Finally broke down and bought "The Survivor" by Kyle Mills writing for Vince Flynn. I was heartbroken when Vince Flynn died way too young. His Mitch Rapp series was unparalleled in an action hero. After the first hundred pages of "The Survivor", I'm a little underwhelmed and can tell the writing is not Flynn. Still, it might pick up the pace and I'll be satisfied, but thus far, not so much.
For me, no series character in books tops Mitch Rapp. He's top of the heap for "man among boy pretending to be men" and one serious ass kicker and oftentimes killer. Of course, Lee Child's "Jack Reacher" series is good...as is Cussler's "Dirk Pitt" (and subsequent heroes shadow-written under Cussler's name); Tom Clancy's "Jack Ryan; Daniel Silva's "Gabriel Allon"; Dave Baldacci's "Will Robie" and "John Puller" series; Robert Crais' "Joe Pike" and "Scott James and Maggie" (very good if you haven't read "Suriver" and you like dogs and an action hero handler - I highly suggest it if you've not read it); Michael Connelly's "Harry Bosch"; Stuart Wood's "Stone Barrington"; Ted Bell's "Alex Hawke"; etc.
I was hammered by Amazon to purchase "Wrong Town" by Randall Miller who started a series of a new action hero named Mark Landry. Amazon insisted it's better than Rapp and Reacher. Wrong. Book was okay, maybe even very good...but it doesn't knock Rapp and Reacher off their pedestals.
Anyway...who is your favorite action hero found only in books? I've read every book of every author I like (and many who I don't like) and am always game for a new writer that I hadn't heard of.
You'll love John Wells.
You'll love John Wells.
Thanks, I've actually read all his books and I like the Wells character. I didn't list every writer I've read or it would make my post more boring that it already is.
One of the problems I have is that I refuse to use a Kindle and only read books. There's a ton of new writers that are making their debut electronically so I'm missing some for sure, but I can't stand reading a little screen, especially when it's outside or bright inside.
Robie is an assassin.
baldacci also has a good character in John Puller, Puller is sort of an NCIS but for Army
I like Baldacci a lot, reminds me of Vince Flynn, and Baldacci is still alive so if you're looking at another writer, he's a good choice and he has new work still comign out..
I liked the Stan Hurley character in the Rapp Novels.
And as an FYI...American Assassin, based on the Rapp book Consent to Kill with bring the Mitch Rapp character to the big screen in 2017.
Like Jack Reacher I hope they don't fail to convey the real character of Rapp. I loved the Jack Reacher character in the books, but Tom Cruise? not even close.
I think Michaal Keaton is playing Stan Hurley and I think he can pull that off.
Robie is an assassin.
baldacci also has a good character in John Puller, Puller is sort of an NCIS but for Army
I like Baldacci a lot, reminds me of Vince Flynn, and Baldacci is still alive so if you're looking at another writer, he's a good choice and he has new work still comign out..
I liked the Stan Hurley character in the Rapp Novels.
And as an FYI...American Assassin, based on the Rapp book Consent to Kill with bring the Mitch Rapp character to the big screen in 2017.
Like Jack Reacher I hope they don't fail to convey the real character of Rapp. I loved the Jack Reacher character in the books, but Tom Cruise? not even close.
I think Michaal Keaton is playing Stan Hurley and I think he can pull that off.
and after re-reading your post you mentioned all three characters I did.
Cross' character has been in several movies, I don't think Bennett has been in any. Reminds me sort of, of a Bruce Willis, but he's not as badass as Rapp, Reacher, Robie, etc. just a good detective.
Robie is an assassin.
baldacci also has a good character in John Puller, Puller is sort of an NCIS but for Army
I like Baldacci a lot, reminds me of Vince Flynn, and Baldacci is still alive so if you're looking at another writer, he's a good choice and he has new work still comign out..
I liked the Stan Hurley character in the Rapp Novels.
And as an FYI...American Assassin, based on the Rapp book Consent to Kill with bring the Mitch Rapp character to the big screen in 2017.
Like Jack Reacher I hope they don't fail to convey the real character of Rapp. I loved the Jack Reacher character in the books, but Tom Cruise? not even close.
I think Michaal Keaton is playing Stan Hurley and I think he can pull that off.
Yeah, I heard that Keaton was going to do Stan. Supposedly, they are finalizing the deal with Chris Hemsworth to do the role of Rapp. At least Hemsworth is 6'3". And yeah, I actually think Cruise is a good actor, but was completely miscast as Reacher. Reacher was 6'5", quiet, and when he did talk - it wasn't animated, but he meant business. Tom Cruise is 5'6" and never shuts up and is overly animated. Which is good for some movies, but not play acting Reacher. I suppose for people who never read Lee Child's books might not realize just how awful the pick was. Having Cruise play Reacher is like reading about a wolf you love for 10 years, a wolf that quietly goes about his business, but is forced to kill...and kill a lot. And when Hollywood decides to make a movie of our favorite wolf, they cast a yappy little Scottish Terrier and we're supposed to think he's a wolf...lol.
I'm cautiously optimistic on the upcoming movie with Rapp. Whoever ends up playing Rapp better read up on all Flynn's books and get the character down straight. Actually, the TV show "24" was based on Flynn's character Rapp and the producers brought in Flynn to get his advice. Flynn left us way too soon...may he R.I.P.
Keaton is a good actor, but I have my own image of Stan and he doesn't fit that image. I think gritty, gruff, short-tempered, nasty little bastard that's always smoking and always swearing and ready to kill anyone that irks him...or at least beat the guy to unconscious. To me, the perfect guy to play Stan would be David Morse when he's grunged up and a bad ass, like:
Unbelievable story teller
I don't know if Morse could nail Stan's role...it's just that that is the picture I drew in my head over the years reading Flynn. Keaton will have his hands full getting Stan's character down, but he's talented and might be able to pull it off.
I'm a little worried about Hemsworth. I think he's a little too much of a pretty boy. I had to really search to find a picture of him when he looked tough enough to pull off being Rapp. Here's three pics of him, the last one being a potential look to play Rapp.
[url=https://postimage.org/]
And, yeah, I was like...Tom Cruise? What's next, Danny Devito as Hercules?
Plus, since Rapp went to Syracuse he should have been drafted by the Giants.
I've read every book by Flynn and some more than once and I don't know where you get the Tour de France cyclist. Lacrosse star at Syracuse University, yeah...but no competitive cycling. While at S.U. of course, his girlfriend and love of his life went on a Study Abroad program and was blown out of the sky by terrorists over Lockerbie on Pan Am Flight 103. Which is the basis of his hatred of terrorists and nasty disposition.
His Jack McClure / Alli Carson series written under his real name instead of Ludlum is actually top notch. For any of you guys who read a lot of thriller/adventure books, give Lustbader a try.
Lustbader has written 10 successive Jason Bourne books since Ludlum's death.
It's a fun movie in its own right, but I had read the book a month or two before the movie came out and sat in the theatre dumbfounded by what they had done to excellent source material.
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But the stuff about him being both an all American lacrosse player AND a Tour de France level cyclist was a little silly. When did he fit the 8 hours a day of cycling in while going to college?
I've read every book by Flynn and some more than once and I don't know where you get the Tour de France cyclist. Lacrosse star at Syracuse University, yeah...but no competitive cycling. While at S.U. of course, his girlfriend and love of his life went on a Study Abroad program and was blown out of the sky by terrorists over Lockerbie on Pan Am Flight 103. Which is the basis of his hatred of terrorists and nasty disposition.
yes, i confused TdF and the Ironman. But the Ironman stuff was still silly. Winners of the Ironman are single focused for years and years, it's not a hobby.
Spenser (and Hawk) from the late great Robert B. Parker.
2) How did Morse end up as a good option for this type of role? I was introduced to him as the somewhat wimpy doctor on St. Elsewhere years ago. Every time I see him in a gritty role I initially go back to that image, but he does a good job.
the negotiator, the rock, and most recently probably his "baddest"character Foster Farrell from the Outsiders:
but from an appearance standpoint you couldn't be much further from Hurley in my impression of him than his Outsiders role.
In my mind this is Stan Hurley
It's a fun movie in its own right, but I had read the book a month or two before the movie came out and sat in the theatre dumbfounded by what they had done to excellent source material.
Yeah...I know where you're coming from. Rarely does a movie do justice to a book. I think the closest I ever saw was Clancy's "Patriot Games" starring Harrison Ford as Jack Ryan. I was shocked at how closely the movie followed the book.
I remember hating the movie "The Firm", by John Grisham. Again, they chose to cast Tom Cruise to play Mitch McDeere - a completely different type character than in the book. In order to keep the movie to 2-hours, they had to pretty much rewrite the plot of the novel, especially the ending which left people like me with their jaws dropped saying over and over, "WTF". On top of that, the book made a big deal about Mitch getting a Mercedes Benz as a reward for signing with the company and lo and behold, in the movie it was a BMW because the car company paid millions to the producer to change the car from that of the book.
I watched a Grisham interview after the disappointing movie and he was asked, "are you upset that they changed the plot?" Grisham's answer was perfect. He replied, "they paid me millions for the rights and I could care less what they did with it after that"...lol. Great point. Write a book as a hobby, make a million selling it when it goes to no. 1 on the New York Times list - then sell movie rights for many million more. I'd do the same!
Absolutely deviated from the mental image in the book, but still a decent movie and a decent role. Not perfect, but also not Ben Affleck as batman.
As Jack Reacher they completely whiffed. as mentioned he's a 6'5 260 pound drifter. His persona is his menacing appearance, but it's also his appeal to some. they might as well have lost the Reacher name it carried so little resemblance to the book character.
Absolutely deviated from the mental image in the book, but still a decent movie and a decent role. Not perfect, but also not Ben Affleck as batman.
As Jack Reacher they completely whiffed. as mentioned he's a 6'5 260 pound drifter. His persona is his menacing appearance, but it's also his appeal to some. they might as well have lost the Reacher name it carried so little resemblance to the book character.
Totally agree. Cruise wasn't awful in the firm and pretty much nailed the part. However, the mental image of Mitch was entirely different.
The only person I can even think of that would resemble Jack Reacher in size and demeanor would be Steven Seagal...who I think is a terrible actor. But Reacher was kind of a quiet guy - huge, but quiet. Had to be provoked to end up in a fight. Seagal doesn't come across as particularly smart in my opinion and I always thought of Reacher as pretty smart as well as quiet, just wanting to be left alone as he drifts across the country, dumping his clothes in the trash every couple of days and owning nothing but the clothes on his back and his trusty toothbrush. Cruise was absolutely the wrong person to cast as Reacher. I'm sure that Hollywood was more concerned about putting a headliner name in the movie for the draw instead of keeping it true to the novel.
no recurring character, but several times during the reading of that book I had to google it and make sure it wasn't a true story.
[quote] though where they cast the role different than you expected from the book, but IMO Cruise did fine in that role.
Absolutely deviated from the mental image in the book, but still a decent movie and a decent role. Not perfect, but also not Ben Affleck as batman.
As Jack Reacher they completely whiffed. as mentioned he's a 6'5 260 pound drifter. His persona is his menacing appearance, but it's also his appeal to some. they might as well have lost the Reacher name it carried so little resemblance to the book character.
[/quote
And where are they going to find a 6'5" 260 pound actor in Hollywood who can act? That's a tough role to fill if you are going to be uncompromising about the character appearance.
[quote] though where they cast the role different than you expected from the book, but IMO Cruise did fine in that role.
Absolutely deviated from the mental image in the book, but still a decent movie and a decent role. Not perfect, but also not Ben Affleck as batman.
As Jack Reacher they completely whiffed. as mentioned he's a 6'5 260 pound drifter. His persona is his menacing appearance, but it's also his appeal to some. they might as well have lost the Reacher name it carried so little resemblance to the book character.
[/quote
And where are they going to find a 6'5" 260 pound actor in Hollywood who can act? That's a tough role to fill if you are going to be uncompromising about the character appearance.
Fair question, he doesn't need to be the exact size to convey the same persona. Liam Neeson in Taken was a badass, throw a Brett Bruns beard on him and bulk him up a little and he'd be a better fit than Cruise. Or Viggo Mortenson. I'm not as familiar with the current actors, but the guy who played Tim Riggins in FNL with an unshaven look might even be a good fit.
the point they emphasized in every Jack Reacher book was his appearance. dudes just didn't want to mess with him simply by looking at him, he was almost animal-like in his appearance.
Cruise can pull off action, but IMO just was miss-cast as Jack Reacher.
Also really enjoy Tom Wood's "Victor The Assassin" series. Awesome stuff.
They didn't need someone who was actually 6'5" to play the role...I mean, Tom Hardy isn't even 6'0" and yet he would have been a much better choice
Also really enjoy Tom Wood's "Victor The Assassin" series. Awesome stuff.
Thanks for the tip. I'm always looking for new writers to follow and I've never heard of those two. And I read a lot of rather obscure writers.
One of the problems is finding new actors to fill action roles. Cruise is very good in action films, but a lot of the old timers are gone and there's not a good crop of young males coming up willing to do some of the stuff Cruise is willing to do. Hell, Cruise actually held onto the outside of a freakin Airbus as it ascended into the air in "Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation". That kind of stuff would normally be given to a seasoned stunt man, but Cruise insisted on doing the stunt himself. Not many young actors would touch a role like that. I have to give him kudos for that one. And yeah, I know his motorcycle stunts are fake...lol
I started with the Bourne series in the late 70s and think my recent recommendations are even better, fan wise. Hope you enjoy lemme know what you think!!?
no recurring character, but several times during the reading of that book I had to google it and make sure it wasn't a true story.
Isn't Confession the basis to the movie A Time to Kill with Matthew McConaughey as the attorney and IIRC Gene Hackman the old man on trial?
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has a book called the Confession, I'd love to see made into a movie.
no recurring character, but several times during the reading of that book I had to google it and make sure it wasn't a true story.
Isn't Confession the basis to the movie A Time to Kill with Matthew McConaughey as the attorney and IIRC G7ene Hackman the old man on trial?
Those are 3 different books, A Time to Kill, The Chamber, and The Confession, which is a more recent novel.
Not because of the cast, which was fine. But the story deviated so far from the novel that it lost the whole story by turning it into a series of chase scenes, death escapes, and the wonders of graphic reconstruction of dinosaurs. Which for someone who hadn't read the book, that might have been fine.
The book was one of the best I ever read. So excited that they were going to make it into a movie that I got tickets for a pre-showing debut and couldn't wait. I left wondering what happened to the story and extremely disappointed.
Robie is an assassin.
baldacci also has a good character in John Puller, Puller is sort of an NCIS but for Army
I like Baldacci a lot, reminds me of Vince Flynn, and Baldacci is still alive so if you're looking at another writer, he's a good choice and he has new work still comign out..
I liked the Stan Hurley character in the Rapp Novels.
And as an FYI...American Assassin, based on the Rapp book Consent to Kill with bring the Mitch Rapp character to the big screen in 2017.
Like Jack Reacher I hope they don't fail to convey the real character of Rapp. I loved the Jack Reacher character in the books, but Tom Cruise? not even close.
I think Michaal Keaton is playing Stan Hurley and I think he can pull that off.
I prefer Robie to pulham. However amos decker in his new series may rise to the top.
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reminds me a little of Will Robie from David Baldacci.
Robie is an assassin.
baldacci also has a good character in John Puller, Puller is sort of an NCIS but for Army
I like Baldacci a lot, reminds me of Vince Flynn, and Baldacci is still alive so if you're looking at another writer, he's a good choice and he has new work still comign out..
I liked the Stan Hurley character in the Rapp Novels.
And as an FYI...American Assassin, based on the Rapp book Consent to Kill with bring the Mitch Rapp character to the big screen in 2017.
Like Jack Reacher I hope they don't fail to convey the real character of Rapp. I loved the Jack Reacher character in the books, but Tom Cruise? not even close.
I think Michaal Keaton is playing Stan Hurley and I think he can pull that off.
I prefer Robie to pulham. However amos decker in his new series may rise to the top.
I like Amos Decker too - only read Memory Man so far, but not sure he's action/adventure in the classic sense. Is he? I don't know, either way I liked the story and look forward to the second book.
Ive read all 5 series, still dont know my favorite yet. I would rank them as....
Will Robie
Camel Club
King and Maxwell
John Pullham
Too early for Decker.
Ive read all 5 series, still dont know my favorite yet. I would rank them as....
Will Robie
Camel Club
King and Maxwell
John Pullham
Too early for Decker.
I love all of Baldacci's works, but I think the Camel Club was the best. Although, the series ended a little off beat. I really like the Will Robie character. King and Maxwell was top notch as well, but the TV series kind of messed it up for me. The show wasn't bad, but it predetermined the characters that differed from my mind.
I have quite a few books in queue, but I'm debating on whether the next one to read is Baldacci's, "The Last Mile" or Mike Bond's, "Killing Maine". I've never read Bond, but there's a lot of hype about his book like, "master of the existential thriller..." and won First Prize in the New England Book Festival. Most likely, I'll dive into Baldacci because I know in advance I'll like it.