- Flynn, Vince.
Kill Shot.
New York: Atria Books, 2012.
ISBN 978-1-4165-9520-5.
-
This is the twelfth novel in the
Mitch Rapp
(warning—the article at this link contains minor spoilers)
series, but chronologically is second in the saga, picking up
a year after the events of American Assassin
(December 2010).
Mitch Rapp has hit his stride as the CIA's weapon of choice
against the terror masters, operating alone with only the knowledge
of a few people, dispatching his targets with head shots when
they least expect it and, in doing so, beginning to sow terror
among the terrorists.
Rapp is in Paris to take out the visiting Libyan oil minister,
who has been a conduit for funding terrorist attacks,
including the
Pan Am Flight 103
bombing which killed Rapp's college sweetheart and set
him on the trajectory toward his current career—this
time it's personal. The hit goes horribly wrong, leaving a trail of
bodies and hundreds of cartridge casings in a posh hotel, with the
potential of a disastrous public relations blowback for the CIA, and
Rapp's superiors looking at prospects ranging from congressional
hearings at best to time in Club Fed. Based on how things went
down, Rapp becomes persuaded that he was set up and does not know who
he can trust and lies low, while his bosses fear the worst: that
their assassin has gone rogue.
The profane and ruthless Stan Hurley, who trained Rapp and whose
opinion of the “college boy” has matured from dislike to
detestation and distrust, is dispatched to Paris to find out what
happened, locate Rapp, and if necessary put an end to his career in
the manner to which Hurley and his goons are accustomed.
This is a satisfying thriller with plenty of twists and turns,
interesting and often complicated characters, and a
thoroughly satisfying conclusion. We see, especially in
the interrogation of “Victor”, how far Rapp
has come from his first days with Hurley, and that the tension
between the two may have at its roots the fact that they are
becoming more and more alike, a prospect Rapp finds repellent.
Unlike American Assassin, which is firmly anchored
in the chaos of early 1990s Beirut, apart from a few details
(such as mobile telephones being novel and uncommon), the present
novel could be set at almost any time since 1990—historical
events play no part in the story. It's best to read
American Assassin first, as it provides the back
story on the characters and will provide more insight into their
motivations, but this book works perfectly well as a stand-alone
thriller should you prefer to start here.
April 2012 