One of the most notorious assassins in the galaxy, Gage accepts an assignment that begins opening old wounds and raising the past and promises he made but has yet to fulfill. When he returns home, a betrayal by an old girlfriend and a rescue by a military buddy, Kenny -- the only other man to survive the same massacre that resulted in Gage's career change from military man to killer -- sets him on the path to find the truth of what happened that night and to bring justice for the men that died that night -- men he commanded. With the help of Joanna, the sister of one of the men who died, and Jak, a street rat, Gage follows a thin, often scattered, trail of memory and information acquired through Kenny's numerous contacts and officials within the highest levels of the military and government. With security forces out to recapture him and his father and Joanna in tow, Gage unearths betrayal and manipulation and sets in motion events that will change the course of an entire planet.
Impression: I have to admit it, I love The Assassin Journals: Hunter. I was one of the early readers years ago when the author was first developing it, and fell in love with Gage even back then. A killer who has tried to turn off his sense of right and wrong, he's still at the mercy of a moral compass that will no longer allow him to ignore a promise made in a much more innocent time. He must come to terms with why he became an assassin and make the choice to regain control of his life. The only way he can do that is to find out the truth of the massacre that was the first step to becoming what he is now. It's his story, and he never let's you forget it. Some of the turns in the plot are not unexpected. Which is not to say they are foreseen, only that the story turns into them nicely...you can't see things happening any other way. And for me the ending was more sad than shocking, but it is a well-played ending none the less.
I do have some issues with the book, but they are mostly with the editing (or lack of it) and the formatting (what's with the extra spacing between paragraphs?) that are bothersome for a visual reader. If there's any issue at all with the story itself, it's that a few places in the middle seem too simplistic, but these still do not diminish my enjoyment of the book. And really, since I am not much of a SF reader, that really is high praise for me. Partington does the one thing that will keep me in a SF story: she focuses on the characters and the events and keeps the "science" in the background -- it's necessary to the story, but kept to being an important part of the setting rather than a focal point that requires a lot of scientific explanation.
While not graphic in detail, there is violence and a sex scene, so I wouldn’t recommend it for younger readers, but for younger adults on up, I find it to be an excellent read. I'm looking forward to Partington's next novel in the series. (And, yes, I know she's writing one! ;))
Unless otherwise noted, all books reviewed have been purchased by me.
~*~
I will no longer be linking to Amazon and no longer recommending Amazon as a place to purchase books I review. Amazon has repeatedly used bully tactics to reinforce its policies, even if those tactics cause harm to authors or limit customer choices. Amazon usually apologizes for the events after the fact, but that they continue to use the same methods makes those apologies hollow. I will not purchase from or encourage others to purchase from a business that chooses to take from the pockets of authors (who as a whole earn a lot less than general public realizes) and decide what the public should and should not read.
