Mission Critical, the eighth novel in the Gray Man series, is another high-octane, action-packed and nail-bitingly tense thriller from an author who has swiftly become a favourite of mine due to the consistently superb ride on which he takes his readers, and I would go so far as to say this is his best work to date. Here, Greaney crafts another hard-hitting, propulsive story and delivers a plethora of shocks and surprises with considerable aplomb. He also puts a fresh, modern spin on the espionage tales of old by drawing his storyline from timely, topical issues and is adept at playing on current fears of Cold War resurgence and Russian political interference, masterfully weaving them into the fabric of this exhilarating plot.

As always, Greaney proficiently moulds a series of gripping action scenes and is one of the best in the genre in that respect. Unusually for a plot-driven spy thriller such as this, we also get excellent characterisation; you can really see the evolution of protagonist Gentry and the journey he has been on throughout these right complex instalments. He has that often stereotypical sarcasm and cockiness associated with those we deem to be heroic, and he may even be about to receive some attention from a possible love interest. I am already looking forward to the ninth instalment, and if the past is anything to go by it's highly likely to be the best yet.

Many thanks to Sphere for an ARC.

This is the 8th in Mark Greaney's Gray Man series but my first, but it works perfectly fine as a standalone. The Gray Man, Court Gentry, code name The Violater, is the world's most dangerous assassin, an off the books contract killer for the CIA, one of those comprising Poison Apple, engaged in black ops run by Matt Hanley, Deputy Director of Operations. Gentry's handler, the ambitious Suzanne Brewer wants him back in Langley which has him on a CIA transport flight, where a security team bring on a hooded prisoner, a Dutch banker, heading for London for interrogation by the intelligence agencies. As the plane lands on a isolated runway, a well organised surprise attack leaves almost everyone dead as the prisoner is abducted. Gentry survives, has no idea what is going on, but he does know he is not going to let this go as he sets out to chase after the kidnappers and the prisoner.

Zoya Feodorov is a former Russian SVR foreign intelligence officer, a new CIA asset confined in a safe house. Zoya notices a detail in a photograph shown to her by her handler, Suzanne Brewer, that triggers a sense of disquiet as it challenges what she thought was true. It instigates a need to escape in search of the truth. However, before this can happen, the safe house is attacked by Mexican contract killers (sicarios) of the Sinalloa Cartel with the aim of killing Zoya. She manages to escape, intent on reaching London. Won Jang-Mi is a North Korean virologist driven by a personal need for vengeance. The CIA are determined to hunt down a mole that has cost them dearly in a number of operations. Gentry finds himself facing criminal gang members from Nottingham and other UK cities, the Russian Mafia, and a former head of the GRU Aquarium HQ (Russian Military Intelligence), sleeper agents, and a dastardly bioterrorism plot aimed at striking at the heart of the western intelligence agencies at the high security Edinburgh Five Eyes Conference. Will he and Zoya manage to survive the powerful and ruthless forces arraigned against them and prevent a horrific atrocity?

Greaney writes a high octane fast paced espionage thriller that is exhilarating and compulsive, generating a huge body count. The plotting is complex and the various storylines come together in a thrilling finale in a Scottish castle. It has the American intelligence agencies running around in the UK with approval from the British, there are plenty of machinations taking place within the CIA, and frustrated ambitions in the hierarchy. As is often in this type of thriller, plotting and the action driven narrative takes precedence at the expense of detailed and indepth characterisation. This is an entertaining, nail bitingly compelling read, that will appeal to those who love action driven espionage thrillers. Many thanks to Little, Brown for an ARC.