The Operators

by Barry Heard

Sophisticated computer hacking told the syndicate everything about Wally. Everything but why it would be a big mistake to kidnap him.

Retired farmer Wally Flannagan is on a pilgrimage to Indonesia to witness the once-in-a-lifetime blooming of a rare flower. His holiday soon goes awry when he finds himself the target of kidnapping with the goal of extortion. Yet these plans, as alarming as they are for Wally, are little more than a diverting pastime for this criminal syndicate. They are organised, powerful, and ruthless. Yet there’s one thing they don’t know about Wally. He’s a Pig. What’s a Pig? Read on …

The Operators is a thrilling yarn of wit, man bags, and old-fashioned ingenuity in the face of a changing world from master storyteller Barry Heard.

264 pages, Paperback

Published September 3, 2019

Reviews

[Josh · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Operators could've been an entertaining yarn had it not been for the excessive filler content which stagnated the story.

The opening stanza hinted at this being a thriller but that soon dried up as man-bags, facebook, and a trip to Indonesia to see a rare flower bloom took over. The pacing and excessively polite dialogue and overwhelming respect towards strangers, mates, and, to a certain extent, criminals was annoying and read like the author was more concerned with offending someone as opposed to telling a dangerous kidnap and recover story.

Additionally, too often the author delved deep into character backstory (including bit players) which, when it came to the crunch, didn't actually add anything meaningful to Wally Flannagan's predicament. The same can be said for the passages about communication during wartime's on the front; whilst insightful, there was just too many pages devoted to it which hindered, more than it helped.

Despite my obvious misgivings about The Operators, I did enjoy some moments, notably the kidnapping scene and some passages describing the elaborate kidnap caper and the high powered criminal enterprise behind it.

I'm sure there are readers who will lap up the slower pace but it just wasn't for me.

[Scribe Publications]

This quirky thriller mixes touches of humour with sharp social commentary, interesting dollops of information and a brisk plot that takes the reader down some unexpected paths … An off-beat and surprising thriller that builds to a good climax.
Jeff Popple, Canberra Weekly Magazine

[John · Rating 2 out of 5]

Became interested in the book because of the blurb. Even though I finished the book, I lost interest before the 50% mark.

What could have been a reasonably good story, lost its way and digressed/bogged down into either emotional issues &/or gap-filler information. Even put it aside for a while to see if I could reignite some interest.

Unable to recommend this book.

[Michael O'Donnell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you for defending our country in the shittiest of circumstance but the thing did not come together as a book.

[Josh · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF, too much useless filler and almost 0 story

[Booksnaps · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quirky and quite witty.