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Gideon's Sword
Unavailable
Gideon's Sword
Unavailable
Gideon's Sword
Audiobook9 hours

Gideon's Sword

Written by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child

Narrated by John Glover

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

3.5/5

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Currently unavailable

Currently unavailable

About this audiobook

Introducing Gideon Crew: trickster, prodigy, master thief GIDEON'S SWORD At twelve, Gideon Crew witnessed his father, a world-class mathematician, accused of treason and gunned down.

At twenty-four, summoned to his dying mother's bedside, Gideon learned the truth: His father was framed and deliberately slaughtered. With her last breath, she begged her son to avenge him.

Now, with a new purpose in his life, Gideon crafts a one-time mission of vengeance, aimed at the perpetrator of his father's destruction. His plan is meticulous, spectacular, and successful.

But from the shadows, someone is watching. A very powerful someone, who is impressed by Gideon's special skills. Someone who has need of just such a renegade.

For Gideon, this operation may be only the beginning . . .
LanguageEnglish
Release dateFeb 22, 2011
ISBN9781600249969
Unavailable
Gideon's Sword
Author

Douglas Preston

Douglas Preston has published 39 books of fiction and nonfiction, of which 32 have been New York Times bestsellers, some reaching the #1 position. Two of his novels, co-written with Lincoln Child, were chosen in a National Public Radio poll of readers as being among the 100 greatest thrillers ever written. His recent nonfiction book, The Lost City of the Monkey God, was named a notable book of the year by the New York Times, the Boston Globe, and National Geographic magazine. In addition to books, Preston writes about archaeology and paleontology for the New Yorker Magazine. He worked as an editor for the American Museum of Natural History in New York and taught nonfiction writing at Princeton University. He is the recipient of numerous writing awards in the U.S. and Europe, and he served as president of the Authors Guild from 2019 to 2023.

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Reviews for Gideon's Sword

Rating: 3.3520782342298285 out of 5 stars
3.5/5

409 ratings61 reviews

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  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    First in the new Preston/Child series Gideon Crew, a man not afraid to take action against those who destroy others or hurt America. A man who can think on his feet and feels passionately about others. He was sent to locate a scientist bringing in a new weapon "that would change the world" from China. Suspense, mystery and a sprinkling of romance blended with action and adventure. The story just pulled me in. I will be reading more of this series in the future.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I will admit that the first fifty pages or so of "Gideon's Sword" I was not all impressed with this first book in what will apparently be a new P & C series, but then it sort of grabbed me. I was pleased to see the return of Eli Glinn and his EES group from "The Ice Limit"…it would put the Cussler fan in mind (sort of) of the bunch featured in the Oregon Files stories, only more businesslike, perhaps. Crew is sort of obnoxious and superficial, at least initially, and it takes a while for him to grow on you. Certainly he has good reason for being thus. Unfortunately, the most interesting character doesn't last long…I won't go further for fear of inadvertently providing a spoiler. All in all it's a fine thriller but not so distinctive as the Pendergast books. I might not be so inclined to run out and grab the next installment the instant it's released like I will with Pendergast, but if I happened upon it I will probably read it. Preston and Child are still the most reliably entertaining authors out there for my money.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    As a young boy Gideon Crew witness his father gunned down and he grew up not knowing the truth behind the incident. After visiting his mother in her final moments of life she confides in Gideon the truth and makes him promise to avenge his father's death. After 10 years of planning Gideon's day has come, but someone else knows about what Gideon has done and puts Gideon in a position to take a job that he doesn't dare refuse.This is the first book in the Gideon Crew series and I will be looking forward to reading the second!
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Excellent book. I want to read the series. Keeps you on the edge of your seat. It skirts the edges of possibilities sometimes, but it's great.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This was the first Gideon Crew book I have read. I love Preston & Child and have read many of their books. I enjoyed this book, but Aloysius is still my favorite character.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Fast read - character development was not as good as their other books. Hopefully this will improve as the series develops.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    A new series from the always dependable co-authors of the Agent Pendergast series. This new series involves Gideon Crew, who resolves a conspiracy which ended with the death of his father, labeled a traitor. Having achieved his goal, Crew is now able to pursue a normal life...until he learns he has less than a year to live and is offered a job by a government contractor to intercept a Chinese scientist carrying a secret. Eminently readable, lots of plot twists, a fast, exciting tale. Highly recommended.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    Sadly lacking in it's ability to consistently engage the reader. I didn't care about Gideon, nor did I find him to be even remotely believable as a character. Easy enough read, but barely good enough to finish. I will say the description of Hart Island and the time spent there almost made the purchase and time to read this laughable novel worthwhile. After an excellent outing with Fever Dream, this effort was extremely disappointing.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This was a book I literally didn't put down unless I was sleeping or eating (I even walked around the house reading it.) The ending, well I won't ruin it for those who didn't read it. The ending makes it hard to not want the sequel to be in my hands right now. I've never felt that much of a wanting toward having the next book immediately before.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I liked this book, but I thought it was a little oddly paced at times.It is in a way a book about revenge and spies, but it is also about what a man will do when he learns that he will soon die.I thought some of it could have done with a bit more suspense, but then it came to the end and it was crazy suspenseful so it evened out.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    The story opens with Gideon Crew seeing his father being gunned down in a conspiracy that he learns of later at his mother's death bed, reforming himself from an art thief and avenging his father. Normally this would be a whole book on it's own but this is only the first 53 pages of my edition. Then he settles into his life, a little restlessly, is offered a challenging mission while also being told that he is suffering from a terminal brain tumour (which he doesn't get double checked at all!) and this leads him into an investigation that challenges his wits against a Chinese assassin.It's not the worst thing I've read but I felt no connection to any of the characters and didn't really care if Gideon survived.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    As a child, Gideon Crew watched his father be gunned down like a common criminal. When his dying mother encourages him to see out the truth and avenge his father, young Gideon aspires to become a government agent of Bourne or Bond proportions. In the process of avenging his father, he becomes contracted by the government to do some dirty work. With his father's betrayer's dead and Gideon told by his employers that he has a rare brain disease that will suddenly end his life within a year. a sullen Gideon agrees to do the job for $100,000. A Chinese scientist is key, but the scientist is assassinated in a messy auto accident. The killer, a highly trained hunter, Nodding Crane, now starts to hunt Gideon, knowing he will lead him to the secret the scientist so carefully concealed.Starting with the auto accident, the book flows pretty well in a standard action/suspense way. The whole back story for Gideon, including hunting those responsible for his father's death, is slow, confusing, and completely unnecessary. It is easy to see why many give up on the book early on. There's some pay-off for those who stick with it...it does get better and interesting in spots. However, the evil Nodding Crane is a much more interesting character than Gideon, who, faced with imminent mortality, lacks a lust for life that we get in the characters of Bond or Bourne.The book ends with setting up with Gideon surprisingly offered another commission. Presumably, this is the subject of the next book, which was released earlier this year. I'll probably pick it up in audiobook form when I see it on sale; Preston/Child books are good ear candy for long runs or bike rides.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Disappointing, yet still a fun read. Nothing like the Pendergast series.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    I usually adore Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. I look forward to anything and everything they write. So I was really excited at the thought of a new series. But then I read the book and was left scratching my head at the end. Has the wonderful writing team of Preston and Child finally jumped the shark?Without going into detail, the premise of the book is this: Gideon Crew, former thief and current scientist at Los Alamos avenges his father's wrongful death and gets himself recruited to steal top secret weapon plans from a defecting Chinese scientist. Mayhem ensues.What happened? Did my favorite authors pull a James Patterson and put their names on someone else's work? (someone doing a high school project, perhaps?) The characters were unbelievable. I have no problems suspending belief for the sake of a work of fiction. Not usually anyway. But there was so much about this book that did not allow me to settle in and enjoy the story. Nothing rang true and none of the action made sense. I didn't become invested in the story because I could not believe any of the characters. And the ending? All righty... I did finish it, hoping that I would see a glimmer of the wonderfulness that is Preston and Child hiding somewhere. I did not. Now the question is whether or not to try book 2 or instead send it far far away and re-read The Relic...
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Looking forward to more of Mr. Crew. Preston and Child really know how to spin a good, breathless thriller.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    This book was a disappointment. Not as cleverly written as some of his other books.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    Dissappointed. Way to much action andrewally no wense of some truthfulness. Gudeon Crew is like the energizer bunny. Nonstop.Hope the will be more Pendergast novels in the future
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    Standard thriller fare. Preston and Child certainly keep the action moving though the audiobook narrator's precise pronunciation detracted from the tension. On the other hand, you can't help but catch every, single word! Like most thrillers, the hero survives unbelievable odds, partially through advanced skill and partially through luck. At least this character does acknowledge when he makes a mistake.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    I have been a big big fan of the Preston/Child team since "Relic." I buy their books on name only, because I know I'll get a good read. This book was somewhat disappointing. It was fun, it was ok, but it wasn't up to the calibre of the Pendergast novels. A good premise, but it really didn't go anywhere I expected it to go nor where it could have gone. For the first time, I sold one of their books back to a used book store.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    disappointing - a poor effort by the authors, compared to previous work
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    Very disappointing! It's like reading Alex Rider novels that my children like (with a tiny bit of adult spice). This book is completely missing that pseudo scientific supernatural mystery athmosphere that is typical of other novels by these authors. Gideon is an empty character. Just another mediocre thriller.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    At twelve years old, Gideon Crew saw his father shot down and later labelled as a traitor. At twenty-four, his mother summons him to her deathbed and informs him that his father was framed for his crimes and makes him vow to take revenge. Gideon slowly crafts a plan to avenge his father and take down the true criminal but a shadowy organization is watching him and pulls him into a larger mission that will require all his skills to make it out alive.I stuck this book on the TBR list after reading a positive review of it on one of the book blogs I follow. After reading it, I'm not sure why I felt I needed to put it on there. It's not a bad book by any means, but not anything earth-shattering either. It's full of action and intrigue mildly reminiscent of Bond but with the modern requirement of believable technology. In my opinion, a total "boy book" for adults. Not what I typically would choose for brain candy but not bad either. My only issue is I was never really attached to Gideon or felt particularly concerned for him. Also, I can't figure out how the title actually relates to the story (and as an English major, that really bothers me). Fine if you want some cloak-and-dagger intrigue to fill up an afternoon or two but not anything you should feel concerned about missing.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Quickly put, this is by far does not come close to the caliber of most of the Pendergast novel. Don't get me wrong, it has a few good moments, but based upon the information that the reader is given early on in the book, I'm not too sure where the authors are heading when it comes to future installments. The slight twist at the end wasn't a complete "shocker", but I guess there needs to be an act 3 twist at some point. Anyway, I will definitely read move of the Gideon Crew series when they are released, but I will be more excited to read future Pendergast novels instead. I personally think that Gideon's Sword is eligible for 3.50 stars, but due to this site not allowing for such fractions I don't think it deserves the 4 star rating.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I liked this book, it was fast pace and entertaining. A friend of mine actually mentionned it made her thing of the bourne identity... I can see why. Gideon Crew is a man of all trade, that gets enrolled to find mysterious plans from a Chinese scentist. Things obviously don't go so smoothly when the Chinese scientist gets killed in a car accident and a mysterious assassins start chasing Crew.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    A suspense thriller that introduces a new character, Gideon Crew, who seems like a less polished and seasoned version of Preston's recurring character, ex-FBI agent Aloysius Pendergast. Gideon Crew is a multi-talented man who has made it his life's goal to avenge the framing and murder of his father, a prominent mathemetician. He finally gets the opportunity to achieve this goal, and is subsequently approached by a shadowy arm of the government to obtain a smuggled technological secret of tremendous import from a Chinese scientist en route to America. The story is crisp and fast-moving, but there are a lot of plot holes and illogical turns here, and Gideon Crew bears too much resemblance to Preston's other male protagonists. Still, a decent fun summer read.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Stuff happens very fast - the first of the book is about Gideon avenging his father and I thought, at the beginning, that this was the story - it was not, it was just some sort of add-on, perhaps to set the stage, but I never did figure out why it was there other than to show how JamesBondy Gideon is.It's not a very deep book by any means, and a lot of stuff happens without much detail around any of it - this makes it fast but fluffy. It's not particularly violent or gory either... and Gideon does "get some" but no details on that either. I might pick up the next in the series though, for when I want some fast action without any detailed thinking required.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    New series by the authors of the Pendergast books - nice solid start, lots of breezy action and adventure, I will definitely read the next one.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I listened to this on tape and really enjoyed it! It was full of action from the very beginning to the very end, with well developed characters and a plot with many twists and turns. I liked always being on the edge of my seat in anticipation and never quite knowing what was coming next in the story. The main character seems like an underdog yet he always seems to come out ahead no matter the obstacles. I would definitely recommend this book!
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I was excited to pick up Gideon's Sword - the first book introducing what will be a new series and character. I wasn't as excited when I finished it though.Gideon Crew was deeply affected by the violent and somewhat mysterious death of his father when he was a young boy. He grew up swearing to avenge his death. He is highly educated but makes his living as a thief. This sets up the back story. Gideon is approached by a mysterious government agency to retrieve the plans for a new weapon before they fall into the wrong hands.Gideon is described as incredibly good looking with black hair and brilliant blue eyes. Women find him irresistible, but everyone seems to fall for his gift of gab. This seems to be his best weapon. Unfortunately I just found his glibness grating and those who seemed to fall for his increasingly obvious ploys gullible. Gideon's Sword is full of action and the plot is fast paced. But is also somewhat far fetched in places. Gideon ends up with a dead man's suit after posing as his next of kin. I'm not sure why the police would not have objected as this was a murder. Gideon careens from one outlandish, improbable situation to another, talking his way through all of them. He seems somewhat callous in nature as well. He's not opposed to using unsuspecting others to further his own means. The tenderness he professes to feel for one such citizen falls flat.I found the use of Hart Island, New York as a setting for part of the novel fascinating and went off to read more on the web.So all the right elements are here - dynamic, good looking, intelligent bad boy does the impossible for shadowy organization with lots of hair raising situations. And yes, that is accomplished. But it just didn't make me a believer. Yes, the Pendergast novels are more 'out there' if you will. But I like Pendergast as a character and all those who populate that series and the plotlines grab me.If these authors are new to you, I suggest you start with their backlist
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    I had high hopes for this book, couldn't connect with any of the characters (except maybe for Dajkovic), plot felt chopped and put together haphazardly. Read like a Patterson: short, fast chapters, a one-seating read. I hope subsequent books are better. Preston & Child are capable of MUCH better. With books like this, I always feel like the author had a contractual commitment to fulfill and threw together something to satisfy their contract. Don't expect much from this one.