ADRIAN MAGSON
Crime and spy thriller author... and a few other things besides.
'Reading . . . is one of life's quiet pleasures'.
Marc Portman - (pub Severn House)
THE WATCHMAN SERIES, featuring professional watcher and deep cover specialist Marc Portman. He's a shadow, providing protection in hostile situations. He works in the background, staying off the record. Often the people he's guarding have no idea he's there.
Those who do, know him as Portman.
"I wholeheartedly, strongly, fervently (is that enough adverbs?) recommend this series. Really!" Spy Guys 'N Gals
A HOSTILE STATE - The NEW Marc Portman thriller.
Deep cover specialist Marc Portman is in Lebanon on a last-minute assignment. A straightforward collect-and-go job. At least it should have been.
Ambushed by a surprise attack, it's clear that someone had advance warning of Portman's arrival. But who is his unseen enemy and why do they want him dead? And how could his attacker have known of his movements with less than 24 hours' notice?
Concluding there must be an active leak at the heart of the CIA, Portman finds himself virtually alone and running for his life, seemingly hung out to dry by the powers-that-be.
If he is to survive, he must use his unique skill set to turn the tables on his pursuers . . . and beat them at
their own game.
"A highlight of the book is Magson's crafting of two very strong female characters."
Jeff Popple - Murder, Mayhem and Long Dogs reviews
"With such crisp and captivating writing, intriguing characters, fantastic action, and an authentic narrative, A Hostile State is a must-read."
Kashif Hussein - Best Thriller Books
"A solid cat-and-mouse thriller with a refreshing breakout character."
"engrossing fifth Marc Portman thriller."
"Filled with secrecy, intrigue, espionage and intelligence-led ops... Don't miss this one!"
"...a thrilling backdrop... a cat and mouse chase among spies and moles... "
Rubaiyat Rahman - Books and Reviews
Dark Asset - Book 4
Marc Portman is back in Somalia, this time to provide back-up for a French intelligence agent sent to recover a hard drive from one of the most dangerous cities on the planet - Mogadishu.
But what they haven’t told Portman is that the device holds records of top-secret negotiations for oil concessions worth billions, between two leading western nations… and a hard-line terrorist organisation responsible for killing thousands of innocent people. If made public, the recordings could topple two governments.
When the decision is made to abandon the talks, a team of former Foreign Legionnaires and ex-US special forces operatives is despatched to make sure that all records of the talks are buried for good. That includes wiping out any non-affiliated ‘assets’ on the ground in Somalia.
And that puts Portman at the top of the their hit list.
"Magson’s latest Marc Portman thriller will appeal to all adrenaline junkies. Two thumbs way up for this heart-stopping, exhilarating action thriller."
BOOKLIST Reviews
"...the action is non-stop... if you prefer your thrillers without the padding that is so common these days, and with gripping storytelling, then this is for you."
Amazon reviewer SCOTKRIS.
Hard Cover - Book 3
Marc Portman (codename 'Watchman'), is in Russia providing covert back-up to wealthy Russian businessman Leonid Tzorekov. A former KGB officer sympathetic to the West, Tzorekov has close links with Vladimir Putin and is planning to use his influence with the President to improve relations between Russia, the USA and the European Union.
However, there are those with vested interests in maintaining hostilities: powerful men around the hard-line president who will go to any lengths to ensure the proposed meeting does not take place. Watchman's role is to run security, evaluate risks and, where necessary, provide hard cover by taking more direct action. When this new assignment takes an unexpected and violent turn, Portman has no choice but to take that hard cover option...
And that means fighting back.
"The reader can always expect a real sense of tense, nail-biting action and dramatic, page-turning suspense." Euro Crime Reviews
"Gripping from the first chapters, read this in one sitting. Highly entertaining thriller series. Recommended." Amazon reviewer
"...writes informatively about the spy game." Publishers Weekly
Close Quarters - Book 2
Close protection specialist Marc Portman is used to finding himself in hostile situations. But none can be more unpredictable than troubled Ukraine, teetering on the brink of civil war.
When a US State Department official on a fact-finding mission to Ukraine is placed under house arrest, the CIA hire Portman (codename: Watchman) to get him safely out of the country.
In that dangerous and volatile region, Portman will find himself up against local gangsters, Ukrainian Special Forces, professional snipers, pro-Russian separatists and power-crazed cops.
What he cannot know however, is that his most lethal enemy comes from his own side ...
"Knuckle-whitening, adventure-packed, and shocking, this page turner is guaranteed to grip readers from the first page to the last" - Booklist Starred Review
The Watchman - Book 1
When two British intelligence agents are despatched to negotiate the release of a group of western hostages in Somalia, veteran MI6 operator Tom Vane realizes that something about this operation doesn't stack up.
Unwilling to see two promising officers sacrificed in what he believes to be a suicide mission, he covertly hires deep cover specialist Marc Portman to protect them.
Heading for the wild and lawless land on the Kenyan/Somali border, Portman soon realizes that the British Intelligence Services have been double-crossed and set up for propaganda purposes... and with a fatal ending for the two operatives.
In such a supercharged and deadly environment, where every person has to be treated as an enemy, can he survive long enough to keep his charges alive and prevent a catastrophe?
"action-filled... a convincingly formidable one-man army..." - Publishers Weekly