Grade:  B+

Jack Be Nimble: Gargoyle is the first in the Jack Be Nimble Series by Ben English

Available on Amazon and B&N

Blurb:

“The boy came to her out of water, unexpected. He was smart and strong and goofy, as boys are meant to be, but peculiar – he remembered everything.
In the span of a single summer, she made him fearless.
Now, even as Mercedes Adams is at the height of her career, forbidding changes loom over the world. That night, in the hushed calm of a spring evening, two plain-faced killers watch her home, waiting to make their approach.
A few hundred miles away, a brilliant technologist returns to his childhood town in order to begin a descent into darkness . . . in London, a military game theorist finds himself pursuing kidnappers . . . outside Prague, a hacker and a thief stumble upon plans for a weapon unique to the world . . . an FBI agent faces an unpredictable fugitive in Chicago, while in Germany, a sniper-turned-schoolteacher finds reasons to take up his ancient calling . . . and a sitting United States Senator finds his life and his work invaded to terrifying conclusion. In Paris, a widowed man begins to recognize the hints and patterns of a greater puzzle that will bring them together . . . or kill them all.
Mercedes Adams is about to find herself at the center of a vast, tightening knot of mystery, intrigue, and globe-spanning terror borne of her family’s legacy. Rising to her aid is a small group of specially-trained men and women. And at their center?
A man who remembers everything.”

Review:

Jack Be Nimble takes us on a journey through the lives and relationship of Jack and Mercedes. This is the core plot line throughout this book, and they both are struggling to keep their separate lives together, when all they want is to be together. They just haven’t completely realized it.

Note, this is NOT a romance novel, so those of you uninterested in romance keep reading, I bet this book will have something that interests you because this book has it all.

Spies, Heartbroken lovers, kidnapping, photographers, England, France, swimming, hidden weapons and action

Truckloads of action!

The other core plot line of the novel is spies, kidnapping, and secret missions. This novel could rivel any military novel, spy novel out there. It’s got all the hallmarks of a good action novel, but it also has the characters and history for a love story.

To be honest, the only reason this book got a B+ and not an A+ was because the scene switches were a little hard for me. I got lost a couple times trying to figure out if I was in real life, fiction life, or past time. The stories are amazing, well written and completely understandable once you are in a scene. I may be the only person who got confused but I loved this book so much, it didn’t hinder me from continuing! J

By the time you make it to the end of this novel, it all becomes clear, so hold on for the twist and turns and a bit of confusion from past and present stories, and enjoy it. This novel is the perfect premise for a well thought out, logical action movie!  Jack is an amazing character; the depth in the character is clearly present from the beginning, in the future scenes, current scenes, and past scenes. Jack’s character never wavers.

I love this novel, I’ll definitely be checking out his other novels, to see what happens to Jack next, and you should too! J

About The Author:

Ben English’s first thriller, Jack Be Nimble:  Gargoyle, was based on a short story written for a literary contest while he was an undergraduate student.  He was first published at age 14 in Merlyn’s Pen magazine.

He attended Brigham Young University, where he studied international relations, English, and broadcast journalism.  Ben also holds an MBA with an emphasis in Global Management.  In addition to working as a novelist, Ben is the head of marketing for an international high technology firm based in Orlando, Florida.

An advocate of education, literacy, and helping children fulfill their potential, Ben provides pro bono strategic and marketing services to Read it LOUD!, a nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, dedicated to raising awareness about the profound positive impact that parents have by reading aloud to their children, in their success in school and life.

Ben currently lives in the Orlando area with his wife and two children, who infuse his life with hilarity and inspiration.

You can connect with him on his website, facebook, twitter, Amazon page, and goodreads! J

**I was given a free copy of this novel in return for an honest review. All opinions are my own.