Thank you Hachette Audio for the ALC and @NovelSuspects & Grand Central Publishing, #partner, for the advanced copy of The Perfect Assassin in exchange for my honest review.
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing / Hachette Audio
Published: November 15, 2022
Summary:
Prof. Brandt Savage—grandson of the legendary action hero—is forced into a top-secret training program where he discovers his true calling…as the perfect assassin.
Dr. Brandt Savage is on sabbatical from the University of Chicago. Instead of doing solo fieldwork in anthropology, the gawky, bespectacled PhD finds himself enrolled in a school where he is the sole pupil. His professor, “Meed,” is demanding. She’s also his captor.
Savage emerges from their intensive training sessions physically and mentally transformed, but with no idea why he’s been chosen, and how he’ll use his fearsome abilities. Then his first mission with Meed takes them back to her own training ground, where Savage learns how deeply entwined their two lives have been. To prevent a new class of killers from escaping this harsh place where their ancestors first fought to make a better world, they must pledge anew : Do right to all, and wrong to no one.
My thoughts:
It’s no secret that I am a huge James Patterson fan and of course am going to read whatever he writes! This latest book is a potential new series in collaboration with Brian Sitts, who is a new author for me and I absolutely loved what they created!
As I have come to love with any James Patterson book, we have the typical short chapters and break-neck speed and an opening that pulls you in immediately. What I especially loved with this book was the alternating timelines – as a lover of historical fiction, I found that to be quite intriguing here in a thriller and was so eager to see how these two plots would eventually intersect.
There are a lot of moving parts to this story – a kidnapping of a professor, kidnapping of babies, espionage, terrorism, corruption, elite training and murder – all combine to keep you on your toes as to what is really going on. The twists and turns keep you glued to the pages and I found myself unable to tear myself away from the book once I started it.
This book has a bit of a sci-fi feel to it while still staying in the thriller lane and I couldn’t have enjoyed it more. It is entertaining, exciting and I am quite eager to see what direction this series takes.
Audio thoughts:
I ended up listening to this one and what a great choice that was – it translated very well onto audio! The narrators, Joshua Kane and Suzanne Elise Freeman, did a great job bringing this story to life and I found myself completely captivated and engaged. Their pacing and intonation was perfect and I think I will continue to listen to this series moving forward.
