Audiobook Review: AA for Killers

Assassins Anonymous by Rob Hart

Read by Niell Thorne

Publication: June 11, 2024

Summary from Goodreads:

In this clever, surprising, page-turner, the world’s most lethal assassin gives up the violent life only to find himself under siege by mysterious assailants. It’s a kill-or-be-killed situation, but the first option is off the table. What’s a reformed hit man to do?

Mark was the most dangerous killer-for-hire in the world. But after learning the hard way that his life’s work made him more monster than man, he left all of that behind, and joined a twelve-step group for reformed killers.

When Mark is viciously attacked by an unknown assailant, he is forced on the run. From New York to Singapore to London, he chases after clues while dodging attacks and trying to solve the puzzle of who’s after him. All without killing anyone. Or getting killed himself. For an assassin, Mark learns, nonviolence is a real hassle.

Confession:

This was such a fantastic read, much better than I had hoped, although not quite as funny as I had thought it would be. It was the darkest of comedies, although it did have its lighter moments. I really didn’t think that I would love the characters as much as I did, but they were all just so well-rounded, yet morally gray, that I just couldn’t help myself. The plot unfolded in such a way that I just could not put this one down.

Neill Thorne did a great job narrating this story. He really brought Mark to life. His voices for the other characters were spot on as well. He was able to capture the emotions of all of the characters through their dialogue, and the inner thoughts and feelings of the main character. His pacing also kept me engaged which made it hard to put this one down. I would definitely pick up another book narrated by him.

The story is told in the first person from Mark’s point of view. This was a great way to tell this story, as we were privy to all of Mark’s thoughts and feelings. It also made his struggles feel a lot more personable, you could just feel his loneliness and vulnerability. You could feel how much he wanted to be a better person, while struggling with that inner demon and compulsion to kill. His character was far more complex than I could have imagined it to be, and it made reading his journey so much more enjoyable.

Mark has the support of his fellow former assassin’s from his group. They were wonderful characters and I felt we got to know them pretty well through their dialogue and actions towards Mark. There were many other characters that we meet throughout the story many of them friends of his victims or other assassins who only new him through his work. They all had a role to play in this story, and in how Mark’s character grew and changed. And a special shout out to his cat, P Kitty, who of course saved his life when he was at his lowest.

The story has two timelines, what is happening in the present and then there are flashbacks that tell the stories of how Mark got into the assassin business, some of the jobs he did, and the events that lead up to his wanting out. This worked really well for this story and managed to paint Mark in a different light each time. We were able to see his struggles with his assignments, and how he at times thought that things just weren’t right about what he was being asked to do.

The pacing and the writing was also something that made this book so hard to put down. There were also so many twists and turns to the main story of who was after Mark, that you never knew who was going to betray him next. The final big reveal was a huge surprise and something I never saw coming.

I just loved the comparisons between Mark’s struggles as a reformed killer, and those of someone who is a recovering alcoholic. This could have been a very fine line between making fun at those recovering and showing how hard it is to change who you are. The author did a great job of poking a little bit of fun at AA and still showing compassion to all people who struggle with their compulsions. I thought he did a great job of showing how hard it is for anyone to overcome their addictions, no matter what they are addicted to.

I am not sure that this review has done this book justice. If you are looking for a very different kind of thriller, one that shows how hard it is to change or control those demons inside of all of us, than this is the one that you should give a try. It is dark, yet funny, and a very poignant read.