The Take (Simon Riske Series #1)

by Christopher Reich

Overview

From New York Times bestselling author Christopher Reich, an international spy thriller featuring Simon Riske: one part James Bond, one part Jack Reacher.

Riske is a freelance industrial spy who, despite his job title, lives a mostly quiet life above his auto garage in central London. He is hired to perform the odd job for a bank, an insurance company, or the British Secret Service, when he isn't expertly stealing a million-dollar watch off the wrist of a crooked Russian oligarch.

Riske has maintained his quiet life by avoiding big, messy jobs; until now. A gangster by the name of Tino Coluzzi has orchestrated the greatest street heist in the history of Paris: a visiting Saudi prince had his pockets lightened of millions in cash, and something else. Hidden within a stolen briefcase is a secret letter that could upend the balance of power in the Western world. The Russians have already killed in an attempt to get it back by the time the CIA comes knocking at Simon's door.

Coluzzi was once Riske's brother-in-arms, but their criminal alliance ended with Riske in prison, having narrowly avoided a hit Coluzzi ordered. Now, years later, it is thief against thief, and hot on their trail are a dangerous Parisian cop, a murderous Russian femme fatale, her equally unhinged boss, and perhaps the CIA itself.

In the grand tradition of The Day of the Jackal and The Bourne Identity, Christopher Reich's The Take is a stylish, breathtaking ride.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780316342339
Publisher:	Little, Brown and Company
Publication date:	01/16/2018
Series:	Simon Riske Series , #1
Sold by:	Hachette Digital, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Sales rank:	55,417
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Christopher Reich is the New York Times bestselling author of Numbered Account, Rules of Deception, Rules of Vengeance, Rules of Betrayal, The Devil's Banker, and many other thrillers. His novel The Patriots Club won the International Thriller Writers award for Best Novel in 2006. He lives in Encinitas, California.

Editorial Reviews

11/13/2017
Freelance spy Simon Riske, the hero of this tense if predictable series launch from Thriller Award–winner Reich (Invasion of Privacy), operates a high-end auto repair shop in central London when he’s not doing spook work. An American expat who grew up in France’s street gang world, Riske is hired—most likely by the CIA—to track down Tino Coluzzi, who engineered the ambush robbery of a Saudi prince after he left his Paris hotel for the airport. Of more importance, however, is a letter that Coluzzi unwittingly stole from the prince, the contents of which could seriously undermine the Russian government. The CIA wants the letter, as does a Russian assassin and her stop-at-nothing handler. Riske, however, is driven by personal motivation: back when they were fellow gangsters, Coluzzi betrayed Riske during a bank heist, leading to his capture and long imprisonment. Riske has been itching for payback ever since. Likable, rascally, and suave, Riske is as distinctive as Reich’s other series lead, Jonathan Ransom. Agent: Richard Pine, Inkwell Management. (Jan.)

Publishers Weekly

"Make sure your seat belt is fastened and your tray table is up, this is one hard and fast battle royale. Tension, turmoil, and drama ooze from every page. There's not a wasted word in this high octane game-changer."—Steve Berry, #1 bestselling author of The Lost Order and The Patriot Threat

"A fast, wild ride with no less than the balance of power in the Western world at stake."—Parade, Books We Love

"The Take is a slick, elegant, and gripping spy thriller of the first order. With a brilliant heist, a twisting web of secrets and intrigue, and an adrenaline-fueled plot, Reich whisked me out of my world and into his from the explosive first pages. Simon Riske is my favorite kind of hero—flawed, dark, and utterly intriguing. Fabulous!"—Lisa Unger, New York Times bestselling author of The Red Hunter

"It's To Catch a Thief meets Jason Bourne: a stylish, jet-propelled thriller full of intriguing characters and surprising twists. Simon Riske is a character I'll want to meet again."—Jeff Abbott, New York Times bestselling author of Blame

"A beautifully constructed heist is only the beginning of this spectacular thriller, which sets thief vs. thief, spy vs. spy, and even cop vs. cop. The Take is dazzling fun that surprises to the last page, with a hero who deserves an encore."—Joseph Finder, New York Times bestselling author of The Switch and Judgment

"There's plenty of action, interesting bits of tradecraft, and well-sketched locales in London, Paris, and Marseille. Best of all is Reich's succinct prose style."—Booklist

"Likable, rascally, and suave, Riske is as distinctive as Reich's other series lead, Jonathan Ransom."—Publishers Weekly

"Reich's stylish and action-packed thriller introduces an appealing new protagonist. . . . Recommend to fans of Daniel Silva."—Library Journal

"The Take is impossible to put down: non-stop action, a mysterious letter, and a fascinating, complicated, and sexy hero whose tool bag of wit and strength help him fight his way through the dangerous back alleys of glittering European capitals. An engrossing thriller."—Christina Kovac, author of The Cutaway

"An out-of-control joyride for those who like their heroes flawed, scarred, and on the edge. Reich has created an irresistible character that will leave readers both wincing and cheering with every page."—Kyle Mills, #1 bestselling author of Fade and Rising Phoenix

From the Publisher

09/01/2017
New York Times best seller and ITW Thriller Award winner Reich lights the fuse on a new series starring Simon Riske, who interrupts the quiet life he leads running an auto garage in London to work as a freelance industrial spy. Here, he's asked by the CIA to retrieve a crucial letter stolen along with millions in cash from a Saudi prince visiting Paris. With a 75,000-copy first printing.

Library Journal

2017-10-31
A reluctant agent pursues a mysterious document through multiple layers of deception and misdirection.Prince Abdul Aziz ibn Saud's motorcade is ambushed in Paris, and most of hell breaks loose. Tino Coluzzi, a member of the Corsican Mafia, has robbed the prince not only of 600,000 Euros, but also of a letter—a letter that Vassily Borodin, director of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service, hopes to use to oust the Russian president. The prince, who also happens to be the chief of Saudi Arabia's secret police, has acted as Borodin's agent in acquiring the document, and Coluzzi is acting as the agent of an as-yet unnamed American. The American wants the letter; Coluzzi gets to keep the money. But Coluzzi is greedy and decides to keep the letter too, which sets in motion two new agents. Borodin's is Valentina Asanova, a beautiful Russian assassin; the American, now named Barnaby Neill, calls on Simon Riske, an American living in London with a business restoring high-end sports cars. Riske has a shadowy background and possesses unusual talents and skills. He's been in banking and also in a French prison; he was a street hoodlum, but a fellow-prisoner Jesuit priest gave him college-level instruction and a not-so-formal education in self-defense. He is an expert pickpocket, first seen stealing back a valuable stolen watch. Though he is reluctant to work for Neill, he agrees when he learns that Coluzzi is the thief—he has a long-standing grievance against Coluzzi. Nikki Perez, a Paris police detective, meets with Riske in Paris, and though at first she has her own career to tend to, eventually she becomes an ally. All Riske's talents and skills are called upon as he tries to retrieve the letter and get a measure of revenge against Coluzzi. He even figures out the deeper game being played. Riske is a likable character, as is Perez, but neither is really compelling, and the rest are pretty predictable: the blonde Russian assassin, an inscrutable CIA mandarin, a blustering French police captain. The evocations of Provence are nice, the plotting is competently handled, but in the end there's not enough sizzle.Solid if underwhelming jaunt through France.

Kirkus Reviews