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Company Man
Shaku Suihana doesn’t remember more than the last twelve years of his life. All he knows is that he is a Company Man, a cold and efficient assassin called in to do jobs without question.
His newest assignment is more inexplicable than most, starting with meeting Úlfur, who thinks Shaku is a man named Shiro—a man who disappeared twelve years ago. When the Company tries to kill Úlfur, it sends Shaku into a tailspin… especially when Úlfur is magically transformed into Leif, a beautiful, younger man who Shaku feels drawn to protect.
Shaku is tired of being in the dark about who he is, but he can’t bear the thought of putting Leif in danger to find out. He decides they should run as far and as fast as from the Company as they can. It's when he meets a mysterious sensei who ignites both his and Leif's passions that Shaku realizes his miscalculation: the Company Man might not be the greatest danger around.
His newest assignment is more inexplicable than most, starting with meeting Úlfur, who thinks Shaku is a man named Shiro—a man who disappeared twelve years ago. When the Company tries to kill Úlfur, it sends Shaku into a tailspin… especially when Úlfur is magically transformed into Leif, a beautiful, younger man who Shaku feels drawn to protect.
Shaku is tired of being in the dark about who he is, but he can’t bear the thought of putting Leif in danger to find out. He decides they should run as far and as fast as from the Company as they can. It's when he meets a mysterious sensei who ignites both his and Leif's passions that Shaku realizes his miscalculation: the Company Man might not be the greatest danger around.
212 pages, ebook
First published January 1, 2010
2 people are currently reading
77 people want to read
About the author
Felicitas Ivey
30 books35 followersFelicitas Ivey is the pen name of a very frazzled helpdesk drone at a Boston-area university. She's an eternal student even with a BA in anthropology and history, since free classes are part of the benefits. She's taken courses on gothic architecture, premodern Japanese literature, and witchcraft, just because they sounded like fun. She has traveled to Japan and Europe and hopes to return to both in the future.
She knits and cross-stitches avidly, much to the disgust of her cat, Smaugu, who wants her undivided attention. He's also peeved that she spends so much time writing instead of petting him. She writes urban fantasy and horror of a Lovecraftian nature, monsters beyond space and time that think that humans are the tastiest things in the multiverse.
Felicitas lives in Boston with her beloved husband, known to all as The Husband, and the aforementioned cat, whom the husband swears is a demon, even though it's his fault that they have the cat. The husband also is worried about Felicitas’s anime habit, her love for J-Pop music, and her extensive collection of Yaoi manga and Gundam Wing doujinshi, which has turned her library into a Very Scary Place for him.
Visit her blog at http://Iveys_Tales.livejournal.com and e-mail her at Felicitas.Ivey@gmail.com.
She knits and cross-stitches avidly, much to the disgust of her cat, Smaugu, who wants her undivided attention. He's also peeved that she spends so much time writing instead of petting him. She writes urban fantasy and horror of a Lovecraftian nature, monsters beyond space and time that think that humans are the tastiest things in the multiverse.
Felicitas lives in Boston with her beloved husband, known to all as The Husband, and the aforementioned cat, whom the husband swears is a demon, even though it's his fault that they have the cat. The husband also is worried about Felicitas’s anime habit, her love for J-Pop music, and her extensive collection of Yaoi manga and Gundam Wing doujinshi, which has turned her library into a Very Scary Place for him.
Visit her blog at http://Iveys_Tales.livejournal.com and e-mail her at Felicitas.Ivey@gmail.com.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
April 2, 2010
Company Man is the second book by Ivey I’ve read and as I closed the book I thought “that author can really write.” Ivey is a good writer with a great imagination. It helps she writes in my favorite sub genre of urban fantasy but even so, this is an author to watch. However, having said that, something went terribly awry with Company Man. The premise is pretty classic with a hit man from a global company that actually runs a secret organization to fight supernatural demons and assassinate people. The hit man finds love or lust with a target and the company’s evil doings are unraveled. Although the concept is basic, Company Man takes this idea and twists it until it’s so convoluted and complicated that even the story can’t keep track of all the twists while adding in so much unnecessary, superfluous sex that it overwhelms the entire resolution. As much as I like this author, I wouldn’t recommend this story.
Shaku is a company made assassin that can’t remember his life prior to being transformed. Twelve years ago Shaku’s memory was erased and in its place are biological enhancements to make him something other than human with no free will and answering to the company alone. He was made into the ultimate hit man that follows orders no matter if he is to kill or be fucked. His latest assignment goes wrong when he meets Ulfur, a man that sparks a long forgotten memory. When Shaku escapes the company’s tether with Ulfur, the two are on the run but now with a growing attraction.
The story itself is incredibly complicated and convoluted. There are not so many plot holes per se but the various elements of the supernatural and the company itself just twist in on themselves so many times, you almost don’t care to try to figure out the complicated puzzle. There is also no real motivation to figure out what is going on, since it doesn’t really matter either. The book spends the first 100 pages on the run with Shaku and Ulfur, who changes his name to Leif. So for the first part, the reader is watching through Shaku’s first person narrative as he changes cars, ditches tails, worries about how to save Leif, and speeds away from the company while not really caring about the reasons. Shaku’s an assassin that’s been trained not to care about the why so he doesn’t spend any time wondering – thus the reader doesn’t really care either since the story is rooted in action, not the reasons for the action.
The second half of the book is entirely filled with sex, sex, and more sex. Shaku turns from a pretty unassuming deadly weapon that exposes almost no will of his own into a dominating lover that uses Leif for his sexual pet. This change in his personality doesn’t make much sense but again Shaku doesn’t spend any time caring about it since he’s too busy screwing Leif all the time. Here there is sex scene after sex scene as Shaku channels every thought, action, and desire into dominating Leif through sex. They fuck all day long, but due to a quirk in both Shaku and Leif’s genetics they have great recovery and healing time. So Leif can act as a bottom close to 24/7 but rarely be sore while Shaku is almost constantly hard. Then all of a sudden a third person shows up and the twosome becomes a threesome with more sex.
The appearance of the third person – who of course now dominates both Shaku and Leif – comes out of nowhere yet the story doesn’t really care since the last quarter of the book is filled with more and more sex and then the final resolution. The resolution attempts to wrap up the confusing and convoluted plot but at this point, who really cares? The plot seems so unimportant and implausible that even the story doesn’t seem to care. Here Shaku goes on a long verbal diatribe explaining everything that he just –now- figured out while the bad guys prompt him to explain. Um, what? And even MORE sex is included in the resolution as Leif is getting jerked off while making some pretty big decisions.
Beyond what could have been a good plot made into something kind of silly and ridiculous, the writing itself is good with snappy dialogue and fast paced transitions that keep the story moving quickly and interesting. Even among the crazy twists and turns with random characters thrown in and way, way too much sex that doesn’t offer anything – the author’s skill is there. I just have no clue where this plot came from and how it devolved into the sex filled insanity that is the result. The characterization is decent but it’s hard to get a clear picture of anyone but the narrator Shaku. The others seem solely to exist for a reason – either sex or company manipulations – so they are less well developed. The actual world building is very good since it is set in modern time but with the addition of magic/futuristic elements. The additional detail of the Icelandic company is very good as this is incredibly memorable and helps differentiate the story from other corporate espionage stories.
So while there are some very good elements to the story, overall skip Company Man. The confusing plot will have you wondering but then after the sexual overload, you almost don’t care about the maze like plot anymore and just wonder what happened. If you haven’t read this author, pick up Dreamlands.
Shaku is a company made assassin that can’t remember his life prior to being transformed. Twelve years ago Shaku’s memory was erased and in its place are biological enhancements to make him something other than human with no free will and answering to the company alone. He was made into the ultimate hit man that follows orders no matter if he is to kill or be fucked. His latest assignment goes wrong when he meets Ulfur, a man that sparks a long forgotten memory. When Shaku escapes the company’s tether with Ulfur, the two are on the run but now with a growing attraction.
The story itself is incredibly complicated and convoluted. There are not so many plot holes per se but the various elements of the supernatural and the company itself just twist in on themselves so many times, you almost don’t care to try to figure out the complicated puzzle. There is also no real motivation to figure out what is going on, since it doesn’t really matter either. The book spends the first 100 pages on the run with Shaku and Ulfur, who changes his name to Leif. So for the first part, the reader is watching through Shaku’s first person narrative as he changes cars, ditches tails, worries about how to save Leif, and speeds away from the company while not really caring about the reasons. Shaku’s an assassin that’s been trained not to care about the why so he doesn’t spend any time wondering – thus the reader doesn’t really care either since the story is rooted in action, not the reasons for the action.
The second half of the book is entirely filled with sex, sex, and more sex. Shaku turns from a pretty unassuming deadly weapon that exposes almost no will of his own into a dominating lover that uses Leif for his sexual pet. This change in his personality doesn’t make much sense but again Shaku doesn’t spend any time caring about it since he’s too busy screwing Leif all the time. Here there is sex scene after sex scene as Shaku channels every thought, action, and desire into dominating Leif through sex. They fuck all day long, but due to a quirk in both Shaku and Leif’s genetics they have great recovery and healing time. So Leif can act as a bottom close to 24/7 but rarely be sore while Shaku is almost constantly hard. Then all of a sudden a third person shows up and the twosome becomes a threesome with more sex.
The appearance of the third person – who of course now dominates both Shaku and Leif – comes out of nowhere yet the story doesn’t really care since the last quarter of the book is filled with more and more sex and then the final resolution. The resolution attempts to wrap up the confusing and convoluted plot but at this point, who really cares? The plot seems so unimportant and implausible that even the story doesn’t seem to care. Here Shaku goes on a long verbal diatribe explaining everything that he just –now- figured out while the bad guys prompt him to explain. Um, what? And even MORE sex is included in the resolution as Leif is getting jerked off while making some pretty big decisions.
Beyond what could have been a good plot made into something kind of silly and ridiculous, the writing itself is good with snappy dialogue and fast paced transitions that keep the story moving quickly and interesting. Even among the crazy twists and turns with random characters thrown in and way, way too much sex that doesn’t offer anything – the author’s skill is there. I just have no clue where this plot came from and how it devolved into the sex filled insanity that is the result. The characterization is decent but it’s hard to get a clear picture of anyone but the narrator Shaku. The others seem solely to exist for a reason – either sex or company manipulations – so they are less well developed. The actual world building is very good since it is set in modern time but with the addition of magic/futuristic elements. The additional detail of the Icelandic company is very good as this is incredibly memorable and helps differentiate the story from other corporate espionage stories.
So while there are some very good elements to the story, overall skip Company Man. The confusing plot will have you wondering but then after the sexual overload, you almost don’t care about the maze like plot anymore and just wonder what happened. If you haven’t read this author, pick up Dreamlands.
March 4, 2010
This is a difficult book for me to write a review about. I wish I'd known (before I started) that it was a sequel to Dreamlands; it would have taken me less time to figure out what was going on.
The descriptions of the world and the mental state Shaku finds himself in were great. The idea of a "company man" who has been manipulated to become a cold-blooded murderer is intriguing. You're almost automatically on his side because he's been programmed to be who he is against his will. Leif is confused by a lot of things, he has lost even more memories than Shaku. The story ending by them finding their way back into their demon master's arms is, in a way, very satisfying.
That aside, I had trouble with the confusing presentation of the plot, the fact that Shaku doesn't even try to fight his programming and above all the careless attitude he has towards Leif (he keeps fucking and dominating him even though he's sore). Yes, Leif "consents" - but he has no choice since Shaku is the only one who can protect him. And when their master turns up it gets even worse. I just couldn't find an emotional connection to these characters, which is a purely personal issue. If that doesn't bother you, this is a good story and an interesting sequel to Dreamlands.
The descriptions of the world and the mental state Shaku finds himself in were great. The idea of a "company man" who has been manipulated to become a cold-blooded murderer is intriguing. You're almost automatically on his side because he's been programmed to be who he is against his will. Leif is confused by a lot of things, he has lost even more memories than Shaku. The story ending by them finding their way back into their demon master's arms is, in a way, very satisfying.
That aside, I had trouble with the confusing presentation of the plot, the fact that Shaku doesn't even try to fight his programming and above all the careless attitude he has towards Leif (he keeps fucking and dominating him even though he's sore). Yes, Leif "consents" - but he has no choice since Shaku is the only one who can protect him. And when their master turns up it gets even worse. I just couldn't find an emotional connection to these characters, which is a purely personal issue. If that doesn't bother you, this is a good story and an interesting sequel to Dreamlands.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 31, 2010
One thing upfront - I have not read anything else by Felicitas Ivey so maybe my problem with "Company Man" is rooted in my ignorance of the alternative reality she constructed in an earlier work. Lacking previous knowledge of the world "Company Man" takes place in, to me the plot felt convoluted and sometimes hard to follow. I definitely would have enjoyed the book more with a little bit more background information.
March 13, 2010
I did not really warm to the characters also the plot was a bit far fetched. I am not sure why ms Ivey felt the need to create a whole new world. Esp because it felt sort of similar to her other book.
And it had lots of smut, now I am not averse to it, not in the least but it felt like an overkill to me.
So altogether disappointing because I liked her first book.
And it had lots of smut, now I am not averse to it, not in the least but it felt like an overkill to me.
So altogether disappointing because I liked her first book.
April 5, 2010
I loved the premise, of a man whose memories had been robbed - and then the gradual discovery that they'd been repressed rather than totally erased. A man who was expected to be cold and obedient to the corporation, to the extent of denying his own needs and desires. There's a lot of sex but it was in character. The alternative-world atmosphere is very seductive and the style flows.
August 12, 2010
This book has a lot of elements that I really enjoy, including the whole super secret assasin for hire guy with amnesia thrown in for fun. The first half is an action adventure mystery that quickly unravels into a PWP with D/s overtones. It's interesting and quirky.
May 14, 2012
2.5 stars because I am still puzzled. This story mixed for me two universe, the second one supposed to explain?/justify? that the main character is a pschycopath but fabricated.
As the story is written from his point of view, it is a bit (or a lot) disturbing and did break my enjoyment (I slipped into cerebral reading... reserved for work not freetime). Thus 2.5 stars, to reflect my frustration. Moreover last third is purely without real connection with the suspens of the story, spoiling the interesting build-up of the company and its public face vs the hidden face (fixers-hunters). To much allusions and not enough credible explaination.
I better stop here before the "review" becomes a real puzzle.
As the story is written from his point of view, it is a bit (or a lot) disturbing and did break my enjoyment (I slipped into cerebral reading... reserved for work not freetime). Thus 2.5 stars, to reflect my frustration. Moreover last third is purely without real connection with the suspens of the story, spoiling the interesting build-up of the company and its public face vs the hidden face (fixers-hunters). To much allusions and not enough credible explaination.
I better stop here before the "review" becomes a real puzzle.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 15, 2016
Not a bad smoking hot read. There were times I felt kind of lost though.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews