The Bomb Maker

By Thomas Perry

A threat is called into the LAPD Bomb Squad and when tragedy ensues, the fragmented unit turns to Dick Stahl, a former Bomb Squad commander who now operates his own private security company. Just returned from a tough job in Mexico, Stahl is at first reluctant to accept the offer, but his sense of duty to the technicians he trained is too strong to turn it down. On his first day back at the head of the squad, Stahl's three-person team is dispatched to a suspected car bomb. And it quickly becomes clear to him that they are dealing with an unusual mastermind - one whose intended target seems to be the Bomb Squad itself.
As the shadowy organization sponsoring this campaign of violence puts increasing pressure on the bomb maker and Stahl becomes dangerously entangled with a member of his own team, the fuse on this high-stakes plot only burns faster. The Bomb Maker is Thomas Perry's biggest, most unstoppable thriller yet.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Grove Press UK
• Release date: Aug 3, 2023
• ISBN: 9781804710593

Thomas Perry

Thomas Perry is the New York Times bestselling author of nearly thirty novels, including the critically acclaimed Jane Whitefield series, The Old Man, and The Butcher's Boy, which won the Edgar Award. He lives in Southern California. Follow Thomas on Facebook at @ThomasPerryAuthor.

Reviews for The Bomb Maker

[ecw0647 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Audiobook. I have read/listened to many of Perry's books and generally I like them. They are perfect for traveling, walking the dog, doing the dishes, mowing the lawn, etc. There does seem to be a common theme in all of them regardless of whether the protagonist is a "good" or "bad" guy and that's the sort of savior or lone man/woman against hoards of overwhelming odds. It makes for an enjoyable read if a bit implausible.

[ikeman100 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Another great story by this author.

[susandennis-139327 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I love a good Thomas Perry and this is one. A good and credible story well told.

[cmt100 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Perry strikes again. A stay-up-late-until-you-finish-it book. I learned a lot about bombs. (I hope not all of it is accurate.) Perhaps not Perry's best, but plenty good enough.

[hardboiled-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

If you are looking for a good, quick read filled with action and a bit of suspense this may be for you. I felt like I learned more about bomb making than I really wanted but that knowledge helped lend credence to the bomb maker's actions. While entertaining, I found a number of weaknesses in the plot including a superficial development of the bomb maker's character and an ending that seemed rushed and anticlimactic. I guess I feel cheated that there wasn't a head to head resolution of the cat and mouse struggle between Stahl and the bomb maker that carried the first seventy-five percent of the book.

[alanteder · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Ends too abruptly and without the proper catharsisGenerally speaking, Thomas Perry writes by using only one plot mechanism: the hunter & the evader. The inventive ways that he tweaks that mechanism are what has made him a reliable suspense writer. He alternates having the heroes & villains as being either the hunters or the escapers. It is not necessarily always the police doing the chasing or the villains being the escapers.His "Jane Whitefield" series is built around a heroine whose whole premise is to hide people, a one-person witness protection agency. His "Butcher's Boy" is a hit-man on the run from all those trying to run him down whether the police or other villains. In last year's "The Old Man", Perry set himself the challenge of portraying the escapee as a senior citizen and the result was one of his best.Unfortunately this year's "The Bomb Maker" falls flat in the challenge department. The most unique feature about it is that the villains are unidentified and mostly anonymous. That may of course agree with a lot of unsolved or even solved crimes in reality but does not provide much of a catharsis for the reader. The hero is supposed to pass through a journey that purges an element of villainy from the world, thereby earning our empathy and identification. When the object of the purging is relatively unknown, the solution and satisfaction feel unfulfilled and empty.I still appreciate Thomas Perry for always attempting a new angle to his plots, but this one just did not conclude in a satisfactory manner

[signoraedie_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Story is gripping and well-written. BUT the ending had so many loose ends, I was disappointed.