Book Review: The Nowhere Man
When there’s nowhere to turn and hope is lost, call 1-800-2-NOWHERE, and help will be on the way. Evan Smoak, an elite assassin trained in the U.S. government’s covert Orphan X program, applies his killing skills to put down those that prey on the helpless. Evan is the NoWhere Man. However, what happens when the man that risks his life to help the helpless is the one who must be saved?
“It’s all lies and stories,” the boy said. “No one saves anyone.”
“Yes, they do.” Evan said.
In the silence he could here the boy breathing across the phone.
“You’ll forget me,” the boy finally said. “Everyone does.”
“No, I won’t.”
Gregg Hurwitz, the award-winning author of the Orphan X series, has masterfully created another visceral, non-stop action thriller that places Evan in untenable situations designed to break the toughest of men. Evan is captured and tortured by a wealthy sociopath who kidnaps young men, stealing their blood and replacing his own using a biohack to reverse the aging process.
Evan must stay alive and find a way to escape the sniper-protected hideout to find the girl and boy that have called The Nowhere Man for help.
“Do you need my help?”
“Yes.” The voice of a boy, high-pitched and scared.
“Where did you get this number?” Evan asked.
“A girl gave it to me. She said you help people and stuff.” The boy was whispering.
But time is running out for them and Evan. He must use every ounce of physical strength to endure and his cunning to outwit his captors before he is auctioned off to the highest bidder. The worst of the worst from Evan’s past have arrived, willing to pay anything for the opportunity to inflict their revenge on Evan.
In a made-for-movie climax, Evan devises his escape, outsmarting his adversaries and using his captor’s impenetrable cage against them. But it’s a ghost from Evan’s past that ultimately saves his life in time to locate and rescue the boy and girl who called The Nowhere Man.
In the end, Evan reflects on a life of loneliness. Is it time to call it quits and live a “normal” life? One that would allow him to love and to feel what it’s like to be loved?
But then, who would help those that have nowhere else to turn? Who would be The Nowhere Man?
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