“Hong Kong Black” eBook was published in 2017 and was written by Alex Ryan. This is Mr. Ryan’s second novel and the second in his “Nick Foley” thrillers.

I received an ARC of this novel through https://www.netgalley.com in return for a fair and honest review. I categorize this novel as ‘R’ because it contains scenes of Violence and Mature Language. The story is set in today’s China. The primary character is former US Navy SEAL Nick Foley.

Foley has tried to leave behind his Special Operations experiences and now works for a non-profit working to bring clean drinking water to rural Chinese. He has already been drawn into one operation where he helped to save China from a bio-terrorist attack. Now he is being drawn in again.

A Chinese working undercover for the CIA has disappeared and Foley is asked to look into it. What should have been a simple task draws him and those closest to him into another life-and-death situation and a conspiracy of global proportions.

As Foley is investigating this disappearance, his beautiful and close friend Dr. Dazhong “Dash” Chen of the CDC is involved in identifying what is behind a series of mutilated bodies that are washing ashore. Before long their investigations merge into a more serious problem than either would have conceived possible.

I enjoyed the 7.5 hours I spent with this 362 page spy thriller. Event hough this is the second in the series, it read well on its own. I liked the characters and the plot. It is a bit of a different take, US operatives working closely with Chinese operatives to save the day. The cover art is OK, but doesn’t relate much to the story. I give this novel a 4 out of 5.

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This is an excellent read. A fast paced spy thriller with a few twists and turns that keep you reading well into the night. I have not read the first book in the series, Beijing Red, but I feel like there is enough back story here so that you can get a sense of what Nick is all about. This book has excellent character development and lots of action. I would recommend this to fans of thrillers and espionage. I received this as a free ARC from Crooked Lane Books on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Fast paced, well written thriller that occasionally swerves into the implausible but that's ok. Nick is just the guy to investigate this vast conspiracy - with Dash of course. Their relationship is one of the better things about this novel. I had not read the first book but that was fine. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. This is very plot driven, making it good for travel. Try this one if you like the two-of-us against a giant bad thing to save the world genre.

I selected this novel thinking I would be reading a story that takes place i Hong Kong. It doesn't, except for a few pages. The agent actually goes Hong Kong black for about 2 days. That aside, and aside from the book needing serious editing s it i way too long, I enjoyed the tale. There are ample bad guys, some who are in between, and our steady good guys with all of the honorable intentions they can muster. The battle between good and bad takes many forms, but violence prevails. The author does a good job of detailing the battles, and he wrote a credible love affair in the process.