Outbreak
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4.4 • 18 Ratings
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- £7.99
Publisher Description
The explosive new thriller featuring MI6 operative Luke Carlton on his most terrifying mission yet.
Deep within the Arctic Circle, three scientists from the UK's Arctic Research Station trudge through a blizzard in search of shelter. They see a cabin ahead. It appears abandoned. No lights. No snowmobile outside. But as they push open the door, the smell hits them. Rank and foetid: there's something bad inside.
Then movement. A man lies slumped, his face disfigured by livid pustules. Blood runs from his nostrils; his chest glistens blackly. The team's medic, Dr Sheila Mackenzie, pushes forward to examine him when the convulsions start. Blood, bile and mucus spray into the air. The doctor knows it's too late - she's been contaminated . . .
Within hours, a full-scale operation to contain this contagion is underway. Samples are rushed to the laboratories at Porton Down on high alert. What they discover changes everything. Supported by phone and data intercepts, British Intelligence reaches a terrifying conclusion: that Russia has been developing a new generation of bio-weapons.
Dispatched to investigate, MI6's Luke Carlton finds himself on a serpentine trail of lies and deception. From a mysterious factory in Lithuania, via arrest and imprisonment, and ultimately back to Britain, he discovers that they've been looking in the wrong place all along . . .
Praise for Frank Gardner and the Luke Carlton series:
'Fast, taut, tense, accurate' Frederick Forsyth
'A terrific page-turner' Sunday Times
'Intelligent, high-voltage storytelling' Tony Parsons
'Utterly authentic' Daily Mail
Customer Reviews
A gripping espionage thriller
My thanks to Penguin Random House U.K. Audio for a review copy via NetGalley of the unabridged audiobook of ‘Outbreak’ by Frank Gardner in exchange for an honest review. The audiobook edition is narrated by Jonathan Keeble with a running time of 11 hours, 38 minutes at 1x speed.
Before reading I wasn’t aware that this is the third in Gardner’s thrillers featuring MI6 operative Luke Carlton. However, Gardner provided enough background on Carlton so I didn’t feel at all lost.
The novel is set in the spring of 2022 and opens with three scientists from the UK's Arctic Research Station caught in a blizzard. Seeking shelter they come across a seemingly abandoned cabin, though inside they find a dying man with horrific symptoms. Given the novel’s title it isn’t a spoiler to disclose that pretty quickly an outbreak of a very nasty disease begins to spread, which leads to a full-scale operation to both contain it and discover its origins.
British Intelligence becomes involved and Luke is despatched to Lithuania where intercepted messages suggest answers to the contagion may lie. A twisty trail is uncovered. No further details to avoid spoilers.
With respect to the audiobook edition, its narrator, Jonathan Keeble, is one of the best known British voice actors with multiple awards and an impressive number of audiobook titles on his CV. His voice is mature and authoritative and I felt that his reading of ‘Outbreak’ was excellent.
Overall, I found ‘Outbreak’ a fast paced espionage thriller with the timely subject of humanity’s vulnerability to a virulent disease. It’s oddly comforting to read this a thriller about an even worse disease threatening humanity than our current pandemic.
It held my attention throughout and I plan to read the two earlier Luke Carlton books as well as any future ones.
Not worth the time
Absolutely shockingly bad.
Thin plot… basically a squaddie running around and being put in “missions” he would not be suitable for.
Written by an author who thought covid lockdown was justifiable and seems to have swallowed the lie that the virus came from a Chinese wet market.
The story is unbelievable even though the premise is a good one, a real wasted opportunity.
If the U.K. security forces really operate as portrayed in this book we stand even less chance than I thought.
Just brilliant
One of the best and most exciting thriller I have read for a long time. Please Frank can we have a follow up soon.