Orphan X: A Novel

I was in the mood for a good thriller and liked the synopsis of Hurwitz's Orphan X. This fast-paced story did deliver, but not quite as much as I'd expected. Hurwitz doles out Evan's backstory sparingly, which only makes readers want more. However, it is enough to wow you with the character's abilities and to make you want to hug the little boy he once was. As a result of his training, Evan really doesn't know how to play well with others. Actually, he doesn't know how to play with others at all, and we see this during his interactions with the other residents of the building in which he lives. There's the grumpy old lady who seems to lay in wait for him at the elevator so she can complain non-stop, but we normal folk would have problems with her, too. No, it's when Evan becomes acquainted with divorced lawyer Mia and her inquisitive eight-year-old son Peter that we see how much he has to fight against that long-ago training of his.Where the soufflé fell for me was in the too-numerous-to-count fight scenes. Hurwitz wants us to know exactly how extensive Evan's hand-to-hand combat skills are, and each fight scene is laced with mixed martial art terms like "wing chan oblique kick." Over and over and over again. This is all well and good if you are a fan and want to be able to picture the fight in your mind, but I definitely do not fit that category. One movie scene comes to mind. Raiders of the Lost Ark. Indiana Jones is cornered in a bazaar by a sword-wielding showoff. Jones doesn't have time to wait for the nitwit to stop strutting his stuff, so he pulls out his gun and shoots him. Problem solved. Since this is the fight scene category I belong in, you can see where these minutely-described scenes in Orphan X made my eyes cross in boredom.Since I have a feeling that these fight scenes will continue as the series progresses, I will leave Evan Smoak here in book one. But I am certainly glad that I made his acquaintance, and I wish him well.

Give me a great spy book with secrets, mystery, and action, and I am right there. This one was mostly all of that and more.There are so many things I enjoyed with this book. The twists and turns. The not knowing who to trust. Not knowing what was going to happen next.I like that this author presented a deeply flawed, human in a lonely, personless life. When everyday things start to appear in the midst of this knight in dark armor's life of saving people, he begins to lose focus. His life has been black and white. Good and evil. All the while, he has kept himself isolated from the real world and real connections. When he somehow begins to form connections with people around him, things start to really go awry for him.I couldn't stop reading this book. It was full of so many surprises. The one drawback was the fighting scenes. They were good and action packed. However, since I am not in the know with different types of fighting and weapons, I felt lost. The specific moves that were being told to me page after page had me completely lost and confused. I felt like the author was trying to prove he was knowledgeable in many different kinds of fighting. I wasn't impressed. I ended up skimming the action scenes.Overall, this was a really good book. It was mostly just what I was looking for. I would like to say I will be reading more books in this series, because I am curious, I just can't afford them at the moment. Maybe eventually.

Evan Smoak (not his real name) was an orphan who was taken in by a covert government program. Only twelve at the time, he was raised to be an assassin, and he's tops in his field. But, on the edge of burnout, he leaves the program. His new career is what he's been trained for, but totally on the side of the angels. Desperate people find him, somehow, and he saves them from whatever peril they're in. Now, he's the one in peril, but he's not sure why. What's going on? No one is better equipped to find out (specialized equipment is everywhere in this book). What I particularly enjoyed is that there are touches of warmth and humor throughout. For example, an elderly neighbor grabs his arm and clutches him - right over a knife wound. A child who lives several floors below sends him messages - by releasing helium balloons with misspelled comments. Most of the secondary characters are given some dimension, like the macho neighbor who is actually a coward, and the Down's Syndrome kidnap victim who tends to her stuffed animal. This is the first book in a series, and I'm looking forward to the next adventure.

I've read most of Gregg Hurwitz's novels and have enjoyed them much more than this one, which I feel could have been shortened by a 100 pages, for me this was due to overly long descriptions of things like Orphan X's tastes in expensive vodka, several pages describing repetitive fights with mixed martial arts which bored me and seemed stilted, too long descriptions of Orphan X going up stairs, through car parks etc.etc. The plot appealed to me, as did some of the characters, but unfortunately the lead - Evan (Orphan X) didn't grab me. I see that the author was trying to make him sort of cold, alone etc., but there was nothing to latch on to in either a positive or negative way. I wouldn't say don't read it, because it was a personal taste thing, but some of his others are so much better; loved Tim Rackley series by him for example.

We were recommended this writer and series from a friend that likes Mark Dawson, Lee Child and Vince Flynn. To be honest I would rate Mark Dawson as the best writer that I have ever read, Vince Flynn stories next and Lee Child last. I bought all three in this series and after ten chapters and feeling really irritated with it abandoned it (my wife got fed up with me moaning about it). So I started reading Mark Dawson's books from the very beginning and this is my third reading and I cannot put them down. Shame that Vince Flynn speaks about suit coats (jacket) and personal Mikes (meaning microphones 'mic') yeah I know he is now dead but the second writer continues with 'mikes' irritating to say the least but great stories.

It took a while for this book to get going as Hurwitz sets the scene for the Orphan X series. Orphan X is something of an action hero hiding his true vocation as a justice enforcing hired killer. The author displays his love of guns and electronic gadgets and oriental fighting styles but I was more interested in the story bubbling under. Indeed for me the author’s obsession with weapons and gadgets detracts from rather than enhances the plot. Perhaps this action thriller would be better suited to the big screen enabling viewers to sit back and relax as the body count rises. No such luxury though for Orphan X as he is drawn deeper and deeper into a web of danger and violence.Overall 3/5. (Plot 3/5, Characterisation 2/5, Literary Merit 2/5, Readability 3/5.)

Is there a competition amongst authors to see who can come up with the silliest name for a lead character? If so, “Evan Smoak” is easily up there.As for the story itself, I’ve never been so bored. It was a real struggle to get through it. Full of characters I didn’t give two sh*ts about. The comic relief characters that live in the same building are just plain irritating and add nothing to the plot. They just pad it out. The bad guys are too cartoonish, in particular a dominatrix killer called Candy.The beginning of each chapter made my heart sink at the thought of having to spend more time with Evan Smoak, being that he's so bland and uninteresting. But especially so when the plot slams the brakes on for a perfunctory flashback, and routine read-it-all-before training montages. By the time the plot gets truly going at about the 60 to 70 percent mark, I was battling hard to stay awake. Each sentence was a slog, each paragraph a battle.If you're wondering why I didn't just quit, I always like to finish a novel in case it comes good and has a brilliant ending. Orphan X didn't. I'm struggling to remember much about it, other than it being a calculated lead in to another three books. No thanks! Count me out! I don't care if Orphan X lives or dies, or chokes on his posh vodka (of which he drinks plenty).David Baldacci says on the cover, "Read this book. You'll thank me later." Baldacci will be waiting a long time for that "thank you".

I am on my third in this series - and they are brilliant. I didn't realise I had such specific taste in fiction until trying to find new authors and series. I love an action book. I love a good old fashioned hero. So many though have a perverted story line that I really don't want in my head as I fall asleep. Abducted children, Serial killers etc.... Like many (I expect) I look forward to the next Jack Reacher novel to be released. They are a reliable 'fit' for my taste. Action without gore. Revenge, justice.. all the good reasons to be fighting back without some sick storyline at the heart of the book. The Orphan X series has proven the same. Gripping writing, trailing a hero that nobody could criticise, who always does the right thing. I am hooked and am so pleased there are a few in this series to keep me going. I think I will not just be waiting patiently for the release of next jack Reacher, it will be the next Orphan X too. If you are a Jack reacher fan, give this a go