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    Graveyard of Memories
    Graveyard of Memories
    Graveyard of Memories
    Audiobook10 hours

    Graveyard of Memories

    Written by Barry Eisler

    Narrated by Barry Eisler

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    What makes a legendary assassin? For John Rain, it was the lessons of love, war, and betrayal he learned in Tokyo in 1972.

    Fresh from the killing fields of Southeast Asia, Rain works as a bagman under the watchful eye of his CIA handler, delivering cash to corrupt elements of the Japanese government. But when a delivery goes violently wrong, Rain finds himself in the crosshairs of Japan’s most powerful yakuza clan. To survive, Rain strikes a desperate deal with his handler: take out a high-profile target in the Japanese government in exchange for the intel he needs to eliminate his would-be executioners.

    As Rain plays cat and mouse with the yakuza and struggles to learn his new role as contract killer, he also becomes entangled with Sayaka, a tough, beautiful ethnic Korean woman confined to a wheelchair. But the demands of his dark work are at odds with the longings of his heart—and with Sayaka’s life in the balance, Rain will have to make a terrible choice.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBrilliance Audio
    Release dateFeb 11, 2014
    ISBN9781480584815
    Graveyard of Memories
    Author

    Barry Eisler

    Barry Eisler spent three years in a covert position with the CIA’s Directorate of Operations, then worked as a technology lawyer and startup executive in Silicon Valley and Japan, earning his black belt at the Kodokan Judo Institute along the way. Eisler’s bestselling thrillers have won the Barry Award and the Gumshoe Award for Best Thriller, have been included in numerous “Best of” lists, have been translated into nearly twenty languages, and include the #1 bestseller Livia Lone. Eisler lives in the San Francisco Bay Area and, when he’s not writing novels, blogs about torture, civil liberties, and the rule of law. Learn more at www.barryeisler.com.

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    Reviews for Graveyard of Memories

    4/5

    106 ratings12 reviews

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    • 5/5
      I've really enjoyed all the books in this series, but this one stood out as one of the best. It's every bit as colorful, poetic, exciting, memorable and honest as the first book in the series which was my favorite.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 4/5
      The last John Rain book to be written by Barry Eisler and the first in the series chronologically, Graveyard of Memories is a coming of age assassin story - how Rain became a killer for hire transitioning from a CIA bag man linked to the Lockheed Bribery Scandal in Japan to an almost demonic killing machine. The book is also a love story of sorts; assassin in training meets young woman in wheelchair.

      The action, tradecraft and violence is classic Eisler but the paraplegic sex breaks new ground in erotic thrillers.

      I reread the book in anticipation of Eisler's new thriller The God's Eye View and enjoyed how well the story was crafted. As Rain struggles to understand the motives and machinations of his CIA handler, McCraw, who rises above an archetypal Company man overseas, Rain also has to contend with Yakuza, a wily detective and his own conscience.

      This is a thrilling book and well worth the second read. The authenticity is compelling, the action exciting and the characters realistically written.

      The question is, are there any more John Rain stories left? I hope so.
    • 3/5
      This book details the start of John Rain’s career as an assassin. It is set in 1972. Rain is 20 and has left his role as a soldier in Vietnam. As Rain recounts, he was not one of the soldiers who were in the back. Obviously he saw a lot of deaths and was involved in a lot of killings.

      Good start as to the development of Rain’s mindset as a ronin. A complication is a beautiful but handicapped Korean young woman who he falls in love with. You see the two sides of Rain, a ruthless and remorseless killer and someone with a compassionate heart.

      These two sides of Rain are severely tested and resolved by the book’s end. At times I thought the story plodded but it may have provided context to those readers who did not read any of the other books of the Rain series.

      Lots of action, lots of killing... Rain’s battle with a black belt who is trying to kill him is the most exciting part of the book.
    • 3/5
      Summary:

      It's 1972 and John Rain is 20 years old and fresh out of Nam working as a bagman for the CIA. When an exchange goes down badly and he kills a street thug who turns out to be a close relative of a Japanese Mafia leader, John must choose a course that changes his life forever.

      My thoughts:

      This is a stand-alone book that is a good starting point for anyone who has not ever read any of this series. It's also a good background book for readers who are already fans of John Rain and are curious about some of his penchants in life. We do see him begin to learn from his mistakes. The setting of Tokyo and its environs are fascinating...even if I did stumble through the pronunciation of some of the locations. It got only 3 stars because I felt it was so much repeat history of a character that I already knew when I was really looking forward to a new adventure with John.

    • 5/5
      This book is so good that I wish I hadn't read it yet so I would have it to look forward to reading. I'm not even exaggerating.If you've read and liked any of the Rain books, you have to pick this one up. It explores Rain before he became the smooth and competent assassin he is in the other books. We get to watch him grow into his skills as life started handing him lemons.We even get to see how and why he was so emotionally alone in all the other stories. The path he followed to get to how he is (personally and professionally) in the remainder of the series was set here - and it was completely believable. Perhaps the main "love scene" was a bit long (and relatively detailed), but since it was fundamental to John Rain's growth into the man he becomes, I think the length/detail of the romantic components was okay.I wouldn't suggest starting here though. Reading the books in order of publication will give you a better sense of John Rain, and make this story so much more poignant.If there was another book about John Rain, I'd buy it immediately.
    • 4/5
      I've been a big fan of John Rain ever since I read "Rain Fall". Yes, he's an assassin so you have all the (a)moral implications that go with that particular profession. But he always came across as more than another testosterone infused hit man. He had a conscience, hard rules & regrets. As the books continued we slowly learned about his personal life & the people he'd loved. Now, we get to to find out how it all began, how 20 year old Jun found himself at a crossroad & chose the path that would seal his fate.
      It's 1972 & Rain is in Tokyo, the city he left when he was 8 years old. His Japanese father had been killed & his white mother took him back to the States. Now she too is dead, the only tie he had to America. He just got out of Viet Nam & finds himself with few career options outside of the jungle. He left the military under a cloud & is biding his time, working as a bagman for CIA handler Sean McGraw. It's easy work, greasing the wheels of Japanese politics for American interests & he needs the money.
      It's a simple set-up. Every now & then, he meets up with Miyamoto, a middle aged local with a penchant for loud ties. They exchange identical bags, one with info, one with money. But Rain is about to embark on a steep learning curve, acquiring knowledge that will serve him well later on. Lesson #1: not everyone is who they say they are.
      It all begins when Rain is attacked by three thugs after a routine exchange. He's not yet the self contained man we know & prone to impulsive actions so he lets out all his frustration & fights back, killing one of the youths. He can't know it but this is the pivotal event that will lead to him becoming John Rain, assassin.
      I don't want to reveal any more of the plot because there are plenty of twists & misdirection employed by the author. The reader learns the truth behind the whole scheme as Rain does, although the full scope is not evident 'til the end.
      It answers a lot of questions about this man. We meet for the first time some of the characters who will appear in later books & the significance of his appreciation for good whisky & great jazz. We learn why he was exiled from Japan for so long & watch as he develops the skills & rules that will become tenets of his later life.
      It's a book that tells two stories. One is the current situation where Rain will have to deal with members of the "yakuza" (criminal gangs), political double crosses, his first contract & a lovely young Korean woman who will haunt him for the rest of his life. The characters are well rounded & the plot is fast paced & intricate as we try to figure out who exactly the bad guys are.
      The second tells the evolution of his character. The book is narrated by Rain, as he looks back from decades in the future. He relates how it all happened while making wry observations about himself on the side. You feel like he's reliving it all in his mind's eye, mentally shaking his head, bemused & sad. This is a Rain who is philosophical, weary & carrying the weight of all his actions. He accepts responsibility for the choices he made but that doesn't stop the regret & sorrow he feels for the young man who could have had a very different life if he'd made different decisions.
      I really enjoyed this but found it almost unbearably sad at times. It reminded me of the old saying that youth is wasted on the young. With the advantage of knowing his future, you watch as the angry & disenfranchised Jun looks for his place & a sense of belonging. It's the genesis of his life as a loner with a foot in two cultures but fully accepted by neither one.
      By the end, Jun is dead. He's been replaced by John, a harder man just beginning to understand that with every act comes repercussions & wishing them undone is a fool's game. "Sometimes there's just what you can do. And what you can't".
    • 4/5
      This latest book in the John Rain thriller series is actually a prequel to the rest of the books. This story goes into the background of how John Rain, a Vietnam veteran, becomes the hardened and skilled assassin for hire. I really enjoyed seeing Rain's transformation, especially, how he learns from mistakes and develops his special skill of making his kills look like death by natural causes. If you are a John Rain fan, you'll love this, and if you aren't, this book is a great way to get you started. I was REALLY impressed by the audiobook narration, performed by Barry Eisler. It's rare for a talented author to be a good narrator, but he definitely made this story come alive with a wide range of voices and accents.
    • 4/5
      Nice prequel to the John Rain series of novels set mostly in Japan. Eisler's style grows on you the more you delve into the finely crafted depictions of Tokyo and other foreign and exotic locations. Rain is a complex,interesting character;a product of East and West,forged on the anvil of Vietnam.
    • 5/5
      Eisler is an amazing writer and Rain is one of the most fascinating characters in contemporary thriller fiction. This novel, a prequel looking at "how Rain became Rain" is simply fantastic. Once again, Eisler is able to make Tokyo leap off the page as yet another character in the story. But it is the process of watching a young John Rain learn about betrayal and double-cross, learn about his own abilities and failures, and make decisions about who he is and what he will do with his life that is the real treasure at the core of this novel. Well, that and Rain's ability to think through a situation and kick some proverbial ass as necessary.One other thing that I have to mention about this book (slight spoiler alert): One of the characters in the story is disabled. And that is important to the character's persona. But it is the care with which both Eisler and Rain approach that character and life with that disability that is simply fabulous. It's all too rare in thrillers or mysteries to see disabilties at all, yet alone disabilities portrayed in such a realistic, tender way, yet without flinching from the fact that we're still dealing with people who have needs and desires. Even those who aren't necessarily thriller readers might think about reading this book just to see how a talented author approaches such a difficult subject.
    • 4/5
      The book features the assassin, John Rain, in his earlier years back in 1972 in this prequel to the series. The plot wasn't too complicated, and there were a few good action scenes to keep the flow going. It wasn't as exciting as some of his earlier works, but still a solid entertaining thriller. Fans of Barry Eisler will enjoy it as will those who aren't familiar with John Rain.
    • 4/5
      I presume this to be the latest in the John Rain series by this author, I’d forgotten about them and so was pleasantly surprised when this book turned out to be about the Japanese-American assassin who’s stories I’d enjoyed so much several years ago. This book is almost a prequel to the others, offering a great deal of additional background information about the protagonist, his history, why he became who he is, and why he operates in the manner revealed by the other books in the series. I kept checking the publication date to make sure I’d not stumbled on the beginning story of the series, but it is recent. Guess the author has been exposed to enough questions about John Rain’s life that he decided to answer so of the questions. Congratulations, it works well, is enjoyable and I’ll recommend it to my reading friends. Thanks to NetGalley and the author for the opportunity to read and review this book.
    • 5/5
      It is 1972 and John Rain is 20, half-American, half-Japanese, both parents dead and he’s a bagman for the CIA; delivering ‘packages’ when needed. During one such delivery, there are problems and the next thing Rain knows there is a hit out on him from the Yakusa (Japanese mafia). His handler decides to use this to have Rain do some other deeds. Rain, young, cocky and uncontrollable has to find his way out of this mess.I remember getting the first John Rain novel to review and fell in love with the character. I read all the subsequent novels and enjoyed them too. Not only were they actions packed, but the character developed and as a reader I got to know more about John Rain (even if he is an assassin, I liked him).Hesitant to go back in time; I always fear that when an author does this it is the beginning of the end because they can’t think of anything new. Not with this one. We get to know John Rain as the young, unsure of himself and impatient. We also see that he is human with feeling; both good and bad. We learn as he learns.The story is exciting, fast-paced, action packed and thought-provoking. The setting fascinating and makes me want to visit Japan. Barry Eisler knows his stuff and make John Rain real.