Category: Emlyn Rees

Wanted by Emlyn Rees (Danny Shanklin #2)

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My Rating: 4/5

Synopsis: Hunted by 9 international Intelligence Agencies for a terrorist atrocity he did not commit, hostage negotiator Danny Shanklin is now the world’s most WANTED man, with a reward of $10,000,000 being offered for his capture dead or alive.

Trapped in a deadly race against the clock, as well as protecting his family, Danny’s got to track down the terrorists who framed him. And stop them before they get their hands on 6 lethal smallpox formulations, any one of which could trigger a global pandemic, which would leave only 1 in 3 people alive.

With just a 7 foot Ukrainian mercenary and a ruthless female assassin hell-bent on avenging her father’s death to help him, Danny soon finds himself being forced into becoming both predator and prey as he desperately tries to win the fight of his life.

My Review: This latest book by Emlyn Rees is the second in the Danny Shanklin series. I liked the first book and the writing is fantastic, but…I had the sinking feeling with book one of “I’ve been here and read this before”. I had high hopes with the second book, and although it was a solid read I found that by the end it just felt like that special something was missing. Having said that it was still an incredibly fast paced book that kept me turning the pages.

Danny Shanklin is on the run, following a terrorist atrocity, which he was framed for. From the very beginning you go in at full pelt with more than one thread to follow. Danny has to follow the threat of a deadly virus falling into the wrong hands. In addition to this a ruthless and evil killer who goes by the name The Director is also chasing Danny. I absolutely loved Danny’s sidekick named Spartak and thought he added to the story in a big way.

The other really great thing about this book is that it keeps you thinking about the next turn and there are plenty of plot twists to keep you guessing. I finished this book in a day and a half and it has that high octane kind of energy about it. I’m trying to really pinpoint what it is I thought was missing and I really cant work out what it is. The writing is first class, and I really like the character of Danny Shanklin. The stories are always well thought out and well paced, so in all honesty I can’t explain why I feel like that. I think that with the addition of more books in this series they can only get better. It really was an enjoyable book and certainly one for fans of the Simon Kernick kind of books, so definitely recommended.

Hunted by Emlyn Rees (Danny Shanklin #1)

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My Rating: 4/5

Well the first thing is that this type of storyline is certainly not original. It has been done many times over by many different authors so this sort of storyline is certainly not an eye opener. However, although I admit some authors may do this genre better, as soon as I started turning the pages of this I couldn’t seem to stop!?!

I actually liked the character Danny Shanklin, but, (and there is a but), he wasn’t original enough to stick in my memory. Sadly for Emlyn Rees, there are many authors out there that are at the top of their game in this genre and have a loyal following. Having said all of that, this certainly didn’t take away the fact that it was still a great book. High octane, and quicker than lightning, is the best way to describe the pace of the book. The story starts with Danny in a hotel room and before you know it he is on the run. The story doesn’t let its foot off the pedal until the very end meaning it was a very easy read.


The majority of the story is spent alongside Danny as he tries to evade capture meaning there are quite a few hairy moments for him which keeps you interested all the way through. You also have the added terrorism element of the story keeping it pretty current and up to date.

Although I had that sinking feeling of been here and read this before, I still read the book in one day and have to say I thoroughly enjoyed it. Although it was all too familiar, it seemed like safe territory in terms of story and plot, but the writing was great. In addition to this, the ending is left on something of an opener for the next book which leaves room for the next instalment to be even better.

I will definitely read the next one, I just hope that in addition to the great writing skills, we see something a little bit different to keep my interest amongst the huge list of the longer standing authors producing recurring characters such as Reacher, Bolitar and Cross. If you don’t usually read this genre, then this is a good place to start and will certainly keep you interested. I can honestly say I am looking forward to the next one in the hope we get more originality and hopefully a new Kernick in the making.