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by Gregg Hurwitz ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 19, 2016

With his digital-age The Avenger, Hurwitz races by minor plot holes and spins a web of relentless intrigue with bursts of...

Kicking off a new series, Hurwitz ( Don’t Look Back , 2014, etc.) sets young Evan Smoak, a one-time government assassin, to work as a pro bono equalizer—one call brings a criminal to justice.

The 9/11 terror attacks made major bad guys targets for undercover termination, and so a darker-than-black government agency created the Orphan Program. That group trained throwaway kids as the world’s most efficient assassins "for solo, offline covert operations." Then "drones changed everything," and the Orphans were left in limbo. Orphan X, Evan, decided to freelance, his impetus being his belief that his Orphan mentor (and substitute father), Jack Johns, was murdered. Soon, a Hezbollah arms chief, a dealer in fissile material, and a serial rapist receive Evan’s justice. All it takes is a quick call to his victim’s hotline, 1-855-2NOWHERE. Evan’s back story arrives in short, scene-style chapters. The primary narrative follows Evan as he takes on new projects. His lair is a luxury Los Angeles condo, the atmosphere set by neighboring busybodies, where he has a secret vault with Google-level technology. Hurwitz offers a glimpse of Evan’s modus operandi as the assassin eliminates a dirty cop coercing an immigrant teen into prostitution. Then the tale spins down into double crosses and duplicities as Evan becomes a target and other former Orphans enter the fray. High-tech gadgetry abounds—microscopic internal GPS transmitters, a "fully pixelated contact lens" for digital communication—but Evan is old school too, mastering esoteric Filipino, Japanese, and Indonesian martial arts. Hurwitz closes with an unexpected narrative left turn, but even though he’s painted Evan adequately, including vague hints of possible romance with neighbor Mia, a widowed single mother, Evan will need another adventure or two before he grows into an empathetic hero.

Pub Date: Jan. 19, 2016

ISBN: 978-1-250-06784-5

Page Count: 368

Publisher: Minotaur

Review Posted Online: Nov. 3, 2015

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2015

SUSPENSE | SUSPENSE

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BOOK REVIEW

by Gregg Hurwitz

A CONSPIRACY OF BONES

by Kathy Reichs ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 17, 2020

Forget about solving all these crimes; the signal triumph here is (spoiler) the heroine’s survival.

Another sweltering month in Charlotte, another boatload of mysteries past and present for overworked, overstressed forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan.

A week after the night she chases but fails to catch a mysterious trespasser outside her town house, some unknown party texts Tempe four images of a corpse that looks as if it’s been chewed by wild hogs, because it has been. Showboat Medical Examiner Margot Heavner makes it clear that, breaking with her department’s earlier practice ( The Bone Collection , 2016, etc.), she has no intention of calling in Tempe as a consultant and promptly identifies the faceless body herself as that of a young Asian man. Nettled by several errors in Heavner’s analysis, and even more by her willingness to share the gory details at a press conference, Tempe launches her own investigation, which is not so much off the books as against the books. Heavner isn’t exactly mollified when Tempe, aided by retired police detective Skinny Slidell and a host of experts, puts a name to the dead man. But the hints of other crimes Tempe’s identification uncovers, particularly crimes against children, spur her on to redouble her efforts despite the new M.E.’s splenetic outbursts. Before he died, it seems, Felix Vodyanov was linked to a passenger ferry that sank in 1994, an even earlier U.S. government project to research biological agents that could control human behavior, the hinky spiritual retreat Sparkling Waters, the dark web site DeepUnder, and the disappearances of at least four schoolchildren, two of whom have also turned up dead. And why on earth was Vodyanov carrying Tempe’s own contact information? The mounting evidence of ever more and ever worse skulduggery will pull Tempe deeper and deeper down what even she sees as a rabbit hole before she confronts a ringleader implicated in “Drugs. Fraud. Breaking and entering. Arson. Kidnapping. How does attempted murder sound?”

Pub Date: March 17, 2020

ISBN: 978-1-9821-3888-2

Page Count: 352

Publisher: Scribner

Review Posted Online: Dec. 22, 2019

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2020

GENERAL MYSTERY & DETECTIVE | GENERAL THRILLER & SUSPENSE | MYSTERY & DETECTIVE | SUSPENSE | THRILLER | DETECTIVES & PRIVATE INVESTIGATORS | SUSPENSE | GENERAL & DOMESTIC THRILLER

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by Kathy Reichs

THEN SHE WAS GONE

by Lisa Jewell ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 24, 2018

Dark and unsettling, this novel’s end arrives abruptly even as readers are still moving at a breakneck speed.

Ten years after her teenage daughter went missing, a mother begins a new relationship only to discover she can't truly move on until she answers lingering questions about the past.

Laurel Mack’s life stopped in many ways the day her 15-year-old daughter, Ellie, left the house to study at the library and never returned. She drifted away from her other two children, Hanna and Jake, and eventually she and her husband, Paul, divorced. Ten years later, Ellie’s remains and her backpack are found, though the police are unable to determine the reasons for her disappearance and death. After Ellie’s funeral, Laurel begins a relationship with Floyd, a man she meets in a cafe. She's disarmed by Floyd’s charm, but when she meets his young daughter, Poppy, Laurel is startled by her resemblance to Ellie. As the novel progresses, Laurel becomes increasingly determined to learn what happened to Ellie, especially after discovering an odd connection between Poppy’s mother and her daughter even as her relationship with Floyd is becoming more serious. Jewell’s ( I Found You , 2017, etc.) latest thriller moves at a brisk pace even as she plays with narrative structure: The book is split into three sections, including a first one which alternates chapters between the time of Ellie’s disappearance and the present and a second section that begins as Laurel and Floyd meet. Both of these sections primarily focus on Laurel. In the third section, Jewell alternates narrators and moments in time: The narrator switches to alternating first-person points of view (told by Poppy’s mother and Floyd) interspersed with third-person narration of Ellie’s experiences and Laurel’s discoveries in the present. All of these devices serve to build palpable tension, but the structure also contributes to how deeply disturbing the story becomes. At times, the characters and the emotional core of the events are almost obscured by such quick maneuvering through the weighty plot.

Pub Date: April 24, 2018

ISBN: 978-1-5011-5464-5

Publisher: Atria

Review Posted Online: Feb. 5, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2018

GENERAL THRILLER & SUSPENSE | SUSPENSE | FAMILY LIFE & FRIENDSHIP | SUSPENSE

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by Lisa Jewell

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Orphan X : Book summary and reviews of Orphan X by Gregg Hurwitz

Summary | Reviews | More Information | More Books

An Evan Smoak Novel

by Gregg Hurwitz

Critics' Opinion:

Readers' rating:

Published Jan 2016 368 pages Genre: Thrillers Publication Information

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About this book

Book summary.

" Orphan X is the most gripping, high-octane thriller I've read in a long, long time. Hang onto your seat because Gregg Hurwitz will take you on a dizzying ride you'll not soon forget!" -Tess Gerritsen

The Nowhere Man is a legendary figure spoken about only in whispers. It's said that when he's reached by the truly desperate and deserving, the Nowhere Man can and will do anything to protect and save them. But he's no legend. Evan Smoak is a man with skills, resources, and a personal mission to help those with nowhere else to turn. He's also a man with a dangerous past. Chosen as a child, he was raised and trained as part of the off-the-books black box Orphan program, designed to create the perfect deniable intelligence assets - i.e. assassins. He was Orphan X. Evan broke with the program, using everything he learned to disappear. Now, however, someone is on his tail. Someone with similar skills and training. Someone who knows Orphan X. Someone who is getting closer and closer. And will exploit Evan's weakness - his work as The Nowhere Man - to find him and eliminate him. Grabbing the reader from the very first page, Orphan X is a masterful thriller, the first in Gregg Hurwitz's electrifying new series featuring Evan Smoak.

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"Starred Review. Hurwitz, known for this kind of adrenaline-producing fiction (notably The Survivor , 2012), adds enough humanity to the action to make this a standout, and readers should get in at the start." - Booklist "Starred Review. Bestseller Hurwitz ( Don't Look Back ) melds nonstop action and high-tech gadgetry with an acute character study in this excellent series opener." - Publishers Weekly "Hurwitz closes with an unexpected narrative left turn, but even though he's painted Evan adequately, including vague hints of possible romance with neighbor Mia, a widowed single mother, Evan will need another adventure or two before he grows into an empathetic hero." - Kirkus "This isn't simply Hurwitz's 'best thriller yet' or 'a terrific new thriller' - Orphan X is an order-of-magnitude leap into stardom. It's the most exciting thriller I've read since The Bourne Identity . Fans of Jack Reacher, Mitch Rapp, and Jason Bourne will LOVE Evan Smoak, and the deadly, secret world of the Orphan Program. A new thriller superstar is born!" - Robert Crais "What is Orphan X? A thrill-a-minute read with twists and turns galore. I'm looking forward to Evan Smoak's next adventure." - Phillip Margolin " Orphan X is the most gripping, high-octane thriller I've read in a long, long time. Hang onto your seat because Gregg Hurwitz will take you on a dizzying ride you'll not soon forget!" - Tess Gerritsen "Gregg Hurwitz's Orphan X is his best yet - a real celebration of all the strengths he brings to a thriller." - Lee Child "Brilliantly conceived and plotted, his character Evan Smoak, Orphan X , deserves his own niche in the thriller hero hall of fame. Read this book. You will thank me later." - David Baldacci " Orphan X is the most exciting new series character since Jack Reacher. And Reacher would love this guy. A page-turning masterpiece of suspense enriched by compassion and insight." - Jonathan Kellerman "Exciting and mind blowing! A perfect mix of Jason Bourne and Jack Reacher, ex operative Evan Smoak turns on the action and shows off all the right moves as he sets out to help the downtrodden, and perhaps save his own humanity along the way." - Lisa Gardner

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Gregg Hurwitz Author Biography

Gregg Hurwitz is the New York Times #1 internationally bestselling author of 23 thrillers including the ORPHAN X series. His novels have won numerous literary awards and have been published in 33 languages. Gregg currently serves as the Co-President of International Thriller Writers (ITW). Additionally, he's written poetry, screenplays and television scripts for many of the major studios and networks, comics for AWA, DC, and Marvel, and political and culture pieces for The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, The Bulwark and others. Gregg lives with his Rhodesian ridgebacks in Los Angeles, where he continues to play soccer, frequently injuring himself.

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We barely have made a dent in the new year, and already we have a candidate for one of the best books of 2016. It is ORPHAN X by Gregg Hurwitz. Some words about Hurwitz: He seemingly has been incapable of writing badly since he first came out of the gate, well over a decade ago, with THE TOWER. He has written thrillers, graphic novels, film and television screenplays, and scholarly nonfiction works (which we will not hold against him). However, none of that will prepare you for ORPHAN X, which will keep you reading all night and through the day. What a great ride it is.

“Orphan X” is the code name for Evan Smoak, a product of what was known as the Orphan program. During a brief prologue, we meet Evan, the 12-year-old lad who is to become Evan Smoak, also known as Orphan X. Evan, at the cusp of adolescence, is leaving an impoverished life at the Pride House Group Home in East Baltimore in the company of Jack Johns, who has selected him for the Orphan program. The narrative then flashes forward a quarter-century to the adult Evan, who in the book’s present is the basis for the legend of someone variously called “The Nowhere Man” or “The Man with No Name.”

"ORPHAN X is the start of what looks to be an amazing new series. Surprises and suspense abound throughout, while the plot is peppered with major and minor characters who stick in the memory whether present from first page to last or only for a few paragraphs."

Evan is very much a quiet but deadly angel who intercedes on behalf of those who are without power or control of their own lives. Meanwhile, he lives a seemingly quiet life in a penthouse condominium where his neighbors believe he is a highly paid consultant of some sort or another. Evan picks his own assignments, if you will, secure in his anonymity and the knowledge that he has left his life in the Orphan program behind.

However, all of this explodes when Evan’s attempt to help a woman troubled by insurmountable gambling debts goes wildly wrong. The result? Both he and the lady find themselves being chased after by a very skilled and determined team of pursuers. As the narrative unfolds, it alternates with flashbacks to Evan’s past, which delve into his training, including the rules --- ones that Evan refers to as the Ten Commandments --- which, under the careful supervision of Johns, led him to develop the skillset that he possesses. They also reveal Evan’s gradual disenchantment with the Orphan program, which was designed by the United States in the 1990s to develop a highly skilled group of solo, offline covert spies or “assaulters” performing missions as cutoff men, operating with totally plausible deniability and funded via a black budget washed through a minor cabinet department. When Evan left the Orphan program --- a major no-no --- he thought he had covered his tracks well.

The sins of the past, though, are manifesting themselves in Evan’s present. Furthermore, his efforts to empower the powerless are about to blow back on him in ways that he never expected. By the end of the book, much that has been hidden will be revealed, while some additional surprises undoubtedly will echo beyond its startling and exciting conclusion.

ORPHAN X is the start of what looks to be an amazing new series. Surprises and suspense abound throughout, while the plot is peppered with major and minor characters who stick in the memory whether present from first page to last or only for a few paragraphs. Hurwitz’s mad screenwriting chops are at play here as well; the narrative unfolds with such cinematic brilliance that one can almost see and hear the action exploding off the page. Jump onto this series now. You’ll thank me later.

Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub on January 22, 2016

Orphan X by Gregg Hurwitz

• Publication Date: November 1, 2016
• Genres: Fiction , Suspense , Thriller
• Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Paperbacks
• ISBN-10: 1250097207
• ISBN-13: 9781250097200

By the Book: Latest Ophan X installment is a trip to the theme park

“Can you save a bad man?” That’s the question Gregg Hurwitz’s Orphan X asks in “Dark Horse,” the latest in the series, due out Feb. 8. And if the answer is ‘yes,’ then was the man really bad? 

These questions apply equally to the South Texas drug lord that Evan Smoak, aka Orphan X, agrees to help and to Evan himself.

Those who do not know the series will be caught up quickly in this seventh installment. Smoak was an off-the-books government assassin who left the program and is now pursued by his former trainers and handlers. He lives by his own 10 commandments and helps those who have nowhere else to turn.

Aragón Urrea is the  patrón  (boss) of Eden, Texas, and of an elaborate, worldwide, high-tech drug and money laundering operation. His 18-year-old daughter has been kidnapped by a ruthless rival gang, and he is willing to give everything he has to get her back. And everything is just what Smoak asks of him.

The impossibly-wealthy, impossibly fit and fast-thinking Smoak is part Jason Bourne, part Batman. He has a multitude of identities and safe houses as well as nearly-magical technology readily available to him. His untraceable, unhackable phone has nanosuction backing that makes it stick to any surface he throws it at, so that he can watch a hologram of his phone call. Oh, and he MacGyvers a mask out of a plastic coke bottle and some trash so that he can enter a burning building to save some burning junkies.

Orphan X books are pure escapism, akin to a visit to the theme park. It’s no wonder that Hurwitz is a best-selling author. The prose is tight and the descriptions are detailed and quite good at creating the atmosphere of danger and desperation in South Texas and Mexico, where the story is set. At more than 400 pages, the book is still a quick read as it is loaded with action and suspense. The short chapters and alternating settings give the story a cinematic feel.

However, the conversation between Smoak and his protégé, Joey, I found grating. They are so cute that it’s annoying. But that is just a small drawback. She is, after all, a 16-year-old computer genius, maybe the most realistic character in the book.

The other characters are typical of the fantasy-thriller genre. Good guys, bad guys, innocents. Hurwitz tries to avoid this trope by making Smoak painfully aware that he is both good and bad. Drug lord Urrea is both brutal to those that violate his rules (rapists) and generous with his family and the townspeople that he takes a patrician responsibility for. 

On the other hand, the villain, Mexican crime boss Raúl Montesco, is unnecessarily cruel and ruthless. He belittles his own son, holds women in a cage to be sex-trafficked, and feeds those who offend him (even accidentally) to his “pet” lion. He is the bad man, utterly unredeemable.

So, maybe you can’t save a “bad man,” but you might be able to make a man that is both good and bad a little less bad.

The conversation

If you have a recommendation, a question, want to add to the conversation, or read more reviews, please visit my blog at ByTheBookBTX.blogspot.com or email [email protected].

Bennett is a retired English and journalism teacher. She serves on the Bastrop Public Library Board.

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Book Review: Orphan X

The Nowhere Man is a legendary figure spoken about only in whispers. A kind of modern-day Robin Hood, it’s said that when he’s asked by the truly desperate and deserving, the Nowhere Man can and will do anything to protect and save them.

But he’s no legend.

Evan Smoak is a man with skills, resources, and a personal mission to help those who have nowhere else to turn.

He’s also a man with a dangerous past. Chosen as a child, he was raised and trained as part of the off-the-books black box Orphan program designed to create the perfect deniable intelligence assets — i.e. assassins. He was Orphan X.

But Evan broke with the program, using everything he learned to disappear.

Now someone is on his tail. Someone with similar skills and training. Someone who knows Orphan X. Someone who is getting closer and closer. And will exploit Evan’s weakness — his work as The Nowhere Man — to find and eliminate him.

Author Gregg Hurwitz has penned 22 thrillers, including two thrillers for teens. In addition to novels, he writes screenplays and spec scripts, and written, developed, and produced television programs. He is also a comic book writer, having drafted stories for Marvel (Wolverine, Punisher) and DC (Batman, Penguin). As it all that weren’t enough, he has published academic articles on Shakespeare, taught fiction writing at USC and guest lectured at UCLA and Harvard. To research his thrillers, he has sneaked onto demolition ranges with Navy SEALs, swum with sharks in the Galápagos, and gone undercover into mind-control cults. He is actively working to end polarization in politics and on college campuses, producing several hundred commercials and publishing editorials in The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, Huffington Post, and The Bulwark.

Orphan X is the first of six (so far) installments in the series. In it, he introduces Evan Smoak, the Nowhere Man, who risks his life to help people who are have no one else to turn to. He carries a RoamZone telephone that he answers by asking, “Do you need my help?” After he renders assistance, he instructs his clients to “find someone who needs me. Give them my number: 1-855-2-NOWHERE.”

Evan lives in a 7,000 square foot apartment high above Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles. The building, known as Castle Heights, was once quite posh, but its prime has passed, making it the perfect place for Evan to reside without drawing attention to himself. His eclectic and frequently annoying neighbors are hilariously determined to get him to attend homeowners association meetings.

His apartment is a technological fortress, equipped with sensors, cameras, and a 400 square foot vault that he accesses through what appears to be a normal shower wall. But his computers, arsenal, and other tools are stored there. Although not an expert hacker, he has enough skill and assistance from professionals to have hacked into federal databases, as well as those maintained by police departments, so he has access to a vast network of information that assists him with the cases he handles. He de-stresses by drinking designer vodkas and meditating, and sleeps in a high-tech levitating bed.

Evan was a child when he was selected to be trained as part of a top-secret government Orphan program. His handler, Jack Johns, took him into his home and taught him everything he would need to know to carry out his missions. Evan Smoak is not his real name and in the program he was known only as Orphan X. He came to be known as one of the most skilled Orphans, his talents surpassed only by Orphan Zero, and has left a trail of death and subterfuge around the world. His resources are vast, transferred and accounted for through complex electronic configurations and numerous shell companies registered outside the United States.

As the story begins he is called upon to help a young woman who has been ensnared by a local cop in sex trafficking. Her younger sister is about to be indoctrinated and Morena Aguilar has to save the innocent young girl from that fate that has made her life miserable. So she calls Evan for help.

But Evan doesn’t take the information he receives from those who call on him for help at face value. He investigates their claims of distress, stakes out the locations where they agree to meet, ensuring that he hasn’t been followed, and thoroughly researches their backgrounds. Only when satisfied that it is safe to do so does he get involved.

Now someone seems to know things they shouldn’t. They’ve determined Evan’s whereabouts when that shouldn’t be possible. Gotten too close. When Evan figures out that the attempts on the life of the woman he is trying to help were actually attempts on his own life, he is thrown completely off balance. Her story and background seem to check out, but something is not right about the case. He has to figure out what it is in order to save her . . . and himself.

Complicating matters is the Deputy District Attorney, Mia, who resides in Evan’s building. She’s the widowed mother of nine-year-old Peter. And Evan feels that he has to help her when she is in danger, even though he does not handle more than one case at a time. Getting to know Mia is dangerous for both of them, but for different reasons. She offers Evan a glimpse into a kind of life he has never known. He has never been part of a family or experienced the kind of harried, messy, but loving day-to-day existence that is Mia’s life as she juggles her home responsibilities and career. But he knows that becoming part of Mia’s world will endanger her and her son. And letting them into his is, of course, unthinkable.

Interspersed between chapters detailing current events, flashbacks tell the story of Evan’s time with Jack. Hurwitz provides deftly-timed glimpses into the brutal way he was trained to be “a weapon” for solo, offline operations, and the advice dispensed by Jack, including the Ten Commandments to which Evan must adhere at all times. Hurwitz describes the day that Evan lost Jack, and the reasons Evan blames himself and is haunted by that day’s events. On that day, he started a new life. He “decided to put his training to personal use. A pro bono freelancer, helping others who could not help themselves. Either way he had a calling, aligned with the heading of his own moral compass.”

The Tenth and most important Commandment was seared into muscle memory: Never let an innocent die.

Orphan X is a gripping, fast-paced exploration of a uniquely complex character. Jack’s training of Evan was different than the training provided the other Orphans in the program. He taught Evan to respect life, telling him, “The hard part isn’t turning you into a killer. The hard part is keeping you human.” Because Evan is both an assassin and a philanthropist, his two natures are often in conflict. Despite what he was trained to be and do, Evan is not just likable, but remarkably empathetic. His duality is relatable, his conflict demonstrating that Jack succeeded at teaching him to retain his humanity, even as he leaves a trail of dead bodies in his wake.

Hurwitz hurls Evan into a cat-and-mouse game full of shocking twists that unfold at an unrelentingly fast pace. The story is populated with supporting characters that are deliciously despicable and quite often meet ends that they deserve. There is simply no good place to stop reading because virtually every chapter ends with a cliffhanger that propels the story forward. The cleverly-plotted mystery keeps readers guessing until the very e3nd with Hurwitz expertly setting the stage for the next installment, The Nowhere Man .

Orphan X is an enthralling, ingenious thriller featuring a fascinating protagonist who has many more secrets to discover, layers to explore, and desperate clients to assist. It’s a perfect blend of action, intrigue, high-tech fun, and an engrossing character study.

Also by Gregg Hurwitz:

The Orphan X series

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one electronic copy of Orphan X free of charge from the author via Net Galley . I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own. This disclosure complies with 16 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 255, Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

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Best-selling author Gregg Hurwitz discusses the new thriller in his ‘Orphan X’ series

LOS ANGELES, CA. (WECT) - Evan Smoak is back in action again. New York Times best-selling author Gregg Hurwitz brings back Orphan X for his eighth thriller novel, “ The Last Orphan ,” which releases next month.

After being removed from a foster home and trained as an assassin in the CIA’s Orphan Program, Smoak continues his transformation from off-the-books government killer to “Nowhere Man,” the solitary underground operator at the other end of the phone who willingly provides help to the most desperate in society. In The Last Orphan, Smoak is reluctantly drawn into a mission by the President of the United States, and he must decide whether the deal to win his freedom is worth going back on the promise made years ago to use his potentially lethal skills and assets only against those who deserve it.

“Each mission that he does on his own, is him getting a tiny piece of his soul back in certain ways and his own understanding of himself,” Hurwitz says of Smoak. “Here’s this man who, when he was trained when he was a kid, his handler from the CIA told him, the hard part won’t be making you a killer. The hard part is going to be keeping you human. So, his whole life has been a tension between these things and each one of the stories is about him going out and confronting some nearly impossible mission to help somebody else who’s in need, and to try and find access to a part of himself that he’s never been able to.”

Fans of the Orphan X books will enjoy Smoak’s continued relationship with recurring characters, including teenage hacker Joey Morales, armorer Tommy Stojack, and fellow former Orphan Candy McClure. With The Last Orphan, Hurwitz has now matched the number of novels in his Marked Man series, which ran from 2002 to 2014. Those eight books, although similar in theme, did not center around the same character.

“I thought back to the books and characters who I loved so much growing up, whether that was Jason Bourne, or James Bond, or Jack Reacher or (Bob Lee) Swagger, and I always knew that I wanted to have some kind of character that would continue,” Hurwitz said about creating Evan Smoak. “But, I had to wait to write him until I really had a sense of what of how I could differentiate him from all the other characters that have come before. And so it was a long ways into my career, 16 books in, when I finally felt that I was ready, and I had thought enough about and around this character, to devote my time to it.”

Hurwitz has written 24 thrillers and young adult thrillers since his 1999 debut, The Tower. It’s not the only genre the Harvard grad has done. He’s written two screenplays for films, The Book of Henry (2017) and Sweet Girl (2021), crafted stories for several comic book characters including Batman , Penguin , Wolverine and Punisher, and he’s also published poetry. He says switching between styles takes some getting used to.

“I feel in a lot of ways that writing in these different forms, it helps to be an overall writing shape,” the married father of two says. “But some of them are very different muscles, so it does take a bit of entry. I can usually transition from one to another. But when I transition to a whole multitude of them, a lot of times it starts to kind of come apart. I do a lot better focusing completely on one project, having like a very focused creative burst of energy for days, ideally weeks or months. I don’t always have that luxury because of competing deadlines. Then to pick up the focus on put it down on something else, it does take some time to kind of readjust and reacclimate to the cadence and the tenor of a different form to try and maximize that form.”

Hurwitz says he has worked on adapting the Orphan X books for TV and film and is waiting for the right set of creative partners to take the project to production, so Evan Smoak fans might be able to enjoy the character in a new way.

“We get inquiries almost every week from actors or directors who are looking for it,” Hurwitz said. “I’m just waiting to find really the right match because I think I’m not going to do the adaptation or if it’s a TV show, do the show running. Moving forward, I need to have somebody who’s a partner who I feel like really understands the story and the DNA of the character. And then I’ll be ready to move on.”

Gregg Hurwitz’s The Last Orphan goes on sale in bookstores and online on February 14, 2023.

Copyright 2023 WECT. All rights reserved.

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Book review: Orphan X by Gregg Hurwitz

Orphan X (aka Evan Smoak), is being described by many as ‘the next Jason Bourne or Jack Reacher’. Indeed many of my fave authors are attesting to the fact via quotes of endorsement on the book and / or via author Gregg Hurwitz’s website .

And—though I’m sometimes cynical about that kind of publicity—I’m relieved to say the accolades are well and truly deserved in this instance.

The Nowhere Man is a legendary figure spoken about only in whispers. It's said that when he's reached by the truly desperate and deserving, the Nowhere Man can and will do anything to protect and save them. But he's no legend. Evan Smoak is a man with skills, resources, and a personal mission to help those with nowhere else to turn. He's also a man with a dangerous past. Chosen as a child, he was raised and trained as part of the off-the-books black box Orphan program, designed to create the perfect deniable intelligence assets---i.e. assassins. He was Orphan X. Evan broke with the program, using everything he learned to disappear. Now, however, someone is on his tail. Someone with similar skills and training. Someone who knows Orphan X. Someone who is getting closer and closer. And will exploit Evan's weakness---his work as The Nowhere Man---to find him and eliminate him.

I was disappointed in Hurwitz’s last book, Don’t Look Back ; but have been a fan for a while and heard him speak (several times) when he was at a Writers’ Festival in Brisbane (Australia) a decade or so ago.

Given the fuss attached to Orphan X, I had high hopes… and I was not disappointed. In fact I was possibly surprised as it easily surpassed my heightened expectations.

Orphan X (or the Nowhere Man) is not your typical operative or assassin. Hurwitz goes to great pains to tell us that the former orphan, adopted by a man who shaped him with one goal in mind, is ordinary. He can kill you with his pinky finger but is nothing special to look at. There’s no ex-military forces look about him. He’s not described as ruggedly handsome. Instead he blends in with the crowd. He’s forgettable.

However, looks aside (and don’t we all wish that was possible!) he’s far from ordinary.

And like many of the former assassins in novels, (the man known as) Evan Smoak developed a conscience. He got out of the business which saw him working deep undercover for some government agency and now helps the helpless.

Until his past catches up with him.

I LOVED Evan Smoak and everything about him. Hurwitz drip-feeds us information about Evan’s past through memories of his ‘adoption’ by Jack Johns and the years that followed. The novel’s written in third person but we’re in Evan’s head so privy to his thoughts… from his obsessive attention to detail to his difficulty in dealing with others and trusting those around him.

The inclusion of the cast of eccentric characters from Evan’s apartment building is a great idea. On top of that, there’s the potential love interest in Mia… and his relationship with her adopted son Peter, reminding him very much of his own story.

Hurwitz has set this up perfectly so we know there’s more to come. More backstory to be learned about Evan’s life as Orphan X… not to mention his life before meeting Jack. (Why did Evan have to change his surname, for example…?) And then there’s Mia and Peter and some of Evan’s neighbours, all of whom I’m looking forward to meeting again.

I must admit I occasionally got lost in the fight scenes. Hurwitz is very detailed and graphic and I think my eyes glazed over (as they so often do during ‘action’ sequences). It’s obviously something he’s researched extensively however, as many (many) different fighting styles are referenced.

Hurwitz also offers up every boy’s (or man’s) wet dream via Evan’s apartment… it’s a bit like a bat cave with its reinforced walls and secret rooms.

I could not put this book down and easily read it in a night. The pacing’s great and the action keeps coming. And the fact I’m calling Evan by his first name is also a sure sign I’ve developed some kind of kindred bond with the gentle hero.

I’ll be surprised if this isn’t picked up for the little or big screen at some point but until then I’ll (im)patiently wait for the next instalment!

Orphan X by Gregg Hurwitz will be released by on Penguin UK  on 25 February 2016, but is available now elsewhere, including here in Australia.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley.

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Oh I think I may give it a try. I think I need a break again from fantasy/sci-fi. Great review!

Thanks Daniela!

Well that’s a book I would never have considered, I think you just may have changed my mind. I know what you mean by being a bit leery of the old “critical acclaim”, I just reviewed one that had peer acclaim and many 5 star reviews. How the heck do you review that when you don’t like it!

I just read another with lots of author endorsements on the cover, but I noted they talked more about the series and characters than this particular book!

I like the sound of the protagonist. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

You’re welcome Martha. I read something later about the film rights being sold to Sony as a vehicle for Bradley Cooper, so I hope that plays out!

Just read Nowhere Man. Absurd on every level. Should not be classified under crime – maybe adult fantasy. All the women want him! All the baddies copter in for meat auction and must die! Aaargh!!!!

Nooooo! Say it isn’t so! I’m hoping to get / read it soon. I loved the first in this series so much I’ll be disappointed if the second is a let-down!

I'd love to hear your thoughts Cancel reply

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Hi, I’m Deborah… a seachanger living on Australia’s Fraser Coast, in Queensland. I write about books and life in general.

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The Last Orphan: An Orphan X Novel (Orphan X, 8) Hardcover – February 14, 2023

Purchase options and add-ons.

Evan Smoak returns in The Last Orphan , the next New York Times bestselling Orphan X thriller--when everything changes and everything is at risk. As a child, Evan Smoak was plucked out of a group home, raised and trained as an off-the-books assassin for the government as part of the Orphan program. When he broke with the program and went deep underground, he left with a lot of secrets in his head that the government would do anything to make sure never got out. When he remade himself as The Nowhere Man, dedicated to helping the most desperate in their times of trouble, Evan found himself slowly back on the government's radar. Having eliminated most of the Orphans in the program, the government will stop at nothing to eliminate the threat they see in Evan. But Orphan X has always been several steps ahead of his pursuers. Until he makes one little mistake... Now the President has him in her control and offers Evan a deal - eliminate a rich, powerful man she says is too dangerous to live and, in turn, she'll let Evan survive. But when Evan left the Program he swore to only use his skills against those who really deserve it. Now he has to decide what's more important - his principles or his life.

• Book 8 of 9 Orphan X
• Print length 352 pages
• Language English
• Publisher Minotaur Books
• Publication date February 14, 2023
• Dimensions 6.55 x 1.15 x 9.65 inches
• ISBN-10 1250252326
• ISBN-13 978-1250252326
• See all details

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Editorial Reviews

"There is simply no one writing thrillers like Gregg Hurwitz. He’s a beautiful writer who dives deep into character but never takes his foot off the gas when it comes to action and suspense. If you haven’t read Gregg Hurwitz, you’re missing out.” ―Lisa Unger, New York Times bestselling author of The New Couple in 5B "Just when I thought the Orphan X novels couldn’t get any better, Gregg Hurwitz takes the series to an even higher level. The Last Orphan is pulse-pounding, heart-stopping, and thought-provoking. I loved it.” ―Meg Gardiner, #1 New York Times bestselling author “ The Last Orphan is a top-notch thriller and action packed joyride. Readers will not want to put it down.” ― NYT and International Bestselling Author, Karin Slaughter "...the writing is crisp, the action scenes are both clever and cinematic, the dialogue is pitch perfect, and the villains are deliciously detestable. First-class." ― Booklist "A crackerjack thriller that briskly enhances the legend of Orphan X." ― Kirkus Reviews "This is another great Orphan X novel, filled with dramatic moments, fights, shootouts, and witty writing that we have come to love in this series. Fans of X will be very happy." ― Red Carpet Crash "Gregg Hurwitz has never taken his foot off the gas pedal. The Last Orphan continues his trend of complex thrills with an engaging protagonist." ― Bookreporter " The Last Orphan has it all... a story that has more unexpected twists and turns than a Disney World rollercoaster." ― Midwest Book Review "Reading an Evan Smoak tale is truly a guilty pleasure, like eating dessert before dinner... Hurwitz proves to be a master storyteller as he uncouples this riveting barnburner of a thriller. " ― Mystery & Suspense "Another smart thriller from a master of the genre." ― The Winnipeg Free Press

About the Author

Product details.

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Minotaur Books; First Edition (February 14, 2023)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 352 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1250252326
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1250252326
• Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.21 pounds
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.55 x 1.15 x 9.65 inches
• #1,023 in Assassination Thrillers (Books)
• #1,043 in Vigilante Justice Thrillers
• #9,839 in Suspense Thrillers

About the author

Gregg hurwitz.

Gregg Hurwitz is the New York Times, #1 internationally bestselling author of 23 thrillers, including the Orphan X series, and two award-winning thriller novels for teens. His novels have won numerous literary awards, graced top ten lists, and have been published in 33 languages. Gregg currently serves as the Co-President of International Thriller Writers (ITW).

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