Private: Rio by James Patterson and Mark Sullivan (Private #11)

Private Rio by James Patterson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Jacket Blurb:  Two years ago Jack Morgan – the head of the renowned worldwide investigation firm Private – was in charge of security for the World Cup in Brazil. During the championship final, the action nearly spilled from the field into the stands. Fortunately, Jack and his team averted disaster on football's biggest stage.

Now he has returned to Rio to secure the Olympics. But before the torch is lit, the threats come fast and furious as Jack discovers that someone is trying to sabotage the games. A lethal plan put in motion during the World Cup is set to decimate Rio, and turn the Olympics from a worldwide celebration into a horrifying spectacle.

Read as an audio book.

This book picks up on the heels of Private: Paris, where Jack receives a call from the LA officewith directions to fly directly to Rio. Rio is hosting the World Cup, then, later the Summer Olympics and the security concerns are already starting.

This was another installment of the Private series that I enjoyed. The "mystery"/suspense was interesting and engaging and it was kept to two plot lines: The doctor seeking revenge and the Wise girl's abductions. Both plots had some interesting twists that had me going, "Oh! Cool!". There was a third, more subtle sub-plot that came as no surprise, and that would be Jack's personal life. Let me note now, that none of the plots were without their holes, but since I look at these books for pure entertainment, I can deal with the quirks.

The Wise girl's abduction. Natalie and Ashley (if I'm remembering names correctly) are doing charity/mission work in Rio right before the games. The are kidnapped at gunpoint under Private's surveillance. Mr. and Mrs Wise are furious with Jack. Jack is humiliated that his company failed so badly and assures the Wise's that he will do everything in his power to return the girls to safety. And he does, but it comes at the price.

As the kidnapping plot unfolds, I liked the twists and turns the authors threw in. The fight against Rio's poverty, the government corruption, business's making a profit on the backs of Rio's poor was a thought provoking battle cry. Though there is some question in my mind just how much the kidnappers had intended to use ransom monies for the people of Rio. However, I didn't like certain aspects of the full kidnapping plot resolution, chief being the impact to Jack's personal life. The only thing I will say, dating Jack Morgan is detrimental to a woman's health.

The Doctor seeking revenge. Where this fell short was the references to his deceased wife - I never really caught the connection between her death and why such drive far sweeping revenge. I could see the anger at the death of two children at the hands of Hydra, but this is Rio we are talking about - where poverty, orphans, homelessness run rampant. Yes yes, that was the point you say... but the overall impetus for the Doctor's anger never quite jelled for me.

What did work, was the two different aspects both fighting for the downtrodden: the injustice the kidnappers saw in the Olympic contracts, and the plight of the poor seeking any kind of medical help. The irony, when all was said and done, the Wise family was reunited and the Olympics were saved from a biological weapon, nothing changes for Rio. Everything changed for Jack.

And I still don't like Justine.

Recommended if you've read the previous books in the series.



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