Perfect Assassin
Grade : C+

Perfect Assassin is the follow-up to Wendy Rosnau's previous book, The Spy Wore Red. I didn't really care for that book, but romance novels featuring heroines who are international assassins don't come along every day, so this one seemed worth the risk. It turned out to be a much better read, albeit with quite a few weaknesses.

This story flows directly from the previous one, and I'm not sure anyone who hasn't read The Spy Wore Red will find it as easy to follow. The first chapter fills in the backstory, but the author doesn't bother to explain who these agencies and characters are, serving more to remind those already familiar with the premise than to fill in anyone who hasn't. Newcomers will likely be hopelessly lost.

At the end of the last book, assassin-for-hire Holic Reznik was captured by the spy organization Onyxx, along with his kill-list of secret agents he was targeting for death. It seemed like his plan had been thwarted. Then the murders begin: agents from the kill-list being executed, but not in the order on the list, leaving Onyxx clueless as to who’s really next. The killer is Holic's nineteen-year-old daughter, Prisca, who was trained by her father in the art of marksmanship. Believing her father was a government agent captured by the bad guys, she intends to carry out his mission and take out the names on the list. But she plans to move at least one name to the top: Jacy Madox, the Onyxx agent she blames for the death of her mother during her father's capture.

Retired agent Jacy Moon Madox, called Moon by his closest friends and family, is trying to live a peaceful life in his native Montana. One day a small passenger plane crashes in the nearby mountains. The pilot dies on impact, but his passenger survives. Moon takes the injured woman back to his home to recuperate. The woman is Prisca, having flown to Montana to find Jacy Madox. Needing to recover from her injuries before resuming her search, she feigns amnesia and accepts Moon's hospitality, never imagining that the man she's looking for is right in front of her.

Obviously, not every romance reader will be comfortable with this type of heroine. I found her intriguing, and have to give the author credit for not dancing around who she is. The book opens with Prisca taking out her first target, leaving no doubt that she is an assassin. Given the premise, a lesser author might try to take the easy way out by having Moon be the first person Prisca tries to kill, so when she (obviously) doesn't, her character would remain unblemished. That's not the case here, and it was most welcome.

The misunderstanding at the core of the plot does go on too long. Prisca stays with Moon for several weeks without learning his full name, which seemed far-fetched. But the mistaken identity never seemed as inane as such misunderstandings usually do, and I liked the romance quite a bit. Both characters are engaging, they have great chemistry, and the way they interacted was very enjoyable. There's a moment between them at a bar where Moon's about to drive off without her which is perfectly understated, requiring no dialogue between them. I liked it so much I read it a couple times before moving on in the book. The second hundred pages are when the story really takes off, as the attraction between them picks up steam and the mistaken identity plot comes to a head. This part of the book was tense and gripping, full of nonstop action and good moments. There's also the oddly sympathetic character of Otto, Prisca's quasi-assistant on her hits, who loves her and is completely loyal to her father. He's definitely not a good guy, but the author shows enough of his human side that he remains a fascinating creation.

Admittedly, much of the storyline is predictable. Those who read the previous book already know something Prisca doesn't (and the events of this story happen exactly as I expected after the last one). That's not such a bad thing, because the author keeps it an interesting and involving story. The only real questions I had were if and how Prisca was going to avoid imprisonment at the end, especially since she killed two agents in cold blood at the start. It probably shouldn't have been a surprise that the resolution is a copout. This might be the only resolution possible for a romance novel, but that didn't stop me from rolling my eyes when it happened.

The biggest problem is the lack of insight into the main characters. With a heroine this unusual, I really wanted to learn more about her and who she is, especially since she's so young. But her motivations go no deeper than believing her mother is dead and her father is innocent, and wanting to avenge them. I really knew nothing about her as a person beyond that, and even the sections from her P.O.V. fail to reveal much more. While I liked both Moon and Prisca, their character development remains strictly at the surface. Elsewhere, most of the scenes at the agency are less interesting than the ones focusing on the main characters. In particular, a subplot involving the head of the agency trying to get over the death of his wife seems like pointless filler. There are also some confusing moments. On page 47, Moon notes that the pilot's parents are dead. But on page 74 when Prisca asks if the pilot had any family, Moon tells her, "A father and a sister." Which is it?

I liked much of Perfect Assassin enough that I seriously considered giving it a qualified recommendation. When it clicks, it's fast, exciting and emotionally involving in a way too few series books I've read lately have been. Ultimately, though, there are too many weaknesses, and the whole isn't really strong enough that I can say, "Go buy this." But it is a book I'll hold on to to relive the good parts (that second hundred pages in particular), and readers who like unconventional heroines and action-packed plots may find it worth a look.

Reviewed by Leigh Thomas
Grade : C+
Book Type: Series Romance

Sensuality: Warm

Review Date : September 12, 2005

Publication Date: 2005/09

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