My original Pandora Red audiobook review and many others can be found at Audiobook Reviewer.

Frank Bowen and his Mi6 team are tasked with tracking down Pandora, the code named data security employee whole stole highly classified information. If the data is released, it could bring down the government and possibly the entire security organizations of the British secret service. Not known to the British agents is that a second team of Russian assassins were also hired to recover the data and kill anyone in the way including Frank and his team.

The action moves quickly as the teams follow tenuous leads to Central America and the Caribbean. Pandora knows how important the data is and has covered her tracks well, but maybe not well enough for the combined resources of the expert spy networks. Gun battles, car chases, and murder move through the novel as the teams get close to each other and Pandora. Who will get there first is a race against time and survival?

Pandora Red is generally fast paced with episodes of internal contemplation and conspiracy revelations as the listener must decide who are the villains and who are the heroes. The discoveries of WikiLeaks and Edward Snowden come to mind and give authenticity to the scope and importance to the data breach. The balance of personal freedom and a government’s desire to track terrorists is in play. Absolute power corrupts absolutely.

The action is enjoyable, but not that much of the story. It is more about Frank’s push from company man to the limits of his loyalty. He has a moral compass and a good judge of character and is not afraid to use them.

The story is performed by Chris MacDonnell who does a generally excellent job. He delivers the action in an understated stiff-upper lip kind of way. The characters are easily discernible, but sometimes the female characters don’t match what might be in the listener's mind. This is very minor and doesn’t detract from a very good performance.

Pandora Red is a thoughtful spy action novel. It may not be as action packed as some listeners might crave, but has enough interesting characters to keep a steady pace. It is an enjoyable listen with a realistic topical subject that should satisfy most enthusiasts of a government conspiracy.

Audiobook was provided for review by the publisher. ( )