... ok, he is, and? he's still dead, somehow), (-1 star) cardboard police cutouts (hello, Frank, are you even a live person?).
Q:
He knew that clutter and mess did not allow him to think as clearly as he needed. It was like acting without a plan, and hoping for the best; it just wasn’t conducive to a successful outcome. Success required patience, planning and execution. (c)
Q:
He sat in the sand with a bottle of water and watched the sunset for the second time in two days. A habit, he told himself, that he should maintain in his new found freedom. (c)
Q:
Maybe the dust would settle and present him the opportunity he needed. Life was funny in that sense; things had a way of turning out. (c)
September 28, 2022
Enjoyable with action, some violence, drama, knives, guns, desperation, trauma, revenge, drinking.... it's like a good night out. Ready to start next one.
October 16, 2018
Middling UK-based gangster avenging family member tale.
Harvey Stone works for his foster dad, John, as muscle/murderer, taking out the organization's enemies, and on the side, on his own, he takes out sex offenders. At the start of the book, he's in on a killing of the son of another crime family.
There's a really convoluted story about John's gang buying guns from Thompson's gang, and the mention of a third organization called the Stimsons. There's a dirty cop who owes Thompson, and with him, the competent and (naturally remarked upon) beautiful female second in command under him, along with a whiz kid hacker who can break into anything and an engineer/pilot.There's also Sergio, Donny, Julios (spelled as Julio at random),Lenny, Ray, etc. Far too many characters and not a lot of good transitions for scenery changes.
And that's it. All three orgs want to steal some untraceable diamonds, and they're all trying to screw each other over to do it. The end is VERY abrupt and doesn't really make me feel like reading book two of the series.
Overall: meh. It's a fast read, anyhow, although there is some very graphic description of torture, so if you're not able to handle that, you should probably skip this one. If you're just tooling around, looking for something to tide you over, you could do worse.
Harvey Stone works for his foster dad, John, as muscle/murderer, taking out the organization's enemies, and on the side, on his own, he takes out sex offenders. At the start of the book, he's in on a killing of the son of another crime family.
There's a really convoluted story about John's gang buying guns from Thompson's gang, and the mention of a third organization called the Stimsons. There's a dirty cop who owes Thompson, and with him, the competent and (naturally remarked upon) beautiful female second in command under him, along with a whiz kid hacker who can break into anything and an engineer/pilot.There's also Sergio, Donny, Julios (spelled as Julio at random),Lenny, Ray, etc. Far too many characters and not a lot of good transitions for scenery changes.
And that's it. All three orgs want to steal some untraceable diamonds, and they're all trying to screw each other over to do it. The end is VERY abrupt and doesn't really make me feel like reading book two of the series.
Overall: meh. It's a fast read, anyhow, although there is some very graphic description of torture, so if you're not able to handle that, you should probably skip this one. If you're just tooling around, looking for something to tide you over, you could do worse.
January 22, 2018
Stone Cold,the first in the series by J.D.Weston and what a start to the series,it really is a fast paced gritty story that I found difficult to put down and was surprised by the ending.Looking forward to the next in the series.
September 9, 2018
An interesting book
This was interesting, but not something I am thrilled about. I might read the next book now that I am familiar with the writing and character.
This was interesting, but not something I am thrilled about. I might read the next book now that I am familiar with the writing and character.
June 7, 2018
Don't mind the kill count! Or the number of ways you can torture someone.
Stone Cold is a nice story where broken individuals do what they need to survive or prosper.
J.D. paints a good story of the main characters. It's not a long read, but good for a weekend off.
Stone Cold is a nice story where broken individuals do what they need to survive or prosper.
J.D. paints a good story of the main characters. It's not a long read, but good for a weekend off.
March 4, 2022
This is listed as The Final Hit on my kindle, not Stone Cold.
With all the common names, often little distinguishing the actors and the back and forth of view at each chapter change, I had trouble remembering who was who. The side characters had more character and were much easier to grasp as they wove in and out. So there are bad guys A and bad guys B and behind scenes bad guys C and all pretty much the same. No, it's not my memory going, just not much to remember.
A fairly simple plot and a lot of thug talk didn't spark a lot of attention or conjecture from me. I was able to finish it and was glad to see that I hadn't phased out along the line but that a strange thing was then later made clear. The protagonist is into murder and torture, so I am not seeing more of these books in my future.
With all the common names, often little distinguishing the actors and the back and forth of view at each chapter change, I had trouble remembering who was who. The side characters had more character and were much easier to grasp as they wove in and out. So there are bad guys A and bad guys B and behind scenes bad guys C and all pretty much the same. No, it's not my memory going, just not much to remember.
A fairly simple plot and a lot of thug talk didn't spark a lot of attention or conjecture from me. I was able to finish it and was glad to see that I hadn't phased out along the line but that a strange thing was then later made clear. The protagonist is into murder and torture, so I am not seeing more of these books in my future.
May 27, 2018
I got this book on my kindle and kept meaning to start reading it for a few days before finally taking the time to do so.
WOW! What an introduction to a character and author. I was hooked and couldn't put it down. Of course the problem was I started to read it at 9pm and it turned out to eb a late night as I had to finish it. :)
Harvey Stone is an interesting character with so many layers to him. I know this series will just go from strength to strength.
I told my wife about the premise and she quipped that I would understand the underground JD creates better than many but I think anyone who loves crime/thriller stories will love this book.
WOW! What an introduction to a character and author. I was hooked and couldn't put it down. Of course the problem was I started to read it at 9pm and it turned out to eb a late night as I had to finish it. :)
Harvey Stone is an interesting character with so many layers to him. I know this series will just go from strength to strength.
I told my wife about the premise and she quipped that I would understand the underground JD creates better than many but I think anyone who loves crime/thriller stories will love this book.
January 1, 2020
"Torn"
My usual impression after finishing a book is to have a definite rating in mind. With this one I was torn. Strong characters, tough, gritty story lines and the Essex countryside for the settings felt right. The standard of writing in some chapters was off the scale. Then, I considered the violence. I revised my opinion of several characters. They were caricatures, derivative and unlikable. The violent scenes had now become gratuitous and excessive. I wondered who enjoys reading them. In the end, I chose the mid-point. It will appeal to many, but the violence is a step to far for me to want to follow this series further.
My usual impression after finishing a book is to have a definite rating in mind. With this one I was torn. Strong characters, tough, gritty story lines and the Essex countryside for the settings felt right. The standard of writing in some chapters was off the scale. Then, I considered the violence. I revised my opinion of several characters. They were caricatures, derivative and unlikable. The violent scenes had now become gratuitous and excessive. I wondered who enjoys reading them. In the end, I chose the mid-point. It will appeal to many, but the violence is a step to far for me to want to follow this series further.
March 25, 2018
A new favorite
Stone Cold has everything I love in a book. Action, mystery, some drama, and most importantly a bad ass Assassin hell bent on revenge. I really enjoy the writing style and how the author gives you cut scenes so you feel like your seeing everything unfolding from multiple perspectives. The action is non stop and will keep you strapped in.
Harvey stone is an awesome main character that you are gonna love. Everything from his methods to his mission had me cheering him on and wanting to turn page after page to see him accomplish his tasks.
Stone Cold has everything I love in a book. Action, mystery, some drama, and most importantly a bad ass Assassin hell bent on revenge. I really enjoy the writing style and how the author gives you cut scenes so you feel like your seeing everything unfolding from multiple perspectives. The action is non stop and will keep you strapped in.
Harvey stone is an awesome main character that you are gonna love. Everything from his methods to his mission had me cheering him on and wanting to turn page after page to see him accomplish his tasks.
April 7, 2018
Recommended if you like English gangster movies like Snatch or Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.
Warning: there is some extreme and graphic violence.
The audiobook edition has an excellent narrator that really brings the whole story to life, makes the dialogue between the various gangsters entertaining.
Warning: from a feminist perspective, this book is a total fail. Only one strong female character, she gets almost zero screen time. The rest of the women are either backdrops or victims of sexual violence used to motivate the male protagonist.
Warning: there is some extreme and graphic violence.
The audiobook edition has an excellent narrator that really brings the whole story to life, makes the dialogue between the various gangsters entertaining.
Warning: from a feminist perspective, this book is a total fail. Only one strong female character, she gets almost zero screen time. The rest of the women are either backdrops or victims of sexual violence used to motivate the male protagonist.
September 6, 2018
Stone Cold: a Stone Cold thriller by J. D. Weston
Meet Harvey Stone, man on a mission, a Stone Cold killer; his mission, find his sister, Hannah's, rapist and killers. Working for one of the key Englsh mobsters, Harry is the clean-up man, a ghost who leaves no trail or clues behind. Read along as he seeks those responsible for Hannah's death, while eliminating those who his boss directs him to do.
Meet Harvey Stone, man on a mission, a Stone Cold killer; his mission, find his sister, Hannah's, rapist and killers. Working for one of the key Englsh mobsters, Harry is the clean-up man, a ghost who leaves no trail or clues behind. Read along as he seeks those responsible for Hannah's death, while eliminating those who his boss directs him to do.
September 5, 2019
Stone Cold Thriller
This is my first, in the Stone Cold Thriller books and can't wait to get on my next one. This kept me reading night and day. Love all the descriptions of the characters in this book. If you are looking for excitement and always wondering who the killers are, this is your book to read. There is a wonderful blend of horror and beauty, if you can imagine. This is the book to read it you are looking for excitement and anticipation.
This is my first, in the Stone Cold Thriller books and can't wait to get on my next one. This kept me reading night and day. Love all the descriptions of the characters in this book. If you are looking for excitement and always wondering who the killers are, this is your book to read. There is a wonderful blend of horror and beauty, if you can imagine. This is the book to read it you are looking for excitement and anticipation.
August 2, 2021
Stone cold indeed
There are so many cold blooded killers here, it's hard to find a hero. Even the top notch copper gets in on the act. When three crime bosses all go after the diamonds, it's not easy to keep track of everyone. Throw in one assassin who also has a private axe to grind and we arrive at the "Final Hit" of the title. An unexpected offer at the end sets up the rest of the series. A bit gruesome but a great book.
There are so many cold blooded killers here, it's hard to find a hero. Even the top notch copper gets in on the act. When three crime bosses all go after the diamonds, it's not easy to keep track of everyone. Throw in one assassin who also has a private axe to grind and we arrive at the "Final Hit" of the title. An unexpected offer at the end sets up the rest of the series. A bit gruesome but a great book.
August 4, 2021
I can't help but feel I'm being generous with this rating, but I did enjoy the story despite the lack of real character development and predictability of the plot. There's just something about vengeance being the driving force in a story that draws me in. You can't help rooting for the avenger no matter they're underlying evilness. The editing is clean, the plot moves quickly, and there's lots of action.
August 8, 2021
WOW - MORE PLEASE
After I sorted the many characters out, the story line pulled me along at a breathtaking rate. I have a way of deciding how good a book is by the anger I feel when I reach the end. I was very angry as but grabbing stories are very hard to find. Thank you for writing this one Mr Weston and also providing a list of more titles to spend some time with. I definitely feel a binge weekend coming up.
After I sorted the many characters out, the story line pulled me along at a breathtaking rate. I have a way of deciding how good a book is by the anger I feel when I reach the end. I was very angry as but grabbing stories are very hard to find. Thank you for writing this one Mr Weston and also providing a list of more titles to spend some time with. I definitely feel a binge weekend coming up.
March 19, 2020
An all action rollercoaster!
If you want to read a book that leaves you pretty breathless at the end then this is for you. This is a true all action story full of characters who are mostly not particularly likeable. This doesn't actually detract from the story which hardly gives you time to think. It may be interesting to see where the series goes from here.
If you want to read a book that leaves you pretty breathless at the end then this is for you. This is a true all action story full of characters who are mostly not particularly likeable. This doesn't actually detract from the story which hardly gives you time to think. It may be interesting to see where the series goes from here.
August 3, 2021
Crime Families ! How they survive !!
ONE OF THE BEST READS !! Fast moving, intriguing with unthought of plots.
The weekly life episodes of three different crime families in the same area. Working in harmony, on the surface, but navigating deep decisions with a deft rudder! EXCELLENT !!
ONE OF THE BEST READS !! Fast moving, intriguing with unthought of plots.
The weekly life episodes of three different crime families in the same area. Working in harmony, on the surface, but navigating deep decisions with a deft rudder! EXCELLENT !!
November 15, 2022
113-2022. Our hero gets revenge for an awful crime committed against a family member. Along the way, a confusing cast of characters fight through some organized crime disputes, and a crooked cop tries to find his way out of trouble. There are other books in this series, but I’m not sure I’ll follow along.
August 17, 2025
Once again I got disappointed when reading a thriller. Wow. Not a yaay wow, the other kind. It's so silly that I almost felt sorry for the author - but then I remembered that Weston got this published, so who am I to judge. I just happen to have an opinion on his writing, that's all it is, really.
(Please forgive my poor English, my excuse is I’m Swedish).
(Please forgive my poor English, my excuse is I’m Swedish).
June 13, 2018
Stone cold
Very interesting story about complex issues that are of doubtful possibility. Kept one waiting for the next step and in anticipation of the next turn. Don't know exactly how I enjoyed except it kept you involved.
Very interesting story about complex issues that are of doubtful possibility. Kept one waiting for the next step and in anticipation of the next turn. Don't know exactly how I enjoyed except it kept you involved.
June 18, 2018
Harvey Stone is a combination killer for a English mob and a vigilante with his own agenda.
A couple of twists, a couple of predictable scenes, but all in all an okay book.
First of a series, with a loose end. The vigilante has another person to kill to finish the primary mission.
A couple of twists, a couple of predictable scenes, but all in all an okay book.
First of a series, with a loose end. The vigilante has another person to kill to finish the primary mission.
June 27, 2018
Excellent read !!
This is my first book by this author. I enjoyed it . I will certainly share this book with friends and family. I look forward to the next book . Thanks so much. Belinda Young from Mississippi moo
This is my first book by this author. I enjoyed it . I will certainly share this book with friends and family. I look forward to the next book . Thanks so much. Belinda Young from Mississippi moo
October 30, 2018
Good fast read. Nothing surprising that one with resources wouldn't have done.one gets to like and enjoy the main character who has his own law of living. e
A beginning read from this author. One gets to like and enjoy the main character who has his own law of living.
A beginning read from this author. One gets to like and enjoy the main character who has his own law of living.
February 12, 2019
A good read and the beginning of the series.
The author has written a very good beginning. The characters have been fleshed out and the intrigue level is very high. The rest of the series should go on with a great deal of promise.
The author has written a very good beginning. The characters have been fleshed out and the intrigue level is very high. The rest of the series should go on with a great deal of promise.
July 15, 2019
Promising
Good read this one, I completed it in 3 sittings which is pretty good for me! Story line was good although I felt the ending was a little weak. Character wise I liked Harvey and will probably get the follow up book.
Good read this one, I completed it in 3 sittings which is pretty good for me! Story line was good although I felt the ending was a little weak. Character wise I liked Harvey and will probably get the follow up book.
November 30, 2020
Ok You Have a New Fan
Outstanding read....took a little while to get the ball rolling but when it did it was a lot like a train barreling threw a railroad crossing.
Thank you for a grand story. Look forward to starting the next book.
Outstanding read....took a little while to get the ball rolling but when it did it was a lot like a train barreling threw a railroad crossing.
Thank you for a grand story. Look forward to starting the next book.
October 25, 2021
Bloody and Violent, If You’re Into That…
JD Weston spins a good yarn. The good guy is flawed, the bad guys are properly bad, and there are a few interesting twists and a setup for a sequel. Well-written, too.
JD Weston spins a good yarn. The good guy is flawed, the bad guys are properly bad, and there are a few interesting twists and a setup for a sequel. Well-written, too.
January 26, 2018
This is an excellent thriller, chilling, and very graphic. Not recommended for the faint of heart. I was one the edge of my seat throughout the entire book.
March 11, 2018
Not bad.
Started loo off slow with the plot. Once you got passed the first few chapters , book was better. Would read book two.
Started loo off slow with the plot. Once you got passed the first few chapters , book was better. Would read book two.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews