Black

by Christopher Whitcomb, L.J. Ganser (Narrator)

Handle: A major new thriller, set in the shadowy world of "black ops, " written by the former FBI agent who knows every dark detail--first hand. Description: Most Americans have never heard of black operations because they don't officially exist--no Appropriations bills, no yearly audits or Congressional oversight. The CIA, Defense Intelligence Agency, and National Reconnaissance Office won't discuss them at any level. Special Agent Jeremy Waller is thrilled to earn a spot in law enforcement's most elite squad, the FBI's Hostage Rescue Team--until his assignments begin to contradict his sense of what's right and wrong, what's legal and what's not. Jordan Mitchell is a telecommunications tycoon in control of one of the largest personal fortunes in the world--and the keeper of some very dangerous secrets. Senator Elizabeth McGean could be the next president of the United States, but someone seems willing to do anything--including framing her for the murder of a National Security Council staffer--to ensure she never sees the White house. Sirad Malneaux is beautiful and brilliant and a stone cold killer. Ari Weiss is a Wall Street hotshot who answers to no one--except Israeli intelligence. Now, all five are about to slip into a world few know about, where there are no rules except that everything must be kept secret and not everyone can survive. And in the end, FBI agent Waller will find that sometimes the only way out of the darkness is to head even deeper into the black. Written with a David Baldacci-like pace and the insider expertise that only Christopher Whitcomb can bring to the table, Black is the most exciting debut thriller in years.

Genres: Fiction, Thriller, Mystery, Mystery Thriller

Audio CD

First published May 1, 2004

About the author

His three books have been released by major publishers and well reviewed. You can find some details about him here:

http://www.bookreporter.com/authors/a...

Reviews

[Johnny G. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a 3-Star thriller if there ever was one. The story follows four main characters and predictably brings them all together at the climax. Some segments are better written than others; I cared for some sequences but not all. It was a bit annoying to read this 10-year old book because the technology was outdated. A decent summer read. This one was on my shelf for a long time, but I'm not sure why I wanted to read it so much!

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

This excellent novel is exciting until a rushed and anticlimactic ending. Whitcomb could have and should have ended this better. Nonetheless, 8 of 10 stars

[Jaime K · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars This book got more interesting as I continued reading.

Elizabeth Beechum: a Democratic Senator (the anti-Republican nature of the book was heavy-handed) vying for a presidential nomination. She is also very much against the work of a computer businessman named Jordan Mitchell. She's framed for murder (as soon as I realized what was happening, I predicted it was Mitchell behind everything. Not saying it's true, but I suspected it very early on). She cares more about the national security of the US though than lining someone's pockets.

Jordan Mitchell is the owner of a tech company who wants to sell devices (basically precursors to smartphones!) for cheap to the American public.

Jeremy Waller is a new HRT recriut/sniper who quickly learns what it really means to be HRT. Other than his interactions with Sirad, a female..spy? A something, who is hired by Mitchell, his relationship to Beechum and Mitchell and the plot of the story is very unclear for a large part of the book.


I like that Whitcomb highlights that the higher-ups in government (like Senators) know a lot more than us, particularly when it comes to the nation's security.

[Mike · Rating 2 out of 5]

I bought this book and his subsequent novel White way back when in 2006 or 2007. He was a frequent guest on Imus in the Morning on MSNBC then or thereabout. He seemed intelligent, personable and not overly arrogant or cocky, Imus liked him and his history as a former FBI HRT member seemed interesting so I bought his 2 novels. I'm slogging through this book and I've taken to drawing a figure (me) rolling his eyes in the margins of some passages.
Someone on this site said this book was an airport read. Agreed. I will finish it if only because it has sat on my bookshelf all these years waiting for me and its not too painful to read.

9/9/2020: OK, done. I'm reducing my rating from 3 stars to two based on the ridiculous ending. Gawd, I'm glad I'm done with that book.

[Dena · Rating 2 out of 5]

There was so much going on in this book, yet it still did not peak my interest. I kept thinking, "okay, it's about to get really good" and then it would switch to another character. While it all came together in the end, I still considered it a listening turd.

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fast paced book from start to finish. This was a Good Read

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh. No likable characters and unrealistic motivations.

[Linda Carter · Rating 1 out of 5]

No

[Hyrum · Rating 1 out of 5]

I will save my full review for later, but I pretty much hated 90% of this book. I only listened to the whole thing to learn more about how the FBI works. If the author believes what he writes, he's an idiot. The main character, the protagonist spends more time fretting over his first kill when it was a kidnapper about to shoot him. When he helps gun down women and children however, he hardly spends any time worrying about it. Ultimately, he treats it like something that had to be done, to fight the war on terror.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

For the most part, I enjoyed this book. I felt like there were a lot of jumping around, and I was confused at what was going on at times, but I was kept intrigued... until the end. I was disappointed with the how everything was left. I felt like this was just a big buildup for the beginning of a series. I would rather have a book end on it's own with a good wrap up, leaving me wanting to know more about the characters. I felt like this book didn't get me invested enough in any one of the characters to want to pick up the next book. I may read the next one, but I am not in any big hurry.

[John Peterson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting so far. Took a bit to get into it, but I didn't have much time to look for a book to take on my last trip. I like that it was written by an FBI agent, seems a little more real. I don't know where you guy's find so much time to read.

Finally finished it. Sort of Anti-climactic.

[Amos · Rating 3 out of 5]

On cd from Lawrence Library, I returned it 12/10/08 started in car and brought in to listen while I played Civ IV Warlords
found it interesting and I would like to read hear more. somewhat confused with Hokus Pocus and a few others but still a perspective on what may/can/ probably has occured.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book but there were a lot of sub-plots running around in the story until the end when they all came together. The bad thing about that was that I had my favorite plots that I wanted to read but then there kept being all those other plots in there that I didn't care much about!

[Jenness · Rating 3 out of 5]

Intriguing although there were a number of plots to try to keep straight. I sort of got lost when they finally all came together and the ending left me hanging. I felt abandoned at the end and was asking myself what really happened.

[Kerry Zukus · Rating 5 out of 5]

A damn good thriller that appeals to both men and women. Excitement with the turn of each page. I don’t normally go for thrillers, particularly military thrillers, but this blend of politics, technology, big business, and international espionage had me from page one.

[Andria · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a surprisingly great read. Fun spy action novel.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting insight into the hidden branch of government.

[Julie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Black: A Novel by Christopher Whitcomb (2005)

[Virginia · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are possiblities for cell phones I'd like not to be .

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Special Agent Jeremy Waller, FBI HRT (Hostage Rescue Team). Black operations dealing with modern-day terror threats.
Narrated by L.G. Ganzer.

[M]

Can't wait to read it ..my favorite spy stuff from REAL SPIES..he is a former CIA and has been recognized for his actions.

[Derek · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! One heck of a twist in this one...

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

AUDIO

typical spy novel

[Sharon Zink · Rating 1 out of 5]

I hate books where the bad guy becomes the good guy. Very confusing ending, trying to be cute. I listened to this book on CD.

[Lawrence Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book spoiled by a lousy ending.

[Mom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Spy thriller where nothing is what it seems. Conspiracies too complex to sort out, can't tell the good guys from the bad ones, except for the always popular terrorists for whom there is no apology.

[Penni · Rating 1 out of 5]

Hated the ending. The book was written to lead you into one conclusion and the surprise ending was bad. Didn't like his writing style at all.

[Doug · Rating 1 out of 5]

Perhaps it was the bad performance by the reader. I couldn't make it through two disks. Overly dramatic or perhaps just over acting.

[Karla · Rating 3 out of 5]

audio

[TAMMARA Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wait, what?