Ask aficionados who is Britain's finest thriller writer, and many would answer the veteran Gerald Seymour * Guardian on Beyond Recall * This is a wonderfully complex and unputdownable tale of defectors, traitors, internal politics or "high jingo" as Michael Connelly would describe it and assassination both actual and character. There are two main issues with this book. The first is the lead characters are not very likeable. The second is Seymour's current practice of fixating on a motif which comes across as heavy handed in this novel. He has never lost his journalist's eye for the stories behind the news * The Sunday Times on The Crocodile Hunter * The Glory Boys was another 3-part miniseries produced by Yorkshire television in 1984. It starred Anthony Perkins as Jimmy, the alcoholic ex-British Government agent who tries to protect Israeli Professor David Sokarev, played by Rod Steiger. Aaron Harris starred as IRA agent Cillian McCoy, while Gary Brown took the role of PLO assassin Famy. Critics complimented the competent acting, but did not relish Yorkshire Television’s slow, mediocre adaptation of Gerald’s novel.

Seymour produces the most intelligent writing in the thriller genre * Financial Times on Beyond Recall * I was completely gripped by the plot and interdepartmental jealousies and rivalries. I couldn’t put it down!’ Initially a journalist, Gerald joined the Independent Television Network (ITN) in 1963, and forged a successful career. He covered controversial situations such as the Munich Olympics Massacre and Palestinian Militant Groups.It’s the first book I’ve read by Gerald Seymour. I chose the book because I’ve heard so much about his previous writing. Unfortunately, the book left me underwhelmed. The story is about counter-intelligence and MI5, which is inherently duller than espionage and MI6 (catching spies is mmore boring than spying), but that was not the problem - the plot was good enough. What I had a hard time to bear with was the protagonist’s characterisation; with the aim of making him look smart and unconventional, the author stretches the protagonist’s habits, customs and idiosyncrasies to such an extreme that he becomes a caricature (almost an OCD type); except that making your dude look like a weirdo does not make him more interesting - to me, at least. By continuing to disguise himself as an idiot, he ends up looking like one. GS has produced a book of quality, tenacity and cunning. The ‘hero’ is all manner and levels of many characteristics - too many to list. But, he’s believable, durable and, now, enjoyable. Gerald was not used to living a settled life without constantly boarding planes, but soon produced outstanding novels like Red Fox, The Contract, Kingfisher and Archangel. He has since garnered committed fans who love his spine-tingling thrillers.

The thrilling, yet pragmatic nature of his books continues to draw readers in. The spine-chilling, fictional events he describes, based on his journalistic encounters, are situations readers relate to easily. TV Adaptations As a sign of respect for the memorable times we spent together I promise to be understanding, I swear. But this wasn’t our best encounter. And, I’m afraid to say it’s all you, not me; I read in the same iPad, on the same armchair as I read all my other books. It’s not necessary to read the previous book to enjoy this one (but I recommend you do as it is just as good), but, inevitably, there are spoilers for it in this book as Jonas’ story continues. It happens to every reader that now and then one comes across a book best described as “un-put-down-able”. You’ve been there, I’m sure. My average for devouring one of those books is two days at most; “The Crocodile Hunter” took me two weeks. Most “Must-put-down-able”. Just like the crocodile I had to come up for air now and then. A British writer, Gerald Seymour is most famous for describing reality-based, war-time conflict. He is the best-selling author of over 30 thrillers.Maybe I'm just burned out on counter terrorism themed thrillers but the Crocodile Hunter is my least favorite Seymour novel that I've read. Not to say it's bad or anything. The novel is certainly above average for the genre but I didn't enjoy it as much as some of his other work. Defectors are not always welcome. Is the information they bring worth the cost of protecting them for the rest of their lives? Is it even genuine? Might they be double agents?

Brown’s task is to arrest the assassin, Billy Downes, who is an IRA gunman. By the time Brown arrives in Northern Ireland, Downes has escaped to Belfast. If he finds out who the mole is, perhaps Igor can be used as a tethered goat to lure the Russian assassins to make another attempt at a time and place of his choosing in Denmark. As a team begins to assess his value, his former employers in the Kremlin develop a brutal plan to show that no defector will ever be safe. Gerald Seymour is one of my 'go to' thriller writers. You know the writing will be good and often there is a link to his previous career as a journalist. Seymour’s writing is clinical and concise, and often quite dense, which won’t be to everyone’s taste, but I really like it as an antidote to modern thrillers.JM is a cantankerous and sometimes banal old bug.ger. However, he’s crafted in such a way as to make the story brilliant. His genius is most pleasing, and the tom-foolery with making others believe him dumb, ha!