The Last Orphan by Gregg Hurwitz

 

Who is Evan Smoak?

"To say the least, his childhood had been rough-and-tumble. Pinballed through a series of foster homes, he'd been ripped out of any semblance of ordinary life at the age of twelve to be trained covertly as an assassin. ... Orphans were trained for solo operations--no peers, no support, no back-up. Were it not for Jack Johns, Evan's handler and father figure, the Program would likely have been successful in extinguishing his humanity. The hard part wasn't turning him into a killer; the hard part was keeping him human. Integrating those two opposing drives had been the great challenge of Evan's life.

"After a decade spent committing unsanctioned hits around the globe, Evan had gone AWOL from the Program. Since then he'd committed himself to staying off the radar while using his skills to help others who were just as powerless as he'd been as a young boy--pro bono missions he conducted as the Nowhere Man." 

In The Last Orphan, the eighth book in this series, Evan has finally been tracked down and captured by government agents. The president promises his release IF he kills someone. But as much as Evan wants his freedom, he won't compromise his principles by killing on someone else's orders. Not ever again. He'll only do it if he determines that the killing is warranted. Which puts his life in danger. Luckily, Evan is no longer a lone assassin. He has friends. Like Tommy, his weapons expert; and Candy, an ex-Orphan who's almost as dangerous as Evan; and Joey, a sixteen-year-old computer hacker who was being trained as another Orphan when Evan's old handler helped her escape the Program. With their help, Evan can tackle anything. 

Why I love this series: 

I love Evan Smoak, and how he struggles to connect...not just with other people, but with his own emotions. I love his set of rules--the 10 commandments he lives by. I love his interactions with his neighbor, Mia, and her young son, Peter; and also his relationship with feisty, sarcastic Joey. And I love how he can take down the bad guys to protect the innocent! He's like Jason Bourne, Jack Reacher and Gabriel Allon all in one. These thrillers are very action-packed and suspenseful. Once I start one, I can't put it down. And The Last Orphan is no exception. This is one propulsive and amazing thrill ride. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐   

Happy Reading!

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Evan's 10 Commandments

Two books I recently read and loved...

Here are two more of my favorite reads this past month that I'm not going to review, but am going to recommend. (With thanks again to Rachel @ Waves of Fiction for the idea.) 

Prodigal Son is Gregg Hurwitz's latest Orphan X novel. It's the 6th book in this series, which makes it tricky to review without accidentally spoiling things that happen in previous books. Just know that Evan Smoak is one of my all-time favorite characters, and I absolutely LOVE this series. All six books. They're awesome. My review of his first three books can be found here and here.

The Breaker is the latest book in Nick Petrie's Peter Ash Series. It is also book #6. I love this series, and this character, too. Every time I finish one, I can't wait for the next one to come out. If you want to read my review of the first book in this series, check it out here. 

So there you go, two more books I loved and highly recommend.

Happy Reading!

A 5-Star Thrill Ride...

The Orphan Program was a secret government agency that took orphans and trained them to be covert operatives and assassins. Evan Smoak was 12 when he became Orphan X. He went on his first mission at 19. Ten years later, he managed to escape from the program and disappear. Now he's the Nowhere Man, a well-trained weapon and rumored protector of the innocent and desperate. He lives by the rules he was taught as Orphan X:  one mission at a time, always play offense, master your surroundings, never make it personal, and most important of all, never let an innocent die. But his current case is testing all those rules...and all his survival skills, too. Because the bad guys aren't just gunning for his client. They're gunning for him.

I loved this book! Evan Smoak is like a combination of Jack Reacher, Gabriel Allon, and Jason Bourne, three of my all-time favorite tough guys. He's great. And so smart. I loved watching him outwit his enemies. But my favorite moments were his interactions with the 8-year-old boy who lives downstairs. This book is jam-packed with action and suspense. And it's so well-written. I could not put it down. And I was sad when it ended. I can't wait to read the next book in this series.

Happy Reading!