• The Killer Ascendant

  • A John Rain Novel
  • By: Barry Eisler
  • Narrated by: Barry Eisler
  • Length: 10 hrs and 19 mins
  • 4.7 out of 5 stars (1,525 ratings)

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The Killer Ascendant  By  cover art

The Killer Ascendant

By: Barry Eisler
Narrated by: Barry Eisler
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Publisher's summary

Hunted and finally cornered, John Rain faces his deadliest enemy ever: himself. For Rain, "the most charismatic assassin since James Bond" (San Francisco Chronicle), getting out of the life was never going to be easy. But with a new identity in Paris, and the help of his lover, Mossad agent Delilah, he was beginning to leave the killing business behind. And then he receives a message from rogue CIA operative Jim Hilger: we have your friend Dox. Do as we tell you, or he dies. For a professional like Rain, the choice ought to be easy: do the job - a series of three hits - and save his friend and partner. But how does Rain know Hilger won't kill Dox, anyway, once the assignment is complete? How does he know each of the hits isn't simultaneously a setup for Rain himself? Most of all, how can he control the killing rage Hilger's lethal game of extortion reignites inside him? From the deceptively tranquil beaches of Bali, to the backstreets and boulevards of Paris, to the urban canyons of Silicon Valley and New York and the old killing fields of Vietnam, Rain must grapple with his age, his enemies, and, most of all, with the killer inside himself in a battle not even Rain can hope to survive intact.

©2007, 2013 Barry Eisler (P)2013 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.

What listeners say about The Killer Ascendant

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Barry Eisler narrates perfectly

What made the experience of listening to The Killer Ascendant the most enjoyable?

In this book Dox made it really great! His character is so humorous. I love the sense of humor attributed to him. Even through his brutal interrogation he maintains his sarcastic and cutting remarks. I truly hope there are no plans to kill him off anytime soon, he is a great addition to this series.

What does Barry Eisler bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The tones and inflections he intends when he wrote it.

Any additional comments?

Having Eisler read his own works was the best thing he could have done. I had tried listening to this series previously and was not impressed with the narration and gave up. When I started listening again now that Eisler has redone them all, I've been on a marathon and have listened to 5 in a row. I plan to repurchase the one I have only now with Eisler narrating. This really is such a good series, I am so glad I decided to give it another try.

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15 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Action thriller listeners owe Barry Eisler a lot!

I listened to this John Rain #6 novel 2 years ago. It is an outstanding espionage/action thriller novel narrated by the author who is as good at narrating as authoring. Barry Eisler was an established author who nevertheless was a leader in the move to independent publishing resulting in lower average prices allowing avid readers/listeners access to more good books for less money. Thanks Barry!

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8 people found this helpful

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    2 out of 5 stars
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Book has been done before.Requiem of an Assassin

Great book..first time I listened to it. Shame on Eisler for resubmitting it as new book, just different title. First book name was Requeim of an Assassin. My husband did not know when downloaded this book, we had already listened to it in 2011.

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4 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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What’s worse than speaking in 3rd person?

This was a great book, except for the heretofore nonexistent annoyance of John Rain referring to himself as The Iceman. It was like Bruce Wayne having a constant internal monologue of Batman’s gravelly voice saying “be the bat,” “you can’t deny it,” and of course “I’m Batman.” Seriously, he even uses the cheesy growly voice for The Iceman persona.

In this installment, John Rain is unraveling and regressing to his Vietnam era, loner self. After the betrayal from the previous book, facing the kidnapping of Dox, and being forced to kill without his usual methodical process, Rain doesn’t handle the chaos well.

On the plus side, there’s more action and killing and known, nasty bad guys from “go.”
On the downside, there’s a lot of angst, inner monologue, and (ugh) feelings.

Thank goodness for Dox. Who knew hostage and torture scenes could be so funny? As much as I love thrillers, noir, or even grimdark genres, gratuitous torture is not my thing. Kudos to Mr. Eisner for threading the needle and delivering a harrowing tale. It was so good, I actually enjoyed the feelings moment between Rain and Dox. May have even choked up a bit.

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2 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Love anything Eisler writes

John Rain is a hero of very mixed feelings and his inner monologues are very useful to fleshing out his character. And if you haven't tried it, try Livia Lone as well as the John rain novels.

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2 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Another great book,

Another great story, great details. I hope they make a John Rain movie, a good movie. Not just a movie, but a great movie. We will have to wait and see.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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They've got Dox.

Among the best series I've read or listened to. Notice how inexpensive they are.

I wrote an enthusiastically positive and extended review for Book 1: "Clean Kill in Tokyo."

Eisler is a smart and accomplished guy. Checkout his website and his Wikipedia bio.

In Book #6 Dox is "taken" to draw Rain out so he can be murdered. Dox is a wonderful captive.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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I was exhausted when this one was done....

Wow what a story. Loved it from the first sentence to the last. Really interesting, tense, smart story.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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I’m hooked!

I’ve listened to the first seven books in the series, I enjoy the fast paced, often riveting storylines. Me. Eisler delivery is very easy to listen to, especially while driving.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

John Rain is Still a Fav!

First I have to say that Barry Eisler is one of if not my favorite Action/Adventure author and John Rain is hands down one of best series. With that said, this is my least favorite book in the series. I'm listening to this series for probably the 3rd time, and I'm just not a fan of the alter ego that makes an appearance in this installation, but you still can't go wrong with the entire John Rain series. I still enjoyed this series today as much as I did many years ago.

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