The Killing Kind

Narrator Will Collyer's no-nonsense voice is a great choice for this mystery about people who lurk in the shadows. At the heart of the story is Michael Hendricks, a former off-the-books, special-ops soldier who is thought to be dead. But Hendricks is alive and seeks to atone for his many sins by killing other assassins and saving those he deems worthy--for a price. Soon he finds himself a target as well. Collyer's gruff, straightforward approach fits a story of lost souls who inhabit both sides in this violent world. Some of his civilians, especially females, don't come across as fully credible, but most are tangential to the story. Time and action fly by in this riveting production. D.E.M. © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine

July 13, 2015
Former U.S. special operations soldier Michael Hendricks, the hero of Holm’s inventive thriller, was presumed killed in a horrifying attack in Afghanistan that left his unit destroyed. Informing neither the government nor his ex-girlfriend, Hendricks returns to the U.S., where he contacts the intended victims of organized crime hit contracts and, if they meet his standards for decency, offers to take out their killer, for a fee 10 times what the hit man was paid in the first place. A shadowy cartel of organized crime groups hires sadistic but effective hit man Alexander Engelman to deal with Hendricks. Engelman learns Hendricks’s background through devious means, which sets up a final showdown of hit man versus hit man. Holm (Dead Harvest and two other novels in his Collector fantasy series) carries off a preposterous plot with brazen aplomb, creating a diverting, action-packed story interspersed with excellent character vignettes. Agent: David Gernert, Gernert Company.