Recommended Reads: ‘The Assassins’ a chilling espionage thriller

The Assassins, by Gayle Lynds

“To say that assassination never solved anything is as inaccurate as saying crime never pays. Or that all assassins come to a bad end.” – The Book of Assassins, George Fetherling

This quote describes part of the fast-paced plot in Gayle Lynds’ chilling international espionage thriller. Six master assassins, each legendary in his own way, band together to steal a fortune from the middle of a war zone. Not just any fortune, it’s Saddam Hussein’s missing billion dollar fortune. Their mission goes terribly wrong and they retreat into invisibility. Now they’re coming back, for what they feel is due them. Is there honor among assassins?

Former military spy Judd Ryder sees a man coming out of his row house and the man looks just like him, wearing his clothes. Suddenly the imposter is killed by a deliberate hit-and-run. A similar, strange incident occurs with CIA trainee Eva Blake. They’re being used as a means to an end, but to what end? This is part of the Judd Ryder books series, but also stands well on its own, so go ahead and sit on the edge of your seat when you open this cover.

A large part of the fascination of this read is learning about some of the tricks of the trade that comes from the in depth training of spies, whether the spies are government or freelance. This author certainly has the background to ensure credibility in this genre. A bestselling and award-winning author of 10 international espionage novels, she began her writing career as an investigative reporter. Later she was an editor with rare top secret security clearance at a government think tank. She became intrigued and inspired and learned a lot. Soon she began writing short stories and then moved on to her own novels, as well as the Cover-One Series that she created with Robert Ludlum. She’s a member of the Association for Former Intelligence Officers and she co-founded the International Thriller Writers organization. The celebrated annual convention in New York is ThrillerFest.

The Assassins is winner of the Military Writers Society of America Founder’s Award. It’s filled with clandestine encounters in exotic sites around the world, tentative alliances, hidden agendas, precision fighting, and lots of secrets. And as Gayle Lynds quotes J. Edgar Hoover, “there’s something about a secret that’s addicting.”

And if you want to hear more from the author, tune into Kendall & Cooper Talk Mysteries with Gayle Lynds.

— By Wendy Kendall

Wendy Kendall is a writer, project manager and volunteer at the Edmonds Library. She’s enjoyed living in Edmonds for over 20 years. Follow her via her blog here or on Twitter @wendywrites1.

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