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Title: Instinct
Series: Chess Team Adventure #2
Author: Jeremy Robinson
Rating: 2 of 5 Stars
Genre: Action/Adventure
Pages: 365
Format: Digital Edition

Synopsis:

A rogue Vietnam General comes across a super plague that he weaponizes. He uses it against the President of the United States and that sets the stage for the Chess Team. They are sent in to find a cure [as the plague has the potential to wipe out mankind within 2 years] but of course nothing can go easy, or they wouldn't be the Chess Team.

They run across a Vietnam special forces who are dedicated to wiping them out. They come across monstrous, devolved neanderthals who are all female and who eat humans and rape men to continue their race. They also come across a lost scientist who has started his own race of neanderthal/human hybrids and who wants the plague to succeed so his “children” can rule the world.

That is a lot to overcome. Plus the burden of saving the whole world. Phhhh, just a day's work for the Chess Team.

My Thoughts:

This was easily on track to being a 3.5star adventure. Then the author started talking about shoving guns down the throats of Fox News anchors and calling them fear mongering haters, or something close to that. That tanked this for me. It makes me suspect the author is a dickwad and someone I'd gladly punch in the face. But rather than give in to my baser instincts to hunt him down and beat him to within an inch of his miserable life, I chose to let it go. You don't see ME threatening to KILL anyone just because I don't LIKE them. Beatings are VERY different from killing.

On to the book then.

Pretty good adventure and action. The devolved neanderthals and their Lost City of Blah, Blah, Blah and how they used to be Masters of Humanity was a bit much for my taste in conjuction with the whole Plague Wiping Out the Whole World thing, but hey, it's better to have too much adventure than not enough.

Lots of fighting, lots of guns and stuff. What I expect and what I like in a military action/adventure story. And Bishop, the guy who got super human powers in the last book, he gets his head ripped off, regenerates and comes back badder than ever. And gets a “magic” crystal so he doesn't go all ravening zombie anymore. Quite convenient that. I guess the neanderthals were good for something. ( )

Instinct by Jeremy Robinson is the second book in his Chess Team adventure series. (Pulse was the first.) Fourteen years earlier cryptozoologist Dr. Anthony Weston was attacked and disappeared in Vietnam’s Annamite Mountains, the same area where a deadly plague, the Brugada syndrome, originated. The Brugada Syndrome has been weaponized and the President of the United States has been infected. The infection is on the brink of being released and would soon wipe out most of the human race unless a cure can be found. The Chess Team (called this because their call signs are chess pieces - King, Queen, Bishop, Knight, Pawn) are sent to this same area with a CDC agent to search for the source of and find a cure for the Brugada syndrome.

This is pure action/adventure escapism as the Chess Team fights for survival and to complete their mission. Instinct is a novel where you have to suspend disbelief and just go where the action takes you. I mean, come on, who doesn't want to read an action/adventure novel with a crytozoologist and a special forces unit. At the end, there is even a clue about what may be the next mission for the Chess Team.

Now I'll be the first to admit that I'm not a big game player, but I can see why some readers might think Instinct reads like a video game with its fast pace. Instinct is a fast paced novel. The plot surges forward, which suits the genre. I appreciate the science included in the plot, but I am reading the book for the action - and it delivers action. Robinson also furthers the character development of the Chess Team members and includes plenty vivid descriptions along with the action.

Although Robinson has been compared to Matthew Reilly, I can definitively declare that Robinson is a better writer than Reilly. I think he compares more favorably with James Rollins, Clive Cussler, Lincoln Child, and David Goleman.

The dedication in Instinct made me smile. It says: "For Mom, even though I know this one will freak you out."

very highly recommended - this ones for action/adventure junkies; http://shetreadssoftly.blogspot.com/
( )

The Chess Team is on a quest to discover a cure for the deadly Brugada disease that is killing off hundreds of people in the U.S. including the President of the United States. In the hills of Vietnam they stumble upon a colony of genetically mutated Neanderthals who have descended from one single human "father". Inside Mount Meru they find a necropolis whose source of energy can be found in crystals enabling them to become stronger and live longer with the hopes of outliving and decimating the human race. Quite corny, but just enough corniness to pique my curiosity and keep me reading. Overall, it was a good book but not Robinson's best. Pulse was terrific and it seems his new book Threshold will deliver off his original story involving the Hydra. Looking forward to reading it. ( )

"Man-Apes and a new ally"
Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
I have enjoyed not only the book but all of the "Chess Team" novels. I would recommend this and the other books to anyone who like Special Force/Super Solider and/or Science Fiction books. This book blends the Super Soldier and the Sciencey Science Fiction genres to create a well developed story and characters.

Who was your favorite character and why?
King-He is the lead and is trying to deal with family issues on top of heading up an elite super soldier force all at the same time. He is Rambo and Bill Cosby's love child.

What about Jeffrey Kafer’s performance did you like?
Kafer brought a easy listening style to a rapid action sequenced and multi-arena story lined book. He had to make each character as well as each story line seperate and distinguishable at the same time since at some parts of the book all the story lines and characters were happening/talking over each other. ( )

The Chess Team, Special Ops Delta Team are back and jumping into the middle of the jungle between warring factions and a group of ancient humanoids! They have a limited time frame to get in, and find a cure before a pandemic decimates the human population of men & women, starting with the President of the United States. They have Pawn to protect, a CDC expert who will find the cure, but they do not have Deep Blue as their "eye in the sky" for some unknown reason for support on this mission. And then there is Bishop with the possibility of becoming a Regen if he loses his head, literally. Lots of action, a great read! ( )