What did you love best about The Assassin’s Wife: A Thriller?
I don’t read many real Ludlum-style thrillers, but this seems to be a good example of one of those, but with a female protagonist. I love this idea. And Kitty Hendrix does a great job with Meg, the other characters, and the style of novel. I think true fans of this type of thriller, men or women, will enjoy this book. It has great descriptions of action. There are some really creative versions of cliffhangers and chases–worthy of a Bond movie. I don’t know enough to know if they are realistic, but again, as with a Bond movie, I was willing to go along for the ride. (I purposely say Bond movie, not book–more like the movies than the dry style of the original books.)
Would you be willing to try another book from Roger Weston? Why or why not?
One more. I wanted to love this book for all of the above reasons, and I did like many parts. I applaud this writer for the idea of a female protagonist. Meg is generally smart, a quick learner, gutsy, and persevering. However, she sometimes stubbornly pushes through against informed advice (like the classic joke about men refusing to ask directions). To maintain respect for her, I wanted to understand her reasons for this. I like the dynamic of a woman having win respect from men used to a men-only world, but the way it played out in this book was unsatisfying and didn’t ring true for me. Again, I applaud this writer for the idea of a female protagonist and I’d love to see him team up with either a female writer or male more adept at writing female characters.
What does Kitty Hendrix bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
I love the way Kitty reads this book. She bridges the gap between thriller style and general fiction style perfectly for me (more so than the book itself for me). She is a great story-teller. Her pace and tone vary perfectly to bring out the most from the text. Her characters are both clear and subtle–ie, you know who is speaking and don’t feel like you are listening to a cartoon.
Any additional comments?
Again, I don’t read many thrillers like this. This seems like kind of like the Gray Man books or Bourne. When I read those I tend to read one or maybe two of the series and then not read more. So I think readers who really love those books will enjoy this book more than I did.