Quantum Breach

by Mark Powell

As Mark McCabe observed the financial market meltdown in the Dealing Room, his nerves tight and on edge, he felt too old for the game. At 45, why the hell was he doing this, putting himself under such stress, and for what? It had been eight years since he left the regiment. Forex trading was a world in which he felt he did not belong. The adrenaline that fed his veins was risk of a different kind.

Then he receives a call from Brian Stowe, a former Special Forces buddy, now MI5 spook. A suspected money-laundering plot linked to a drug cartel was going on in the very bank that he works. Stowe enlists McCabe and his Singaporean assistant, the highly intelligent and very attractive Ying Lee, a 26-year-old trader, to uncover the money trails.

The chase leads to a terrorist cell known to McCabe from his own murky past, and a deadly game of cat-and-mouse across Asia and the Middle East ensues. Along the way, questions are raised and loyalties become suspect. How is the British Government involved? Who is this shadowy MI6 informer, the Rain Angel? Is she with them - or is she against them?

Genres: Mystery, Thriller, Fiction

260 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

Mark is an action thriller writer.

His first novel entitled 'Quantum Breach' the first in a trilogy following the adventures of a charismatic character named Mark McCabe was released in 2009. His second novel entitled 'Deep Six' a well researched action novel set against the topical and dynamic subject of Somali pirates was well received when it hit the streets in July 2010. In the works is his third novel‘The Somali Sanction’. Due for release in 2011.

Reviews

[Margaret · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was expecting a testosterone-fuelled, right of centre thriller - based on the blurbs / previews and that's not really my cup of tea, however, a page-turning throw-away novel is just the thing for flights - or train journeys in my case.
Sadly it's too poorly written for that. I can't get into it because I keep picking out examples of really bad prose. It would definitely benefit from some judicious editing. The writing is generally mediocre except when it is poor, and it tends to be repetitive.
The main character is apparently a glamourised version of the author - he only bothered changing the surname. He's supposed to be James Bond, sex-on-legs and is profoundly unattractive. Unless, presumably, you're turned on by people who drop everything in their get-away-from-it-all heaven on earth to murder someone in cold blood as revenge.
And the women? Well, obvously they are all sexy glamour pusses that have no interior lives or much connection to the real world. Bad Luck for Mr Powell that the name Pussy Galore has already been taken.
I think Mr P must have read some 'writing for dummies' book that told him to put in colourful metaphors to spice things up because he throws in these ludicrously clunky lines all over the place. Still they do provide some light relief amongst the macho bull feathers.

Still I do have another 45 min train journey home this evening - maybe the last 200 pages are riveting!
...
No they're not - not by a long chalk. Powell never tells you anything once if he can tell you 5 times. Or more. The story is too slow-moving not least because he keeps tracking back to explain something - usually something that does not need explaining - or to fill in pointless details about something that's already happened.

He clearly wants you to side with the good guys. You can tell who the baddies are because they abduct & torture people. Unlike the goodies who interrogate people - by putting them in the boot of the car, driving them somewhere out of view, beating them, knee-capping them, sticking a steel rod into a bullet wound & then shooting them. I think the important differences are a) the goodies only ever torture and shoot bad men whereas the baddies slap a woman around and b) the goodies shoot their victims instead of slowly torturing them to death. But perhaps it's just the colour of their hats & Powell forgot to mention it?

Someone needs to explain to him the difference between infer and imply - the fact that this sort of thing jumps out at me is indicative of how gripping I found the plot. I'll ascribe the use of 'peaking' instead of 'peeking' to a typo in the print process.

He has a chick as 1 of his main characters. She's ethnically Chinese, 26 years old, beautiful, brilliant and good at her job. Naturally therefore she is also sexually available to random Englishmen 20 years her senior and after providing these services she makes everyone dinner. Presumably she gets busy on the housework whilst the manly men eat. She is so good at her job that someone insists she comes with him to Mumbai although her job apparently requires access to a computer and perhaps a phone - physical location being pretty much irrelevant. But the plot requires that she should be sent to Dubai & then Mumbai at short notice and thus great expense to her employer. Having got there she knocks off early & goes shopping. At least twice.

I could go on. It's a middle-aged white man's masturbatory fantasy and unforgivably dull.

[Jak · Rating 3 out of 5]

Industrial espionage/spy thrillers are not my usual thing but this win via First Reads is helping me broaden my horizons! :-)

The plot follows ex-special forces turned corporate banker Mark McCabe as he is drawn back into the covert life when his bank is targeted as part of a terrorist/drug cartel money laundering plot. McCabe is enlisted by a former colleague Brian Stowe, now working for MI6, to keep tabs on one of the banks employees who he suspects of laundering money for a terrorist group. McCabe in turn enlists the help of one of his traders, Ying Lee. Together the three of then travel to Dubai to gather evidence on the rouge trader and start following the money trail.

The trio are aided by information from the shadowy ‘Rain Angel’, an MI6 informer, but can her information trusted and is she playing both sides of the coin?

Eventually the action moves to Mumbai and draws to a climax as the full extent of the plot is uncovered.

There were various pros and cons for me about the book. The pros were that the book manages to maintain a decent pace and builds nicely towards the inevitable end game and is very readable. The cons, that some of the interactions felt a bit forced/stilted and that everyone with a special forces back ground is a ‘real character’ with quirky character traits.

I also found it difficult to believe that a civilian would be used/placed in danger (not to mention possibly blowing the whole op) with such casual ease. Even when their cover was clearly compromised, if not with the trader himself the terrorists/cartel, Ying continued in her role of mole for the good guys.

There were also some big coincidences to set up the end game which felt a bit convenient while Stowe/ McCabe miss some fairly large hints as to the involvement of others in the plot.

That said, I did enjoy the book and as Powell has done a bang up job of setting up what is clearly to become a series I probably read the second instalment when it’s released.

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mark McCabe, a British 45-year-old Foreign Exchange trader unexpectedly finds himself reunited after 8 years with Brian Stowe, a former Special Forces buddy, now MI5 spook. Stowe enlists McCabe and his Singaporean assistant, the highly intelligent and very attractive Ying Lee, a 26-year-old trader, to help him uncover a suspected money-laundering plot within the very bank in which they both work. The money trails they uncover lead to a terrorist cell known to McCabe from his own murky past. The three protagonists quickly find themselves engaged in a deadly game of cat-and-mouse across Asia and the Middle East, uncovering the fraudulent work of a terrorist group linked to a Burmese drug cartel that is buying up large stakes in a British Bank with their dirty money. As the plot races along, questions are raised and loyalties become suspect. Who is this shadowy MI6 informer, the Rain Angel? And how is the British government involved?

This is an up-to-date action packed page turner of a thriller. The author has obviously got first hand experience and knowledge of the financial industry and military operations and this comes through in his writing. Powell has managed to incorporate the recent global financial crisis with ongoing terrorist threats and created a thrilling read. The characters are believable and familiar with the influence of their real life counter parts as seen on any news channel in recent years easy to see. This association and compatability with real life 'characters' makes the story all the more believable as some of the responses of both Governments and Financial Institutions to the events in the book are similar to those the global public have seen and heard recently.

The writing is easy to read and even with the complexities of the financial and trading systems systems, which are nicely explained and easy to understand even without much knowledge of how it all works (or in my case no knowledge), the story keeps it's momentum and pace throughout and doesn't get buried under too much detail. Even the moments building up to the action are tense as Powell gets us inside the head of the people involved so you feel the tension and anticipation building as they do.

The flashbacks to various stages in the McCabe's life and his involvement in various covert operations with Stowe add depth to both his and Stowe's characters and gives the reader a better sense of who they were and who they are. And it explains a lot about the decisions and ultimate course of action they end up taking towards the end of the book. Speaking of which the book ends on a bit of a cliff hanger, that is brilliantly set up readyt for the next installment...of which I am waiting in impatient anticipation.

Overall a superb first novel and a great start to a series that can only get better. If you like Andy McNab, you will like Mark Powell.

[Sorcha]

Sent to me by publishers after being offered (and won!) via www.goodreads.com giveaway[return][return]What to say? Topical story, using the backdrop of banking and international markets in meltdown during late 2008 used to hide massive terrorist laundering of drug money. Different edge on things by having a ex-secret service personnel on the inside to do investigations to prevent this happening.[return][return]That's the good side. The bad side? It's a first novel and you (ok, I) can tell. There's nothing wrong per se about it - it has all the things that add up to make a good thriller (men with guns and dead ex girlfiends/difficulty making relationships; stunning civvies who get pulled in, get into trouble and have to be rescued; shady deals being made by faceless government mandarins; money; drugs; international travel; goodies; baddies etc etc), it's just that something isnt quite right. Some things that kept jumping out at me: Everything took an hour to explain to someone else; The insider dealer backed everything up to a CD, which I thought you couldnt write too more than once (I would have believed it more if he'd written to an external harddrive or dongle); And here is a cut of a paragraph that I think is a good example of what I'm on about:[return][return]Kari Mohammed el-Hajj was a hard man with very strong extremist beliefs. He hated the West and all it stood for. Worse, he had a pronounced taste for torture. [return][return]There is no reasoning as to why he hates the West (cos the Americans killed his family, cos he grew up in a deprived area and was taught the West was bad by his teachers.......). Also with the torture - how did this develop, why and what does he get from it? This part of the paragraph is practically redundant and could have been demonstrated more effectively by his actions (more detail being given about the torture, perhaps using Western items, such as flags, as part of any degradation), rather than the paragraph above. [return][return]On the whole a good first novel, hope Mr Powell gets to go again.

[Gill · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this on Goodreads, but despite Mark's best efforts my copy and the second he sent out to me seem to have gone astray. Another winner, Sam, lent me her copy, for which I am most grateful.

There is more violence than I like to encounter in a book, but that is the nature of the genre, perhaps, although I have encountered many examples of espionage thrillers that manage without what can be seen as gratuitous violence.
I like the tone and length of the opening prologue and it made me keen to get into the rest of the book and read on.
The following chapters setting the scene for the action and introducing its proponents were slower-paced and sometimes a bit dry, with the necessity of introducing some understanding of the world of financing and trading. What it lacked most for me, however, was a real connection to be established with the central characters. Ying remained for me, throughout, a glossy, idealised Asian woman, despite some glimpses into her home and family. Even the most glamorous and successful women normally have insecurities and worries, and perhaps this was what was missing for me in Ying, to make her into a character one cared about. It was a missed opportunity, since for most of the readers Ying, coming from a life outside the espionage world of the other main characters, was the one who could have given them a route into the effects of being swept summararily into such an alien world.
Then, because it became evident so early on to the reader, who was pulling the strings, the element of surprise and tensions were lacking in the subsequent events. Once the pace of events began to pick up and the action moved from Singapore to Dubai and then Mumbai, I was swept along more by the pace of the action.
The end begs a second book, and I look forward to reading it, and hope to find the writer has honed his skills further in the sequel: The Rain Angel.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won a free copy of this book on Goodreads' Firstreads section where an author gives away so many copies of their book to be read, reviewed and critiqued.

This novel is situated around dodgy dealings in a corporate bank with branches all round the world. The main character Mark McCabe is a trader in the Singapore office of the bank but used to be in the Special Forces, during which time his girlfriend was kidnapped and killed. Someone at the bank is involved in setting up trades to launder money and an old friend of Mark's from MI5 asks him to help from the inside.

And so we end up in an adventure involving kidnap, murder, terrorists, gunfights, rescue attempts, moles etc.

It wasn't bad. Not really my kind of thing and I felt a bit confused with the detail about the trading side of it. The actual story was good, and it did make you think about some of the characters and whose side they were on. It was obviously written by a male author and although he tried to make the main female character strong and independent, she still ended up a bit cliched and a male fantasy figure!

A couple of niggles. There was a lot of use of the word "whom", sometimes in places where I thought it should have been "who" but I'm not an expert in grammar, it just read wrong to me. The other thing was point of view. It was written in what I think is called the "omnipresent point of view" where you know what all the characters are thinking rather than in first or third person where you only get one viewpoint. This got a bit confusing as the point of view would jump form person to person a lot, sometimes in the same paragraph and I had to go back and clarify who it was a few times.

It was a fairly quick read once i got into it and the ending has left scope for a sequel which I believe is in the pipeline.

[I Read · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this read as I haven’t read a secret service book before, however I wouldn’t place it up there with the best.

The complex relationship between the two main characters Stowe and McCabe I found interesting and worked well. It was probably the thing that carried the story although the plot wasn’t bad and I was happy to keep turning the pages, more so in the second half once the web had been formed and things began to play out.

The author did well to present the banking practices in simple terms, yet I’m sure it’s a benefit to people with a better grasp than I to understand with quicker ease and clarity.

Some of the torture scenes I personally found uncomfortable (and I’m definitely not a girly girl!), but I understand they are essential to this type of genre.

In all it was a decent read and I would consider follow up books by the same author. It added credibility to the text knowing Powell’s experience of the subjects in his own life and the issues contained were relevant to the world today.


** I received this free of charge through Goodreads First-Reads **

[Llewellyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

What is fascinating about the book is the depiction of McCabe as the mysterious character seeking to redeem himself from his past. He has no real attachments to anybody or anything in this world. His reason for existence seems to be solely to redeem himself from his past. Even when under duress his physical prowess and movements speak much more about his mental state than the actual words spoken. It is through the character's lack of interest or apathy that one can observe the world.

The author's style is one of cool bleakness. The tone suggests a constant looming menace, embodied by the mysterious character the Rain Angel. The roles each person plays in the story are very clearly defined. McCabe the ex-special forces agent, his loyal friend Brian Stowe, Ying, the gorgoeous female lead, etc. All (except McCabe) seem just pieces of a grander scale. Powell's world view is so thoroughly and crisply represented it is as if the individual events are not as important as the atmosphere in general.

Powell's first book certainly exceeded my expectations. I am already looking forward to his next book.

My verdict? A very enjoyable book that demands and rewards the reader.

[Arun · Rating 1 out of 5]

Its been a while since I finished this book but didn't post a review immediately as I had an overwhelmingly negative opinion about it. I gave myself a few weeks in case my view softened - but unfortunately it didn't.

The plot tries to be a thriller spanning Asia, Middle East & Britain, but the problem is - there's no suspense whatsoever. The story just unravels itself without saving anything for the end. The money laundering scenario seems to be quite unsophisticated and surprising it takes an obligatory "intelligent and highly attractive lady" to figure that out. The author also puts down the Indian way of things in more than one occasion, be it the mad traffic or the administration. He may be quite right there, but certainly not going to win him any favours with readers from the sub continent.

The ending leaves it open for a sequel, hope it turns out better!

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a thrilling adventure story set around the international banking world. The money-laundering scam was interesting, I don't know much about the financial world, but everything was explained in a way that I could understand. The investigation, and ultimately the conclusion, were well set up by the author. Although there were hints along the way, the ending was still a surprise for me.
There were some torture scenes, which were a bit uncomfortable to read in places, but not too gruesome.
The characters were well developed, and the author did a great job of introducing aspects of each characters' past that helped to understand why they act the way they do in the book.

I really enjoyed this book. It was full of action and was never boring. I thought it was a really good first novel, and I'm really pleased that Mark decided to send it to me for review.

[Susan Grossey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book for work (I am an anti-money laundering specialist) and it was quite enjoyable. A bit "Boys' Own" for me - lots of description of guns and running battles with baddies - but a good pace and generally well-rounded characters. Having lived in Singapore I can picture much of the location, but I did find it a bit lazy that the main female character was (yawn) a hot Asian babe. The other drawback is the omniscient narrator: you are told the thoughts and feelings of about five main characters, so sometimes you have to look back to see who is the subject. (I prefer the discipline of having one main character and you know only what they are thinking and feeling, but perhaps that's just personal taste.) The ending is a bit unsatisfactory - the author is so clearly leaving the door open (almost literally) for a sequel.

[Judy · Rating 3 out of 5]

The storyline was good (apart from the end), the characters were believable and there was plenty of intrigue but I'm afraid that the financial side of the story, although key to the plot, was a bit tedious for me. It took me longer than usual to read as I kept putting it down. I only persisted with it because it was a Goodreads win and I didn't want to let anyone down. I kept waiting for something which was key to the mystery(don't want to spoil this for anyone) to be found towards the end of the story, and when it wasn't until the very end it seemed a bit unrealistic. It annoyed me a bit that the story didn't really end and would obviously continue in a further book.

[David Crosby · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this authors debut novel, an interesting mix of espionage and international banking. The bulk of the detail seemed to lay with the spying and special forces action, while the banking (the author's speciality?) was quite lightweight. I was left pondering lack of detail at times, but certainly wasn't put off. In fact, while I found myself saying "I'm not really sure if I like this...", I couldn't put it down. It was a page-turner for sure, and that's a great sign.

In compliance with FTC guidelines, I have to disclose that I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.

[Kellyanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this book free as a 'First Reads' on this site. The copy was signed too :) (Thank you Mark!)

I really enjoyed this book. I thought the characters were well thought out and I took an immediate liking to McCabe and Stowe, the two main characters.

I liked the fact that espionage was mixed in with the banking and terrorists and the intelligent services.

I also liked that Mark obviously researched the banking industry so well which lent credibility.

I look foward to the next book very much as it has left me wanting more!

[Denise Cochran · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having read the feedback on here about this book I decided to read it for myself. Have to say I enjoyed it. It's an easy read and when you consider it is the authors first book, a great job. He has an honest style and writes what he sees. I for one will follow this author now as I think he will be big. Not all authors will be strike it big first time. What I like about Powell is he is prepared to listen and always thanks readers for their review. That says a lot about him I think. Good book and I will read Deep Six for sure.

[Layla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall I enjoyed this book. The relationships and characters were developed well and the descriptions of past spy activities were done well. However I'm not sure a spy thriller set in a financial situation is a great combination. It sometimes dragged and I found myself skipping parts of the descriptions about terrorist activities using the banking systems as it seemed to to drag on. For the most part there was excitement and suspense until it went into detail on banking transaction.

[Ameet · Rating 3 out of 5]

A reasonably enjoyable book to read but the latter half did feel a little bit rushed with large jumps in timeline which left me wondering if certain aspects were just going to be left as assumed events or be referred to later on in the book.

A large part of the book did feel like it was primarily there to setup a series a novels but it was engaging enough for me to be interested in the next book.

[Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this in First Reads so, yay. I enjoyed this thriller combining corporate espionage, spies and special armed forces although it's not the greatest thing I've ever read. It is rather noticable as a first novel and could have done with better editing to get rid of some unnecessary text but I would definitely read the next in the series to see how this author improves.

[Milagros]

I won this book on a Goodreads giveaway and am so glad I did. The book is quite a page-turner.
Lent it to my husband and he read it whole during our 4 day holiday (for him, an absolute record). It includes his favourite topics: economics/finance and action.
A truly entertaining read, thanks for the copy!

[Mart · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this a fascinating read and was impressed by the mix of action and technical banking knowledge. It's not typical of some the other books I have read of this type and the author has drawn on his experience and first hand knowledge of the miltary and banking.

[Gavin Rogers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well paced action thriller that left me wanting more. As en expat living in Singapore and also working for an investment bank I could relate to the characters and the locations in the story. Looking forward to McCabe's next adventure!

[Denis Joplin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I quite liked this book. I thought the plot was original and well developed, as were the relationships between the characters. I also thought the banking world was explained well enough without being boring.

[Jill Le · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this. Although not the genre I would normally read I found it gripped me without being too heavy. It is well worth a read and I may find myself reading some more of this genre/author if only to follow the central character McCabe!

[Fee · Rating 2 out of 5]

To be honest I struggled to get into this book for the first couple of chapters, I found it quite difficult to follow, it's not really my kind of book but I thought I'd try something different.

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great read, by a fine new thriller writer. Can't wait for the next one.

[Lee Wendy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can't put the book down! Absolutely mesmerizing! Looking forward to the next one!

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

well paced thriller with characters that i cared about and a believable plot line. am lookign forward to the next one.

[Arlene Richards · Rating 1 out of 5]

The is a first novel in a trilogy.I will not be reading the remaining two. This book based on high
testosterone levels- lots of killing and senseless torture.

[Sonja · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was very informative. I learned a lot.

[Matthew Shields · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book with a real pace to the story, can't wait for the next installment.