The Approach

Michael Hendricks #0.5

by Chris Holm

Hitman with a heart of gold Michael Hendricks is back in this digital-exclusive short story. When a strip-club mogul puts out a hit on a dancer who won't give him off-the-clock attention, Hendricks takes a detour to Las Vegas to stop the job in its tracks. With tech genius Lester in his ear and a fake identity as cover, Hendricks has only one he has no idea what the target looks like. Against the scorching heat of the city's desert outskirts, a case of mistaken identity nearly turns fatal, but our principled hitman has a few tricks of his own up his sleeve.

Genres: Thriller

25 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 9, 2016

About the author

Chris Holm is the author of the cross-genre Collector trilogy, which recasts the battle between heaven and hell as old-fashioned crime pulp; the Michael Hendricks thrillers, which feature a hitman who only kills other hitmen; and the standalone scientific thriller, CHILD ZERO. He's also a former molecular biologist with a U.S. patent to his name. Chris’ work has been selected for THE BEST AMERICAN MYSTERY STORIES, named a New York Times Editors’ Choice, and won a number of awards, including the 2016 Anthony Award for Best Novel. He lives in Portland, Maine.

Reviews

[Sean Peters (A Good Thriller) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Started the book on 12th August, finished 1/2 later as only 25 pages.

Hard to review a book that is so short, as this actually takes place before The Killing Kind, which I read.

But introduces the reader to Michael Hendricks, and his character.

To the great book The Killing Kind.

Now time to start number 2 in the Michael Hendricks series

[Michael Hicks · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was a big fan of last year’s The Killing Kind (my review), and have been waiting on Chris Holm’s follow-up pretty much since hitting that book’s final page. Red Right Hand is due out next month, and to whet our appetites a bit, Holm and his publisher, Mulholland Books, have released this digital-exclusive short story, The Approach.

Coming in at around 20 pages, this is a quick, brisk, no-frills kind of read. It’s a short teaser to get readers interested in the character of Michael Hendricks, a hitman who targets hitmen. As far as I’m concerned, that’s a premise worthy of reading all by itself, and Holm certainly proved me right with the prior outing.

Here, Hendricks finds himself in Las Vegas to save the life of a stripper with a sadly meager bounty on her head. Needless to say, things quickly get complicated and turned upside down. There’s a fun twist, and a good bit of rapid-fire action and Hendricks having to quickly think on his feet to protect his mark.

The Approach is a fun story, and at only 99c it provides a solid few minutes worth of diversion. It also has me even more eager to soon meet up with Hendricks again in Red Right Hand.

New readers need not fear, though, as no prior background is required before diving into this short story. The Approach takes place prior to The Killing Kind, and Holm gives you all the info you need to enjoy this small chapter. I think, once finished, you’ll want to get more familiar with Hendricks and his background, and now’s the best time to do so!

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! A Hitman with a Conscious !

A prequel to the first in the series. Definitely different a Hitman with a conscious! But the conscious comes with a price. Can't say much more without giving the storyline away. I will be getting the next book.

[Penny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow was this a short story, probably the shortest I have ever read lol. I already read #1 and #2 in the Michael Hendricks series so I was up to speed on what he does for a living. Really good story all in all, I just wish that the author would continue with this series as I really enjoyed the first 2 books.

[Woody James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short prequel of a series about a killer of hit men.

Quick and dirty but a nice introduction to the series. I read the first book before this one but it was still good.

[Dipanjan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short Story!

[Ingo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was available for free (well it is a short story) as I looked for it, and given the very short read, I would not pay the 99ct (just under 1 Eur) for it, that is now asked.
Also the 53 pages are more like 20-30, as an excerpt from Red Right Hand is included.
Not to fond of short stories, but this was ok.

[John Purvis · Rating 4 out of 5]

“The Approach” eBook was published in 2016 and was written by Chris Holm (http://chrisfholm.blogspot.com). Mr. Holm has published five novels as well as several short stories.

I was invited to read this short story by the author. I categorize this story as ‘R’ because it contains scenes of Violence and Mature Language. The story is set in Las Vega, Nevada. The primary character is Michael Hendricks.

Hendricks is a hit man, but his targets are those who are sent to kill others. He goes to a seedy motel to meet up with his next potential client. He is involved in mistaken identity and is nearly killed for his efforts.

This was a quick read of 15 minutes for this 25 page short story. The pace was fast and the story does interest me in reading more about this character. This is the same character as in Holm’s book “The Killing Kind”. I do no think much of the cover chosen. I give this novel a 3.7 (rounded up to a 4) out of 5.

Further book reviews I have written can be accessed at https://johnpurvis.wordpress.com/blog/.

[Drew · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightful short featuring hitman-hitman Michael Hendricks, just before the start of The Killing Kind. It's a quick read (even quicker than its page count belies, as there's an extensive preview of Red Right Hand at the back) and Holm seems delighted to have a moment to just deliver some wham-bang action and call it a day. Lester makes an appearance and Hendricks isn't quite so road-weary as he is last time I saw him, so it was nice to go back to when things were a little simpler. The action is tremendous (it all pivots on one simple mistake made by Hendricks, one that is both funny [that's all down to Holm's writing] and quite nearly deadly) and yet there's still an opportunity to have a human moment. Hendricks makes a big deal out of being (somewhat) mercenary, but a story like this sheds more light on the heart we readers know to be there - while also reaffirming that if there's one dude you want on your side in a fight, it's Hendricks.

[Joe Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a short story set after The Killing Kind and before the new one Red Right Hand which comes out next month. Think of it as a tease before the next book as we get a short adventure with Michael Hendricks which turns out to be a lot of fun! I really like the idea of authors giving us a little extra story in between novels to hold us over. I am not sure if this story will be referenced at all in the new book, but it would be cool if it was. For those of you who haven't read The Killing Kind you can still appreciate this story for what it is and get an idea of what's to come.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting short intro book to the Michael Hendricks series. Unlike the subsequent 2 books, this was written in the first person. The change of narration was a bit jarring since I had inadvertently read the first book in the series prior to reading this. The story was interesting and a tad humorous. It would be a good way to tease a person into reading the series.

A preview copy was provided by NetGalley and Mulholland Books in exchange for an honest review.

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting twist but the extensive gun battle in the motel room seemed a little farfetched.

[Anne Winterton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent short story

This story was brief, but intense, and full of surprises. The characters were sharply defined, the story unwound effectively. Great read!