But he’s no legend.
Evan Smoak is a man with skills, resources, and a personal mission to help those with nowhere else to turn. He’s also a man with a dangerous past. Chosen as a child, he was raised and trained as part of the off-the-books black box Orphan program, designed to create the perfect deniable intelligence assets—i.e. assassins. He was Orphan X. Evan broke with the program, using everything he learned to disappear.
Now, however, someone is on his tail. Someone with similar skills and training. Someone who knows Orphan X. Someone who is getting closer and closer. And will exploit Evan’s weakness—his work as The Nowhere Man—to find him and eliminate him. Grabbing the reader from the very first page, Orphan X is a masterful thriller, the first in Gregg Hurwitz’s electrifying new series featuring Evan Smoak.
Published: January 19, 2016
My Review:
I don’t know how Gregg Hurwitz’s books have escaped my attention before now. This is the first book of his that I’ve read, but it will absolutely not be the last.
After picking up a set of pistol suppressors from a nine-fingered armorer in Las Vegas, Evan Smoak headed for home in his Ford pickup, doing his best not to let the knife wound distract him.
This book hit all the triggers for me: captivating characters, compelling plot, thought-provoking content, and not a moment to breathe easy.
Evan stared at the words, waiting for his disgust to abate, for his anger to settle into something calm and unbroken.
Evan is an unforgettable, complicated character. He’s light and dark and shrouded in shadows. He’s the bad boy hero we can’t help but love.
Sprawled on the hot metal of the overturned cart, it occurred to him that he was, for the first time in his professional life, playing defense.
The plot has many layers, without ever feeling confusing or overly complicated. Hurwitz pulled off what many thriller authors struggle with by making this story completely believable. The fact that this could happen (or might already have) made it all the more terrifying.
Paranoia has a taste, an acidity on the tongue as sharp as the side effect of a potent medication.
While the book did have a complete ending, it also left the door wide open for a sequel. I hope to be spending more time with Evan in the near future.
Thanks for reading. 
The post #BookReview – ORPHAN X by Gregg Hurwitz – Intense Thriller appeared first on Quiet Fury Books.
