I have a new found love of audio books to keep me occupied when doing housework, especially the ironing or cleaning out the rabbits! This book book did not disappoint. It is reminiscient of COVID and the vaccination programme that came about as a result of this mixed with James Bond! The narrator was easy to listen to and was engaging. The storyline was a little predicatable at times but was very enjoyable. It seemed like the protagonist leads a life of problems and challenges but there are overcome with help from others and a very 'big brain'. An enjoyable read - thanks for letting me listen.

Really great idea for a story, I love the premise. Characters are good but I am not a fan of the narrator at all! I'm sorry to say that his voice was off-putting to the reading experience!

I can't say this was my favorite book. Did I feel like the story line was a little lost at times and hard to follow? Absolutely. Do I think there could have been a great story line there? Sure.

Thank you #NetGalley for the advance copy!

Michael Cal was living in America doing research he was a virologist and due to his gambling problems and other issues he was let go and flew back to Australia with this tail essentially between his legs. Thanks to his good friend John able, he gets a job at Brighton, Fartey, Singleton and Goldsmith. Things soon start going downhill for Mike again until he accidentally creates a drug that kills basically anything and this is where his problems go from bad to much much worse. First of all he strikes a deal with a medical group from China and even save the man’s life to prove it works and head Mike been on the up and up he would’ve been set for life which would’ve been great because he recently met Charlotte and they love each other… Eventually his relationship with Charlotte will also have complications but that’s much further in the book he gets involved with gangsters he sets up a black market pharmacy factory for his miracle drug in Ghana this too will also cause him problems with the Chinese. Now had the Chinese government the gangsters in Ghana and the leader of the Colombian cartel been the only people out for Mike’s blood he may have been able to handle it but it’s Mike… So he fleas and hides in plain sight. even when he wears a disguise and dies his hair gray and gets contacts to change his eyecolor he learns it’s all for nothing and with everyone after him can he ever go back and be with Charlotte and live happily ever after? This is a question I ask myself as well as I listen to this book. It was so funny, as a matter of a fact there’s one line in the book where he says “that guy is so skinny he could take three steps before his uniform would even move,.” now I know that is stupid but I couldn’t stop laughing at that I DK W I just found it so hilarious, as are a lot of things in this book. I also loved every interaction with the pink haired secretary because OMG if she didn’t drive Mr. Singleton crazy. The narrator for this book did a superb phenomenal perfect job he did every voice and accent especially well he is such a great narrator and I would definitely listen to any book
Performed by him. No I am blind in my phone or iPad reads everything to me and I think his name is Nicholas Kam or can just look up this audiobook and you’ll see he is phenomenal I loved him he made things 10 times funnier and it was already super funny. I loved the ending I thought that was brilliant because I had no idea how he was getting out of that especially to get out and be in the clear it was so good! I want to think independent book publisher and the author and Net Galley for my free arc audio copy please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

DNF:
Even on 2x speed I was bored to tears. Found the characters all completely unlikable and didn't really care what happened to them.

I feel this story is a semi accurate story about what happens in the real world to people that threaten the system. I listened to this on audio however and I did not like the narrator. I think it really took a lot out of the story for me. Other than that, I think it is a good story for folks that like this sort of sub genre. It just wasn't a fave for me.

So.... Um... yeah this was definitely and interesting one.

Bad guys, corruption, greed, sex scandal, and bad guys (yes, I said it twice). The story line was really pretty interesting, and not unbelievable for the most part. Lots of different players but the author makes it easy to keep up with who's who and their rolls. The pace of the book was very consistent, no real lulls to speak of. I thought the narration was fitting, inflection and character changes were done well.

If you're looking for heroes and villains probably not going to be your cup of tea, but this was a very well thought out story full of twists and turns.

My only "complaint" was some of the derogatory terms. I hate even saying that because it worked with the story, and it didn't come across as the view of the author but still jarring to hear. It also wasn't presented as the "good guys" saying those things either. Maybe it even made you dislike the bad guys more, but yeah, some fletching and wincing during this listen.

A wonderful depiction of how life can be created from shreds and developed into an incredible albeit frightening life.

Wild Card
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I really enjoyed the book. It held me wanting to know what was next. It was a interesting story that could be true or really happen. I felled for the characters. You cared what happens next. Great book. A different new refreshing story, not the same old story.

I like the premise of this story but it was more espionage and less of a mystery/thriller. I just couldn't seem to get into the story and never really got attached to any of the characters. Maybe if I had read it instead of listened to it I might have been more invested in this one.

Michael Kough is an Australian virologist and a bit of a loser. Through his experiments, Kough accidentally discovers a cure for the common cold, and also a vaccine that will reverse all the world’s deadly viruses. What to do with something this valuable? Sell the discovery to the highest bidder, and become the richest man in the world. His work is not recorded, he kept it all in his head and now Dictators, multi-national drug companies and global criminal gangs circle like vultures for a chance to steal the secret to his unprecedented discovery to virus control.

His life is now a wild ride. He is kidnapped and tortured and imprisoned in his escapades to protect the formula of his trillion-dollar discovery. A formula he keeps locked inside his now priceless brain.

In the meantime amid all the drama, he meets the love of his life, Charlotte, a beautiful Chinese woman and a suspected foreign intelligence agent.

Charlotte is not his first love, Michael, a gambling addict lost his first wife, home and career playing roulette.

Now he’s gambling with his life and a new challenge for survival to stay ahead of a murderous pack of enemies.

I enjoyed the narrator’s Australian accent but the story didn’t hold my attention.

Wild Card by Barry Colman is a Wild Ride!

Michael Kough is a lot of things, but an epic germ warfare contender was not on the radar. But, he has now discovered the cure for the common cold, as well as an anecdote for many viruses...
The story follows him through his many escapades of trying to keep the formula safe...from any and every one.... As it seems that the entire world is now on his case, to try to steal the formula, steal him, or just plain stop him in his tracks...
There are a lot of characters...and a lot of scenes, and it is fun and furious and crazy!!
But, not very believable, imo...
(EG: Learning to fly an airplane...on the go...)
But, all in all, I did read it all the way through, and it did keep me very entertained...so for that,
3 ⭐️⭐️⭐️!!
Thanks to #NetGalley, #LibertyPublishingCompany and #IndependentBookPublishersAssociation for an ARC of the Audiobook which was released on 11/30/23.
#WildCard by #BarrryColman

Keep up with all my upcoming reviews and previews on FB @ #BookReviewsWithElaine or IG @ #BookReviews_with_emsr

Happy Reading!! 📚📖

Michael Kough has found the cure for the common cold, and now people are after him. The story is told through several characters’ perspectives, but Kough is the main point of view. Kough often has conversations with his brain which he refers to as Big Brain and is described by others as the genius part of his brain. The other part of his brain is extremely impulsive and stupid. In fact, his character is just all over the place, one minute he’s a mastermind, the next he’s a killer; he can captain a boat and even fly a plane after only reading the manual. Nothing about this book was based in reality. It was filled with unfounded masculine confidence, racist stereotypes, and far too much action for action’s sake. The book was in need of a good editor for length, characterization, and consistency.

This story was already lacking, and the narrator made it even worse. His accent was a bit hard to understand, and his performance was also just bad. He tried to perform different for each character, but the men all sounded overly confident and bored and the women sounded whiny.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with both an advanced ebook copy and audiobook copy of this book. Sorry, I hated it.

Title: Wild Card
Author: Barry Colman
Audiobook Narrator: Nickolas Camm
Publisher: Liberty Publishing Co. s Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members' Audiobooks
Genre: Mystery Thriller
Audiobook Release Date was November 30, 2023
Rating: 2.5 Stars
Pages: Pages: 398

Doctor Michael Kough, stumbled on to the cure for the common cold. Het accidentally created/discovered a vaccine that not only cured the common cold but also reversed all the world’s deadly viruses.
He feared write it down as someone would steal it. He kept it all in his head and would sell.
He will share his find with the highest bidder.
(Since I have a nasty cold right now – this got my attention!).
Sorry to say I struggled with this. It really didn’t work for me- doesn’t mean it is bad; I am sure other readers will love it.

I want to Thank NetGalley and Liberty Publishing Co - Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members' Audiobooks for this audiobook. Publishing date was November 30, 2023

This was an interesting and kind of wild read! While Michael Kough did a great thing by discovering his cure and fighting to keep his family safe he was a pretty big bag of dicks overall. They wouldn't have been in such peril if he hadn't tried to screw pretty much everyone over along the way. Although this is probably pretty close to true in how some genius would act...

I had kind of a hard time getting into the book but am not sad I took the time to read it. I will certainly give Coleman Barry another read.

#WildCard
#NetGalley

This was a well written spy Thriller not necessarily my type of book but it was well written and kept me intrigued during the whole book I enjoyed the audio on it and found it easy to follow I would recommend it for people who like spy thriller books it does have some language in it

This was an eye roller of a listen which put a constant smile on your face.
   The main character, Kough, feels unappreciated in his role at a prestigious lab and takes it upon himself to steal the secret formula that he invented which has the ability to cure the common cold.
   Once his discovery becomes known, he is then thrown into situations where he dupes, murders, blackmails, coerces and connives all to keep his recipe a secret and available to the world meanwhile making him millions……..which supplies his gambling addiction. He does have a few faults.
   The funniest part is that this savant has what I would call his own Jiminy Cricket/conscience who talks to him and brings him back to reality. The audio book allows you to hear the desperation in this other voice trying to keep him reeled in and out of trouble. To the observer, it comes across as him talking to himself….which he is.
   Every time he wrangled out of one terrifying situation another one arose. I kept thinking of him as a cross between Indiana Jones and McGuyver: the man flew a plane just be reading the manual! When I thought the book was coming to an end because he had avoided a catastrophe and all was well, another crisis arose and we were into another chapter and back in the throes of another predicament.
   A truly unbelievable but  enjoyable book.

I listened to the audiobook and enjoyed the narrator immensely! This book was well written to the point that it was kind of creepy thinking about the what ifs of this happening in real life!! I enjoyed this one and look forward to more by this author.

Wild Card: He Can Cure The Common Cold – But Can He Stay Alive?
Barry Colman
What if you stumbled on to a cure for a common cold? Would you offer it to the world or to the highest bidder? That’s what happened to Michael Kough, he stumbled on to the cure for the common cold. The Australian virologist accidentally created/discovered a vaccine that not only cured the common cold but also reversed all the world’s deadly viruses. He knew better than to write or record his findings. He kept it all in his head. He was willing to share his knowledge with the highest bidder. But everyone wanted his secret, drug companies, dictators, global criminals they all began to circle their prey. They all wanted the cure not necessarily to cure the world of disease but so they could control the disease. Michael will do anything to protect his secret. He was tortured and incarcerated, but he kept his trillion-dollar secret. While he may be a genius, he was also a loser. He was an addict, a gambling addict.
I was disappointed in this book. The summary caught my attention, and I was excited to read/listen to it. But it didn’t hold my attention. I didn’t like Michael Kough. I think he was brilliant, but he was also pretty stupid. His romance with Charlotte was interesting. But that’s about it.
NetGalley provided me with a review copy of this book. My reviews are always my unbiased opinions.

Michael Kough is a genius and an idiot at the same time. He has developed a cure for the worlds deadly viruses but he has a gambling addiction, so he constantly takes risks and gets himself and those he loves in danger.

Enjoyed this well written and well narrated novel (I listened to the audiobook).lots of twists and turns and Michael gets into many mad situations, which usually means someone will die. Enjoy.