The Prisoner

November 28, 2016
Edgar-winner Berenson’s 11th John Wells novel (after 2016’s The Wolves) reinforces his status as one of today’s steadiest practitioners of quality spy fiction. The aging but always-ready Wells comes out of a short-lived retirement in North Conway, N.H., where he lives with his two-year-old daughter, to root out the identity of a top CIA official suspected of handing U.S. secrets to ISIS and other terror networks. On orders from U.S. president Vinny Duto (a former CIA colleague) and his longtime handler of sorts, Ellis Shafer, Wells devises a plan to place himself in a Bulgarian prison that’s largely populated by terrorists. There, Wells begins his undercover campaign to extract information from top jihadists about who the CIA mole may be, as well as any terrorist plots currently in the works. The action culminates smartly with Wells frantically trying to stop a sarin attack in Paris. Wells is an appealing combination of brains and brawn, and Shafer remains an active behind-the-scenes player who knows how to keep an operation on course. Agent: Bob Barnett, Williams & Connolly.

Narrator George Guidall delivers a tone of intrigue while keeping to an energetic pace as he draws listeners into the dark world of al Qaeda and the CIA agents who pursue its members. A mole has infiltrated the CIA, and Agent John Wells must find out who it is. His mission involves disguising himself as a jihadist and entering a Bulgarian prison to reach an ISIS commander who he believes will lead him to the mole's identity. Regardless of which of the audiobook's many accents he delivers, Guidall sustains a consistent individual voice for each character. His portrayal of the cunning Vinny Dutto, president of the United States, is as effortless sounding as his portrayal of Wells's pragmatic ex-wife. Guidall is absolutely compelling. E.B. � AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine