Great read. Not my usual genre but I was gripped throughout. I will definitely look out for more from this author and will be recommending to others.

Previously released in four separate Kindle singles but perhaps much better to be read as a whole.
We are introducted to this special agent, the female assassin code name Villanelle. Her background makes her an ideal candidate for the role of a hit woman and she passes every conceivable test to be recruited into a sinister organisation that has links across many governments but ultimately takes out contracts on individuals who are perhaps disruptive to big business and the common interest of a balance of power.
Her motivation and recruitment arose while she was in prison so she had little option other than to agree to take this path; the problem being though she was already a fragile and damaged human being.
We learn that she has been successful on a couple of occasions and now is focused on a new target.
I can think of similar female contract killers in TV and literature and it is interesting to follow Villanelle's story to see what marks her out and keeps her as a compelling character to enjoy and share in her daring missions.
As the book progresses we are presented with a cold hearted, emotionally inert individual who has spy tradecraft and a self preservation streak. We learn more about her handler and his concerns about her risk management.
A deeper concern however is when she travels to London, we are introduced to a potential enemy in a female operative in the UK security services. She has a sense of Villanelle's existence but no real proof or evidence.
Her many faceted and multiple identities and characters mean we struggle to find any empathy, leaving aside she is a killer, but her upbringing and family disconnect means we can initially sympathise, especially with her early choices.
Never content in one sphere of operation her tasks take her across the world. But here the book fails for me in terms of the danger that threatens Villanelle in the role taken up by former MI5 operative Eve Polastri who is off the books investigating the female assassin. Polastri is driven to find this assassin, she perceives but without any real leads. Although Eve seems tenacious, for me she seems completely unsuited to this role, but you know their paths seem undoubtedly destined to converge. Title suggesting?
Villanelle's desire to face up to her potential nemesis again does not seem to make operational sense and you feel the ratcheting up of this confrontation between the two women is a fiction too far.
However, the passages with Villanelle are engrossing and it is both odd and liberating to read of such a strong female character. She remains cold and efficient and her lack of emotional interplay make her a great sociopath and psychopath.
I particularly liked the relationship between Villanelle and her handler Konstantin. It validates her in some way but you have to question the bond, if their agent is just an expendable asset.

Having started the TV series I saw the 'based on' credit and decided to have a look at the source material. It's a well written and concise thriller that explores the characters, motivations and practicalities of an assassin, her associates and pursuers. It's an interesting variation on the usual structure: Villanelle is not blackmailed or paid, but her needs are met in a way that she could not achieve in any other way of life.
A very good read.