One of the most lethal characters in the thriller genre returns in the latest heart-pounding thriller from #1 New York Times bestselling author Mark Greaney.
Following the events of One Minute Out (2020), former CIA operative turned assassin-for-hire Court Gentry is laid up in a hospital bed while recovering from the serious injuries he sustained last time around. That changes, though, when fellow operator Zach Hightower is taken while on a mission to track an NSA computer scientist accused of treason, who may be in possession of cutting-edge software that has serious potential to cause trouble for any and all operators within the spy game. With agents disappearing around the globe, the CIA turns to the Gray Man to help figure out who’s targeting intelligence operatives—and tasks Gentry with wiping them out once and for all.
Meanwhile, Zoya Zakharova—Gentry’s love interest who also moonlights with the CIA as part of the elite, top-secret “Poison Apple” program—heads to Berlin in order to try and infiltrate a private intelligence firm the U.S. government suspects may have some questionable, if not alarming, connections. As each storyline play out, it’s only a matter of time until both threads converge, revealing a bigger conspiracy that’ll threaten and test Court in a number of new ways . . . leading to an ending that’ll no doubt have fans of the series begging for the next book.
In only a few short years Mark Greaney has gone from one of the most underrated authors in the genre to one of the most prolific and successful writers in the game today. Here, more than ever before, Greaney flexes his literary muscle, combining balls-to-the-wall action with a smart, tightly-wound plot that even all-time greats like Forsyth and le Carre would be jealous of. Think Jason Matthews’ Red Sparrow trilogy in terms of espionage and tension, but with the action of a Vince Flynn or Brad Thor novel. It’s all so well done, and while readers might come for the explosions and gunfights (of which there are plenty), they’ll stay for the expertly-plotted story and superb character development. For instance, Gentry for every ounce of the kick-you-in-the-teeth badass that he is, is no ladies man. His relationship with Zoya (codename: Antham) is both intriguing and fun to see play out. It’s only fitting that the world’s greatest assassin shares a bed with a woman who could gut him in about two seconds flat, dump the body, and disappear into the wind before anyone ever notices Court had gone missing. And without giving anything away, Greaney sets things up to develop his hero even more in the next installment, though he’ll certainly have his work cut out for him if he hopes to somehow top his aptly titled 10th volume.
Filled with hard-hitting action sequences and nail-biting tension, Relentless is Mark Greaney’s most thrilling novel to date, and some of the best plotting we’ve seen from him yet . . . clear your schedule before diving into this one, because once you start there’s absolutely no stopping.
Book Details
Author: Mark Greaney
Series: Gray Man #10
Pages: 528 (Hardcover)
ISBN: 0593098951
Publisher: Berkley
Release Date: February 16, 2021
Real Book Spy Rating: 9.5/10
Praised as “One of the hardest working, most thoughtful, and fairest reviewers out there” by #1 New York Times bestselling author Lisa Scottoline, Ryan Steck has “quickly established himself as the authority on mysteries and thrillers” (Author A.J. Tata). Steck also works full-time as a freelance editor and pens a monthly thriller column for CrimeReads. Additionally, he co-hosts ThrillerTalk, a new podcast with K.J. Howe. For more information, be sure to follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He currently lives in Southwest Michigan with his wife and their six children.