Cold Justice: The Sunday Times bestselling thriller (Mallory)

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The chapters are short; no time is wasted on long explanations and dialogue is relevant and to the point. Cold Justice is filled with thrilling details and insights that can come only from boots-in-the-mud experience. A powerhouse of a thriller laden with explosive twists and pulse-pounding developments right from the start, this is a white knuckle ride from the off and the best action-thriller of the year, so if you enjoy fast and furious thrillers that keep you scintillated throughout then this is a must-read.

It follows former special forces operative and protagonist Mallory as he attempts to come to terms with the guilt he is drowning in as a result of an operation gone bad in Afghanistan and is also suffering from PTSD.Ant Middleton is an interesting person; he was the frontman for Channel 4’s hit show: ‘SAS: Who dares wins’ and is the author of several bestselling nonfiction books based on his own experiences during his career in the armed forces where he achieved what is known as the ‘Holy Trinity’ of the UK’s Elite Forces, having served in the Special Boat Service, the Royal Marines and 9 Parachute Squadron Royal. It's the kind of book you can see translating to screen adaptation, it has that kind of vibe to it and I think that action thriller fans will be kept very happy. Middleton ramps up the tension, drama, peril and body count and his experience in the special forces lends an air of authenticity and believability to it all. Perhaps it's redemption, perhaps he's looking for revenge on the world, but suddenly Mallory has a purpose, and nothing and no one is going to stand in his way. It's about time that we have a UK version of Reacher, Mallory can be, I want him to be, hopefully we get that as the character grows in the next book.

Vivid and plausibly plotted, it is filled with drama, betrayal and murder and laced with lies, deceit, violence, deception, duplicity, double-crossing and people who simply cannot be trusted.Yes it’s very generic, the mentally unstable ex-soldier wanting to make amends for his platoon dying in battle, blah blah. He's not the perfect all action hero, although it's fair to say he's pretty handy in a fight and has a real awareness of his surroundings and the imminent threats as you would expect from someone of his pedigree. A mum who’s son served with Mallory, he flies across the globe to help her other son who is dire need of help.

But then he made a fatal decision, gambling with the lives of his men with terrible consequences: two dead, and his young friend Donno left in a coma. Redemption, purpose, a release of guilt and anger are the main motivations for bullish approach to the task in hand. Ant Middleton makes his fictional debut with a scintillating adventure, introducing the newest action figure on the scene, Mallory.This was a really good story, fast paced, action packed, thoughtful and yes, a bit violent, but you can skim over those bits if they’re not really for you. I found the book well written and good entertaining for a few hours and are actually looking forward to the next one because of the cliffhanger. We move on to the present time in Birmingham and we find Mallory in a bar trying not to get into a fight, which he ultimately does and ends up in a prison cell for the night.

Readers who prefer action rather than brain teasers and superheroes who talk with their fists rather than their cognitive abilities will definitely enjoy this novel. It's here: the landmark debut thriller from superstar Ant Middleton, million-selling, number one Sunday Times author of First Man In and The Fear Bubble and star of SAS: Who Dares Wins. It's a truly globetrotting thriller as Mallory traverses the globe trying to complete his mission and it becomes even more enthralling and absorbing as it progresses with the tension being ratcheted up to extreme levels towards the end; it leaves you feeling breathless, and before you know it another similarly nail-biting moment swiftly arrives.

This is a very formulaic thriller - lone wolf gets thrown out of army, becomes a one man crusader for justice and hurts a lot of comic-book baddies - which offers nothing new to the well-worn genre other than more of the same, but has some exciting moments. We finish this book without knowing Mallory's first name and I don't know if I think that is awesome or the ultimate drama queen move.