While Court is playing real-life battleship, over in Zurich, a man named Alex Velesky steals records from the Swiss Bank he works for and meets with Russian financial advisor Igor Krupkin. Hellbent on dealing a blow to Russia after losing his son in the war against Ukraine, Krupkin wants Velesky to deliver damaging info detailing major Russian conspiracies to two separate sources. The banker agrees, not knowing just how many people are desperate to get their hands on that info—or how far the Kremlin is willing to go to make sure that never happens. The one thing that hasn’t changed about him over the years is his moral code. For a man in his profession, he suffers from the worst possible flaw—a conscience. It is easy to see why Netflix chose to make a movie from the first book since the twelfth book in the series is full of explosions, shootouts and the main characters barely making it out of situations alive . Gentry's extracurricular activities do not make a lot of headlines, but they do put him in the eyes of the intelligence community once again and he is somehow roped into a new operation where information about Russian money laundering to operatives in the West has been revealed in an electronic storage device. Everyone wants that device. And Gentry is going up against the best assassins the Russians have to get it. What's more his old flame Zoya has resurfaced (although not in the best condition) an is involved in seeking it on behalf of someone. Right and wrong are rarely clear-cut issues in the Gray Man’s world. No one understands that better than Court and Zoya. Clear-cut or not, choices must be made. They’ll have to decide where their loyalties lie. Because one thing’s for sure. If they’re going down, they’re going down together.

Any thriller reader would enjoy the pace of this book , and the plot is actually following current events between Russia and Ukraine and the position the United States may be in with their war. I do like the John Gilstrap 'Jonathan Graves' series and find it great fun. Gilstrap is clearly having fun and preposterous is expected and delivered. The 'Gray Man' series has slid into a similar series, but not as well done as Gilstrap's. Part of that is the ability of reading Gilstrap's bit of tongue in cheek efforts. Also, Gilstrap's situations fit better than the ones written in this. The finale in 'Burner' is clunky due to taking itself too seriously. Greaney is fantastic at writing action and once he starts he seldom lets up. Court seldom has a chance to catch a breath. The fight on the high speed train will have you gasping for breath - it never lets up. Burner is the epitome of riveting with action ranging from car chases to a parachute drop-in to underwater fighting & so much more.It’s set in 1974 and is a fact based stand-alone spy thriller about an accountant (who then worked in Coopers & Lybrand) who unwittingly started working for MI6 by infiltrating an international organised crime gang. Just like the Gray Man he is chased around the world by the bad guys. The MMC Court Gentry is for any reader who loves the morally gray anti hero . Forget Mission Impossible and Jason Bourne, this burned agent is the one you want to carry out a covert mission . He works alone and misses the love of his life Zoya ( code name Anthem) who is just as deadly as he is, he disappeared from her life when he knew he was on a kill list from the CIA . Outstanding….Fans will close the book happily fulfilled and eagerly awaiting his next adventure.”— Publishers Weekly (starred review) Mark Greaney’s “Gray Man” series is synonymous with insane action, well written plots, and a cast of characters that make this series second to none. This is Greaney’s twelfth installment of the “Gray Man” series, and he continuously raises the stakes for his main cast of characters, and I can honestly say my stomach lining has taken a toll from it!

I started listening to this at 4am and haven’t been able to put it down. I wanted to write this review before I finished because I didn’t want to be tempted to write anything additional and take anything away from another listener. A UN summit in New York will finalize an agreement between the West and Russia to restore Russia’s most favored nation status in exchange for Russia’s agreement to end its war with Ukraine. While Ukraine is not a party to the agreement and will likely fight on its own to regain its lost territory, the agreement does not require Russia to restore the land it seized. This is a bad deal for Ukraine, but the West wants Russian oil and gas. I can understand that premise, but when he plotted Burner, Mark Greaney probably didn’t know that western nations would get by just fine without Russian oil. Maybe the novel’s prediction will still come true, but those who hope for justice in Ukraine will be outraged if it does.It’s a shame there isn’t more non-fiction around in the espionage genre. After all, real spy thrillers can be just as fast and furious as Mark Greaney’s Gray Man and the Burner. However, they don’t have to be as placid as John le Carré’s novels and shrouded in delicate diction and sophisticated syntax. That's a problem for tomorrow. Today they need to keep him and themselves alive. Right now, it's not looking good. I like to think that Court has changed as the years have gone by. He started as a steely killer. Since then he’s been a member of a team, a CIA officer, an unofficial Agency asset, even a bodyguard. He’s a smart guy—he has to be to have lived this long—but he’s not always right. He frequently finds himself in over his head in various situations, but he always finds a way out. But the only man who can put the information together and share it with the world is 4000 miles away in New York City. There’s no way a Swiss banker like Velesky can hope to stay ahead of the killers on his trail for that long. To me, Mr. Greaney has already done a fabulous job of creating a character in Court that is such a contradiction. What a dichotomy. He is definitely lethal; in fact, he is arguably one of the most dangerous men on the planet. Yet, he is also so unbelievably good. Good in a way that is hard to explain unless you have been on this journey with Court for the many, many books in this collection. And now.....I'm just thrilled for the "possibility" of Court and Zoya and I can honestly say that my fingers (and toes) are crossed for these two crazy kids :)

Mark Greaney adds a new wrinkle to Burner and delves more into the gray matter of the Gray Man.This story is full of heart, hope, and heaps of hot lead. Now, for the adrenaline junkies… fear not. Greaney provides some absolutely iconic action sequences, fight scenes, and vehicular pursuits in this one. The added bonus is that there is a bit more emotional turmoil within those events, making them that much more meaningful. And amusing. While Burner is fundamentally an action novel, Zoya’s alcoholism and substance abuse (and Gentry’s fears and frustration with Zoya’s addictions) add depth to the characters. Greaney sets up Lacy to play a courageous role despite Zoya’s skepticism that she has what it takes. He also sets up an ending that demands sacrifice in the name of principle — the kind of principles for which Russians and their corrupt counterparts in the US and Europe have no use. All of that makes Burner a saccharin-free “feel good” story, although a fair amount of indiscriminate death precedes the relatively happy outcome. This series is not only getting better with every new addition, but it somehow continues to show us This is not a spoiler. I’m only on chapter 23 (out of 73 chapters) so there is still lots to come in this book. I just had to get it out there once I saw her name.Court Gentry is a man without a country. Now the country that has hunted him needs his help. Data from a bank in Switzerland covering Russian money and where it is going, has been taken, and it might just take down some of the United States most prominent people. Gentry is on the hunt for truth while after years of running has him looking over his shoulder every bit of the way. I could go on more about Burner (trust me, I really could), but I think it is fair to say that I deeply enjoyed this latest Gray Man novel from Mark Greaney. Greaney has been on a roll with his last few Gray Man books, and I honestly think that Burner is one of the better novels he has released recently. The impactful story, great characters, compelling content and impressive writing ensured that I was enthralled throughout the entirety of Burner, and I honestly couldn’t put it down at times, especially during some of the big action sequences. This was such an epic book, and I can already guarantee Burner is going to end up as one of my top books and audiobooks of 2023. Highly recommended! Did you see the Gray Man movie on Netflix? That should give you some idea of the flavor of a Gray Man novel. This one feels like old-school Ludlum - Corruption at the highest levels, multiple countries, innocents hoping to do the right thing and an operative just trying to stay alive.

The groups have different motives and objectives, and when they collide on a train near Geneva, the story is just getting started. It doesn’t help that one of the most elite Russian assassins is set on obtaining the data and will kill anyone who gets in his way. And he has a personal history with The Gray Man. Coming in innocent to the series, I first met Court in the Caribbean, where he was engaged in blowing up ships hidden in the islands by Russian oligarchs. In a timely bit of parallel history, Russia and Ukraine are central to “Burner,” as a Ukrainian-born banker who has inside information about Russian money being funneled to the West is determined to expose the scheme, no matter the personal peril. This was... fine, but far from one of my favourites in the series. Maybe it was the fever curtailing my attention span, but this felt like it dragged on for entirely too long. And of course, I've never been all that great a fan of Zoya or the romance subplot that just won't die... Alex Velesky is about to discover that the hard way. He's stolen records from the Swiss bank that employs him, thinking that he'll uncover a criminal conspiracy. But he soon finds that he's tapped into the mother lode of corruption. Before he knows it, he's being hunted by everyone from the Russian mafia to the CIA.This was my first Gray Man novel, but it won’t be my last. This was a fun fast paced action suspense thriller. The writing style is fantastic and can’t be missed. Its well-researched and very vividly done so you feel like you are right there. I fell that the main character, Court, was also well done. The amount of emotional depth that was shown in his character was phenomenal and thoroughly thought out. One of the most distinctive things about Burner was the excellent and memorable use of contemporary events to enhance the already enjoyable spy thriller narrative. Greaney has never shied away from referring to current conflicts, politics and events, and in Burner he goes for the most infamous current conflict in a big way by strongly featuring the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Greaney pulls no punches when describing the conflict and he artfully and powerfully paints the entire invasion as the act of barbarism and greed that it is. While no political leaders are names, multiple Ukrainian and Russian characters are featured throughout the plot and through them Greaney examines multiple sides of the conflict, ensuring that readers are fully aware of what is happening, who is responsible, and just how bad things are. The Russian government are shown to be extremely corrupt, starting the war and then poorly preparing their own troops, all in the name of obtaining more money for the Russian elites to exploit. This focus on corrupt money is a major part of the plot as the characters spend the entire book trying to identify funds being syphoned out of Russia to the West, either to escape sanctions or to be used for bribes or operation money by Russian intelligence. The discussion about bribes to influential westerners is pretty interesting, especially as it seems to be a dig at certain politicians and news reporters, and it ended up being a very fascinating plot focus. While it might seem a little insensitive to use a current conflict in a thriller novel, I personally felt that this was a master touch by Greaney. Having the book focused on something that is such a big part of current world events ensured that I was even more invested in the story while rooting for the protagonists to succeed. I really must compliment Greaney for using his book to shine a light on this conflict, and I feel that his warnings about how the war could end are very important. I'll not forget reading 'The Gray Man' so long ago. The book was rooted in atmospheric writing wonder. So very different from the Vince Flynn novels I had been reading. Then the Gray Man series continued. Today, 'Burner' is the newest out and I am disappointed. The newest entry reads more as a Matthew Reilly chase book and far, far away from the initial Gray Man novel.