Heart of the Assassin

Starred review from June 1, 2009
Set in a future American divided into two major regions, Edgar-finalist Ferrigno’s final entry in his Assassin trilogy (after Sins of the Assassin
) nicely ties up the wildly diverse plot lines that have motivated his many characters. New York City; Washington, D.C.; and Mecca have all been nuked by the Old One, a 150-year-old Muslim fanatic trying to become the Muslim messiah who will lead a new caliphate. The only person who can stop him is Rakkim Epps, a fedayeen warrior whose historian wife, Sarah, is masterminding an effort to unite America by finding a piece of the true cross, buried somewhere in the D.C. nuclear hot zone. The Old One is aided by Baby, a brilliant blonde bombshell who’s married to the Colonel, a powerful warlord. One can read this volume as a stand-alone, but to enjoy the vast breadth of what is truly a remarkable achievement, one should start with book one, Prayers for the Assassin
, and read the series in order.

Listeners should consider taking in the first two installments of Ferrigno's trilogy before listening to this final installment. The futuristic trilogy supposes the fracture of the U.S. into two parts--the Bible belt versus an Islamic entity. The book is jam-packed with characters, many complex and many more who may be more fully defined in the first two books. A lesser narrator than L.J. Ganser might not have brought this work of social analysis and speculation into focus at all. He deftly handles the score of odd and complex characters, each with a project to consider. Ritchie and his sidekick, Leo, are a tough duo to portray, but Ganser does it remarkably well. The story's conclusion is eminently satisfying. A.L.H. (c) AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine