Action & Adventure
![Mark Greaney - [object Object] author](https://res.cloudinary.com/readsomnia/image/upload/authors/a_B002KGVOMU.jpg)
Sierra Six (Gray Man)
It's been years since the Gray Man's first mission, but the trouble's just getting started in the latest entry in the #1 New York Times bestselling series.
Before he was the Gray Man, Court Gentry was Sierra Six, the junior member of a CIA action team.
In their first mission they took out a terrorist leader, at a terrible price. Years have passed. The Gray Man is on a simple mission when he sees a ghost: the long-dead terrorist, but he's remarkably energetic for a dead man.
A decade of time hasn't changed the Gray Man. He isn't one to leave a job unfinished or a blood debt unpaid.
Before he was the Gray Man, Court Gentry was Sierra Six, the junior member of a CIA action team.
In their first mission they took out a terrorist leader, at a terrible price. Years have passed. The Gray Man is on a simple mission when he sees a ghost: the long-dead terrorist, but he's remarkably energetic for a dead man.
A decade of time hasn't changed the Gray Man. He isn't one to leave a job unfinished or a blood debt unpaid.
Editorial Reviews
"Sharp, cinematic, and packed with action-the Gray Man novels blow all other thrillers away!"
-Brad Thor,#1New York Times bestselling author of Black Ice
"Excellent....Greaney seamlessly adjusts focus between the timelines, jumping from one exhilarating roller-coaster ride to the other. Spy and military thriller fans will be well pleased."
-Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"Greaney hit absolute literary gold with his Gray Man series…and Sierra Six is no exception!"
-Mystery & Suspense magazine
-Brad Thor,#1New York Times bestselling author of Black Ice
"Excellent....Greaney seamlessly adjusts focus between the timelines, jumping from one exhilarating roller-coaster ride to the other. Spy and military thriller fans will be well pleased."
-Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"Greaney hit absolute literary gold with his Gray Man series…and Sierra Six is no exception!"
-Mystery & Suspense magazine
Readers Top Reviews
shepsdadK3NKindle
I was a late comer to the Grey Man, but I have to admit that I love what Greaney is doing with this fantastic series. I wasn't certain how I would like the dual story lines, Greaney did a tremendous job in weaving the story back and forth; not once was I confused about which time line I was in. We are treated to the beginning of Court's career with the Goon Squad, we meet the team and find that Court wasn't the perfect fit he would become, and Court makes a new old friend. Both plots unfold in tense ways, the excitement is high and the danger is so real. This is a fine representation of Greaney's books and maybe one of his best. My only complaint is that now I have to wait for the next novel.
Rennie Colemanshe
Mark Greaney is an extraordinary writer who has reached the absolute zenith of military/spy/thriller genre. No one is better. Those books he wrote with Tom Clancy, then for Tom Clancy, and as Tom Clancy, & now The Gray Man series, are just remarkably, the best. Keep it up. My neurons cannot light up any brighter. Trying to find the right descriptors for future readers, I fail in the enormity of accurate word selection processes, except to insist that ALL of his books contain the same pure gold. Awaiting my next nugget.
M. ChenRennie Col
I felt like I was waiting forever for this book. But holy crap was it worth it! Learning about the beginning and how it all started was a great read. *** Possible hints at spoilers **** The interactions with Hightower are always fun and funny. I laughed quite a few times. And yes .. I was near tears at times too. I kind of saw it coming but nonetheless it tugged on the heart strings. Seriously I will read anything Greaney writes.
ToolmanM. ChenRen
The Grey Man series is excellent, and consistently so. This latest book could be the best one yet. Unlike so many other series that start to be flat and boring after so many books, and are just being written so the author can make more money, the Grey Man series continues to be written with passion and great plots. Not sure what some of the other reviewers mean about this series not being "woke" since Court Gentry the Grey Man has always been a liberal (like me), but this seems to be a series that even those on many ends of the political spectrum agree is really good. Maybe it's the fact that there are no politics in the book at all. That's because Court Gentry only does one thing: kills bad guys. And he doesn't stop killing until all of them are dead. Not just the guys at the top, but all the way down and no loose ends. Once someone gets on the Grey Man's list, they might as well just kill themselves because he never quits. Yet, through it all, one of the best parts about these books is the Grey Man's since of humor. I didn't understand this in the first books, but then I got it...it's how he stays sane and out thinks his opponents. Highly recommended!!!
SteVen HendricksT
Book Review – It's not easy to write a book with two different timelines but author Mark Greaney has done a fantastic job with Book 11 of The Gray Man series, “Sierra Six.” The plot runs in two distinct timelines twelve years apart. One is when Court Gentry is a young covert operation operative and new to the CIA's Sierra Six group, the later timeline - present day – where Gentry now works as a contract assassin for the CIA, called upon when his unique skills are needed. Both timelines could be standalone books, each as compelling and dramatic as the other, but eventually – in no surprise - they come together in one dramatic do-or-die closing. Greaney eventually blended the action, characterization, and backstory into one thriller that couldn't be told without this unique approach. Greaney managing to pull this unique two-timeline narrative off is testament to his talent as a writer. Sierra Six is a rollercoaster ride of vivid action, tremendous intrigue, and unprecedented dialogue. Each character is so well developed and invaluable to the story. Origin-type stories are always good because the author gives the reader, the full and unmitigated backstory of the characters and the series. Greaney did this with Sierra Six along with telling one of the best Gray Man stories in the series! Greaney’s storytelling in Sierra Six gives a new height to the Gray Man series and will continue to be my personal favorite in the action thriller genre. Early contender for best thriller of the year!
Short Excerpt Teaser
One
Twelve Years Ago
Zack Hightower and the five other men of Golf Sierra watched the scene before them as if they were merely spectators, when in fact they were the stars of the show, waiting in the wings for the play to begin.
Fifty yards away from them, the ramp lowered slowly on the Lockheed C-130 Hercules. A scarlet glow shot like a soft ray from inside the cabin, illuminating the tarmac, and the plane's four massive turboprops spun at idle, growling in the cool night.
Ground crew worked feverishly around the aircraft, moving this way and that as they readied it for its upcoming flight.
The light from the cabin did not quite reach Hightower and his men on the tarmac; they remained in the dark, gazing on, interested but unconcerned.
The six men were armed and armored, festooned with heavy equipment and bulky parachutes, but they endured patiently, embracing the suck of the weight on their bodies. The sixty pounds of gear strapped to each man made unnecessary movement ill-advised, so all of them knew better than to waste energy now, before their arduous evening had even begun in earnest.
The ground crew in front of them did not engage with or even look at the operators in the dark. That was considered bad form, so the six men were left alone with their thoughts, gazing at the glowing rear of the hulking aircraft in front of them and waiting for their cue.
All six operators wore quad-tube night vision goggles stowed in the up position on their helmets. They were also equipped with rifles, pistols, and extra ammunition, as well as fragmentation, flash bang, and thermite grenades.
They'd be dealing with extreme cold soon enough, so they wore efficient merino-wool base layers under nondescript black Gore-Tex flight suits, which were themselves under plated ceramic body armor that was housed inside load-bearing vests.
Additionally, each man wore two parachutes: a main chute on his back and a reserve in front, low, cinched around his midsection. Oxygen masks were snapped tight to their faces, with two small tanks strapped just as tightly to their bodies.
The men were already consuming bottled O2 even though they were still on the ground. Tonight's mission would begin with a HAAM, a high-altitude airdrop mission-a leap from the Hercules at twenty-eight thousand feet-and breathing from the tanks now would eliminate the risk of nitrogen buildup from the rapid change in air pressure as the men descended.
These six were ordinarily a talkative bunch, but as team leader of the tiny unit, Zack demanded a strict decorum before an operation. All extraneous conversation had ceased as soon as they'd arrived on the tarmac; no one shouted through their rubber mask about what was to come.
They all just waited, heavily laden statues in the night.
Eventually the aircraft's loadmaster came down the ramp and then made his way over to the group. He looked around for a moment, obviously for some indication of who was in charge.
Zack Hightower, virtually identical in dress and load-out to the others, took a single step forward.
The loadmaster shouted, "Sir, you can board whenever you're ready."
Zack answered back through his mask in an easygoing tone. "I'm not 'sir,' chief. Just call me Bob."
The loadmaster was in his forties, thick and brawny. He nodded; he understood what was going on. "Thought you fellas were Special Forces." It wasn't really a question, and he received no response. "Sweet. To be honest, we don't get a lot of ops like this. Doubt anyone in the Air Guard does." He shrugged. "I mean, this is just a milk run. For us, I mean. Can't imagine what you guys have planned."
Zack stared back at the loadmaster, his eyes slightly narrowed.
"Right. No worries. We'll take care of you and your boys, Bob. The pilots are ready to get this bus a-rollin' as soon as you men board and strap in."
"We're following you, chief."
&...
Twelve Years Ago
Zack Hightower and the five other men of Golf Sierra watched the scene before them as if they were merely spectators, when in fact they were the stars of the show, waiting in the wings for the play to begin.
Fifty yards away from them, the ramp lowered slowly on the Lockheed C-130 Hercules. A scarlet glow shot like a soft ray from inside the cabin, illuminating the tarmac, and the plane's four massive turboprops spun at idle, growling in the cool night.
Ground crew worked feverishly around the aircraft, moving this way and that as they readied it for its upcoming flight.
The light from the cabin did not quite reach Hightower and his men on the tarmac; they remained in the dark, gazing on, interested but unconcerned.
The six men were armed and armored, festooned with heavy equipment and bulky parachutes, but they endured patiently, embracing the suck of the weight on their bodies. The sixty pounds of gear strapped to each man made unnecessary movement ill-advised, so all of them knew better than to waste energy now, before their arduous evening had even begun in earnest.
The ground crew in front of them did not engage with or even look at the operators in the dark. That was considered bad form, so the six men were left alone with their thoughts, gazing at the glowing rear of the hulking aircraft in front of them and waiting for their cue.
All six operators wore quad-tube night vision goggles stowed in the up position on their helmets. They were also equipped with rifles, pistols, and extra ammunition, as well as fragmentation, flash bang, and thermite grenades.
They'd be dealing with extreme cold soon enough, so they wore efficient merino-wool base layers under nondescript black Gore-Tex flight suits, which were themselves under plated ceramic body armor that was housed inside load-bearing vests.
Additionally, each man wore two parachutes: a main chute on his back and a reserve in front, low, cinched around his midsection. Oxygen masks were snapped tight to their faces, with two small tanks strapped just as tightly to their bodies.
The men were already consuming bottled O2 even though they were still on the ground. Tonight's mission would begin with a HAAM, a high-altitude airdrop mission-a leap from the Hercules at twenty-eight thousand feet-and breathing from the tanks now would eliminate the risk of nitrogen buildup from the rapid change in air pressure as the men descended.
These six were ordinarily a talkative bunch, but as team leader of the tiny unit, Zack demanded a strict decorum before an operation. All extraneous conversation had ceased as soon as they'd arrived on the tarmac; no one shouted through their rubber mask about what was to come.
They all just waited, heavily laden statues in the night.
Eventually the aircraft's loadmaster came down the ramp and then made his way over to the group. He looked around for a moment, obviously for some indication of who was in charge.
Zack Hightower, virtually identical in dress and load-out to the others, took a single step forward.
The loadmaster shouted, "Sir, you can board whenever you're ready."
Zack answered back through his mask in an easygoing tone. "I'm not 'sir,' chief. Just call me Bob."
The loadmaster was in his forties, thick and brawny. He nodded; he understood what was going on. "Thought you fellas were Special Forces." It wasn't really a question, and he received no response. "Sweet. To be honest, we don't get a lot of ops like this. Doubt anyone in the Air Guard does." He shrugged. "I mean, this is just a milk run. For us, I mean. Can't imagine what you guys have planned."
Zack stared back at the loadmaster, his eyes slightly narrowed.
"Right. No worries. We'll take care of you and your boys, Bob. The pilots are ready to get this bus a-rollin' as soon as you men board and strap in."
"We're following you, chief."
&...
