AMOK is a compelling thriller by Barry Eisler that delves into the world of espionage, political corruption, and the moral dilemmas faced by those in high-stakes positions of power. The novel follows Dox, a former government operative, as he navigates a web of conspiracy and deceit, taking readers on a heart-pounding journey through the underbelly of international politics.
With its intricate plot and well-developed characters, AMOK provides a thought-provoking look at the blurred lines between morality and the greater good. Eisler's writing skillfully intertwines suspense and introspection, leaving readers on the edge of their seats while also prompting them to contemplate the complex issues presented in the narrative.

10 stars! Eisler owns the mercenary, espionage, political upheaval genre, hands down. Characters are complex, tension and emotions high, and you can't stop until the last page - and you will be feeling it long after. Dox is one of his most interesting characters, can't wait to see more of him. This one will make you cringe, laugh, think, want to scream, and maybe cry.

Very interesting solo by Dox, showing the man has a soul after all.
The plot is both complex and believable, the characters are well depicted, even the bad guys, and the end of the story leaves open many doors for future books.
Very readable.

AMOK by Barry Eisler
Published: 12/ 2022 by Thomas & Mercer Publishers
380 pages


Finally we’re treated to the backstory of “Dox”, a beloved supporting character from Barry
Eisler’s highly acclaimed John Rain Series … the empathetic Japanese-American assassin with a moral compass. Dox last appeared in Eisler’s “The Chaos Kind”… a best seller from 2021. Dox is an ex-Marine sniper that is highly resourceful and clever and accomplishes his mission, frequently in an unorthodox manner…. hence the nickname: “Dox” His actual name is Carl Williams… but everyone calls him “Dox”. After 4 years as a Marine sniper and two working for CIA operations fighting the Russians alongside the Afghan mujahideen, twenty-six year old Dox returns home in 1991 to Tuscola, Texas. He is immediately thrust into an untenable family situation …. and quickly reminded of his violent and abusive past. His father, Roy, is up for parole after years in prison. His last recollection of Roy was a faint image garnered by a ten-year-old boy, His mother and sister want Carl’s support in testifying against Roy. After all it was the mother’s and sister’s complaints and testimony documenting his chronic and continuous abuse which cemented his imprisonment. He temporarily flees the dilemma by accepting an offer and large payoff from CIA recruiter Mossberg. For this lucrative mission is to fly to Indonesia and engage in the long-standing brutal civil war between Indonesia and the insurgent Falentil guerrillas of East Timor. He is to contact and gain the trust of Dr Isobel Amaril in any manner possible. She is suspected of being a guerrilla sympathizer, and possibly a trusted member offering her skills and intellect. Dox cleverly insinuates his way into her life .. and soon discovers he has strong emotions for both her and the ongoing civil war. He muses if in fact he is on the wrong and not righteous side. He had immediately taken a dislike to his handler, Joko Sutrisno. This unlikeable character of dubious loyalties and methods, foreshadows the inevitable breakdown of events to follow.
Barry Eisner spins a high octane thriller, laced with a high body count and overflowing with political ambiguities and a humanitarian nightmare. Eisler easily calls upon his own personal experiences in a variety of covert positions in the CIA to lend this tale an extreme degree of authenticity. Dox is portrayed as capable and clever as “Jack Reacher” with the intelligence of a “ Jack Ryan”. Hopefully we will be treated to additional adventures in the trials and tribulations of “Dox”
Thanks to Net Galley and Thomas & Mercer Publishers for providing an Uncorrected Proof In exchange for an honest review.

excellent thriller. it is the first of Eisler i read but not the last. i have travelled in Indonesia many times but never in Timor island, where much of the plot takes place . so it was a sad side of historical events when the story take place - the fight of independence in Timor. the plot is fast, the action is great and the emotional web is very good. in between we get a very lovely and sensitive love story. great read.

Amok
By Barry Eisler
Published by Thomas &Mercer

Note: This review is based on the book alone, not the audio version.
I have not listened to the audio version.

The year of this tale takes place is 1991. We meet Carl Williams. As a boxing fan, if you say Carl Williams and the 90s, I think of Carl "The Truth" Williams. However, this Carl Williams is Carl "Dox" Williams. He is not a boxer, but he is a rather formidable man in many ways, including intellect, unarmed combat, insight into his own nature, and especially as a sniper.

Working freelance through channels associated with the CIA he takes an assignment, meets his target, a charismatic young doctor named Isobel, and must navigate not only geopolitics, but also the corners of his own soul regarding her, what's happening, his childhood, his family, and his view of life and self-value.

Carl "Dox" Williams is an exceptionally likable character. He's called Dox because he often handles matters in an unorthodox way.

As I mentioned earlier, the book is set in 1991. If this book had been released in 1991 and high school me walked into a bookstore like B. Dalton or Walden to buy it, it would have probably been found in the "men's adventure" section. Which would have been a disservice to the novel because while there are plenty of elements in common with that genre, it goes beyond those and is simply better than anything I ever found in that 4 to 6 foot section.

I do have a few little gripes I want to mention. One, I am lukewarm on the way Eisler writes the female characters. Isobel rings true most the time, so it's only a minor mark against it. Also, I think the novel would be even better if he chose not to point out some things and left it to the reader to notice. For example, if the song on the radio is ironic to the situation at hand, let us absorb that rather than hanging a sign on it. Also, his style is loose and that may agitate some readers, but he manages it so well it works in my opinion. Reading the story it almost seemed like I was sitting with Eisler and a few friends on a deck somewhere and he was telling a tale of a man he knew named Dox while we drank a good bourbon.

Back to the characters. The antagonist is not grey--this guy, Joko, is a bad guy--a very bad guy. Horrible dark side of humanity bad.
Our hero is a bit grey, but he's grey leaning to the light and is arguably the best character Eisler has created.
I said he was formidable... yes... he is an imposing character who has it within his means to be as intimidating as Jack Reacher, but don't let his somewhat aw shucks demeanor and constant sarcasm fool you, there's more than a bit of Jack Ryan's extreme intelligence in there too. When you have a protagonist that capable, it was a wise choice to have an antagonist as excruciatingly extreme as Joko. Dox locking horns with him was tense, occasionally amusing, quite ruthless, and always riveting.

The supporting characters and subplots regarding Dox's family and hometown are just as engaging as the geo political adventure and romantic threads.

I've not read or listened to all of Eisler's work, but I have several and I rank this high on that list, possibly even supplanting the excellent Graveyard of Memories from 2014 as my personal favorite.

This book would a great entry point to Eisler's interconnected works I'll call the RainVerse. This novel works completely as a stand alone novel; however, not only does this character appear in a supporting role in some of Eisler's works, he may get more stories focused on him in the future...in my estimation.

I give this tense, suspenseful, thriller with a bit of romance an A-

The Eisler universe of covert justice continues to expand with this story. Maintains his high standards of structure and excitement

Interesting story based on real life events where the US is not always on the right side of a conflict. The protagonist and his love interest are a little too good to be true, but still an enjoyable read.

This was a very good book, especially if you have read some of the author's previous books where the main character has appeared, in the John Rain and Livia Lone series (my personal fav series). This book takes us back to the early nineties and Carl Williams aka Dox, has just returned from a tour of duty in Afghanistan where he also entered the Soviet Union at times without authority. Dox is back in Tuscola, Texas with his family who are on edge due to their father about to be paroled from prison, the father had been both physically and mentally abusive and when Dox visits him in prison he makes it clear he intends to pick up where he left off. Dox gets a job offer to shadow a female who may be helping the wrong side of a war in East Timor, a war that has been going on for many years. He accepts and after a very long flight finds himself in a sweltering hot and humid climate. Meanwhile the person he's supposed to get close to is a doctor who has documented some of the atrocities that have been done by American forces in the area, she was supposed to meet a reporter to pass off the evidence but the bad guys catch her before they can. Dox is a one man wrecking crew and he doesn't back down from a challenge, the action is non stop and at times a bit graphic. I would highly recommend. Thanks to #Netgalley and #Thomas and Mercer for the ARC.

Carl Williams, better known to Barry Eisler readers as "Dox", a Marine sniper whose tactics are "unorthodox", graduates from a supporting role in the John Rain series and Livia Lone series to the protagonist of his own military thriller. Good to get to know you better, Carl!

To explore this popular character, Eisler takes us back to 1991. Dox has returned home to small-town Texas to sort out some sordid family business with his jailbird father. The solution to his problems seems to be taking a lucrative espionage gig in East Timor, the Indonesian neighbor that at the time was wracked by a civil war that drew international attention when it reached genocidal proportions.

In Dili, the capital city, Dox works with a cold-blooded Indonesian agent under an American mercenary, tasked with getting close to a local doctor who harbors a secret that could affect the course of the conflict. She in turn is drafted by Timorese guerrillas to get close to Dox to figure out what he and his CIA handlers are up to. Complications ensue.

I have to admit, I was skeptical that going back to a long forgotten local conflict on the other side of the world was going to be relevant to an American audience -- even though, having visited Sumatra in Indonesia in 1990, when the East Timor powder keg was merely simmering, I have a personal interest in what goes on there.

But that skepticism proved to be unfounded -- Eisler has crafted a masterful story on a historical level that recalls the importance of East Timor and the role that individuals play in exposing atrocities of the worst kind. And he does it while focusing most of his story on his characters -- three main characters, starting with Dox, who are fully developed and worth the investment of our time and interest.

Another admission: though I sound as if I know something about Dox, I didn't know anything about him before reading Amok. The only Eisler book I read before was a standalone that did not include any of his recurring characters. But I feel like I know Dox really well now, even better than I would have known him via any of his prior appearances in Eisler's canon.

My only slight criticism is that the book begins with the doctor. It wasn't until the attention shifted to Dox back home in Texas that the story started to really grab me -- would have been nice to start there and get into the Timorese situation once Dox got roped into it. But that doesn't take even a half star away from my 5-star rating.

I now want to read more Eisler, especially books that include Dox. Thanks to NetGalley for an advance reading copy.

📚 #BOOKREVIEW 📚
AMOK: A Dox Thriller by Barry Eisler
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / Pages: 373 / Genre: Military Thriller / Narrator: Barry Eisler

If you’ve read any of the John Rain books by Barry Eisler, you’ll know his good buddy Dox. AMOK is a Dox adventure and I have to say, now I have a bit of a crush and the big lug. Dox is a hulking ex-Marine full of southern charm, who gives off the impression of flirty confused innocence, but he’s actually a highly trained sniper who can quickly and easily assess any situation for danger and subterfuge.

In AMOK, you get Dox’s backstory. His abusive father is up for parole and his mother and sister are desperate to keep him in jail. Dox, who left for the Marines before witnessing the abuse firsthand isn’t sure who to believe. He ends up taking a job in Southeast Asia in order to secure a deal for his father. He quickly learns that there’s more going on there than he was led to believe. He ends up falling for his target and ends up helping the so-called enemy.

What’s really going on is the soldiers are raping the local women and girls. When I first got to this part, I thought, ugh, I don’t want to read about this. But I have to say, Eisler handled it well. You get the idea but he doesn’t go into sordid detail. You get enough information to detest the soldiers and look forward to them getting their comeuppance.

AMOK is available on #kindleunlimited and comes with audible narration—my favorite! So you can listen to the audiobook but also read the ebook when it’s inconvenient to listen. The author is the narrator and he does an excellent job with the voices, especially that sexy Dox!

Thank you, @netgalley for the advance copy of this book.

A great back story on Dox. It's dark, gritty and difficult to put down. I really enjoyed this one.

Thanks to the author, the publisher and NetGalley for the advanced copy.

AMOK by Barry Eisler
A Dox Thriller

Dark, gritty, and grim story that had me thinking all too much about the wars I have been too close to, the stories I have heard, and the stories I could tell. Wars, occupations, what happens during them, and the impact they have are difficult to experience and hear about…reading about them is not easy but someone should tell these stories. At times I thought of reading ‘The Ugly American’ that was required for a class. So many of the situations Dox experienced and that Isobel recorded are all too real…so I would caution any of you that might be triggered by violence, rape, murder, war, death, and such…it happens in this book.

What I liked:
* Getting to know more about Indonesia and its history – have a friend living there and understand her situation better than I did before.
* Dox: born Carl Williams, brother, son, Texan, Marine sniper, contract soldier, difficult childhood, conflicted at times, intelligent, quick, lethal, grew a lot in this story
* Isobel: physician, dedicated to her country and its people, wishes for peace, willing to do what she must to help, at risk, takes risks, strong part of the story
* Learning a bit about Carl’s childhood and how it impacted him before joining the Marines, in the military, and perhaps later
* The writing, plot, pacing, and unflinching look given to a situation many may not know much about
* The comments and links at the end of the book related to each of the chapters
* That I dd not give up on the story even when I was uncomfortable and it hit too closer to personal memories – glad I persevered, read, learned, and grew, too.
* Believing that this is the first book in a series and wanting to know what will happen next in Carl’s life

What I didn’t like:
* Thinking about war and occupation and the atrocities-collateral damage that too often occurs
* Knowing that there are people like Joko and his gang that get way too much pleasure from what they do
* Still on the fence about Roy, Carl’s father, and if he is redeemable or not…really did not like him and am still not sure I do.

Did I enjoy this book? It was an emotionally difficult story for me to read but I am glad I read it
Would I read more in this series? Yes

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the ARC – This is my honest review.

4-5 Stars

This book was a look back in time to a time period in the younger Dox's life. The time period of this book is set in 1991 and it gave us a very slight view of his prior family life - along with some insight into his father and the situation that precipitated his father's incarceration. We also got to understand a bit about his relationship with his sister and mother - who apparently had a very hard life before their husband and father was sent away to prison. Dox was only 10 years old when that occurred, and this book did a really good job of helping the reader to understand his confusing mixture of feelings. The love for the father that he remembered as a young boy, while also trying to understand that his father did awful, awful things to the women in his family. Roy - his father - is up for parole, and Dox is being asked by the women in his family to testify on behalf of the family to oppose the release of his father.

It becomes very apparent, very quickly that his father is not a nice man. Roy has learned not only to survive during his time in prison, but to thrive. He did this by not only killing the leader of a rival prison gang, but doing it in a way that made him a prisoner to be afraid of. Dox, who is not sure what the right response is supposed to be, ends up taking a job from the Company in Asia to escape the situation.

As a reader who has read every single book in the John Rain series, as well as in all of the spin offs, Dox is a truly beloved character. I adore him and he has always been one of my favorite characters. I have had the pleasure of watching Dox grow and mature and have watched him handle many difficult and trying situations. He is a man who wears his heart on his sleeve while at the same time being an amazing sniper with amazing skills.

This was interesting because this is a younger Dox, and not as hardened - at least in the beginning of this book. We can see how the events in this book serve as a catalyst - unfortunately - and take away some of the innocence that makes him so unique and endearing.

Without going into spoilers, this is truly just a side story of events that happen to him during this assignment. Of course, what he was told about the job and what ended up happening were completely at odds, but isn't that how it usually ends up? Even with everything going on, we still see his personality and his beliefs shine through. Those are constants that have not changed throughout the time that we have known him.

This was an in depth look at a young Dox and I ended up enjoying it for what it was. It also made me realize that I miss this series and am looking forward to seeing more from this world - with either more from John Rain or from Livia Lone.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this ARC. The opinions above are mine and mine alone.

Reader’s of Eisler’s John Rain and Livia Lone series will recognise Dox as the overly chatty Texan sniper who proved to be a super-efficient shooter with an intriguing, yet largely mysterious background. Pleasingly, Amok is the first book featuring Dox, and it has proven to live up to all of my expectations.

When he’s at home in Tuscola, Texas he’s Carl Williams, a gregarious good ole boy prone to getting into barroom scraps and looking to scrape together a living. It’s 1991 and Carl is home after his time in the Marine Corps in Afghanistan where he earned the nickname Dox - short for unorthodox. He’s faced with the likelihood that his father will win parole from prison. The man is pure evil and shows no remorse for the abuse he inflicted on his wife and 2 kids that put him there in the first place.

Then the CIA offers Carl a job that will see him shipped off to East Timor. As well as promising to be a lucrative payday, he is also promised that if he accepts the assignment his father’s parole will be denied.

His job is to work as a spy to gather information about Isobel, a young doctor who is jeopardising American military work being done in support of Indonesia’s occupation of East Timor.

Upon arrival in Dili he becomes painfully aware of two things: his contact is a brutal psychopath and the beautiful doctor has captivated him. What follows is a burgeoning love story set in the chaos of an oppressed nation pushing strongly for its independence.

There is a strange juxtaposition taking place within the story with, on the one hand, some moments of out and out brutality taking place (after all, it’s set in the midst of a tense conflict) while on the other are moments of powerful connection between Dox and Isobel.

Add to all of that is the vivid recounting of the desperate fight of the people of East Timor as they attempt to resist the Indonesian forces. Clearly, Eisler has done a lot of research with a bonus at the end of the book providing us with references for further reading plus links to sites for more information about scenes and people who are clearly based on fact. It provides some much appreciated context to many of the story’s scenes.

Amok is a full-on action thriller that moves at a terrifying pace. The heartfelt emotional interactions between the main characters drew me in, ensuring that I cared about the outcome. There needs to be more Dox in my life.

I discovered Barry Eisler's books years ago. My introduction was [book:Killing Rain|17381842] which is now titled [book:Redemption Games|29262]. I loved the John Rain series and although, I enjoyed John Rain, Dox stole the show and quickly became my favorite character. I loved his "aww shucks" attitude paired with his killer sniping skills. I always wanted more of him in the Rain books and hoped that one day, Dox would get his own book. Dox (Carl) has also appeared in the Livia Lone series as well. In [book:Amok|58825654], Eisler takes readers back to Dox's early days.

1990

Dox, a marine and CIA contractor has returned to Texas to help his mother and sisters. His father is up for parole. But there is a secret war going on in Southeast Asia, and Dox is about to learn a few lessons. Some eye-opening lessons. He has been asked to 'handle' Isobel, a young doctor who is hiding information that those in power do not want out. Like all Eisler books, there is a bad guy who is thrown in to make things interesting, tense, and exciting. Eisler also knows how to write great fighting and action scenes. He keeps me on my toes and turning the pages.

Eisler has always impressed me with his research and writing skills. He blends facts/history with his books to make them more believable and tense. Going back to the beginning gives readers a glimpse into where Dox began and who he became the Dox readers grew to love in the John Rain books.

This book tells the story of Dox who is a sniper trying to make some money on an intelligence job in East Timor. It can be read as a standalone without reading any of Eisler's other books. The subject content is intense and includes a lot of very uncomfortable situations, starting with Dox's abusive father, to the violence of the Indonesian military occupation in East Timor. This is not a light read and overall is disheartening, but some patrons will appreciate the fast-pace plot.

I genuinely love the stories of Barry Eisler. I love the characters (some more than others), I love their stories and their conflicts and resolutions and all of it. He is one of the best suspense/thriller authors I've read and Amok was no different. In fact, Amok gives its readers a whole new viewpoint of one of the best Eisler characters: Dox.

This is a back story of Dox. He tells his story of when he got out of the Marines and went private. This story tells about Dox as a young, carefree, somewhat happy, albeit, fearful (of his father) man. Dox tries to help his dad who is in prison and there are some deep connections that are revealed between his father and what he did to rise to the ranks of the big bad in prison, and out. Dox is conflicted because his mother and sister and even his mother's new husband and their family are at risk of Dox's father's ire. Anyway, Dox finds a gig where he can maybe help himself, and his family, and keep his father away.

When Dox goes to Timor everything that was planned happens, but in the wrong way (I don't want to venture too deep into spoilers, but let's just say that Dox falls for a gal, has a great time figuring things out for himself and Isobel, and then the poop hits the fan, and Dox becomes the Dox we know). When Dox comes back he is changed. And that is that.

This was a moving, insightful read and I know now why Dox is so taken with Livia (Long Live Livia + Dox!). I loved this book and how we find out more and more about Dox. I'm so intrigued to see what happens next with all these characters, and I will say, if you're an Eisler fan, this is must read and you'll love it.

Barry Eisler managed to grow into one of those authors who induce an “I need to get my hands on this – yesterday!!” urge in me as soon as I see another new publication of his and that is a status he deservedly continues to hold. His literary universe is one I grew very fond of and meeting his characters again, even in a prequel while I’m not a fan of going back in timelines, is a prospect that always elicits excitement in me. The exact same reaction had the future publication of “AMOK” on me which is why I was over the moon to receive an ARC for this – thank you Netgalley and Mr Eisler.
With Amok we join a young Dox in a prequel to his later appearances in the different series of Eisler (Dox appears in a few of the John Rain books, as well as the Livia Lone series and those where all those threads come together). While already showing his trademark charm, the unmistakeable humour, and his massive empathy, we truly get a glimpse in the life “before” a big change happens to Dox. Him being my favourite character of the bunch made me fall back into routine quickly with his jokes, the easy way he charms everyone just by being himself and showing a solid range of emotion not often portrayed in novels with espionage, mercenaries and hired guns as key topics.
I enjoyed the way the reader gets to glimpse a truly younger, less experienced, and not as developed version of Dox, as the “same old, same old” would probably have left a lot of questions unanswered. Joining a favourite character on his journey to growth, facing struggles, careerwise as well as in the shape of family discordance, and finding unlikely allies guarantees a good time and that was the case here, too.
As usual, the massive library on two legs that is Barry Eisler eases the reader into knowledge that is important for the progression of the story and the way he does it is so incredibly effortless that you get to take away a lot of new information while still reading for entertainment only. As a reader, I never had the feeling of an author not knowing what he is talking about, which is especially noteworthy considering the setting of the novel in Southeast Asia.
That being said, this installment, or rather this prequel, had a bit of a rushed feeling for me. At some points I would have wished for more time with the characters to be able to develop them a little further, sculpt them with more details and fall even more in love with them than I already had – or grow wearier of or develop more angst and fear of some. A tad less adrenaline in exchange for more soft and slow moments, while still feeling the rush of the action-packed chapters would have reached a reading experience close to perfection for me.
I have to admit I truly missed Dox and that is massive praise in itself because it needs an exceptionally remarkable character shaped in previous publications to accomplish this for me. He is, and will stay, one of my favourites and I cannot wait to join him on more current adventures, while being thankful for this glance in his past and how he grew to be the character I so desperately crave in more books.

One last comment I would like to make on the placing in a possible reading order for Dox’ part in Eisler’s series: I would probably advise to get to know the more grown-up version of Dox first to be able to truly appreciate this glimpse in his past and his growth. I would possibly recommend it to reader’s either just starting out on the journey that is reading all of Mr Eisler’s series or those who have finished at least a few books containing appearances of Dox.
In general, people who enjoy espionage, covert missions and likeable characters with human traits as well as full ranges of emotion shown in those characters will probably enjoy AMOK, too. A very good 4 star read and a great way to start a new series!

I have readI have listened and read most of Barry Eisler’s books. This one is about Dox. He is featured in many of his books. It was time to find out about his history- see how he has grown into the man his is today.
I did enjoy this book – The writing style was good and the story just what I wanted. I did not immerse myself in the characters like I usually do. This was a story about Dox -- telling his story. Usually, I am so immersed in the story I feel like I am in the story.
It was well worth a read. I plan to get the audio book- it may help me enjoy the story even more
and listtened to most of Barry Eisler