The Asset

Lance Spector #1

by Saul Herzog

Montana, USA
When Lance Spector quit the CIA, he swore he was out for good. One more government lie and he would go off the deep end. They could find someone else to do their dirty work. As far as he was concerned, Washington, Langley, the Pentagon could all go to hell.

Yekaterinburg, Russia
A secret Russian expedition returns with a devastating new pathogen, harvested from the frozen corpses of mammoths. It's the biological super weapon they've been looking for, an apocalypse-level pathogen, a virus more deadly than anything ever to come out of a Russian lab. Something that will stop NATO and the Americans in their tracks.
A Biological Chernobyl.

Washington DC, USA
A mysterious vial, sealed in a titanium case, arrives at CIA headquarters. They have no idea who sent it, but it comes with a note.
"I will only speak to Lance Spector."

Genres: Thriller, Fiction, Espionage, Mystery, Mystery Thriller, Suspense, Beach Reads

564 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 10, 2020

Reviews

[Kathi Defranc · Rating 5 out of 5]

So, a new author to follow with a great new character in Lance Spector!! An author I enjoy recommended this book, and I am so happy I read it!! A well-developed spy thriller, with action, intrigue and intelligence that can lead to several targets, with many twists and double-crossing on the way. I truly enjoy this genre and happily add this series to my list. Human frailty, star crossed relationships, with the addition of bio-weapons and a little romance thrown in, a story that hooked me from the start.

[Dave McGhee · Rating 1 out of 5]

Hmm, the author really built up my expectations with the forward he wrote. He's poured his heart and soul in to this book. The book he always wanted to write. Well, if he's a 13 year old buzzed on mountain dew and writing at 2am on a school night under his duvet then he's achieved his goal.

I got as far as chapter 77. About 30 past where I should have left. This is a ridiculous story! He's gone to the standard pulp fiction store for his ideas.

Mentally challenged hero with a stupid name CHECK
Dodgy CIA boss not trusted by agents CHECK
All female agents super sexy CHECK
Super evil bad guy organisation CHECK
Super evil bad guy who is very short in stature CHECK
Super evil plan to destroy the world CHECK

Here comes the spoiler. Read on if you don'twant to waste any of your life:

A female agent gets shot twice in the chest. She is drugged and transported to Super evil guys. She then spends 24 hours being tortured. She then totally goes beyond physics, engineers an escape plan, kill a massive and uninjured torturer, escape outside naked in a snow storm, kill an armed agent, steal a car, crash car, gets rescued, gets 12 hours sleep, then scales the walls of the kremlin, swings across massive gaps and sneaks into the kremlin and catch the Super evil bad guy. 36/48 hrs before she was shot twice in the chest.

I don't know what happened next because I was truly disappointed with the book.

I could go on and on pulling apart every chapter. Don't waste your time or money

[Jim A · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another thriller featuring a bigger than life government agent. This one involves Russia and new bio weapon development.

[Jefrois · Rating 1 out of 5]

This “Asset,” called, “Lance,” is really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really GOOD!!!!!!

He’s so good that “Levi” (a Hebrew name), wants him BACK in the CIA, execpt he never kind of actually departed it seems.

ANYWAYS!!! He is really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really GOOD!!!!!

AND LANCE KNOWS JUST HOW TO PULL THAT TRIGGER better than well jeez, just ANYbody!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

He pulls that trigger GREAT!!!!!!

PLUS!!!!! He sometimes says witty, humorous, and wise things….

And “Levi” (Hebrew-Jewish name) will do and say ANYTHING to get Lance “back” into the CIA!!!!!!

Because he is also a fairly good shot, and can hit a guy the size of a paper target s000000OOOOOOooooooooOOOooooo0000000000oooo fcking good, it makes Levi (Hebraic name) want a dozen baked hamentaschen with jimmies on them !!!

And that’s the entire book.

With some fcking and scking thrown in….

WOW this “Herzog” is a STUNNER!! I am stunned!!!

WOWZERS!!!!!!!

Cool, right? 😃

“Wowzers, and cool” am I correct? 🤔

YOW!

OH…and this writer has not made me CARE about ANY of these characters enough to make me want to read this any further, so I QUIT THIS POS at 53%.

I am DONE WASTING MY TIME, when I could be watching reruns from the 1950s, or something.!!!!

(I wish I could give this crapolla less than one star.)
.

[Frankie Winchester · Rating 4 out of 5]

Why didn't I read this author sooner? I don't usually read books about the CIA or International intrigue and I suppose that is how I missed Saul Herzog. This was an exciting book that didn't really catch me until 50 pages or so but after that it was a wild ride. There were times when I had to suspend disbelief and that is why I gave it four rather than five stars. I'm looking forward to reading the next book in this series.

[AWolf · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars, Barely! Probably should be 2 stars, but I gave it 3 because it is better than at least 80% of the absolute crap of this genre by "self-published" authors [and wannabes?] on Kindle.
The author handles history and location pretty well, but any real writing style or ability [experience?] ends there. I'll probably read book 2 just to see if he's learned anything - but only because it's free.

[Samuel murphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good storyline.

Good storyline with multiple characters all involved in the dirty game of spying, murder, torture and intelligence on both the Russian and American political arena. An arena that tested people’s resolve to do the right thing when faced by circumstances that would result in the death of millions through a war fought using a virus that had no vaccine cure.

[Richard Haynes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast paced and real good.

[Bodo Pfündl · Rating 5 out of 5]

A high stakes spy war leads to an unforgettable debut thriller

Meet „retired“ CIA asset Lance Spector - a man with an endearing sense of humor and a very particular set of deadly skills. When we first encounter him, he is in a remarkable situation that immediately forges an emotional connection between him and the reader.

With such a great introduction, Saul Herzog sets the bar pretty high from the start and doesn’t let go til the very end.
The characters are among the most fully realized that I came across in this genre in quite a while. The story is deftly plotted, and Herzog pulls together the many threads of the complex narrative masterfully at the end.

The pacing is also very good and the thrill-factor of the many shocking twists is amplified by the pulse-pounding action scenes, which have an alluring cinematic touch to them.

THE ASSET is a truly stunning debut and I can’t wait to see how the story continues in THE RUSSIAN!

[Robert Troudt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good but not great. I found the character development shallow and their interactions often less than believable. I did not like the the “unfinished” ending that requires you to read the next book in the series to find out what happened. Disappointed after the overall rating this book previously received.

[Carole · Rating 1 out of 5]

21 % read and I cannot go another page. Worthless

[Ferne (Enthusiastic Reader) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sofia Ivanova and Tatyana Aleksandrova, the doctor and the assassin, respectively, risk everything to get word to an American for help. Help before Russia unleashes a biological super-weapon. An American named Lance Spector. Little did the women realize he was no longer in that world – the clandestine world of the CIA. Lance only has one goal in mind to save the daughter of the man that saved him.

Saul Herzog is a pen name of an undisclosed author of thrillers. I was captivated by the characters. As the setting fluctuated between Montana, Russia, and Washington, D.C., the intrigue and suspense elevated interest. The author tells a story defining countries as either a fox or a hedgehog. It is not a children’s story about these animals but points to the differences in the ways of men’s thinking and which one clings to the promise of peace.

The last line leaves the reader dangling in wonder, gravitating toward Book 2.

[Ankit Jain · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF @ 51%.

I do not like to claim books as read here if I did not finish. I will make an exception for this however. Just so I never forget I read this waste of time and oh the amount of time I wasted on this. I just wish I could get it back.

This is not a small book by any standard and I got to half of it. I can say with absolute honesty nothing happened. It was like seeing a game of chess but except for pawns being moved nothing happened.

The hero is made out to be some kind of superhero and people are just begging for him to be back. The entire first half is just waiting for the hero to get back in action.

In the first half, he got in a bar fight. Roughed up 2 guys in the back of a car. Lastly he killed a man who was already shot by someone else. That's it, it is alluded throughout the first half that he is some crazy super spy who is best at what he does. Alas I did not witness any of that.

I did get to witness a lot of brooding, over confidence and just a lot of talking, no action sadly. I would not recommend it if it was the last book on earth.

[Betsy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just what I needed to read right now! No emotion except fear; no sentimental slop; no tear-jerking claptrap; just a fast, old fashioned rip-roaring spy story. Bad Russia has secret labs working on the ultimate Armageddon-type virus to destroy the west. Maybe not the best thing to read coming up to Year 3 of our own personal plague, but not that far-fetched, is it? Thankfully Lance Spector, the ultimate secret spy, is on the case.
The only negative is that the story doesn’t really end in Book 1. If you get involved, you will need to read Book 2.

[Christopher Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well executed spy story with action in the US and Russia. Predictable at times but all very readable with a solid narrative drive that keeps you going. Quite a bit left unresolved at the end no doubt to continue in the next in this series.

[Shravya Kadur]

I would say this book can't be rated fairly without reading what follows in the sequel. By itself, it would likely be a 3.5.

[Ipek · Rating 3 out of 5]

Resembles the TV series 24. Not very realistic how characters escape certain situations, but easily read to pass the time.

[Brooke Leigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Book

I was hooked from the very first chapter. This was well written and a great book all around!! You won't regret picking this one up.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW!
Outstanding introduction to Lance and his world! He is such a badass!

This series is everything I didnt know I needed
Spy Thriller! need more immediately!

[William C. Stalions · Rating 5 out of 5]

Classic spy thriller

Written in the style of Robert Ludlum and other classic novelists. The plot is believable and the characters are authentic. The main character, Lance Spector, is not over-written. He is comfortable in his own skin and knows what needs to be done. Highly recommended reading.

[Michael D Zimmer · Rating 5 out of 5]

A new author for me. Thoroughly enjoyed it! I thought it was just what a spy/espionage novel should be. It takes me around the world with twists and turns along the way. I couldn't second guess the ending. Wonderful read.

[William Loder · Rating 1 out of 5]

Bad and long.

Preposterous. Felt like a made up kids camp fire saga. I understand fiction but it needs some level of authenticity and reality. This was just blustery amateurism. This wouldn’t qualify for a bad screen play. not recommended.

[Emily · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did not finish this book. I got about 30% through and the characters were too melodramatic and machismo.

[James Schoen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great many covert-action novels have a formula for success. First, and most important, one needs an action hero. But not just any action hero, no sir, that wouldn't do. This action hero must be the most lethal action hero in the history of lethal action heroes. He must have been exquisitely trained in every manner of hand-to-hand combat and fluently lethal with every type of weapon, be it blade or firearm, and be infinitely more capable than any puny Navy Seal or Delta Force schlub. Part two of the successful formula, our hero must be conflicted and tortured by an experience in his past, something traumatic enough to force him to quit the employ of whatever super-secret organization he is part of and retire into seclusion. Part three of the formula, a new civilization threatening scenario that only HE is capable of dealing with and must be pulled back into service.

Our hero must also have a foil to accentuate and enhance his stellar capabilities, a partner or handler, as it were, to temper his heroic fits of temper and angst and keep him focused and on target. And, it goes without saying that the perfect foil for this type of action hero is, of course, the stunningly gorgeous woman. They most often dislike each other intensely from the beginning until the sexual tension between them becomes overwhelming and lovemaking ensues.

Stir into this mix a dollop of bad guys, those pesky Russians are always a good choice. And throw in an assassination or two, people our hero is especially fond of (so as to activate his revenge/retribution response), and VOILA! we have the perfect scenario for the next heart-pounding suspense/spy novel.

The Asset, by Saul Herzog, seemed to begin in this type of hackneyed predictable formula, and I found myself sighing heavily and rolling my eyes wondering if I would even be able to finish the book. Then, to my surprise, the author delved into the creation of the world-threatening catastrophe, the scientists and archeologists who made the discovery, as well as the intrusive political and military efforts to use the scientific discovery to their nefarious ends. Our superhero barely had a peripheral presence in the first third of the novel.

I found myself actually enjoying the read and looking forward to Lance Spector living up to his stellar reputation. Several twists in the successful formula added to my interest as well and kept me happily turning the pages to read more. The ending, while not precisely a cliff-hanger, was enough of an interesting conclusion to make me want to read the next novel right away. All in all, I found it to be a very enjoyable read.

[Alan Davis]

I finished The Asset this morning, Saul Herzog’s spy thriller based in Moscow and the US. It’s an odd mix of competent writing, particularly when Herzog describes the Kremlin or other settings, and lapses. In one scene, Lance Spector (yes, that’s his name) gets shot in the chest saving a Russian spy who’s being tortured in a bedroom by a man who enjoys choking his tied up sex toys to the point of strangulation, and doing it again and again. Lance interrupts his fun to save the woman but two henchmen enter the room and one shoots Lance in the chest before he kills them both. Afterwards, Tatyana, the woman, tends to his chest wound by taping it. Lance is good to go. As good as new.

There are plenty of scenes like that, where the action is quickly dispatched in such a way that characters survive when survival seems impossible. It makes me understand how good the best thriller writers, like Lee Child, actually are, because they too have heroes who overcome impossible odds but take the time to make such scenes more plausible.

The Asset also ends in medias res, with an invitation to buy Volume Two, The Russian. I have to decide if it’s worth my time to continue reading. All the books are Kindle Unlimited, which means it’s included in the monthly subscription if you're a member. After watching how every principal character escapes a carousel or amusement park assortment of escapades, including torture, wounds with voluminous arterial bleeding, helicopter crashes, dashes across open squares while squads of Russian police fire a cascade of tracer bullets, I have to conclude that Herzog is writing, finally, for a very undemanding audience, even by the standards of the genre.

However, you might enjoy the plot, which involves the possibility of a world war and a viral plague, and includes cliffhangers and a great deal of intrigue inside both the CIA and Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service. The multiple perspectives give equal weight to men and women; it's just that Herzog sometimes has his principals, especially Lance Spector, implausibly banter when they would be focused on the mission at hand or throw a tantrum when doing so could mean defeat and WWIII. Given Russia's war with Europe, however, the realpolitik here, and the ruthlessness of those in power, is all too credible and scary.

[Steve Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Russians make a bio weapon from an ancient pathogen extracted from the remains of a mammoth preserved in Siberian permafrost.

Retired asset Lance Spector is called out of retirement to save the world. He is in a downward spiral after the loss of a loved one and is leading a self-destructive lifestyle as he deals with his painful past.

Laurel, who hopes to become his new handler, and Roth, his old boss whom he has not totally forgiven for his role in the loss of his loved one, succeed in bringing Lance aboard for his most important mission ever.

Along the way, Lance will need help from the other side and may need to depend on a past relationship. He is unsure who he can trust as danger and suspense escalate in this fast-paced thriller.

The book is creative and entertaining but stretches believability in many ways, some of which can be forgiven because such devices are common in this genre, but some of which feel over the top for any genre.

Several characters do actually die when they are shot but others, including the main character, brush off their wounds too easily and keep going as though their wounds were no more serious than a bee sting.

Some of the dialogue doesn't feel realistic as characters speak in unnatural ways, echoing their words on several occasions for no apparent reason. Some of the odd speech patterns could be attributed to the author's attempts to produce a Russian accent but some of it feels unnecessarily awkward and irritating.

The villains on both sides are well-done and are a strong point in the plot. The author does a good job of keeping the book from becoming too violent, especially when it comes to the torture scenes, but some of the methods used by the Russians feel too clumsy and unlikely, allowing for a means of escape.

Some readers won't like the cliffhanger ending but it is effective in inviting readers to come back for the next offering in the exciting series.

[Anastasia Beaverhausen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Series Review

I started this series after seeing it on KU and finished all five published books.
It would seem there are two yet left to publish.
The story in and of itself is very ripped from the headlines with enough research done to give characters a backstory. I don’t dislike the writing style and despite the jump from storyline to storyline within each book…it actually works.
This isn’t a bad series. It’s actually quite interesting and quick reading. The problem lies with the author’s decidedly negative view of women.
They exist in this author’s mind as either whores or mothers regardless of their accomplishments or rank within the organization they work within.
All dialog and descriptions are of women who are seen by the author as nothing more than plot devises of his belief that women are only good for reproduction or bed partners.
Even the “good” female characters who exist to work toward justice are given unlikable attributes and attitudes which severely limit the audience.
As a devotee of Lee Child, David Baldacci, Vince Flynn and other authors of this genre, which is widely read by women, I spent the majority of the time rage reading this series as a result of the author’s choice to depict women as catty, petty incompetents.
To be honest, there are zero likable characters in the series and the author’s keen ability to set a tempo for the storyline with interesting history and current events is the real star of the writing.
The writing is good. The topical storylines are interesting. The choice to use every female character (there are many) as a punching bag is disappointing which is why I’ve given it three stars rather than four.

[Darryle B. · Rating 3 out of 5]

What a great debut for the Lance Spector saga. The author has a good handle on this character and as a reader who has read nearly 300 books that are mostly suspense thrillers, this one delivers as expected. Spector was a top operative in the CIA and became disillusioned with his activities because it resulted in a personal tragedy. There was a particular situation in which a Russian spy would only speak to him about an imminent threat to national security and possibly the world at large. Spector's reluctance to return to the CIA in his mind was justifiable given the circumstances so much so that had he stayed, he would very likely had killed his former CIA boss.

I liked the suspense, action and drama associated with this thriller. I always like to see the cliffhangers, plot twists and action that together makes the story and the Spector interesting. It's the kind if thing that keeps me reading and this does so.

I am interested in seeing where this saga goes with the character development, what the new mission will be and the future of Spector's relationships with the supporting characters. Given that I am in the process of writing my own thrillers soon, it's these stories and templates on how to write compelling thrillers are what I like drawing upon. I am adding Agent Spector to my group of spy character that I enjoy reading about. If you like Mitch Rapp, The Gray Man, Jack Reacher and other thrillers, this book is recommended. I am off to the next book.

[Ron Welton · Rating 2 out of 5]

One doesn't expect literature when ordering kindle unlimited novels, so it wasn't a disappointment when Saul Herzog's The Asset proved not to be of the quality of Graham Greene. It was, though, readable, and amusingly campy, although I doubt that Herzog planned that.
Lance Spector is the asset, a "special breed" of CIA assassin. Laurel Everlane is his handler and Roth is the head of the CIA who recruited them. Herzog doesn't define them well and their dialogs are clunky. His Russian characters, among them Sofia Ivanovna and Tatyana Aleksandrova, are more believable and more interesting and their dialog is at least acceptable.
The Russians have reached into the Siberian permafrost and isolated an ancient virus strain "more lethal than anything the labs could ever come up with." The virus is in the possession of the Dead Hand, a GRU directorate directly linked to the Russian President. It is the mission of the CIA to destroy the virus before it is released. The mission is hampered by a mole in the agency and Spector is the only asset who has not yet been killed. The Russians are working on that, though.
Since Herzog has left Spector and Aleksandrova wounded and left behind by the CIA in Moscow at the end of the novel, I will grit my teeth and download The Russian Herzog/s follow up novel.