He wondered if he could ever bring these two lives of his into alignment without destroying one or the other.
Gregg Hurwitz
Out of the Dark
Format:
Audiobook
Note: At the time of this review, the book is available to borrow via Kindle Unlimited.
Publisher’s Synopsis:
Taken from a group home at age twelve, Evan Smoak was raised and trained as part of the Orphan Program, an off-the-books operation designed to create deniable intelligence assets – i.e. assassins. Evan was Orphan X. He broke with the Program, using everything he learned to disappear and reinvent himself as the Nowhere Man, a man who helps the truly desperate when no one else can. But now Evan’s past is catching up to him.
Someone at the very highest level of government has been trying to eliminate every trace of the Orphan Program by killing all the remaining Orphans and their trainers. After Evan’s mentor and the only father he ever knew was killed, he decided to strike back. His target is the man who started the Program and who is now the most heavily guarded person in the world: the President of the United States.
But President Bennett knows that Orphan X is after him and, using weapons of his own, he’s decided to counter-attack. Bennett activates the one man who has the skills and experience to track down and take out Orphan X – the first recruit of the Program, Orphan A.
With Evan devoting all his skills, resources, and intelligence to find a way through the layers of security that surround the President, suddenly he also has to protect himself against the deadliest of opponents. It’s Orphan vs. Orphan with the future of the country – even the world – on the line.
Point of view:
3rd person. Mostly from Evan’s perspective. There are some sections from other characters.
Rellim’s Thoughts:
This is book 4 in the Evan Smoak/Orphan X series. While there’s a whole story here (several, in fact) – there’s some secondary storylines that I think are best enjoyed if you’ve listened to the previous books. As such this review may contain spoilers to those books.
I think part of what makes this one so great is getting to “see” some of the characters from the previous books as well as the culmination of the attack on the former orphans by the President of the United States.
Kicking off when Evan is 19 and on his first mission, Hurwitz immediately dragged me in. I loved how he provides background in entertaining and compelling ways. There’s all these layers that are interesting on their own but stacked together become an even larger story. Evan struggles to balance surviving his past, continuing his work at The Nowhere Man, and wondering whether he can ever live a semblance of a normal life. Creating a killer with humanity is a delicate process that Hurwitz does exceptionally well.
The pacing was great and I love just sinking into Evan’s world as well as all the secondary characters. Lots of emotions in this one as well. Just a terrific listen.
Narration:
Scott Brick continues to do an amazing job with everything Hurwitz throws at him. Evan, Mia, Peter, the President, criminal masterminds, the many orphans, even the rescued – all have unique voices and personalities. Flawless performance.
About the author:
You can connect with Gregg Hurwitz here:
About the narrator:
You can connect with Scott Brick here:
My Favorite Quotes
Killing the president was going to be a lot of work. – Out of the Dark by @GreggHurwitz #Audiobook narrated by @ScottBrick #Thriller #Suspense #EvanSmoak #OrphanX
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He jogged out of the Vault and all the way to the kitchen, picking up on the fifth ring. It was Mia. She was screaming. – Out of the Dark by @GreggHurwitz #Audiobook narrated by @ScottBrick #Thriller #Suspense #EvanSmoak #OrphanX
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There were two tales unspooling, the one that Trevon was telling and the one that Evan was reconstructing in his head. – Out of the Dark by @GreggHurwitz #Audiobook narrated by @ScottBrick #Thriller #Suspense #EvanSmoak #OrphanX
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“I hacked into the phone of a Secret Service agent.” “Well, whoop-dee-do,” Joey said. “I bet you can also program your DVR.” – Out of the Dark by @GreggHurwitz #Audiobook narrated by @ScottBrick #Thriller #Suspense #EvanSmoak #OrphanX
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He wondered if he could ever bring these two lives of his into alignment without destroying one or the other. – Out of the Dark by @GreggHurwitz #Audiobook narrated by @ScottBrick #Thriller #Suspense #EvanSmoak #OrphanX
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There are no good guys. There are no bad guys. There’s only what needs to be done. – Out of the Dark by @GreggHurwitz #Audiobook narrated by @ScottBrick #Thriller #Suspense #EvanSmoak #OrphanX
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Rellim Reads 