Aubrey Nye Hamilton Reviews: Chain Reaction by James Byrne

Chain Reaction (Minotaur, 2025) is the third book in the Gatekeeper series by James Byrne. Desmond Aloysius Limerick is a retired British mercenary with specialized training who is now roaming the U.S. seeing the sights and playing the occasional musical gig. Mostly he is using his specialized skills to rescue someone a la Jack Reacher. He is a Gatekeeper, he can open any door any time any place and keep it open as long as necessary. In his debut there’s an aura of mysticism surrounding his abilities but in the sequel he drops a comment about his two engineering degrees, which explains a lot.

The story starts with a scenario familiar to anyone who has seen Die Hard. Terrorists take over a glitzy convention center in New Jersey. Fortunately for the hostages, Dez happens to be on hand to deal with the insurgents. He’s only momentarily distracted by meeting his guitar idol Calvin Willow who is one of the hostages and extracting a promise of a private jam session. After the stand-off is resolved, Dez is curious enough about the backers of the attack to assist the FBI in their investigation, which leads to more questions than answers.

Dez is an original and welcome addition to the already impressive line-up of thriller heroes on the bookshelves. At first I thought he was a mash-up of Reacher and MacGyver but he is more of a people person than Reacher. Reacher is the consummate loner. Dez is far too gregarious to be a loner. His ability to form long-term friendships reminds me of Rush Mackenzie. He and Reacher do have a compulsive tendency to help people in common though. The MacGyver comparison is still apt; Dez can create weapons and tools out of almost anything. His tendency to crack wise reminds me of Spenser, although Dez is funnier and his timing is better.

These books can be read as stand-alones, so no need to start at the beginning of the series, yet at least, although I expect anyone who enjoys one of them will want to read all of them. For anyone in need of an absorbing, quick-moving adventure with a charismatic lead character. Recommended!

·         Publisher: ‎Minotaur Books (January 28, 2025)

·         Language: ‎English

·         Hardcover: ‎400 pages

·         ISBN-10: ‎1250319781

·         ISBN-13: ‎978-1250319784

 

Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4ggYNOZ

 

Aubrey Nye Hamilton ©2025 

Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.