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Gray Man #2
On Target
Court Gentry, aka the Gray Man, is back – and once again on the run from old friends and foes.
Four years ago, Gentry was betrayed by his handlers in the CIA. Now, an old comrade, Russian arms merchant Sidorenko, returns to force him on a mission against his will: kill Sudan’s President Abboud, the supposed trigger for the Darfur genocide. But the CIA has its own plans for Abboud. With his ruthless employers on one side, his blackmailing former friends on the other, and a doomed mission ahead, Gentry would kill just to get out of this one alive.
Every bit as thrilling, informed, and addictive as The Gray Man, and once again skillfully narrated by Jay Snyder, On Target is sure to hit the mark for thriller fans.
Four years ago, Gentry was betrayed by his handlers in the CIA. Now, an old comrade, Russian arms merchant Sidorenko, returns to force him on a mission against his will: kill Sudan’s President Abboud, the supposed trigger for the Darfur genocide. But the CIA has its own plans for Abboud. With his ruthless employers on one side, his blackmailing former friends on the other, and a doomed mission ahead, Gentry would kill just to get out of this one alive.
Every bit as thrilling, informed, and addictive as The Gray Man, and once again skillfully narrated by Jay Snyder, On Target is sure to hit the mark for thriller fans.
Audiobook
First published September 28, 2010
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About the author
Mark Greaney
95 books6,128 followersMark Greaney has a degree in International Relations and Political Science. In researching The Gray Man series he traveled to ten countries and trained extensively in the use of firearms, battlefield medicine, and close range combative tactics.
Learn more at MARKGREANEYBOOKS.COM
Email Mark at MarkGreaneyBooks@gmail.com
Learn more at MARKGREANEYBOOKS.COM
Email Mark at MarkGreaneyBooks@gmail.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,171 reviews
May 31, 2022
"No one wants to see the sausage made, but everyone loves the sausage."
Another great read! Court Gentry is outplayed again, WTH ...
This review isn't really a review, but I saw this on Amazon and thought it was pretty funny.
Sudan travel guide? 🤣🤣
I don't know if you'd want to "travel" with Gentry.
Destination Suakin (ancient port city) via Al Fashir (local conflict-genocide)
- Fly in style on a Russian freighter, the Ilyushin Il-76
- Airport transfer: truck to camel to donkey cart
- En route attacked by local militia (the Janjaweed)
- Quick stop at Sudanese interrogation prison
- Pack light; Map, sat phone, sniper rifle, ammunition, binoculars, frag grenades, smoke grenades, MRE, water, oral rehydration salts, trauma kit, a Glock, a combat knife that sort of thing.
Another great read! Court Gentry is outplayed again, WTH ...
This review isn't really a review, but I saw this on Amazon and thought it was pretty funny.
Sudan travel guide? 🤣🤣
I don't know if you'd want to "travel" with Gentry.
Destination Suakin (ancient port city) via Al Fashir (local conflict-genocide)
- Fly in style on a Russian freighter, the Ilyushin Il-76
- Airport transfer: truck to camel to donkey cart
- En route attacked by local militia (the Janjaweed)
- Quick stop at Sudanese interrogation prison
- Pack light; Map, sat phone, sniper rifle, ammunition, binoculars, frag grenades, smoke grenades, MRE, water, oral rehydration salts, trauma kit, a Glock, a combat knife that sort of thing.
May 28, 2025
If you want action this is the book for you. I do not believe there were more than a dozen pages without some form of action.
The Gray Man is serving two masters which is never a good idea. One master wants the target eliminated and the other wants a kidnapping rather than elimination which will take him off the status of being shot on sight.
The characters are believable. The action is tense with Gray Man facing huge odds. Loyalty and trust seem to be disposable terms with people he has to work with.
This writing will keep your interest. I found it hard to put the book down. I definitely recommend this book and this series to my fellow GR friends. Happy reading my friends.
April 26, 2018
Another thriller!!! The Gray Man survives, but is still hunted.
August 28, 2020
For a while, I wasn't too sure where this was headed. While author Greaney made a pretty decent save towards the end, this could have been sharper. Closer to 3 1/2 stars so I'll add for Jay Snyder's excellent narration. 7 of 10 stars
January 15, 2014
The second book about Court Gentry. This one is actually a bit more thought provoking. For me it sort of makes me question my own attitudes. I mean...I'm a Christian and I don't want (on an actual personal and real level) to be too quick to accept the idea of..."sanctioning someone with extreme prejudice".
There is a level of frustration built into this novel, but then there's supposed to be. Court is caught between the proverbial jaws of and upon the proverbial horns of a seemingly insoluble dilemma. Trying to work out his situation and put his life back together he finds himself with two masters either of which could kill him.
This book is still, as the first one The Gray Man was a page turner. There's bone shaking action and teeth rattling violence built into a "geopolitical" firestorm. Traveling through Africa across parts of Asia every man's hand against him The Gray Man again delivers an exciting read. I like these and already have the third.
My only real concern is, there's only three.
The character of Court Gentry while not as detailed as some action heroes is filling out very well. I find I know a bit more about him. This volume finds his "walls" cracking a bit. Between physical damage and the psychological damage he's sustaining will he hold together?
Good book and I'm really impatient to get to the next one. I may not be able to allow myself to start it till tomorrow afternoon.
Bummer.
Enjoy.
There is a level of frustration built into this novel, but then there's supposed to be. Court is caught between the proverbial jaws of and upon the proverbial horns of a seemingly insoluble dilemma. Trying to work out his situation and put his life back together he finds himself with two masters either of which could kill him.
This book is still, as the first one The Gray Man was a page turner. There's bone shaking action and teeth rattling violence built into a "geopolitical" firestorm. Traveling through Africa across parts of Asia every man's hand against him The Gray Man again delivers an exciting read. I like these and already have the third.
My only real concern is, there's only three.
The character of Court Gentry while not as detailed as some action heroes is filling out very well. I find I know a bit more about him. This volume finds his "walls" cracking a bit. Between physical damage and the psychological damage he's sustaining will he hold together?
Good book and I'm really impatient to get to the next one. I may not be able to allow myself to start it till tomorrow afternoon.
Bummer.
Enjoy.
January 25, 2011
Courtland Gentry was once a top operative for the CIA, but they issued a burn notice and shoot-on-sight order about him for unknown reasons. A burn notice? I wonder if Court gets to hang around Bruce Campbell drinking beers like other burned spies?
Court went underground and became a legendary contract killer known as the Gray Man in certain circles, but things aren’t going well. Circumstances have forced him to start working with a sleazy Russian gangster, and he’s picked up a prescription drug habit while recovering from injuries suffered in the last book.
The Russian has a contract for Court to assassinate the president of Sudan, but the Gray Man doesn’t trust the Russian and wants nothing to do with it. However, Court’s old CIA team leader shows up with an offer. He wants Court to pretend to take the Russian contract, and the Americans will piggy back their own covert operation into Sudan on it. In return, the CIA will drop the kill order and even let Court work for them again.
Court takes the offer, but things almost immediately start going off the rails in Sudan. His first headache involves an incredibly naïve and very annoying Canadian woman working for the International Criminal Court regarding violations in Darfur. Despite Court saving her ass a couple of times, she insists on busting his balls over how he’s dealt with a gang of genocidal thugs. (Here’s something that seems like a bad idea: If you wind up alone in the desert with a highly trained killer, threaten to have him arrested as soon as he leads you back to civilization.) For some reason, Court doesn’t just pop her head off, but the problems with the operation have just started.
The first book featuring Court, The Gray Man, was over-the-top action fun with a Jason Bourne-style manhunt across Europe. I didn’t enjoy this one as much as the first one. Since Court is dealing with his old boss and a CIA paramilitary team for a lot of this one, there’s a lot of G.I. Joe stuff and combat-talk like “Contact right!” or “Sierra 6 to Sierra 1.” Plus, Court doesn’t seem nearly the legendary bad ass in this one that he’s supposed to be. Granted, he’s fighting a pill habit, but he doesn’t seem nearly as fearsome.
It still had a lot of good crazy action scenes, and the plot did zigzag in surprising directions I didn’t see coming. But having Court as part of a team and having to follow other people’s orders isn’t nearly as much fun as Court on his own and leaving mayhem in his wake.
Court went underground and became a legendary contract killer known as the Gray Man in certain circles, but things aren’t going well. Circumstances have forced him to start working with a sleazy Russian gangster, and he’s picked up a prescription drug habit while recovering from injuries suffered in the last book.
The Russian has a contract for Court to assassinate the president of Sudan, but the Gray Man doesn’t trust the Russian and wants nothing to do with it. However, Court’s old CIA team leader shows up with an offer. He wants Court to pretend to take the Russian contract, and the Americans will piggy back their own covert operation into Sudan on it. In return, the CIA will drop the kill order and even let Court work for them again.
Court takes the offer, but things almost immediately start going off the rails in Sudan. His first headache involves an incredibly naïve and very annoying Canadian woman working for the International Criminal Court regarding violations in Darfur. Despite Court saving her ass a couple of times, she insists on busting his balls over how he’s dealt with a gang of genocidal thugs. (Here’s something that seems like a bad idea: If you wind up alone in the desert with a highly trained killer, threaten to have him arrested as soon as he leads you back to civilization.) For some reason, Court doesn’t just pop her head off, but the problems with the operation have just started.
The first book featuring Court, The Gray Man, was over-the-top action fun with a Jason Bourne-style manhunt across Europe. I didn’t enjoy this one as much as the first one. Since Court is dealing with his old boss and a CIA paramilitary team for a lot of this one, there’s a lot of G.I. Joe stuff and combat-talk like “Contact right!” or “Sierra 6 to Sierra 1.” Plus, Court doesn’t seem nearly the legendary bad ass in this one that he’s supposed to be. Granted, he’s fighting a pill habit, but he doesn’t seem nearly as fearsome.
It still had a lot of good crazy action scenes, and the plot did zigzag in surprising directions I didn’t see coming. But having Court as part of a team and having to follow other people’s orders isn’t nearly as much fun as Court on his own and leaving mayhem in his wake.
January 18, 2019
I listened to the audiobook of this narrated by Jay Snyder and it was excellent. It's been a while since I read The Gray Man, so I was a little rusty on some details, but the book does a pretty good job of catching you up.
Court is a compelling character, undoubtedly a stone cold killer, but one with a moral compass. He started out as a CIA assassin and went private sector when he got burned, and when the book begins, he's four months out recovering from a standoff with his former employers at the CIA. Unfortunately, he has developed an opioid addiction that he somehow manages to keep in check for the most part. Now, he's having to take some assignments that aren't ideal. Gray Man gets picked up by a Russian gangster who wants him to do a hit on a certain leader in a certain country, and while he could say no, it wouldn't be exactly healthy for him. His former team commander contacts him to take the hit and turn it into a kidnapping, and that's when things get very interesting.
This book takes place over about a week, and it's practically nonstop action. Having said that, Greaney also leaves time for some introspection and character development with Court. While Court knows he's a killer, he knows right and wrong and would never be considered a psychopath or a monster, and he's far from sociopathic. When confronted with the genocide and ruthless murder and abuse of the black peoples of the Sudan, he wants to do something about it, even when it complicates his life greatly. He also has to save a woman who is in the wrong place at a terrible time. Court assumes responsibilities to keep her safe that involve killing others, and stands tall in the face of her judgmentalism about it. I personally was pretty annoyed at the woman. She was making some really stupid decisions and when Court risks his own mission to keep her ass safe, she's all up in his face calling him a monster. That conflict was interesting because it is timely with a lot of really profound evil going on in the world. When do our actions represent giving in to evil and compromising ourselves versus being a weapon for finding a rough sense of justice and ultimately helping others, admittedly through dark means?
Court is put into situations where he interacts with others who have the opportunity to assess his character, and most of them have huge character flaws of their own. I hope that there is some closure with the mob boss who hired Court. That dude needs to be dealt with.
I really like how Court has to get himself out of really tough situations using his training, skills and ingenuity. Also how he makes tough, untenable choices. He knew what it meant when he decided to go against his commander's order. It was a tough decision that would make his life hell and things even worse for him than they were when everything started, but he made it anyway. He continues to do this through the rest of the book. Court is the kind of hero you root for to kick ass but also to save the day and to keep himself and others safe, even knowing he's an assassin (although I really like assassin heroes, so that's not an issue for me (as long as they aren't sociopathic or psychopathic monsters who enjoy hurting others).
The action scenes were very well written and cinematic. I felt like I was watching this on a movie screen. There weren't any cardboard character. Even the lesser developed characters still have some depth to them. His old commander, Hightower is an a***&%$%! And says some really racist stuff too. While the woman that Court helps annoyed me, I think that Greaney did show her growth in understanding of who Court was and what motivates him. Greaney gives a nuanced perspective on the situation in the Sudan and how it relates to the geopolitical current events with China and Russia (how they are exploiting Africa for resources, deliberately causing strife and destruction to facilitate this processes) , and not necessarily showing the Americans and the good guys who do the right things for the right reason.
I would have liked more closure on Court's health situation near the end of the book, but I have to assume that's all okay. I really hope he kicks the opioid addiction very soon.
This is a really excellent follow up to "The Gray Man." I already downloaded Ballistic so I can listen to it very soon.
Court is a compelling character, undoubtedly a stone cold killer, but one with a moral compass. He started out as a CIA assassin and went private sector when he got burned, and when the book begins, he's four months out recovering from a standoff with his former employers at the CIA. Unfortunately, he has developed an opioid addiction that he somehow manages to keep in check for the most part. Now, he's having to take some assignments that aren't ideal. Gray Man gets picked up by a Russian gangster who wants him to do a hit on a certain leader in a certain country, and while he could say no, it wouldn't be exactly healthy for him. His former team commander contacts him to take the hit and turn it into a kidnapping, and that's when things get very interesting.
This book takes place over about a week, and it's practically nonstop action. Having said that, Greaney also leaves time for some introspection and character development with Court. While Court knows he's a killer, he knows right and wrong and would never be considered a psychopath or a monster, and he's far from sociopathic. When confronted with the genocide and ruthless murder and abuse of the black peoples of the Sudan, he wants to do something about it, even when it complicates his life greatly. He also has to save a woman who is in the wrong place at a terrible time. Court assumes responsibilities to keep her safe that involve killing others, and stands tall in the face of her judgmentalism about it. I personally was pretty annoyed at the woman. She was making some really stupid decisions and when Court risks his own mission to keep her ass safe, she's all up in his face calling him a monster. That conflict was interesting because it is timely with a lot of really profound evil going on in the world. When do our actions represent giving in to evil and compromising ourselves versus being a weapon for finding a rough sense of justice and ultimately helping others, admittedly through dark means?
Court is put into situations where he interacts with others who have the opportunity to assess his character, and most of them have huge character flaws of their own. I hope that there is some closure with the mob boss who hired Court. That dude needs to be dealt with.
I really like how Court has to get himself out of really tough situations using his training, skills and ingenuity. Also how he makes tough, untenable choices. He knew what it meant when he decided to go against his commander's order. It was a tough decision that would make his life hell and things even worse for him than they were when everything started, but he made it anyway. He continues to do this through the rest of the book. Court is the kind of hero you root for to kick ass but also to save the day and to keep himself and others safe, even knowing he's an assassin (although I really like assassin heroes, so that's not an issue for me (as long as they aren't sociopathic or psychopathic monsters who enjoy hurting others).
The action scenes were very well written and cinematic. I felt like I was watching this on a movie screen. There weren't any cardboard character. Even the lesser developed characters still have some depth to them. His old commander, Hightower is an a***&%$%! And says some really racist stuff too. While the woman that Court helps annoyed me, I think that Greaney did show her growth in understanding of who Court was and what motivates him. Greaney gives a nuanced perspective on the situation in the Sudan and how it relates to the geopolitical current events with China and Russia (how they are exploiting Africa for resources, deliberately causing strife and destruction to facilitate this processes) , and not necessarily showing the Americans and the good guys who do the right things for the right reason.
I would have liked more closure on Court's health situation near the end of the book, but I have to assume that's all okay. I really hope he kicks the opioid addiction very soon.
This is a really excellent follow up to "The Gray Man." I already downloaded Ballistic so I can listen to it very soon.
October 7, 2010
How does an author follow up a debut, national bestseller with high expectations on the line? How about brilliantly and without fail.
Mark Greaney’s sequel to “The Gray Man” picks up right where he left off as Court Gentry, a.k.a. ‘the gray man’, a.k.a. ‘six’ is left to fend for himself as a private contracted assassin. Gentry cannot rest on his laurels since his former employer—the CIA—has issued an SOS order, shoot on sight!
Gentry has agreed to a very risky contract with his untrusting, Russian employer, but also agrees to an alternate deal with the CIA that would rescind his SOS order if he completes his mission successfully. Of course, everything goes haywire from the start and Gentry has to deal with all of it.
If you are looking for a truly, cover-to-cover, action-packed thrill ride, start reading this series as it will not leave you disappointed.
www.suspensemagazine.com
Mark Greaney’s sequel to “The Gray Man” picks up right where he left off as Court Gentry, a.k.a. ‘the gray man’, a.k.a. ‘six’ is left to fend for himself as a private contracted assassin. Gentry cannot rest on his laurels since his former employer—the CIA—has issued an SOS order, shoot on sight!
Gentry has agreed to a very risky contract with his untrusting, Russian employer, but also agrees to an alternate deal with the CIA that would rescind his SOS order if he completes his mission successfully. Of course, everything goes haywire from the start and Gentry has to deal with all of it.
If you are looking for a truly, cover-to-cover, action-packed thrill ride, start reading this series as it will not leave you disappointed.
www.suspensemagazine.com
September 21, 2020
Greaney delivers unrelenting action in this second offering featuring the assassin-for-hire Court Gentry. The CIA wants him to kidnap a man that the Russians want him to kill. Awkward! Greaney has created a wonderful character with Court and delivers an entertaining twisty plot. Enjoy!
April 6, 2020
5 Stars ( Heart-Pounding)
On Target , the sophomore book in the 'Gray Man' series did NOT fail to disappoint! I was hooked from the the very first premise, as our ex-CIA, gun for hire 'Court Gentry', finds himself in a double-crossed situation that he has to please both Russians and Americans!
The Gray man is a total bad ass and only does 'hit jobs' on murderers, tyrants, drug-lords and dictators. Reading this latest entry felt like, walking on egg shells- every situation that 'Gentry' found himself in was more precarious then the other. The action was cinematic and really well written, and Greany's depth of knowledge on guns, artillery and high tech spy devices, brings this latest entry to another level! I'm totally hooked onto this series!
On Target , the sophomore book in the 'Gray Man' series did NOT fail to disappoint! I was hooked from the the very first premise, as our ex-CIA, gun for hire 'Court Gentry', finds himself in a double-crossed situation that he has to please both Russians and Americans!
The Gray man is a total bad ass and only does 'hit jobs' on murderers, tyrants, drug-lords and dictators. Reading this latest entry felt like, walking on egg shells- every situation that 'Gentry' found himself in was more precarious then the other. The action was cinematic and really well written, and Greany's depth of knowledge on guns, artillery and high tech spy devices, brings this latest entry to another level! I'm totally hooked onto this series!
October 3, 2017
For so much action this book was surprisingly boring. I loved the first book but this one was lackluster.
Cort is still a burned and hunted agent, hired for an assignation that could 'free' him from the blacklist.. but (predictably) the mission goes wrong and Cort (our spy with a soul) starts to question everything...
I appreciated the political timeliness of the 'spy job' (Russians! Darfur! Oil fights! The ICC and 'economic hitmen') and I like that Cort is actually likeable (he's a Jason Bourne type) but this action-packed thriller wasn't thrilling... and the woman in it, gah! This author should avoiding writing Woman characters...
Cort is still a burned and hunted agent, hired for an assignation that could 'free' him from the blacklist.. but (predictably) the mission goes wrong and Cort (our spy with a soul) starts to question everything...
I appreciated the political timeliness of the 'spy job' (Russians! Darfur! Oil fights! The ICC and 'economic hitmen') and I like that Cort is actually likeable (he's a Jason Bourne type) but this action-packed thriller wasn't thrilling... and the woman in it, gah! This author should avoiding writing Woman characters...
June 10, 2021
I think more along the lines of 3.5 stars. I liked the beginning of the book. Then I was totally diverted in another direction. Okey dokey, the action was good. Characters were given personalities. I thought the ending was kind of sloppy. I am unclear on whether I like Court or not.
December 24, 2023
The Gray Man is already hunted by the CIA. The reason for this wasn't clear. It's a mystery that only deepens with this book as he tries to come to terms with his past and a member of his old team. Needless to say, the effort doesn't go as well as the Gray Man hopes and he's left to do what he does best: take out the bad guys, and a few bad guys posing as good guys.
It's a great second book for the series and I'm already hooked on the Gray Man novels.
It's a great second book for the series and I'm already hooked on the Gray Man novels.
September 19, 2020
I didn't enjoy this as much as his first book. It was still intriguing enough to keep me going with the series. The big difference with this series is Court never gets to go home and "recuperate" after a hit. He is always on the run. Not a fun life.
March 11, 2020
Meh. I struggled to pay attention and struggled to care about Court. Won’t be reading more of this series.
September 15, 2024
Off Target
The Gray Man’s debut was the third act in a trilogy, tearing apart a character’s livelihood and delivering an action-packed novel without the hard labour of building a foundation. On Target is the second act, an aimless wandering bore of a script that the author smartly skipped. I suspect this is an earlier work, repackaged as a sequel. Somehow, this thriller doesn’t thrill. There’s no momentum, where villains organize a natural set-piece ambush that writes itself. There’s no time pressure, allowing our protagonists to fulfill sidequests leisurely. There’s no antagonist, as the titular target is unaware of our hero’s existence. The plot’s two disconnected halves accentuate the poor pacing, for as one subplot ends, readers lack the impetus to flip the page. I can’t believe the same author wrote both books.
Equally irritating is that, after two novels, readers have yet to meet the legendary Gray Man. His reputation feels undeserved, making me question whether it’s deliberate. Court Gentry is a terrible assassin. He’s consistently out-thought, out-planned, and out-played. If the antagonists were world-class, his failures might be forgivable. But he confronts a past-his-prime Irish killer in an embarrassing cold open, and his feud with an over-eager Russian mobster is no better. Both lack gravitas, and even in-world, they’re the butt of jokes. Gentry’s only saving grace is donning plot armour to escape desperate firefights like a video game character, complete with terrifying collateral damage and unrealistic injuries. And even then, he betrays himself with idiotic and impulsive actions.
While previously, The Gray Man juggled multiple viewpoints to create vivid cinematic scenes, this time, readers are stuck with Gentry’s internal monologue. Yet, despite being forced to share his headspace, readers have no idea what makes the protagonist tick. Equally, the antagonists are absent from the narrative until the last act, when their viewpoints disrupt what had been a single-voice story. While crude, at least the debut novel’s gallery of villains were all memorable with clear goals. On Target is an unrefined mess that has none of the sophisticated pacing of its thrilling predecessor. It represents a decline rather than an improvement of the author’s writing. It undermines rather than reinforces Gentry’s persona and reputation. And worse of all, it’s boring.
Not Recommended except for completionists.
The Gray Man’s debut was the third act in a trilogy, tearing apart a character’s livelihood and delivering an action-packed novel without the hard labour of building a foundation. On Target is the second act, an aimless wandering bore of a script that the author smartly skipped. I suspect this is an earlier work, repackaged as a sequel. Somehow, this thriller doesn’t thrill. There’s no momentum, where villains organize a natural set-piece ambush that writes itself. There’s no time pressure, allowing our protagonists to fulfill sidequests leisurely. There’s no antagonist, as the titular target is unaware of our hero’s existence. The plot’s two disconnected halves accentuate the poor pacing, for as one subplot ends, readers lack the impetus to flip the page. I can’t believe the same author wrote both books.
Equally irritating is that, after two novels, readers have yet to meet the legendary Gray Man. His reputation feels undeserved, making me question whether it’s deliberate. Court Gentry is a terrible assassin. He’s consistently out-thought, out-planned, and out-played. If the antagonists were world-class, his failures might be forgivable. But he confronts a past-his-prime Irish killer in an embarrassing cold open, and his feud with an over-eager Russian mobster is no better. Both lack gravitas, and even in-world, they’re the butt of jokes. Gentry’s only saving grace is donning plot armour to escape desperate firefights like a video game character, complete with terrifying collateral damage and unrealistic injuries. And even then, he betrays himself with idiotic and impulsive actions.
While previously, The Gray Man juggled multiple viewpoints to create vivid cinematic scenes, this time, readers are stuck with Gentry’s internal monologue. Yet, despite being forced to share his headspace, readers have no idea what makes the protagonist tick. Equally, the antagonists are absent from the narrative until the last act, when their viewpoints disrupt what had been a single-voice story. While crude, at least the debut novel’s gallery of villains were all memorable with clear goals. On Target is an unrefined mess that has none of the sophisticated pacing of its thrilling predecessor. It represents a decline rather than an improvement of the author’s writing. It undermines rather than reinforces Gentry’s persona and reputation. And worse of all, it’s boring.
Not Recommended except for completionists.
September 6, 2018
I can't believe I've been plodding through Alex Berensen and Eric Van Lustbader Bourne books for this long. Why didn't I know about this series? The Gray Man series is exceptionally well done, for those who love American heroes who kick butt around the globe under the deepest of cover. This particular book unearths Court Gentry's weaknesses (read the book to learn about them) and has a few characters I didn't care for at all. With that said, the action is terrific, if not gruesome (especially in the Sudan), and there are a lot of satisfying twists and turns. Make no mistake: I will read all of these books because of the breakneck speed, likable star, and globetrotting that is prevalent in every Gray Man book.
May 21, 2022
The 'Gray Man' series is the bomb for we thriller lovers....Lee Child's 'Reacher' is still my favorite choice of bad asses but let me tell you and for what it's worth, 'Court Gentry' (the bad ass protagonist) is rapidly gaining ground. Many thanks to our friends at youtube for providing this outlet for audio books galore. The historical fiction is worth the time and effort alone. Memphis, TN author Mark Greaney has certainly done his homework in preparations for these incredible novels. Oh to have and hone such talent.
Try it, you'll like it, I sure as hell do!
Better than before, before, before....Dafur, very, very sad and brought to life in this work.
Try it, you'll like it, I sure as hell do!
Better than before, before, before....Dafur, very, very sad and brought to life in this work.
December 11, 2019
Not quite as good as the first. It started a little slow. The Gray Man is damaged in so many ways it’s hard to tell how he can make another day. He’s just lucky and good enough to do so. That said, I’m not sure how he will make another day let alone another book but he obviously will. Looking forward to finding out how he does it in Book 3 and beyond.
July 31, 2022
As great as the first book was, this one is just a badly stitched double-feature. Poorly written villains, a damsel in distress, nothing interesting about the protagonist. Hightower's motivation was just laughable. Meh.
April 18, 2019
3.5/5, but we all know how Goodreads feels about half stars.
This is one of those stories that makes you kind of hope Court fails at securing his given objective, which is a snatch and deliver, and instead does what he does best, which is killin' folks. The snatchee, Abboud, is essentially a renamed Omar al-Bashir and Court finds himself in between a rock and a hard place; he just wants to put a bullet in Abboud's head. Those pesky extrajudicial murder urges rise up on him once again! But CIA promised to remove the shoot-on-sight order and contracted, if shadowy, employment if he pulls off this op. Court’s primary objective is to keep his own ass alive, so he knows what’s what here.
Even if he really, really thinks the world would be better off if he just shot the dude, full stop.
On one hand, yeah, I'm blood-thirsty enough to not shed a tear when someone of al-Bashir's character bites it, but on the other, how can we trust the morals of a mercenary? Why does he get to keep choosing where to place the line between dealing out death or doling out prison sentences? That's the whole reason the legal system exists, after all, because we have evolved to a point as a society that we no longer see "eye for an eye" as a civilized means of justice. Because I have the narrative benefit of seeing into the minds of characters like Court Gentry or Frank Castle, I trust their judgment. I trust them to do what's right - right in the sense that needs of the many (innocent public & victims) outweigh the needs of the few (the right to life for murderers/traffickers/sexual predators/etc.). It doesn’t work like that in the real world. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
This concept of judge, jury & executioner is the theme of On Target, though Court seems to struggle more with a burgeoning narcotics addiction (thanks to his many injuries from The Gray Man) than he does with this philosophical question. He never once changes his belief in his right to kill people like Abboud, only that the political implications of doing so may be worse than not killing him. Not quite what Ellen Walsh wanted, but it works out in her favor anyway.
Ah, yes, let’s discuss Ms. Walsh, shall we? Ellen is a well-meaning, but ultimately ineffective investigator for the International Criminal Court. She gets too far in over her head in a situation where she doesn’t know all the players, so Court takes it upon himself to save her from the Sudanese secret police. It's similar to the scene in the first book, where he rescues a soldier from Al-Qaeda at the expense of his own skin, against all his instincts to go forward and forget. Except in this case, the rescue is a much longer mission and she consistently fucks up every plan he makes to get back on track with his original op until he finally drops her off at a UN camp. Court is, for this genre especially, strangely fair-minded about Ellen's unwise decisions; it's not as if she knew what he was working on in Sudan, so why should she trust him when he tells her to do something?
Regardless, the way she is presented is grating, self-righteous and unfathomably naive for a woman of thirty-five. If I were stuck in the scrublands of bumfuck Africa with the only thing between me and more danger is a strange man holding a gun (who has already rescued me twice at this point), I'm not going to outright reject his dubious charity by become a whirlwind of screeching invective. I believe the same can be said for most women, born out of a socially proscribed self-preservation method that we learn from birth. For me, this is just one more way to tell that a man wrote Ellen. She doesn't have to trust him, but attempting to make himtrust her and her future reactions, to show she's not a threat? Yeah, that's a thing, it’s important and it's not being established at all.
On the plus side, there seems to be none of the useless "we're gonna die, let's fuck" romantic tension that usually pervades this sort of fictional situation - THANK GOD.
(Sidebar: I can't believe Court got pinned down in the middle of a gunfight by a dead camel. And then later, in another gunfight, manages to get shot in the back with a fucking arrow. Amazing.)
To make a long review short, Court fulfills his end of the original bargain and the CIA fucks him over YET AGAIN. We’re all very surprised.
P.S. I still want to know what happened in Kiev.
NEW THINGS I LEARNED:
A haboob (هَبوب) is a crazy ass dust storm that sounds patently awful to ride a goddamn horse through.
This is one of those stories that makes you kind of hope Court fails at securing his given objective, which is a snatch and deliver, and instead does what he does best, which is killin' folks. The snatchee, Abboud, is essentially a renamed Omar al-Bashir and Court finds himself in between a rock and a hard place; he just wants to put a bullet in Abboud's head. Those pesky extrajudicial murder urges rise up on him once again! But CIA promised to remove the shoot-on-sight order and contracted, if shadowy, employment if he pulls off this op. Court’s primary objective is to keep his own ass alive, so he knows what’s what here.
Even if he really, really thinks the world would be better off if he just shot the dude, full stop.
On one hand, yeah, I'm blood-thirsty enough to not shed a tear when someone of al-Bashir's character bites it, but on the other, how can we trust the morals of a mercenary? Why does he get to keep choosing where to place the line between dealing out death or doling out prison sentences? That's the whole reason the legal system exists, after all, because we have evolved to a point as a society that we no longer see "eye for an eye" as a civilized means of justice. Because I have the narrative benefit of seeing into the minds of characters like Court Gentry or Frank Castle, I trust their judgment. I trust them to do what's right - right in the sense that needs of the many (innocent public & victims) outweigh the needs of the few (the right to life for murderers/traffickers/sexual predators/etc.). It doesn’t work like that in the real world. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
This concept of judge, jury & executioner is the theme of On Target, though Court seems to struggle more with a burgeoning narcotics addiction (thanks to his many injuries from The Gray Man) than he does with this philosophical question. He never once changes his belief in his right to kill people like Abboud, only that the political implications of doing so may be worse than not killing him. Not quite what Ellen Walsh wanted, but it works out in her favor anyway.
Ah, yes, let’s discuss Ms. Walsh, shall we? Ellen is a well-meaning, but ultimately ineffective investigator for the International Criminal Court. She gets too far in over her head in a situation where she doesn’t know all the players, so Court takes it upon himself to save her from the Sudanese secret police. It's similar to the scene in the first book, where he rescues a soldier from Al-Qaeda at the expense of his own skin, against all his instincts to go forward and forget. Except in this case, the rescue is a much longer mission and she consistently fucks up every plan he makes to get back on track with his original op until he finally drops her off at a UN camp. Court is, for this genre especially, strangely fair-minded about Ellen's unwise decisions; it's not as if she knew what he was working on in Sudan, so why should she trust him when he tells her to do something?
Regardless, the way she is presented is grating, self-righteous and unfathomably naive for a woman of thirty-five. If I were stuck in the scrublands of bumfuck Africa with the only thing between me and more danger is a strange man holding a gun (who has already rescued me twice at this point), I'm not going to outright reject his dubious charity by become a whirlwind of screeching invective. I believe the same can be said for most women, born out of a socially proscribed self-preservation method that we learn from birth. For me, this is just one more way to tell that a man wrote Ellen. She doesn't have to trust him, but attempting to make himtrust her and her future reactions, to show she's not a threat? Yeah, that's a thing, it’s important and it's not being established at all.
On the plus side, there seems to be none of the useless "we're gonna die, let's fuck" romantic tension that usually pervades this sort of fictional situation - THANK GOD.
(Sidebar: I can't believe Court got pinned down in the middle of a gunfight by a dead camel. And then later, in another gunfight, manages to get shot in the back with a fucking arrow. Amazing.)
To make a long review short, Court fulfills his end of the original bargain and the CIA fucks him over YET AGAIN. We’re all very surprised.
P.S. I still want to know what happened in Kiev.
NEW THINGS I LEARNED:
A haboob (هَبوب) is a crazy ass dust storm that sounds patently awful to ride a goddamn horse through.
July 24, 2018
Every time I start a new author I'm never sure what to expect. With Mark Greaney, I was pleasantly surprised as he writes espionage thrillers with all the elements I really enjoy. These include (1) a tough special forces soldier betrayed and on his own and hunted by his own people, (2) exotic locations outside of the US and Europe that feel really dangerous, (3) really bad Bad Guys, (4) unexpected plot twists and (5) lots of action.
On Target delivers on all fronts.
The action shifts from Ireland to Russia, then to the South Sudan and Sudan, and finally Venezuela. There is great prose describing on what it must really be like to operate in one of Africa's most desperate and war torn nations. The characters are well-developed and the geopolitics feels real.
One certainly gets the impression from Greaney that the intelligence, terrorist, military and criminal settings of his stories have no good guys, and those who fight on the side of good do bad things.
This is gritty thriller fiction at its best.
On Target delivers on all fronts.
The action shifts from Ireland to Russia, then to the South Sudan and Sudan, and finally Venezuela. There is great prose describing on what it must really be like to operate in one of Africa's most desperate and war torn nations. The characters are well-developed and the geopolitics feels real.
One certainly gets the impression from Greaney that the intelligence, terrorist, military and criminal settings of his stories have no good guys, and those who fight on the side of good do bad things.
This is gritty thriller fiction at its best.
May 13, 2020
যে টার্গেট অডিয়েন্সের জন্য বইটি লেখা সে জায়গায় একেবারে "অন টার্গেট।"
February 6, 2020
This is the 2nd book in the Gray Man series. I enjoyed this one. Not as much as the first one, but still 4 star worthy for me. I love the non-stop action. There is always something going on. As soon as one scene is dealt with, we are off to the next in a hurry. The author manages to keep me fully engaged.
I also like the MC, but this one also had the addition of some interesting characters that helped this along. They interacted well together. I like when it isn't always the golden boy who shines. So 4 stars.
I also like the MC, but this one also had the addition of some interesting characters that helped this along. They interacted well together. I like when it isn't always the golden boy who shines. So 4 stars.
August 2, 2024
"On Target" - written by Mark Greaney and published in 2010 by Berkley, Penguin Group. The Gray Man's second outing is another heart-pounding, no holds barred thriller with lots of twists and turns. Who can be trusted? Most of the action takes place in the Sudan where no one is safe. Court Gentry, the solo contract killer Gray Man, has a "fertile brain, a brain conditioned to danger, to battle, to intrigue, to deceit, and to threat." And sometimes his conscience edges out just a little to keep things interesting. I'll keep reading these books, not expecting anything remotely literary or politically correct.
July 14, 2021
I would like to see what The Gray Man is capable of when he isn’t poisoned or wounded. I have learned a lot from reading Mark Greaney,s books, and it’s quite unsettling. I am cancelling my travel plans to Africa and the Middle East and Russia and Manitoba.
August 11, 2022
Mark Greaney's first novel, THE GRAY MAN, was a strong, entertaining entry into the thriller genre. The eponymous protagonist (real name Court Gentry) is a burned former CIA paramilitary working as a contract killer to make a living. He's then again burned by his employer, British former spymaster Sir Donald Fitzroy, and is forced to fight for his life in a battle against the hardest pipe hitters in the game.
ON TARGET picks up a few months after the explosive conclusion with a Gentry who is trying to get back in the game and is struggling with a painkiller addiction. His new employer, a Russian playboy with ties to both the FSB and the Russian neo-Nazi scene, who task him with a difficult job: assassinate the president of Sudan.
Before Gentry can move to complete the contract, he is intercepted by his former SAD/SOG team leader, Zack Hightower, and given a deal he can't refuse: kidnap the Sudanese president rather than assassinate him, and the Agency will not only lift the termination order on Gentry, they will employ him at arms length for deniable operations.
ON TARGET's pacing picks up fast and does not stop for much. From the streets of Ireland, to the slums of Moscow, and through the desert expanse and haboobs of Darfur and Khartoum, Gentry fights his way through Sudanese soldiers and secret police, retired contract killers, skinheads, and others en route to his objective.
In GRAY MAN, Greaney showed how Gentry is simultaneously a methodical, pragmatic killer and a man with a soul, willing to throw operational common sense to the wind in order to save those he deems innocent and deserving. That trend is continued in ON TARGET, and in fact is the driving force behind the action. There are also moments of parallels drawn between a particularly heinous character and Gentry where the latter is forced to really analyze himself and what he does for a living, at times questioning himself.
The action is kinetic and well-researched, written with a voice that clearly knows firearms and has sought out expert instruction on their tactical employment. It definitely throws the reader into overdrive in a race from the front cover to the back.
With a cliffhanger ending that sets the stage for the next Gray Man series entry, ON TARGET is everything an action thriller should be: exciting, harrowing, educational, and gripping from start to finish.
ON TARGET picks up a few months after the explosive conclusion with a Gentry who is trying to get back in the game and is struggling with a painkiller addiction. His new employer, a Russian playboy with ties to both the FSB and the Russian neo-Nazi scene, who task him with a difficult job: assassinate the president of Sudan.
Before Gentry can move to complete the contract, he is intercepted by his former SAD/SOG team leader, Zack Hightower, and given a deal he can't refuse: kidnap the Sudanese president rather than assassinate him, and the Agency will not only lift the termination order on Gentry, they will employ him at arms length for deniable operations.
ON TARGET's pacing picks up fast and does not stop for much. From the streets of Ireland, to the slums of Moscow, and through the desert expanse and haboobs of Darfur and Khartoum, Gentry fights his way through Sudanese soldiers and secret police, retired contract killers, skinheads, and others en route to his objective.
In GRAY MAN, Greaney showed how Gentry is simultaneously a methodical, pragmatic killer and a man with a soul, willing to throw operational common sense to the wind in order to save those he deems innocent and deserving. That trend is continued in ON TARGET, and in fact is the driving force behind the action. There are also moments of parallels drawn between a particularly heinous character and Gentry where the latter is forced to really analyze himself and what he does for a living, at times questioning himself.
The action is kinetic and well-researched, written with a voice that clearly knows firearms and has sought out expert instruction on their tactical employment. It definitely throws the reader into overdrive in a race from the front cover to the back.
With a cliffhanger ending that sets the stage for the next Gray Man series entry, ON TARGET is everything an action thriller should be: exciting, harrowing, educational, and gripping from start to finish.
October 12, 2010
"On Target" is a military-type thriller that reads like an action movie in novel form. The target audience appears to be men. The sole female character was a damsel-in-distress who was fatally (if not for Court) naive and determined to ignore all sensible advice. I suspect, though, that male readers will sympathize with Court being the hero while dealing with an incomprehensible woman.
While I liked that Court had a moral standard and a human side, he came across as way too soft to be an assassin-for-hire. He refused to kill anyone unless he absolutely couldn't survive their attempts to kill him. This included his targets. The plot also had logic holes, like a superior said that it was worth the deaths of everyone on the team to get the kidnapped president out of the country, yet he's the last one in line to be extracted (thus causing more danger and complications).
However, the novel was packed with non-stop action and close escapes from mortal danger. If you want a fast-paced, action-packed, suspense-filled read, this novel will give it to you. Also, the author clearly researched the details about the job, locations, and culture, and that helped bring the story alive in my imagination. Yet some aspects still didn't come across as realistic because they're exaggerated. (For example, I've read the author's source for how to tell if a person is lying, which that book says isn't a sure thing, but the author makes Court a no-fail expert at it.)
There was no explicit sex. There was a lot of cussing and a lot of violence, though the violence wasn't very gory. Overall, it was an exciting action thriller, and I'm guessing that men who enjoy action movies will probably enjoy this novel.
I received this book as a review copy from the publisher.
While I liked that Court had a moral standard and a human side, he came across as way too soft to be an assassin-for-hire. He refused to kill anyone unless he absolutely couldn't survive their attempts to kill him. This included his targets. The plot also had logic holes, like a superior said that it was worth the deaths of everyone on the team to get the kidnapped president out of the country, yet he's the last one in line to be extracted (thus causing more danger and complications).
However, the novel was packed with non-stop action and close escapes from mortal danger. If you want a fast-paced, action-packed, suspense-filled read, this novel will give it to you. Also, the author clearly researched the details about the job, locations, and culture, and that helped bring the story alive in my imagination. Yet some aspects still didn't come across as realistic because they're exaggerated. (For example, I've read the author's source for how to tell if a person is lying, which that book says isn't a sure thing, but the author makes Court a no-fail expert at it.)
There was no explicit sex. There was a lot of cussing and a lot of violence, though the violence wasn't very gory. Overall, it was an exciting action thriller, and I'm guessing that men who enjoy action movies will probably enjoy this novel.
I received this book as a review copy from the publisher.
July 25, 2017
After having read Greaney's initial gray man effort, I decided that the high ratings were undeserved and I would not pursue any further books in the series. Recently, I have read reviews of further books in the series by members of goodreads upon whose opinion I place great value. The result is that I read this book and am quite happy that I did.
On Target is very well-plotted and well-written. The main characters are nicely described and developed, a couple being very fantastic but still believable. The story revolves around the mercenary-extraordinaire known tomsome as the Gray Man, and his efforts to foul a dastardly plot set in misdirection while, simultaneously saving the exaggeratedly-principled and quite lovely 😉 heroine.
Greaney's does an excellent job of building suspense and creating enough misdirection to make the book quite fun to read. I gave On Target a high four and unhesitatingly recommend it to others who enjoy a face-paced, well-written, suspenseful militaryesque thriller.
On Target is very well-plotted and well-written. The main characters are nicely described and developed, a couple being very fantastic but still believable. The story revolves around the mercenary-extraordinaire known tomsome as the Gray Man, and his efforts to foul a dastardly plot set in misdirection while, simultaneously saving the exaggeratedly-principled and quite lovely 😉 heroine.
Greaney's does an excellent job of building suspense and creating enough misdirection to make the book quite fun to read. I gave On Target a high four and unhesitatingly recommend it to others who enjoy a face-paced, well-written, suspenseful militaryesque thriller.
November 19, 2024
I like these books because they are great palate cleansers. I have been reading a lot of intense literary fiction, which I love, but I needed to change things up, and this perfectly fit the bill. It's like an action movie in print. I especially liked this installment over book 1 because we begin to see the human side of Court Gentry. Yes, he is an assassin, but conversely he does value human life, and will not kill just anybody, and will often go to great lengths to protect those who he thinks are vulnerable or innocent.
I find it very curious how many similarities the Gray Man has to Orphan X. Both series follow an assassin who has gone rogue because of a betrayal by those who trained him. He selects his targets based on his own sense of who deserves to be killed and who does not, and those that trained him now want him dead. So very similar, by different authors, being published essentially at the same time.
If you like thrillers and non-stop over the top action, then this is for you.
I find it very curious how many similarities the Gray Man has to Orphan X. Both series follow an assassin who has gone rogue because of a betrayal by those who trained him. He selects his targets based on his own sense of who deserves to be killed and who does not, and those that trained him now want him dead. So very similar, by different authors, being published essentially at the same time.
If you like thrillers and non-stop over the top action, then this is for you.
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