Dark Asset

March 15, 2017
A security expert agrees to protect a French intelligence agent in Somalia, but several dangerous details are withheld from him.As the story opens, two-fisted Marc Portman, who describes himself as a -close protection specialist,- is stuck on the sixth floor of an abandoned office project in downtown Mogadishu with unidentified thugs heading his way. He discovers the body of Andre Masse, a French intelligence officer and the man he's been recently hired to protect. His contact for the job is Victor Petrus, dashing officer of France's Directorate-General for Internal Security. His mission apparently at an end, if not quite successful, Portman flies away on a helicopter, only to receive a midair call from Masse, the dead man. Meanwhile, the reader gets a step ahead of Portman as Petrus checks in with his anonymous superior, who thinks that Portman's now in possession of the dangerous device they need. Said info is still in Mogadishu, according to Masse, when Portman meets up with him. Back and forth the narrative goes, from Masse and Portman and their dangerous pursuit to Petrus and company tracking them. Masse explains that he plans to hand over the device to Petrus as he's promised, but he's clearly conflicted because he wonders about the truth behind these tangled allegiances. His uncertainty turns out to be abundantly warranted as he tries to negotiate the complicated terrain of a war-torn nation. The fourth thriller in Magson's series (Hard Cover, 2016, etc.) has grit, pace, and consistent suspense in its depiction of chases, weaponry, and the details of espionage.

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June 15, 2015
In Magson’s fine second Marc Portman thriller (after 2014’s The Watchman), the CIA hires the freelance operative, “a close-protection specialist,” to rescue a State Department negotiator, Edwin Travis, who was sent to Ukraine to talk to the various factions involved in fighting the pro-Russian separatists. Some unknown group, probably backed by the Russians, kidnapped Travis, and Portman’s job is to find and extricate him. It’s a standard assignment for Portman, but this time he has to deal with a traitorous U.S. senator, Howard Benson, and other members of the Dupont Circle Group, who stand to make a great deal of money on energy stocks if the situation in Eastern Europe goes to hell. Because Benson oversees the CIA, he’s aware of Portman’s mission and does his best to derail it. The action moves quickly, though a rather tame ending will leave readers a bit disappointed but still looking forward to Portman’s next outing. Agent: David Headley, DHH Literary Agency.

August 1, 2015

Marc Portman, known as the Watchman, is a "close protection specialist" who is highly regarded for his ability to protect targets from danger. Fresh from a job in Iran, Portman is asked by a CIA administrator to liberate a negotiator from the Ukrainian hotel room where he is being held prisoner. His mission is complicated by treacherous individuals and groups determined to stop him or at least profit by his being there. Further compounding Portman's challenges is the effort of a U.S. senator determined to see the operation fail for his own vested interests. VERDICT Magson has successfully moved from espionage and crime fiction ("Harry Tate" series; "Insp. Lucas Rocco Mysteries") to military thrillers in this second series outing (after The Watchman). His tough-talking protagonist will appeal to readers who appreciate macho heroes in dangerous situations that require brute strength.

Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from March 15, 2017
Magson's latest Marc Portman thriller will appeal to all adrenaline junkies. Portman is a close-protection specialist who hires himself out to intelligence agencies to retrieve agents who land in trouble, usually in the world's most dangerous hot spots. This time he's been commissioned by the French to recover Andre Masse, an agent based in Mogadishu, Somalia. Masse sent an urgent message to his bosses asking for an immediate come and collect, which means he has something important to hand overin this case, a hard drive with damning evidence against one of the leaders of terrorist group Al-Shabaab. But he can't leave the country himself. Hired to get the hard drive and bring it out, Portman discovers, when he arrives, that Masse is dead and the hard drive is nowhere to be found. But he can't just head home, especially when he finds that hit squads from both the U.S. and France are on his tail. He's been in some dangerous situations before, but this one demands every ounce of his ingenuity, stamina, and courage. Two thumbs way up for this heart-stopping, exhilarating action thriller, which will remind readers of Alex Berenson's John Wells novels.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)

Starred review from June 1, 2015
Magson's Marc Portman series gets better with each new installmentmore taut, more adventurous, more twisted, more violent and with another gripping story line and the same brave, clever, likable hero. Portman's latest mission is to rescue Ed Travis, a U.S. State Department employee who's gone to Ukraine to try to suss out what the various pro- and anti-separatist groups are up to. But before Travis can complete his task, he's kidnappedby whom, it's not clear, although the CIA suspects Russian involvement. As Portman enters the chaotic eastern Ukraine, he knows he's being watched, no matter how good his cover. He must depend on a series of not-especially-reliable contacts to help him spirit Travis out. Meanwhile, back in Washington, a group of rich and powerful businessmen and politicians are focused on causing Portman to fail so they can get the government to sanction Russia, endanger America's Russian gas supply, and then profit from the last-minute energy alternatives the government will be forced to put in place. Ignorant of their plan, Portman overcomes hurdle after impossible hurdle, from snipers and roadblocks to a Russian mafia attack. Knuckle-whitening, adventure-packed, and shocking, this page-turner is guaranteed to grip readers from the first page to the last.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)

March 13, 2017
In Magson’s frenetic fourth Marc Portman thriller (after 2016’s Hard Cover), the wily freelance close protection specialist takes on a job for France’s main intelligence agency, the General Directorate for External Security. Consultant engineer André Masse, who’s in fact a DGSE deep-cover operative, possesses a hard drive filled with data that’s potentially damaging for at least two countries. Portman’s mission is to get Masse out of Mogadishu, Somalia, and across the border to Djibouti. In an abandoned Mogadishu office building, Portman finds a mutilated body, which he identifies as Masse’s. After retrieving the hard drive, he dodges bullets and fragmentation grenades fired by a murderous assault team of unknown origin as he rappels down an elevator shaft to safety. Then things really heat up. Portman must contend with spies, counterspies, terrorists, greedy politicians, and a power-mad former U.S. colonel en route to the open ending. Those seeking thoughtful reflection in their action heroes will have to look elsewhere. Agent: David Headley, DHH Literary Agency.