Killer Move audiobook

I think I've read everything that Marshall has published. Which is a bit odd, considering how I feel about his books. It's a dichotomy, my feelings. I look forward, each time, to his next novel. I feel let down when I complete them. Every. Single. Time. Let me explain...Marshall indeed writes well. Moreover, he makes his writing interesting. You can write plainly and well. You can write in a way that is interesting, but ultimately poor. Some writers, like McCarthy, write both well and interesting books and add that certain personal touch that makes them above and beyond. I'm confusing myself so I must be confusing you. Writing well means (to me) using the language correctly. Not fumbling about and causing the reader to notice errors. That's not to say you're using perfect grammar, a good writer can take liberties without sounding like an amateur. Being interesting is both having a good subject or plot, but also presenting it in a way that keeps the reader wanting to continue. Then there's that deeper meaning bit, that personal touch, that I-have-an-insight-and-know-how-to-share-it ability. If you've read McCarthy's last few books, you know what I mean. Is Marshall McCarthy? No, no, a thousand times no! He does write well and in his own personal style. He writes an interesting story, no doubt. But here's the problem: the build up is never justified by the reveal. It's like having a story in every car magazine around your big 'next thing'. Commercials air on every popular TV program for weeks. The display at the car show is over the top with beautiful girls and moving lights and drama. The entire press corp is there, waiting for the cover to be ripped off with panache and flair and the music comes to a crescendo and...it's a beat-up 1970 VW Beetle. What? My first Marshall novel was "Straw Men" and you could not ask for a more compelling 90%. In fact, when the reveal comes, it's so much ...less...than you'd imagined, you convince yourself there's something still coming. There's not. Oh wait, "The Upright Man" must be that masterful ending, something that justifies all that happened in the story. But...no. I could be jaded. I might expect too much. If I do, however, it's because the promise Marshall makes during the story is not kept in the reveal. Still, each time I see a new Marshall book, I'm in line for it. Not physically, of course. I read on a Kindle. I approach each hoping, since every other check box is ticked by him, that he finally got the ending right. That the whole will be more than just the sum of its parts. That the mystery revealed will be ... but it's not. I will continue to read his books, though I must admit that each time, I'm a little more hesitant, a little less willing to spend ten or twelve dollars and two nights to be ultimately underwhelmed. So, is this a recommendation? A suggestion you put aside your sleep or work or miss your train station to read "Killer Move"? Cause that's what will happen. You WANT to know what's happening. You want to know WHY. Till you do. Then you say, really? That's it? Perhaps real life is like that. The awe and mystery of the Outer Limits is just a bunch of twisted people being twisted. Or maybe as a group, we are so used to Hollywood's Over-The-Top approach that less than that isn't satisfying. I'm not sure. I guess the fact that I'm torn in saying to read it, the fact that I'll read his next one and would read earlier ones if I knew that they were out there, says it all. Or maybe I'm an idiot, expecting different outcomes from the same set of building blocks. Isn't that the definition of stupidity? Expecting a different result from the same set of actions? Perhaps. Then again, I did and do enjoy the build up, the characters, the writing. Maybe there's no deeper meaning or revealed truths like in "The Road" or "No Country For Old Men", but then, perhaps there doesn't have to be for it to be a good read. I enjoy Marshall and I await his next novel. I just wish he'd have a little more meat under that excellent sauce.

This book is definitely not one for paranoid conspiracy types; after reading it, you just may become that way yourself. It begins with the tales of two men. One is a convicted killer who, after being paroled, returns to get some comeuppance. The other is an upwardly mobile respected realtor in the Sarasota, FL area whose normal life is slowly being infringed upon by strange happenings. A restaurant reservation he doesn't recall making, a book shipped from Amazon he never ordered, a joke email he didn't compose being forwarded to all his contacts. At first is just seems somebody is messing with him, someone who has access to his computer and passwords. But then the small cards with just one word on them begin showing up; the ones that say "Modified."Little by little the two men's stories play out, the convict kidnapping a wealthy man to get information, the realtor finding more and more odd things and a strange helper in a girl who served him at an ice cream shop. As the story is played out slowly and deliberately it becomes clear that the link between these two men is abductee and the word "Modified."Even after the connection is made, the story still spools out at a pace that makes you want to keep reading to find out what happens, but at the same time leaves you frustrated with how little has really been revealed. And then the thrusters kick in and story ramps up into a shocking world that will leave you surprised, paranoid and stunned. It's best to go into this book without knowing too much, except for how and what Marshall (Smith) writes. The ending makes the journey well worthwhile and will leave you speechless.

Every now and then an author writes a book that is truly unique and causes the reader to think extra hard about what is going on.John Hunter is released from prison after serving sixteen years for a crime he didn't commit. He's had plenty of time to plot his revenge against the people who framed him.Bill Moore is a real estate salesman in Florida. He's successful and loves his wife but wants more. One day he notices a paper on his desk with the word "MODIFIED" on it. He doesn't think any more about it but soon a series of things happen that change his life. Something appears on his computer causing his wife to become very upset.An important meeting with a client is missed and the client's secretary denies that she even made the appointment. Then there are a number of deaths and he becomes a suspect when a man goes missing.Michael Marshall has written an intellingent story that is a puzzle that the reader must solve. What is the relationship between John Hunter, the missing man and Bill Moore.The action moves along at a breakneck pace and seduces the reader and yet, nothing is as it seems.The author brings up good points about greed in society and the wealthy believing that they wouldn't be held into account for their actions.Only the two main characters are well developed. The plot is complicated and unpredictable. However, it is still unimaginably addictive.

Fantastic thriller from a writer I've long admired. With the Straw Men books Marshall combines a literary style in very effective commercial plot-driven fiction, at the border where the thriller touches upon and then mingles with horror. And the plot here is superb: inventive and surprising. I'd have been happy to just read a novel about the real estate agent's life in Florida, because even without the more fantastical element, the book stands up as a model of a particular time and world. I always enjoy the insights into life and identity in Marshall novels, though you also get much more through the escalation of a dilemma and mystery that falls upon an ordinary man. The author has a more sensitive and philosophical approach to the genre, which I particularly enjoy (also check out INTRUDERS), without eschewing drama and action in which every thing is at stake. Highly recommended to those who like intelligent thrillers.

This book starts out with a bang and does not let go. Little things start happening to Bill Moore, an upscale realtor in Florida, and he really does not pay attention at first. Then it starts affecting his personal life when his wife accuses him of being a peeping tom with his co-worker. There is proof on his computer but he didn't do it. From that point on the action just keeps on going. A very suspensful story about how your life can get turned around and changed if someone is out to "modify" it. This book is very well written and holds the reader captive as the mystery starts to unfold. Twists and turns in the story will keep you turning the pages until the end. Very creepy.As you can see by the authors bio, he is a very accomplished author, screenwriter etc. I highly recommend this book to any reader of the mystery/thriller genre.

Smooth, smart, thriller, brilliantly written as always and full of strange dark things. A bit more derivative than you might usually expect from Michael Marshall Smith, as it's going to be hard to read it and not be reminded of The Game. But that's okay, it's a lot better and a lot scarier than The Game.

A well-written, quick-moving, nonstop thriller with a few twists that threw me for a loop. However, it is chock-full of profanity, which I'm not a fan of, and it is way overused. It's also very dark with some grisly descriptions of murder scenes after the fact and even gruesome crimes as they're being committed. So if you are sensitive to such things then this is not for you.Another slight annoyance is that the story is set in America with American characters, but the author is British and there are lots of little "british-isms" that sort of pull me out of the story for a second. Even if the author wasn't aware of these I'm really surprised that an editor didn't pick up on them and change the wording. The story is told in the first-person and there were a bunch of little terms and phrases that are just not ones that would be used by a native Florida real estate agent.Aside from the above negatives, the story was very engrossing and definitely hooked me in.

I really liked this book. Intriguing, suspenseful. You feel for the main character as you try to figure out what is going on. The book keeps you guessing to the end. I would rate it a 4.5 out of 5.Paul StermanAuthor, Daddy Versus the Squirrelswww.daddyversus.com

Scary good

Killer Move is a novel by Michael Marshall and a Thriller from William Morrow.Book Blurb:Bill Moore is a man with a plan. He's got a lucrative job selling condos in the Florida keys, a great marriage, and a beautiful house. He had a five year plan for world domination, too, but it's already creeping into year six... so now he's decided to mix it up - just a little. This means getting in tight with the people in power, the players who run the area like their personal kingdom. It's all going to plan until the day Bill gets to work to find a card left on his desk. It's black on both sides, just one word printed in white: MODIFIED. From that moment, Bill's life begins to change. At first barely noticeably, then in more and more disturbing ways. Bill soon finds out, in the most terrifying fashion, that he has become the subject of a dark and deadly game... and that he has no choice but to fight back.My thoughts:Bill Moore is just your average guy selling condo’s for someone else in Florida. But he is not happy with the status quo. He wants to own a company - be The Man. And he has an idea of how to make that happen. Get in good with the current owner and start making connections.But the connections he makes is not at all what he had in mind. Seems that some of the more wealthy residents in town are bored. And when they get bored, they play a game.A game that has Bill in the starring role - only he has no idea about this game, the rules or his part in it.An unexpected player has shown up - a player from a previous game - and he is not happy with the way his game ended. He is looking for a little pay back.Bill’s world is turned upside down - and this time around - there are no winners.Killer Move is the first book I have read by Michael Marshall and I was engrossed from the first page.I give Killer Move 4 out of 5 stars.M Product Details Hardcover: 368 pages Publisher: William Morrow (6-28-11) Language: English ISBN-10: 0061434426 ISBN-13: 978-0061434426

Bill Moore works for Shore Realtry, he has a good job selling condos in the Florida Keys. He is happily married to Stephanie, who is successful in her own right. They have a beautiful home, but Bill has a five-year plan to achieve super success, and the five-year plan is now in its sixth year. Bill decides to be pro-active and arranges a meeting with his immediate boss Tony Thompson to jig things up a bit. Things go reasonably well.Returning to his office Bill finds a card on his desk, black with white lettering, just one word printed ‘Modified’. He mentions it to his colleague Karen who says it’s probably an advertising gimmick. He drops it in the bin and doesn’t give it a second thought. But odd things begin to happen to him, at first he manages to deal with the fall-out, but slowly Bills good life begins to spiral out of control.Unbeknown to Bill there are two fractions at work and neither are initially aware of the other, but Bill is caught in the cross-fire. Eventually, with people dying around him, in order to survive he has to fight back. This is a terrifying story, and with the technology available today quite possibly happening, hopefully, to a lesser degree. I do not want to spoil the convoluted, fascinating plot, but sufficient to say, it is a real heart in the mouth page turner. The story is narrated in the first person by Bill Moore, but interspersed by the third person narrative of a man bent on revenge. Of course there is a moral, Bill was struggling to climb the ladder of success, earn more money, and be ‘someone’ in his chosen way of life. But now an unknown hand is trying to take from him all that he had. Can Bill Moore stem the tidal wave of events that is engulfing him? Can he save the life he has built up with Steph, of which he now realises the value of – but is it too late? Scary but compulsive reading, this book is highly recommended.-----Reviewer: Lizzie Hayes

Bill Moore already has a lot, but he wants more...much more.He's got a lucrative job selling condos in the Florida Keys, a successful wife, a good marriage, a beautiful house. He also has a five-year plan for super-success, but that plan has begun to drag into its sixth year without reaping its intended rewards. So not Bill's starting to mix it up - just a little - to accelerate his way into the future that he knows he deserves.Then one morning Bill arrives at work to find a card waiting for him, with no indication who it's from or why it was sent. Its message is just one word: MODIFIED.From that moment on, Bill's life begins to change.At first, nothing seems very different. But when things begin to unwind rapidly, and one after another, people around Bill start to die, it becomes increasingly clear that someone somewhere has a very different plan for Bill's future. Confused and angry, Bill begins to fight against this unseen force until he comes to a terrifying, inescapable realization: Once modified, there's no going back.In the latest suspense thriller by Michael Marshall, Killer Moves is a non stop, page turner that literally will keep you guessing until the very final page. He creates the suspense from the prologue and it only intensifies as the reader continues the unraveling of Bill Moore's life. This book is amazing and one I haven't read for quite some time. I love it when an author can keep you riveted to the story but have you second guessing yourself until the end.I received this book compliments of HarperCollins Publishers for my honest review and highly recommend it to those of you crime solving readers who love a twisting, complex case to figure out. I rate this book a 5 out of 5 stars and this one left a lasting mark. I will forever be looking over my shoulder just to see whose following me. Not everyone is as innocent as they appear.

You have a nice, ordered life. For the most part, you control your destiny. You have dreams and seek to fulfill them. Then one day, you wake to find you don’t have control, someone else does. This is the basic premise to Michael Marshall’s latest novel. Open the cover and step into a world where almost nobody is who he or she seems to be. Where a deranged mind seeks personal gratification by playing a dangerous game and where a man seeks vengeance against those who wronged him. Bill Moore: South Florida realtor. Ambitious. Competitive. In control. Looking to advance up the ladder to become part up the echelon of wealth, until he finds pieces of his life slowly going awry. Events occur for which others think he’s responsible. At first they’re small, seemingly unimportant, but soon, they mushroom into a chaos so intense, Moore doesn’t know where to turn next or who to trust, if he can trust anybody. This is a scary book. This isn’t some monster in the closet or up from the ocean depths scary. It isn’t even a psycho killer in a hockey mask stalking teenagers scary. This one worms its way into your mind, sneaks its way into your subconscious and makes you look at your life just a little differently than you did yesterday. It plays upon a basic fear of completely losing control of the world around you, of how order becomes entropy. Near the end, Marshall makes reference to his previous book, “The Straw Men,” (in a slightly tongue in cheek manner on one occasion), but you don’t have to necessarily have read that one first. If you haven’t, then you’ll want to after “Killer Move.” Reviewed by Stephen L. Brayton, author of “Beta” for Suspense Magazine

“Killer move” by Michael Marshall follows the life of Bill Moore—a successful realtor whose life gets ruined when suspicious events start happening to him, right after a card bearing the word “modified” is left after each situation-gone-wrong. At first the game seems silly, and Moore takes it in stride. He receives a book from Amazon that he never ordered, and a joking email is sent from his email address to all of his co-workers—except that Moore never sent it. A restaurant reservation that Moore was planning to make to have a celebratory dinner with his wife Steph, but somehow forgot about, is made by someone else. However, soon the tampering with his life takes a turn for the worse. A client that Moore was supposed to meet at dinner never turns up. After that, Moore is thrust into the rollercoaster of his life. His wife breaks up with him. Strange things begin to happen to his co-worker Karin. The girl Moore befriends gets murdered. And someone starts going after Moore himself.Running alongside Moore’s story, is the storyline of John Hunter—a convict who is released from prison and has one thing on his mind: revenge. Overall, this was a very intense thriller. I would add this book to my favorite thrillers category. It was that hard-to-put-down. I am not familiar with Michael Marshall, but I would give him props for this book. Very well-written and has “movie material” written all over it. Recommended for anyone searching for an engrossing read.

Bill Moore had a five year plan for success. Build his stake, then open his own realty office. Have people working to make him money instead of him doing for others. Okay, the five year plan was into the sixth year. But he was doing okay. Married with a nice home.And then his life started falling apart.He gets a card in an envelope with one word: Modified. Then Things he knew he didn't do started showing up. The mildly pornographic coffee table book ordered from Amazon on his credit card. The client that blows him off twice in one night. The voyeuristic photos taken of Karren, his partner in their small satellite office, that his wife finds on his laptop, time/date stamped while he was chasing the elusive client the night before.And then it gets worse.Dead bodies, or evidence of such, start popping up and Bill always seems to be in the middle. The police question him several times. His wife disappears.Someone is screwing with Bill's life and the action keeps ramping up. He gets angry and starts looking.But where? He has no idea who's behind it or why.A nice thrill ride of a novel, more horror than thriller. The monsters here, though, are all too human.

I enjoyed this high stakes action packed thriller. At first I was not exactly hooked, but I think so much of this comes from the difference between YA and adult books. YA novels always(almost always) suck you in instantly with something right away while adult books take time gather steam.Once I got going in this book I was so involved with the plot that I had to find out the ending. I was not going to let this book just sit around while I did this and that. I sat down one night, hunkered in my chair, and discovered what was in store for Bill Moore.I found the plot line exciting and kept me on the edge of my seat. When things started to unravel I was quite interested in the events and how everything would be tied together. It reminds us how powerful people can be whether we like it or not.If you are looking for a great action packed thriller this book will satisfy your cravings. These used to be the type of books that I read all the time. I got away from them over the years, but this book has reminded how much I enjoy a good action laced romp. I am glad I was introduced to this author and like most great books I have a feeling it will only be a matter of time until this turns into a movie.

After his last book fell a bit short, Marshall is back in fine form with Killer Move, a book that tangentially ties into his "Straw Men" trilogy. This is an excellent book that continually ratchets up the tension as an everyman Florida realtor finds little things in his life going wrong: a book of risque photography he never ordered from Amazon.com shows up and he can't convince his wife he didn't order it; photos of a female colleague show up on his cellphone camera, suggesting he's been stalking her; etc. As these incidents gradually grow more serious, eventually people around him begin to die and what appeared to be an annoying game reveals itself to be something much darker. This would make an excellent movie in the right hands (someone like David Fincher?), but it is also a great book that I'd highly recommend.