Games, drugs, risks, and lots of illegal money....that is what Janac was made of, and what he underhandedly pulled Martin into whether Martin wanted in or not.

Martin had flown to Thailand because of his guilt from a traffic accident, a girl, and the loss of his lucrative job. Martin had been a successful financial banker until an accident that ruined his life. He wasn't in this accident, but he had been the cause of it and the cause of the deaths of eighteen people. You will like Martin and feel his agony and concerns about what he unintentionally got himself into with Janac and how he realizes there is no way out.

Janac is someone you at first think is going to be a good friend since he saved Martin from some thugs. It turned into exactly the opposite...Janac was evil and someone to be feared and someone who made it lethal and fatal if you didn't comply with his requests. You will hate Janac as quickly as you were thankful for his appearing on the scene to rescue Martin.

Janac is a player of dangerous mind games. The "games" Janac plans for Martin and others get more dangerous each time, and Martin can't escape Janac's grip and power. Much to Martin's disgust, the games continue with nothing he can to do but comply.

The first and recurring game Martin's fate was hinging on was a game called: The Prisoner's Dilemma. This game involved decisions of choosing to care only for oneself or caring for others with major consequences for either choice. Janac's games were a means of control that gave him the power he wanted and gave his "victims" no choice but to play along.

Martin described the evilness of Janac like this: "I can't convey the nature of that voice. It was beyond bad, beyond threatening, beyond evil.". Page 57

THE DEFECTOR is an outstanding thriller right until the last page...you never know when Janac or any of his counterparts may appear or who really is working with him. It is all about control, cruelty, and payback in the name of money and drugs.
You will follow Martin through all of the terror and hope he makes the correct decision in Janac's games.

This book has a decision after decision plot.....decisions that yield only an outcome of life or death.....nothing in between.

So, dear reader, you have no choice but to read this book….make that very smart decision. You won’t regret it….gripping, intense, intriguing. 5/5 ( )

Someone should have really prepared me for this book before I started ... or maybe it was better that I found out for myself. This is one dark puppy! I may be dating myself here but, do you remember the short story 'The Lottery' by Shirley Jackson? Great short story - another dark puppy! I loved 'The Lottery'. I guess it appealed to my dark side. 'The Defector' appealed to that same side.

Janec is likely the most evil character I have ever met in a work of fiction. The games he came up with were bizarre, genius, really, really, really sick and twisted. The book does explain what the Prisoner's Dilemma is in detail. In fact the entire plot is basically an enactment of how the dilemma can be used for evil. I don't think I can do it justice by explaining it here but the first paragraph in the foreword gives an overview:

The Prisoner's Dilemma - n. A philosophical conundrum enacted through a game with two participants which gives an insight into the behavior of the individual in society.

OK, the definition is dull but the book is definitely not dull. Ever.

Martin is the protagonist in the story. He is just your average Joe off the street. Until he gets mixed up with Janec and the games begin. Janec loves his games. Martin isn't too fond of them. I was impressed with Martin's resilience and luck. He pulled off some fantastic escapes! He was smarter than either he or Janec expected. I loved that Martin learned so much about himself as the novel progressed.

Kate was the love interest in the book. She provided the love triangle angle and the perfect pawn for Janec. I didn't like her at all. She seemed so shallow to me. Not really worth fighting for. But what I thought of her really doesn't matter. It's what Marin thought of her that made all the difference to the story.

There were definitely times, when reading the book, that I just wanted to stop. Some of Janec's evil games were almost too evil for me. But Mark Chisnell's writing style drew me in and wouldn't let me go. Just the same way Janec wouldn't let Martin go. The fear, felt by those unlucky enough to get on Janec's bad side, was palpable. In fact, I finished the book over an hour ago and my stomach is still in a small knot. Decompression could take a while.

This is definitely a book for the Halloween season. You want scary, this book has it in spades. Nothing paranormal or otherworldly, but weird for sure. ( )

The Defector explores the premise that the instinct for self preservation outweighs the the desire to contribute to the greater good. People choose to be either ‘defectors’ or ‘cooperators’, and when the stakes are high enough, morality is not the only casualty.
Cormac lived the high life as a trader in the financial market until it all began to fall apart. Overwhelmed, he fled his life in London, ending up in Thailand where he is rescued from a bar fight by a stranger. A drink or three with Janec leads to an offer Cormac can’t refuse, trapping him in a deadly game of psychological torment and physical punishment. This is one trade Cormac can’t lose.
I was quickly pulled into this fast paced thriller, intrigued by Cormac and then fascinated by Janec. The Prisoner’s Dilemma was an only vaguely familiar concept, until Chisnell so clearly demonstrates the practical application of the game theory. These are two men who like games but Janec ups the ante considerably manipulating Cormac into a position whereby he has very few choices, none of them good. With each meeting, in Sydney Australia and then the middle of the Pacific Ocean, Janec pushes the limits in a chilling game of life and death.
There is a fair bit of chasing involved in The Defector, and in some parts the story lagged for me. Not being particularly interested in sailing I felt the initial stage of their ocean crossing was a bit too long though all was forgiven in the stunning climax.

The Defector is an exciting thriller with an original premise that creatively blends psychological theory with fast-paced action. If you are a fan of the genre then this novel, formerly published by HarperCollins and now re-released by the author in eformat – and for a bargain price, should be on your reading list. ( )