Crisis Four is the second book in the Nick Stone series and just like Remote Control it’s full of action and intrigue.
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Personally, one of my favourite parts of these books is Nick’s relationship with Kelly. This focuses his attention on something else in his life other than him and it’s interesting to see how this affects his choices – even past SAS operatives are human too (shock horror!). She doesn’t appear too much in this story but we find out that Nick is now Kelly’s joint guardian and with that has come a responsibility unlike any other he’s ever had.
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The story opens on an operation in Syria where we are introduced to Nick’s old flame, Sarah Greenwood. When I read Recoil last month I mentioned I was glad that McNab had tackled a more lovey dovey side to Nick that I hadn’t seen before. However, I’d forgotten and Nick pretty much falls in love with Sarah in Crisis Four so it’s actually here that we first see how Stone reacts towards the ladies. McNab does a good job telling it from the side of a bloke unable to cope with these type of emotions.
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As usual for Nick though things do not go according to plan. He’s already ticked off with Sarah for using him in the past and in the opening chapter she screws him over again causing one of his team to get killed. The book then skips forward a few years to where Stone is sent on a mission to locate her as she’s gone AWOL in the States and the firm are concerned about where her loyalties lie. It’s here in the first half of the book that McNab’s operational experience really shows through as the detail he goes to in setting up the situations for us are second to none – but as always, narrated in the squaddie language style we love so much!
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After finding Sarah and listening to her side of events he decides to ignore the “T104” order and help her out, believing that to stop a greater wrong is more beneficial on a global scale than ignoring an trifling order from the Firm. Plus, more to the point, he still fancies his chances with her. Here the action gets intense as Sarah and Nick dodge bullets, dogs and hypothermia as they are pursued across North Carolina by the police. They eventually make it out alive and as their next step is to try and enter the White House, Nick must call on an old friend who he knows he will have to screw over in order to help Sarah.
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Like Remote Control, the book leaves you guessing right up until the end and you’re never quite sure who the bad guys are. Invariably Stone takes the brunt of the blame as things do not go to plan in Washington and at the end of the story Stone is left wondering if there is anyone out there who he can trust – or even if there is anyone left who can trust him…
.
Personally, one of my favourite parts of these books is Nick’s relationship with Kelly. This focuses his attention on something else in his life other than him and it’s interesting to see how this affects his choices – even past SAS operatives are human too (shock horror!). She doesn’t appear too much in this story but we find out that Nick is now Kelly’s joint guardian and with that has come a responsibility unlike any other he’s ever had.
.
The story opens on an operation in Syria where we are introduced to Nick’s old flame, Sarah Greenwood. When I read Recoil last month I mentioned I was glad that McNab had tackled a more lovey dovey side to Nick that I hadn’t seen before. However, I’d forgotten and Nick pretty much falls in love with Sarah in Crisis Four so it’s actually here that we first see how Stone reacts towards the ladies. McNab does a good job telling it from the side of a bloke unable to cope with these type of emotions.
.
As usual for Nick though things do not go according to plan. He’s already ticked off with Sarah for using him in the past and in the opening chapter she screws him over again causing one of his team to get killed. The book then skips forward a few years to where Stone is sent on a mission to locate her as she’s gone AWOL in the States and the firm are concerned about where her loyalties lie. It’s here in the first half of the book that McNab’s operational experience really shows through as the detail he goes to in setting up the situations for us are second to none – but as always, narrated in the squaddie language style we love so much!
.
After finding Sarah and listening to her side of events he decides to ignore the “T104” order and help her out, believing that to stop a greater wrong is more beneficial on a global scale than ignoring an trifling order from the Firm. Plus, more to the point, he still fancies his chances with her. Here the action gets intense as Sarah and Nick dodge bullets, dogs and hypothermia as they are pursued across North Carolina by the police. They eventually make it out alive and as their next step is to try and enter the White House, Nick must call on an old friend who he knows he will have to screw over in order to help Sarah.
.
Like Remote Control, the book leaves you guessing right up until the end and you’re never quite sure who the bad guys are. Invariably Stone takes the brunt of the blame as things do not go to plan in Washington and at the end of the story Stone is left wondering if there is anyone out there who he can trust – or even if there is anyone left who can trust him…
