Killer

Victor the Assassin #1

by Tom Wood

Forget James Bond. Forget Jason Bourne. Forget Jack Bauer. Meet Victor. He's an assassin - a man with no past and no surname. But when a Paris job goes spectacularly wrong, Victor finds himself running for his life across four continents, accompanied by a woman too beautiful to trust, pursued by enemies too powerful to escape.

Genres: Thriller, Fiction, Action, Crime, Mystery, Espionage, Audiobook

Paperback

First published April 13, 2010

About the author

He is the author of the Victor series of 10 novels and 2 ebook novellas. Tom also wrote the standalone thriller A Knock at the Door under the pseudonym T W Ellis

Victor 10, TRAITOR, is out now in UK, IE, AS & NZ.

Subscribe to Tom's newsletter to stay up-to-date, and have the chance of winning signed copies and more: tomwoodbooks.com/newsletter

Reviews

[Alex is The Romance Fox · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Hunter is the debut book and the 1st in Tom Wood's Victor the Assassin Series.

The series revolves around Victor, a ruthless and deadly but actually rather a nice guy who just happens to kill people for money......a freelance assassin, with no past and no home, a loner - the total antihero hitman.

Carrying out his latest assignment in Paris, he finds himself being chased across Europe by killers who have been assigned to take him out.

Pursued by enemies............CIA, Russian SVR, MI6, French Secret Service...he has to use all his talents to keep ahead of them and try to find out who wants him dead and why.

Victor goes from being the hunter to now being the hunted!!!

Non-stop action.............guns, shoot-outs, good guys, bad guys......Explosive car chases,

.... action packed with nail-biting fighting and shooting sequences

.........a total frenzy of kill or be killed!!!!

What I found interesting was how the author created such an likeable and appealing hero.........this is a man who kills for money and yet I found something human in him.

Most of the secondary characters are not very likeable.....arms dealers, killers, double agents.........

Jason Bourne, Jack Bauer and Jack Reacher - Victor is all three of them in one!!!! This is a guy I want to find out more about...........so having enjoyed meeting Victor, I am now going onto his next adventure/assignment .....The Enemy.

[Sean Peters (A Good Thriller) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Victor is an assassin at the top of his game. After an all too simple job in Paris, a hit-squad is sent to kill Victor but the only man who knows where he is, sent him to Paris in the first place. Betrayed and out in the open, Victor has turned from the hunter into the hunted for the first time in his life. Running across Europe, he desperately tries to unravel the conspiracy against him, but how high does the rot go? Will he manage to survive long enough to piece together the big picture? Time will tell...

This has to be one of the fastest paced books I have read, in fact one of the best books I have ever read, full stop.

Victor is Bourne, Reacher, Bond on Speed!

This books is superbly written, with really great action, fantastic characters, strong plot and twists, great hints of humour between female character and Victor.

I couldn't put it down and the end of the book had me gasping for breath to see who was going to survive, with so many powerful characters, with great international settings, from France, UK, USA, Russia, Cyprus just great international plot.

This author has become one of my favourites after only reading two of his books.

Love, love this book..Highly recommended.

[Sophie Narey (Bookreview- aholic) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Published: 12/05/2011
Author: Tom Wood

Wow..I thought that this was a really amazing book and just my type, my brother-in-law lent me this book as I love these kind of books, I hadn't read a book by Tom Wood before but would definitely read all of his books! It featured the amazing Victor, who even though he is an assassin he is definitely my favourite character! It is a fast paced and unpredictable book with plenty of twists and turns, just when you think you know what is going to happen next it has an unpredictable turn and throws you off guard.
It is expertly written by the outstanding Tom Wood, he is definitely one of my favourite authors now! This is part of a series that takes your mind on the adventure with Victor. It is a very addictive book that is nearly impossibly to put down even for a minute. I absolutely love this book and it definitely deserves a 5 star rating. The writing style of Tom Wood is so easy to adjust and just draws you into the story line.
Victor is an assassin, possibly one of the best assassins you will read about (in my opinion), he doesn't do things that you would expect an assassin to do, which keeps the reader on their toes and keeps them interested in the story line, keeps them hooked and makes this novel stand out among other novels of the same genre. In this book we follow Victor across 4 continents when a job he is doing goes spectacularly wrong! The pace in the book as we follow Victor keeps the suspense up and keeps the novel interesting. It really is a great book for fans of crime thriller novels

[Jade Saul · Rating 5 out of 5]

Victor is an assassin at the top of his game, but when a simple job in Paris goes badly wrong he becomes the hunted instead of the hunter. Running for his life across Europe, he tries to unravel the conspiracy while battling the another assassin. The action is great. Rob Sharpio does awesome narration the story and voices

[Simon Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Victor is a skilled assassin that is seriously intense and paranoid. Nobody knows his surname or background and very few people know he exists. Who will be his next target? I really enjoyed this and look forward to the next.

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Surprisingly entertaining and well constructed. 9 of 10 stars

[Hayat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Since July 2015 I've read this book three times! It definitely deserves to be bumped up from 4 to 5 stars!

The first book in the Victor the Assassin series The Hunter a.k.a The Killer is a fantastic thriller full of action, death, intrigue enough to keep you hooked until the last page. I'm addicted to this series.

[John Paxton · Rating 5 out of 5]

The start of Victor assassin and great series. Enthralling and sophisticated to the last page.

[Mike (the Paladin) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was to me a surprisingly good and addictive read. The author takes what might have been a sort of "been there done that" action adventure and turned it into a thoughtful interesting read with some pretty original twists...

And saying it has a couple of fairly original twists is a big deal in what is at heart a political techno type thriller. I was at least mildly surprised on one occasion which doesn't happen all that often any more.

We start out with the story of a professional killer (he hates the phrase "Hit Man") who does his job and then is unexpectedly (yet inevitability) betrayed. After an exciting and running shoot out through a Paris hotel against impossible odds...things get tricky.

It's so odd to find myself in a book on the side of the hired killer...it's only happened once before (Hit Man). Yet here I am involved in the novel and already planning to get the next volume in this series. I really hope this one holds up. It's an excellent start to what I hope will be an excellent series.

I can highly recommend this one and I do. Enjoy.

[Jacob Peled · Rating 2 out of 5]

As I started the book, I was sure it's going to be yet another 5 star book (to my taste). Tom Wood definitely knows how to write a vivid livable story. When describing something, you actually get all details in all angels as if you are there.
Well, it starts with a multiple killing, which was described very vividly. But… As the story tag along, you realized that we are dealing here with a Super – Duper Hero. It is getting to a point where it becomes unbelievable. How come that someone is taking all the precaution while escaping to some remote hotel in a remote country, using a false Passport. Changing his/her looks, and yet, the pursued figure is spotted within hours. Seems that the only one supposed to know it's location, is the author of the book. No clue as how he has been spotted. Happens a lot in that story. Makes it a very unbelievable tale. And why describing people taking extreme precaution protecting all kind of secretes, and then they spill it all out on the cell phone. Every child knows that talking on a cell phone is for the CIA as talking on a speaker in Time square.
Another thing is the amount of kills. The story is full of blood. Full of gunshots. I think about 30 to 40 people were killed. If you like that kind of action, it's the book for you.
The main story is so banal. Seems that Tom Wood was looking to tell many stories of people getting killed, so he invented some ridicules story about some secrete weapon hidden some place. Add the CIA, and Vulla !!! you can start the killings.
I am writing this summery after reading 90% of the book, and started skipping chapters. The end doesn't interest me anymore. It is quite predictive.
So why 2 stars, because I think Tom Wood is an excellent writer, who knows how to write. In my personal opinion, in the book (I read him 1st time), He just didn't know what to write. Maybe I'll try sometimes in the future another book of his.

[Liz Barnsley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Meet Victor. He’s an assassin – a man with no past and no surname. But when a Paris job goes spectacularly wrong, Victor finds himself running for his life across four continents, accompanied by a woman too beautiful to trust, pursued by enemies too powerful to escape.

Well, talk about a rollercoaster ride. A sheer thrill of a read with fast paced action that does not compromise on character development or plot and is truly edge of the seat stuff.

I’m a bit funny when it comes to reading Thrillers. Apart from the obvious, Reacher, Bourne, I tend to stick with psychological thrillers preferring my action to be on the big screen…There’s a reason I saw “Die Hard” at the cinema 27 times. Yes ok you can tease me on that one later. In this case though the writing is flawless and its kind of like a movie unfolding in your head. I’ve cast it, watched it, enjoyed it already.

Victor is an intriguing character – a violent man yet his reasoning is kind of pure. And certainly he is not to be messed with. The story unfolds at break neck speed, you will need to catch your breath several times a chapter and yet the plot development is beautifully done and flows off the page in terrific style. Reading adrenalin junkies will love it.

All in all a fantastic read and I shall look forward to more of Victor’s adventures.

Happy Reading Folks!

[Kira Simion]

One of my favorite things to read about is assassins! So much action expected, dialogue, inner struggles, other struggles, etc! Pumped!

[Danielle The Book Huntress · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this for the Goodreads Action/Adventure Aficionados group read and boy did it fit the bill. If a reader is looking for an authentic antiheroic lead who could very well be the bad guy in another book, they will like Victor.

Victor is an assassin who has no identity. He goes from job to job, and commands high fees to do what he does. He didn't kill for pleasure or joy. He kills because he's very good at it. While Victor wouldn't kill someone for no reason, he has and will kill cops if they get in his way or interfere with his self-preservation.

When this book begins, Victor takes a job that seems way to easy for a man of his talents, and it turns out he's right to suspect when immediately a team of shooters is on his trail. He gets away but leaves a bloodbath behind him. Now he wants to find out who screwed him. Victor teams with the broker who gave him the job, a CIA analyst named Rebecca, to try to find the people who want them both dead. Problem is, Victor trusts no one and works best alone.

This is top-notch action and suspense. The action scenes are well written, and often bloody. At first, I wasn't sure if this was a book for me with the graphic description in one of the scenes where Victor kills one of the shooters after him. But thankfully, it doesn't set the tone for a gory book. Instead, the descriptions tend to be economical and fast moving. Victor is an elite assassin for a reason. He knows how to handle himself and also shows a pragmaticism that makes him come off as unfeeling. He's not unfeeling, but has turned off his emotions for his survival. As this book unfolds, you never find out 100% about Victor's past. Just enough to humanize him. I had the feeling he had some serious trauma in his past and compartmentalizing was a way for him to survive it. But there's no sob stories here. Victor is not the kind of guy who would accept or command sympathy. There's enough mystery that will keep readers coming back, along with the excellent action and storytelling.

Rebecca is an important character but she stays a secondary one. Still I liked her point of view and how she related to Victor. I wish I could see her in future books. There was a hint of possible romance that the author choose not to develop, unfortunately. I like romance with my action when it's there. Other secondary characters are serviceable, developed enough to be three-dimensional and to not be portrayed as mere pawns in service to the narrative. I liked Alvarez's character. The killer that the engineering of everything sends after Victor is pretty damn creepy. Definitely the darker side of what Victor is. A good foil for him.

The author is very good with imagery, which makes this book feel like a stylish European/Non-American action movie, something that Luc Besson or John Woo might direct. Armchair travelers will appreciate the many and distinctive locations in this book. It's a mark of the researcher that they are portrayed in a way that feels authentic without being didactic.

The gun play is constant, well because, that's the one of the assassins's main tools, but there are also some excellent car chases and hand-to-hand action. A good mix of different action elements. Very good cat and mouse moments as well that made this as much a suspense book as an action book.

I like that Victor is somewhat unpredictable. I was never sure exactly what Victor would do or how he would react in a situation and he kept me on my toes. He can be very brutal and that might be an issue for some readers. He reminded me of a less principled Jack Reacher in that regard. He also made me think of Will Robie and Joe Pike, all action heroes I enjoy.

I liked the subtle dynamic between Victor and Rebecca, although the conclusion on that front was poignant and not what I would have wished for. I think being with Rebecca helped Victor grow in an integral way, which I think will be explored in future books. He was cute how awkward he was around her. Not something you'd expect from a cold-blooded killer.

The climax really kept tension high as Victor definitely finds himself facing his match and his options become extremely limited. He is fighting life and death and it's not pretty. I've never been a fan of invincible characters who never face risk, so I liked it that this was written this way. Literally, I thought Victor was dead, but then I recalled this was a series, so I knew he had to come out of it alive. But it was a near thing.

I love tough guy characters and I'm adding Victor to my list of go-to action heroes (with some of the ones I mentioned above). He's very much an anti-hero, but he's not completely irredeemable. While I didn't like that he killed some cops in this, at least he's not the kind of guy who would kill children or families or people who weren't in his way or affecting his own ability to preserve his life.

I enjoyed this book very much and I'm looking forward to continuing this series.

Readers who enjoyed this might like David Baldacci's Will Robie series. The first book is The Innocent.

PS. I read this on my Kindle as The Killer, but it was released in print as The Hunter.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Victor is an assassin, when hé finishes a job a hitsquad is waiting for him in his hotel. After taking care of these lethal group of men, Victor finds out that his employer wants to silence him and wants to take away the harddrive with unknown information that Victor took from the dead target.
Now the employer wants to cover up the whole affair and orders another hitman to clean up all loose strings. A lady doing the money side in this operation recognizes that somebody is killing everybody in the line and finds Victor and wants to team up with him to save her life and perhaps his life too.
And basicly this is were the book goes full speed ahead with twists and turns and a lot of action.
This book about a unknown hitman crashing an apperent CIA / SRV party and getting in a crossfire is both entertaining as exciting. The book is really almost one continuing action scene.
It has a lot of Ludlumian qualities which makes this a fun read. Even if my copy was falling apart at the end, which is one of the risks of buying secondhand.
A book that is this exciting being the first in a series asks for another reading of at least number two of said series. And I am looking forward to doing so.

[Barbara Elsborg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Almost 5 stars. I really enjoyed this. I can't remember when I last read a book with so much action - well written action. The pace was fast and furious, it was really hard to put down. In fact, I didn't last night and kept reading until I'd finished it. It had an - oh no, don't do that - moment but I'd sort of seen it coming.
Victor - what a great name - though it likely isn't his, is an assassin. A very good one but not infalliable. The story starts with an amazing altercation between Victor and a group of men out to kill him. The whole book follows in the same vein. The plot - with the weapons - is almost secondary to the exploits of the amazing Victor.
The hiccup for me, and from looking a few reviews I see it is for others too, is the lack of empathy for any character. As a reader, I want to root for someone but Victor is amoral - both good guy and bad guy and he doesn't seem to care which. I don't - like some readers- care too much that we don't get a lot of character detail on him. He's a professional assassin. He can't afford to be touchy feely or hang on to his past. There were moments when the mask slipped and I loved those - when he sort of joked, when he smiled. I assume that he'll be more revealed as a character in future books. We don't need to know it all at the start. But for a first book, this was a winner for me. I can't wait to read the next.

[Brenda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book in preparation for a Question & Answer event with the author. I wasn't thrilled with the book initially. I find long descriptions of gun and fist fights to be boring, not exciting. The more of them there are, the more boring they become. When Rebecca was introduced to the storyline, it made Victor more human and that's what clicked for me. I am a little curious what happens to Victor, but I'm not sure it's enough to continue with this series. This was an OK book, especially when I compare it to Vince Flynn's books that I've previously read.

[Barry who enjoys well-written thrillers, mysteries , & espionage & loathes romance, horror & supernat · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Hunter was a first class book about an assassin. Wood succeeded where so many have failed, in my experience, in creating a realistic chronicle of a portion of an international killer for hire. This was, by some margin, the best book of its sort that I have read in some time. It has certain things in common with The Day of the Jackal, perhaps the best assassin chronicle ever written, but is not quite in that five star category.

Victor is a incredibly well-trained and disciplined man. His behavior is incredibly consistent as he pursues his career and maintains his anonymity. The assignment in question takes a sharp, unexpected turn when another team of killers turn up and our hero, Victor, isn't sure what to make of that development. The bulk of the story follows him as he tries to untangle the developments that follow. He goes back to his roots, makes a friend, which is a real rarity for a guy in his profession and kills lots of people.

In a parallel story, bit by bit, we learn the background of the "unexpected turn" mentioned earlier. This introduces some unexpected twists which make the story more fun to read.

On my 1 to 10 enjoyment scale (1 = didn't enjoy it; 10 = couldn't wait to get back to it each evening), I would give The Hunter a 9 and would not hesitate to recommend it to anyone who enjoys realistic stories about espionage, spies, assassins and similar fun guys.

[Maureen DeLuca · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another one of those books- at times I loved it- then times "eh" .... But, my curiosity will get the better of me, and I most likely will pick up book number 2 in this series.... just so I can decided either way ..... (sorry I can't be or more help!)

[Müsli · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best thrillers I've ever read. I can't wait to read the next one!

[Samuel · Rating 5 out of 5]

INTRODUCTION

In the spy/military thriller genre, the two countries which dominate the genre are the UK and the USA. Over the years, the class of protagonist has become a bit stale. In Britain, the most common protagonist is the lone Special Forces soldier, always getting the short end of the stick from the treacherous snakes in Vauxhall Cross and Whitehall. In America, the “independent minded” CIA officer or Tier One operator, who has to dodge bureaucrats who are idiotic at best and treasonous at worst is normally the hero of choice. Granted, if executed well as men like Andy Mcnab and Vince Flynn have shown, using that template will work very well indeed. But in a genre saturated with clones of Jack Bauer and authors who constantly forget they’re in the entertainment business rather than political punditry, few have been brave enough to buck the trend and create an interesting killer, a truly perfect assassin. Barry Eisler of the John Rain series came close, his creation being one of the most creative killers in fiction, but one who would turn into an awkward teenager on his first date at the sight of female company. However, I recently picked up a novel, titled “The Hunter” (Titled “The Killer” in the USA) by Tom Wood,and after reading it, I can honestly say, I’ve found the prefect fictional assassin. For starters, he’s a bad guy, an honest to god amoral anti-hero, who doesn’t fret about the police, killers and others he eliminates over the course of the book. He’s also a mystery, with none of the factions he goes up against knowing who he even is before it’s too late. In the hands of a lesser writer, "The Hunter" would have ended up as another cliché “job gone wrong” story with an unappealing two dimensional villain in the lead. However, Tom Wood took the material he had and made it into a spellbinding first novel of plot, counter-plot and gunfire that surpasses the work of many established names in the genre and stars a main character who’s much more complex and appealing then he appears to be at first glance. Now to the review, what happens when the best assassin in the world has a bad day on the job...

The novel begins in Paris France. The protagonist, Victor, is in the process of completing a simple mission. With a suppressed FN Five-SeveN he shoots a man carrying a memory stick with unknown contents and quietly returns to his hotel. Unfortunately, he detects a hit squad looking for him. What follows is a killing spree of memorable proportions as Victor efficiently outwits and removes the killers sent after him, the icing on the cake being what he does with a radio and SIG-556ER. Leaving France, Victor stops to send a threatening message to the intermediary for the job and returns to his secluded property in Geneva. Meanwhile in Langley Virginia at the CIA offices, a storm of epic proportions in brewing. Unbeknown to Victor, he was hired as part of a private black op whose objective was to recover the location of a Russian Frigate with a special cargo which would give the US Navy a serious edge. Unfortunately, the location which was about to be sold by a defector, to the CIA was contained on the memory stick Victor acquired on that night in Paris. Realizing that a separate unauthorized operation was being run in order to acquire the memory stick, the director of the National Clandestine Service begins to smell a rat. Confounding this problem are the plans being made by the directors subordinates who see this jeopardized operation as an opportunity to fulfill their own agendas. Back in Switzerland, Victor is attacked in his property by an American sniper and its location is compromised with the arrival of the Swiss police. Escaping the situation with only minor complications, Victor decides to go on the offensive and as the body count rises, is forced to take on not just the CIA but law enforcement, Russia’s SVR and most threateningly of all, a sociopathic SIS officer who can match wits with the perfect assassin.

In terms of plot, “The Hunter” is elegant. The writing style is highly vivid and has been filed down to a fine point which makes this first novel almost seem written by a seasoned pro. From the opening gunfight in Paris, to a SVR ambush in Russia and the incredibly vicious climax in Tanzania where Victor’s attempts at turning the tables on an entire Spetsnaz GRU team nearly blow up in his face, the story will throw you head first into a world where death is literally one bullet away and life is only worth the wisest move you make. The action is phenomenal, being stylish but only gently pulling on one’s suspension of disbelief, a prime example being the confrontation between Victor and the SIS officer on a Tanzanian riverside. Surprisingly Mr Wood seems to have done his research on tradecraft, nomenclature, weapons and technology, almost to the level of Fredrick Forsyth. For many first books, authors sometimes screw up on the little details that can make connoisseurs of the genre throw fits of rage. Mr Wood avoids this; for starters, he’s one of the few authors I’ve seen who knows the difference between the SVR and FSB and didn't slip up when it came to describing the tradecraft and precautions Victor takes from the silicone solution on his hands which eliminated the risk of fingerprints to immediate disposing his weapons the proper way after jobs. The sniper who even attacks Victor's house uses an actual trick common in the US military to compensate his shots at a running Victor. To those that think Clancy wrote boring and complicated books don’t worry. “The Hunter” doesn’t dwell on the technical aspects of Victor’s profession, the action and characters being the only thing that matters.
And there’s a bonus for people who aren’t particularly political. Unlike certain established authors who believe they need to hit the reader over the head with their own political agenda which may come at expense of action and plot, the author intentionally kept his personal political preferences out of the book, knowing the feeling of those who suffer from boring lectures about why one side of the aisle is right in other books by established names. For that I applaud him and as a result of his move, "The Hunter" is better as a result.

As for characters, there were so many wonderful standouts that I’ll only focus on three. First, there’s Victor, our “villain protagonist”. In a genre packed to the brim with leads that can sometimes come off as boy scouts, he’s a refreshing twist on a character template that has been nailed down over the years. Many protagonists in the genre sugar coat their deeds under the banners of patriotism, making the world a better place and constantly over time self-justify to themselves as they begin to get trapped in a loop. Victor in contrast, couldn’t give a damn.

He knows there’s a special suite in hell waiting for him the day he runs out of bullets and notes that he’s in the profession of “doing what the human race had been perfecting for millennia”. He takes a moral stand in the grey area close to darkness and stays true to his personal beliefs, which should be commended in contrast to others who annoyingly angst about the job they’re in but will continue to do so after their superiors put a 9mm in their hand and tell them who’s the next target.

Most protagonists in the genre sometimes suffer from machismo, make idiotic mistakes which their training should have ironed out of them, fall for their desires for emotional contact and even fantasize about resigning. Victor on the other hand is far more competent, never making an unneeded mistake or breaking tradecraft unless absolutely necessary, has only a few attachments and gladly accepting that he will never leave the profession he’s in. He's also no superhuman, reacting like any trained person would to getting their arm impaled.

But the final thing which sets him apart from the chaff is his characterization. Victor is a phantom. No one knows his real name, personal history or where he received his training. He’s been under plastic surgery multiple times, is fluent in several languages and is at home on Europe and the Americas. Instead, you as the reader can make your own theories and interpretations about who the man really is from the information we’re given. The only things we know about him is that he’s a six-foot white male who’s one hell of an operator, a blend of Jason Bourne from the original Ludlum trilogy and the best aspects of Frederick Forsyth’s Jackal in one immensely destructive package. But during this story, the mask starts to break; he develops a sardonic sense of humour for starters. We also get insights into his life from his taste in art and classical music, a flashback when he was younger and much more vulnerable when on a hunting trip with his uncle and the gradual mellowing of his character.

Secondly, we have the SIS officer pursuing Victor, Reed. Imagine Daniel Craig’s version of James Bond who’s much more sociopathic, decided to go into murder for hire and you can get a general idea of what Reed’s like. Masquerading as a charming British gentleman, he slowly begins to become a lot more unnerving when his true sadistic and gleeful personality begins to appear. He’s the yin to Victor’s yang, equal to our anti-hero in terms of competence. With his customized combat knife, he genuinely gives Victor a run for his money, and in their confrontation, he draws blood and almost guts our man like a fish.

Finally, we have the CIA officer Alvarez who is the only morally “good guy” in the story. With his USMC past and idealistic motivations, in a Vince Flynn type novel, he would be the main character, running round the world, killing threats to freedom and democracy. But instead, he becomes something of a spiritual successor to Claude Lebel from Day Of The Jackal, at the start, doggedly hunting Victor but ends up saving the day in a unexpected fashion.

I have only one small complaint. Throughout the book, the author constantly makes references to the testicles as a verbal tic for the antagonists. I'm not a prude but there are times in parts of the book where it begins to become a touch ridiculous and even comedic due to the regularity. Apart from that problem, I loved "The Hunter.", the best first novel I've read from a new author.

This genre has had very few morally ambiguous stories. The only one I’ve seen recently which came close to being truly amoral was “Black Flagged” by Steve Konkoly. Tom Wood and his creation Victor join this exclusive club above the rest of the pack. With the thrills of Ludlum and the ruthlessness and research of Forsyth, Mr Wood has blasted onto the big leagues of thriller writing with the force of a 7.62mm rifle round and created a bloody good start to a must read series.

COMPLETELY RECOMMENDED.

[Aiden Bailey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent Example of how books in this Genre should be Written. I was recommended this book by a friend and I'm glad he did. This was a fantastic novel and I got into it immediately. I was instantly reminded of the Jason Bourne films with the European setting and constant action as the hero/anti-hero flees for his life as he is hunted by other assassins.

Apart from the fast pace, what I really liked was how competent the characters were, especially the assassins, both Victor and his foes. There were no easy outs in any of the confrontations and Victor only survives by being very clever and a fast thinker.

The action is varied and realistic. The locations are vibrant and exotic, including a nice finale in Tanzania. Most of the characters are cold killers, but their personalities still shine through. I most liked the CIA operative who goes on the run with Victor, she was a great juxtaposition to all the other characters being the emotional viewpoint.

Fantastic book. Need to read more Victor.

[Glen · Rating 3 out of 5]

First book in the Victor The Assassin series.

Victor is the best killer in the business. He completes an assignment, and someone tries to kill him. He escapes, but the killers keep after him. Victor goes on the hunt as well, and meets a woman who helps him.

This would be an excellent novel, but it's really just too long.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is phenomenal. One of the best books I've read! I couldn't stop reading it. Then quickly read the rest of the Victor series. Victor is an extremely smart assassin/spy and he's very interesting to read about. You can read just four lines of this book like "wow that's really cool." This book alone turned me into an avid reader. If you haven't read this. Do yourself a favor and start it ASAP! Thank me later haha. This book is a must.

[Yvonne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Re-Read 7/2021 because I need so incredible action to get me through this week.
5 stars

Re-read 2/11/2020


4.5 Stars - Great action read

[Rellim · Rating 5 out of 5]

3/5/2021 - I have been wanting to sink into another suspense/thriller series that already had a hefty number of published books. (I’ve started several and am waiting for new releases!) So, I took to twitter and asked the awesome folks at Best Thriller Books what they would recommend. While I now have a huge Thriller TBR/L – I immediately jumped on the Victor the Assassin series by Tom Wood to start because it’s narrated by Rob Shapiro.

Through multiple points of view Wood introduces a somewhat likeable antihero in Victor, a variety of CIA directors and agents with questionable motives, potential allies, definite adversaries, and shifting allegiances. I was kept constantly guessing and completely engaged. Also a little angry – I wasn’t always happy about who lived and who didn’t, but that’s generally the case with a good thriller, so it’s a compliment.

At 15 hours, this is a LOT of book and super heavy on the details. I enjoyed Wood’s thoroughness though found myself a little creeped out by it. I’m now going to be paranoid that every ignorably normal person near me is a hit man. I’m also feeling confident I could add retro safe cracker to my resume as well. It was fascinating and helped bring a level of believability to Victor’s life and world.

*Dear squiggly red line – I know “ignorably” isn’t a word. I don’t care. I’m using it.

Anyway – Not only is this a full and complete story, it actually felt like an entire season’s worth of TV given the number of missions and encounters weaved together. I’m glad I added this to my personal library as it’s the type of audiobook I could listen to multiple times. Wood left things somewhat open-ended by teasing a whole new world of possibilities for Victor and I’m looking forward to more. Next up in the series is a novella, Bad Luck in Berlin (#1.5) and then back to audiobook for The Enemy.

As I expected, Rob Shapiro was fantastic. Wood has created a HUGE number of characters and I felt Shapiro did a wonderful job of giving them unique voices and amplifying their personalities. I appreciate his ability to use accents when necessary and pronounce locations with ease as the characters traveled to a variety of countries.

2/25/2021 - The audios are narrated by Rob Shapiro! This just moved up my TBL.

[_yay_ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Forget James Bond. Forget Jason Bourne. Forget Jack Bauer. Meet Victor. Truer words have never been spoken! I'd even go as far as to say it's time for John Rain (Barry Eisler) to move over. There is a new sheriff in town. Mind you, the sheriff being a freelance killer. However, make no mistake - you'll be rooting for the bad guy!

A Paris job gone wrong leaves Victor running for his life. How often have I used the words suspenseful or action-packed in a review? It must have been lots of times. Somehow they wouldn't do The Hunter justice.

Tom Wood (Hinshelwood) took it one step further and not only kept me on the edge of my seat, but also on the verge of a heart attack. This book is mind-blowing, exhilarating, thrilling and puts you squarely in the middle of a moral conflict. After all, Victor is a killer a man with no past and no surname. Still, one can't help but take his side. Wood has got major skills! A bloody fantastic read that had me wringing my hands in anticipation of the protagonists next move. An expertly crafted storyline, characters with depth, great settings and most importantly it leaves you with the urge to look over your shoulder hours after having read the last page.
It's almost frightening how well he described Victor's thoughts and emotions and therefore gave his actions credibility.I couldn't put it down. Very engaging!
The Hunter (UK)
The Killer (US)
Codename Tesseract (GER)
Don't miss out on it. 5 stars!
http://www.tomwoodbooks.com/

[Book Addict Shaun · Rating 5 out of 5]

As with a number of series I have started recently, I began reading The Hunter and asked myself why the hell I hadn't read it sooner. People talk about fast-paced books but I don't think the pace of this book let up once. Did Victor even sleep during this book because I can't even remember. I was addicted to The Hunter whilst I was reading it. It became one of those books that was on my mind the whole time I was and wasn't reading it. I was picking my Kindle up at every available opportunity.

The book is packed with so much story and a huge cast of characters and whereas normally I would probably lose track of some of the things that were going on, Tom Wood brings the whole plot together masterfully that rather than become confused, I just couldn't read quick enough to see how things would turn out. Victor is a truly intriguing and fantastic character and I loved reading about him and following him around the world as he attempted to stay alive. Despite being a hitman and despite being a somewhat cold character, we do get to see a human side to him as the book progresses and I was constantly wondering about his past and what led him to lead the life that he does. His thought processes and his overall behaviour was so intriguing and honestly, he was probably one of the best characters that I read about in 2017. I can't wait to continue with the series.

The storyline itself was also one of my favourites of 2017 because of just how much happened and how multi-layered it was. To describe what went on in the story to somebody would take hours. Put simply Victor is hired to kill somebody, obtain a flash drive and leave the flash drive for the person that hired him to find. Well, that doesn't happen and when Victor manages to kill a whole group of assassins hunting him down, it's a chase across multiple continents as he tries to hunt down those responsible whilst being hunted himself. This is such an adrenaline-fueled read that moves at an incredible pace. You cannot pause for breath whilst reading this book it is so good. With so many unsavoury characters hunting him down I was constantly left guessing just where the next threat would come from. Also, with the constant changing of settings around the world, I felt that Tom Wood did a great job in capturing each setting and putting it across to the reader. Sometimes an author will write a book set in multiple countries but write in a way that they could all be set within the same country, that is not the case with The Hunter and I finished it feeling like I had travelled the world myself.

It's hard to elaborate without spoilers but I was glad that Tom Wood didn't go down the predictable route of having our main character have sex with the female companion accompanying him throughout the story. That being the ultimate predictable cliche of most action thrillers. Instead what we got was a very intriguing partnership, both characters having to be wary of each other and as the book progresses it is this pairing that allows us to see further into Victor's mind and is what humanises him rather him just being a cold blooded killer. I have to say Tom knocked me for six with one of the developments in the story regarding this pairing, I didn't see it coming and it left me speechless and desperate to read on.

I cannot recommend The Hunter enough and, whilst I imagine most thriller fans will have read it by now, I can't stress enough to those who haven't how much of a fantastic read it is and how much you should all go and read it. I have a number of series on the go at the minute that I have wanted to start for ages (quitting blogging was the best thing I ever did for allowing me to finally read the books I truly want to read) and 2018 will be about reading as many of those as possible. I cannot wait to continue with this series.

[Bill · Rating 5 out of 5]

this is one of the best thrillers I've ever read. pretty well non-stop action for over 500 pages. outstanding! can't wait to read the next one!

[Perri · Rating 4 out of 5]

The main character is a elite killer for hire, so he's not your typical protagonist, but human enough you can still root for him. Taut story line and fast pace throughout..

[Tamara De Cubber · Rating 5 out of 5]

4,5 sterren