Review: If you haven't read the others, then this one is a great way to start.
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 04 7, 2014
Having read (and reviewed) both "28 Pages" and "Trophy Target", I was looking forward to reading the new Fadi Khaldun short story "The Reprisal." Since I first became acquainted with the world's most accomplished assassin, the books are no less than riveting.And so is this shorter version of an Allen Mitchum creation. As a real fan of political thrillers, I have been fortunate to have been able to read such great writers as Tom Clancy, Frederick Forsyth, and others all the way back to Graham Greene. But now, the torch has been passed and carrying that torch these days is Allen Mitchum.Because "The Reprisal" is a short story, it gets down to business immediately and grabs the reader's attention in the same way that the full-length novels do. What's striking to me is the fact that everything I've read by Allen Mitchum does this extremely well. In the short story format, it's really important, because the limitations of the medium means that almost every word is important.As I've done with my reviews of the full length novels, I won't get into details of the story's plot because I don't want to give away the parts that prospective readers will find to be disruptive from the reading of the whole story. Just suffice it to say that the author does a really good job of building the narrative in a way that holds the suspense and makes the reader anticipate every forthcoming page.Suspense and professionalism are what make a Fadi Khaldun story great. This is an assassin who, in an earlier life, was a terrorist - and a damned good one. Since he decided to come over to the other side, his former colleagues have a lot to fear when they become the targets. He understands how they are motivated and how they work. He uses their tactics against them now and no one does it better.For those who have read some of the author's previous work and are familiar with the great character Fadi Khaldun, it will come as no surprise that this short story works as well as the full length books. The only thing that can be even remotely negative about it is that it ends far too quickly. I eagerly await the next offering, be it a short story or (preferably) another full length novel. And if you haven't read any of these before, then this one - The Reprisal - will be a perfect way for you to get started. Trust me - you'll be back for more.