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Into the Fire

(Orphan X #5)

Gregg Andrew Hurwitz (Goodreads Author)

4.47 · Rating details · 8,504 ratings · 1,024 reviews

The New York Times bestselling Orphan X returns—facing his own uncertain future and undertaking one last mission.

Taken from a group home at age twelve, Evan Smoak was trained as an off-the-books government assassin: Orphan X. After breaking with the Program, he reinvented himself as The Nowhere Man, a figure shrouded in shadows who helps the truly desperate. But the govern ...more

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Hardcover, 400 pages

Published January 28th 2020 by Minotaur Books

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Jan 17, 2020 Paromjit rated it it was amazing

Shelves: crime-fiction, mystery, netgalley, thriller

Gregg Hurwitz writes what looks to be his final addition to his excellent thriller series featuring his all action man, Evan Smoak, Orphan X, hero to the desperate who have nowhere else to go as he comes to their aid as The Nowhere Man. So right, you are going to have to park your sense of disbelief before embarking on this spectacular train ride of thrills after thrills, as The Nowhere Man steps for the last time into the fire in his efforts to gain absolution from his past as a assassin, hunge Gregg Hurwitz writes what looks to be his final addition to his excellent thriller series featuring his all action man, Evan Smoak, Orphan X, hero to the desperate who have nowhere else to go as he comes to their aid as The Nowhere Man. So right, you are going to have to park your sense of disbelief before embarking on this spectacular train ride of thrills after thrills, as The Nowhere Man steps for the last time into the fire in his efforts to gain absolution from his past as a assassin, hungering for a life more ordinary and more human. He is a socially awkward man, with OCD when it comes to his ultimate tech secure penthouse apartment, an oasis of order in comparison to the chaotic world outside, with the gnawing fear that perhaps he is too damaged to fit in a world of intimate relationships that require the baring of your soul and open you up to the possibility of a world of pain that family and close friends can mean.

And his last client, Max Merriweather, a broken man rejected by his family and feeling an abject failure after the breakdown of his marriage to his beloved wife, Violet, illustrates to Evan just what love and being human means. Does he really have the strength and courage to open himself to this quagmire if he is no longer The Nowhere Man? Little does he know it, but he is already on his way, as can be seen in the snarky yet tender relationship the young hacker extraordinaire, Joey Morales, has with him, particularly as he gifts her a injured bait dog he rescues. Then there is the elderly irascible Ida, who is mugged for her necklace, where he just can't stop himself from coming to her aid. So okay District Attorney Mia Hall does not view him in the most positive of lights but then she is to find herself in circumstances where things become far less black and white.

Evan finds himself tested to his absolute limits as he suffers a concussion that mar his abilities to operate at his best, and where everytime he thinks he has secured the safety of Max who is dropped into a horrifying scenario after his cousin Grant is tortured and murdered, he finds a more dangerous set of foes that he must confront. This is a fast paced, intense, riveting thriller where the non-stop action had me biting my nails and totally enthralled right up to the unbelievable finale. I am hoping that Hurwitz returns to Evan Smoak in the future, a protagonist that has managed to capture the hearts of so many readers. Highly recommended if you love your thrillers. Many thanks to Penguin Michael Joseph for an ARC. ...more

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Dec 04, 2020 Meredith ( on Semi-Hiatus until February) rated it really liked it

Shelves: overdrive

My favorite in the series (so far)!

"He looks like an ordinary man. He is not." ...more

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Jan 12, 2020 PattyMacDotComma rated it it was amazing

Shelves: aa, arc-netgalley-done, fiction-adult, mystery-crime-thriller, kindle

4.5★
“‘They say being brave doesn’t mean you’re not scared,’ Max said. ‘It means you’re scared and do it anyway.’

Evan halted. He didn’t answer. But he turned around. Max scratched at his neck, his fingernails raising red streaks. He was backlit, the shadows catching on his face, veiling his eyes.

‘Is that . . . is that true?’

Evan said, ‘I’m not scared yet.”

Well I sure was! Often, and so many times! This is number 5 in the Orphan X series, and the best so far, I think, but I had to just take it on ...more

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Dec 20, 2020 Julie rated it it was amazing

Shelves: e-book, action, thrillers, 2020, netgalley, suspense, adventure

Into the Fire by Gregg Horwitz is a 2020 Minotaur publication.

Supercharged, "Smoaking" hot, action and adventure!

Evan Smoak- aka- Orphan X- aka- The Nowhere Man, has come to a crossroads of sorts. He’s ready to explore life on his own terms now. But will his enemies and those who need his specialized help allow him to retire?

In this fifth installment of the series, Evan is summoned to help Max Merriweather, who is on the run from the ruthless assassins who just murdered his cousin.

Hoping thi ...more

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Feb 25, 2020 JanB rated it really liked it

Shelves: netgalley, mystery-thriller, 2020-reads

I read and enjoyed the first book in the series, Orphan X and although I usually don’t read a series out of order, I decided to jump into this latest release. It worked well as a standalone, and now I have the pleasure of going back and reading the three I missed.

Evan Smoak, AKA Orphan X, AKA The Nowhere Man, is a man with a troubled childhood, saved by the government as a 12 year old and trained and used for their own dark purposes. The same government who then wanted to eliminate him. Now his ...more

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Jan 07, 2020 Phrynne rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 5000-2020

Okay, before you start reading this book make sure you have left all of your sense of realism outside the room. You will not need it. This one is for those of us who enjoy super heroes, crazy amounts of action and no concern for the bad guy who always dies anyway.

Evan Smoak is our super hero, a man who apparently can go days without sleep, continues to function beyond human levels even with a concussion and can take on any number of baddies in a fight and still win. On the other hand he only kil ...more

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Nov 10, 2019 Barbara rated it really liked it

In this 5th book in the 'Orphan X' series, the death of a forensic accountant enmeshes Evan Smoak in a fight against formidable opponents. The book provides enough background information to be read as a standalone.

*****

When Evan Smoak was a spindly twelve-year-old living in an orphanage - where he slept on the floor between bunks - he was 'rescued' and placed in a black ops program that trained orphans to be highly skilled assassins. Evan was dubbed Orphan X.

After doing his assassin job for ma ...more

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Mar 13, 2020 Tim rated it it was amazing

WOW! Incredible!! Fantastic!!! 10 of 10 stars

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Oct 18, 2020 Susanne Strong rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: library-book, buddy-read, 2020-five-star-books, favorite-authors

Heart Stopping and Completely Thrilling!

Just when Evan Smoak has decided to turn over a new leaf and stay out of trouble, he finds himself in the thick of it. This time, helping a man whose cousin was murdered and whose family has completely turned against him. A man named Max Merriweather who is now on someone’s hit list for unknown reasons.

Evan would like nothing more to just walk away from it all and yet, it is not in him. He is a man who lives by a code.

“Into the Fire” started off on a bi ...more

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Sep 28, 2019 Theresa Alan rated it it was amazing

Evan Smoak, also known as Orphan X, also known as the Nowhere Man, is a killing machine. He knows all kinds of hand-to-hand combat fighting techniques and every weapon ever made. But he only kills bad people, and I find him to actually be an inspirational character, strangely.

Hurwitz is great at getting his readers to sympathize with his characters immediately. They are good people with some serious life-or-death problem that Evan Smoak as the Nowhere Man can help out with. In this fifth, and I ...more

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Sep 22, 2019 Dave rated it it was amazing

Shelves: netgalley-books, read-have, thrillers-all

If you are looking for an exciting thriller that will keep you up all night with non-stop action, Into the Fire, the fifth Orphan X novel, is just your ticket. Hurwitz fills each page with excitement. If you are new to the series, Evan Smoak (Orphan X), is an ex- black-ops government asset, pulled from the orphanage at a young age and trained to be invincible.

On his own now after a departure, he is the Nowhere Man who answers calls from people who need help. And, then asks them to pass on the n ...more

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Mar 11, 2020 Larry H rated it really liked it

Shelves: arc, netgalley

4.5 stars.

The fifth book in Gregg Hurwitz's Orphan X series, Into the Fire is a pulse-pounding thriller with emotional heft to it.

Evan Smoak has been moving since he was young. Pulled out of a foster home and recruited into a super-secret government program, he once was Orphan X, one of the most lethal assassins ever.

When he had enough of killing because people told him to, he reinvented himself as the Nowhere Man, a guardian angel for those in the most desperate of situations. He’ll do wha ...more

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Jan 22, 2020 Monica rated it it was amazing

Shelves: netgalley

I know these books are crazy outlandish, but if you are looking for a thriller, I think they are awesome! Completely unrealistic but I’m always cheering for our hero Evan to save the day, yet again.

This book in particular would seem like it was wrapping all the loose ends and coming to a conclusion many times before the ending. Others may find this frustrating but it just added to my anticipation. Highly recommend!

*Thanks to NetGalley and publishers for the advanced reader’s copy of this book ...more

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Jan 27, 2020 Maureen Carden rated it it was amazing

Shelves: thriller, netgalley, wild-ass-adventure

Evan Smoak, the Nowhere Man, also known as Orphan X, is tired. He is tired of being on the run from his own government, he is tired of being unable to have a normal life, is tired of not being normal. Of course, how anyone with his background as an off the books government trained (from childhood) government assassin could ever be normal is a bit of a conundrum. Most of all the Nowhere Man is tired of being the Nowhere Man, the man who is the last resort of survival. When his phone number is hes Evan Smoak, the Nowhere Man, also known as Orphan X, is tired. He is tired of being on the run from his own government, he is tired of being unable to have a normal life, is tired of not being normal. Of course, how anyone with his background as an off the books government trained (from childhood) government assassin could ever be normal is a bit of a conundrum. Most of all the Nowhere Man is tired of being the Nowhere Man, the man who is the last resort of survival. When his phone number is hesitantly given to someone, that person is beyond desperate.
Yeah, yeah, I know books of superheroes, supermen, unstoppable men are almost a dime a dozen. But Smoak is just enough this side of different to make him intriguing, and the books a terrific read.
So, back to the desperate guy in Into the Fire. His name is Max Merriweather and he is desperate on so many levels. He is the family black sheep, low achiever, and loser. Somehow Yiddish says it best, the schlemiel. Max grabs at his chance to do something right and he agrees to hold the “life insurance” of the family super star, Grant, a forensic accountant. It is never a good idea to hold the life insurance of someone who helps bring down criminals. It just always ends badly with bodies scattered from here to there, including the person who took out the insurance.
Tropes, motifs and clichés are all there. I don’t care; they are in all action thrillers. With Into the Fire they are all imaginatively used and positioned, they move the story along rather than have the reader moan, “oh not again.” There is one welcome absence, hot sex to interrupt the action when the writer can’t think of anything else to do. Instead there may be the beginning of a sweet, mature romance.
I am always fascinated to read of the advanced weaponry, technology and computer/hacking skills utilized in the Orphan X series. Most mentioned I know are out there, the rest I assume are accurate. Hurwitz uses them well, avoiding an over-reliance on tech and other skills.
For a man who has very definite OCD tendencies, who craves quiet and routine, and is a total vodka snob, Evan Smoak is going to have a long road back to normalcy. Not that those are the only roadblocks.
This is a book that ratchets up the excitement and the interest in all of the characters. There is tenderness to balance the violence. This is a thriller to read and enjoy. Even without reading the previous books. But do go back and do so.
The book begins with Smoak wanting to retire. It ends with him answering his phone with “Hello?” Is this the first step back toward normalcy? I wouldn’t bet on it.
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review. ...more

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Oct 04, 2019 Marialyce rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: netgalley, books-of-2019

Oh my god, I so love this series! Imagine my excitement when I was able to get an advanced copy of book V in the Orphan X series? I jumped at the chance and much to my amazement was once again mesmerized by the exploits of Evan, who manages such death defying actions, that he is able to save the day each and every time. Who needs Superman when you've got Evan? Seriously, there's not a better bad guy with a wonderful heart than this character. He generates lots of enjoyment and just plain fun!

Our Oh my god, I so love this series! Imagine my excitement when I was able to get an advanced copy of book V in the Orphan X series? I jumped at the chance and much to my amazement was once again mesmerized by the exploits of Evan, who manages such death defying actions, that he is able to save the day each and every time. Who needs Superman when you've got Evan? Seriously, there's not a better bad guy with a wonderful heart than this character. He generates lots of enjoyment and just plain fun!

Our man of derring do is again helping another person who is in deep guano. This time it's Max Merriweather, a man who has gotten caught up in a scenario definitely designed to get him killed. So, Max makes that call and Even answers with his standard "Do you need help?" and the race is one to make sure Max survives. Danger, cunning, and downright peril, meet Evan and Max on every level. Evan though this endeavor was going to be easy, but it turns out to be everything but. After all, this was going to be his last outing as The Nowhere Man, and his thought is one last time into the fire so to speak, and rescue Max who is so in need of help and understanding. Max has always felt worthless while others in his family are so successful. When his cousin is murdered, an envelope that his cousin gave to him becomes the focus of an international monetary laundering scheme worth a whole lot of money and there are many who are out to make sure that Max and Evan does not see the light of day.

If you haven't read this series, what are you waiting for? It's so fun, so full of adventure, so at times tongue in cheek that it's a wonderful way to while away a few hours being highly entertained and mesmerized. I sure hope that this series does continue and as this book closes, we are given a glimmer of hope that Evan will be back.

Thank you to Gregg Hurwitz who provided me with lots of two am reads, to Minotaur Books, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this dynamite book.
To see reviews of book 4 and 5, you can go here: http://yayareadslotsofbooks.wordpress... ...more

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Jan 13, 2021 Holly B rated it really liked it

Shelves: read-in-2021, wow-what-an-ending, library-loan, had-to-finish, favorite-author

4.5 STARS

Another brilliant book in this fast paced series! And the ending was a bit of a cliffhanger, so I'll be reading Book 6 from Netgalley ASAP! The newest (Prodigal Son) publishes 1-26-21.

...more

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Jan 20, 2020 Sam Quixote rated it liked it

There’s something scary in Max Merriweather’s neighbourhood. Who’s he gonna call? The Nowhere Man (dun nuh nuh nuh nuuuh)! He ain’t afraid of no crooks!

Gregg Hurwitz’s Orphan X books are fairly standard action thrillers where the hero is the usual Jason Bourne-type, an unstoppable special forces guy who’s taking on the world (Americuh, fuck yeah!). The specifics of Into the Fire don’t really matter as it’s just more of the same that’s gone before: someone needs Evan’s help so he helps them, whic There’s something scary in Max Merriweather’s neighbourhood. Who’s he gonna call? The Nowhere Man (dun nuh nuh nuh nuuuh)! He ain’t afraid of no crooks!

Gregg Hurwitz’s Orphan X books are fairly standard action thrillers where the hero is the usual Jason Bourne-type, an unstoppable special forces guy who’s taking on the world (Americuh, fuck yeah!). The specifics of Into the Fire don’t really matter as it’s just more of the same that’s gone before: someone needs Evan’s help so he helps them, which always takes the form of killing baddies like gangsters and corrupt public officials. Like the other Orphan X books, Into the Fire isn’t bad but it’s nothing that special either.

Up to about the halfway point, the story was unremarkable in that Evan was effortlessly pushing the fight back into enemy territory – and then he suffered a severe concussion and things got interesting as he became more vulnerable and less assured. Some of the scenes after that were good – the whole prison episode in particular – and I liked when he helped out his elderly neighbour who got mugged, especially as her reaction to being helped isn’t as straightforward as how he dealt with it was.

It was amusing how things kept escalating despite Evan thinking he’d cut the head off the snake - wait, there’s another head to cut off! And another! Etc. And my heart went out to Dog, the Rhodesian ridgeback Evan saves, in every one of his scenes – as a dog lover I’m an easy mark for that kinda stuff and I liked how that subplot developed.

The story ends on an almost comical note when Hurwitz mixes OTT Michael Bay-esque action with an attempt at a charged emotional climax that seemed too incongruously silly to take seriously. And any story where the main character talks to the President of the United States always feels plain daffy to me. Like every Orphan X book I’ve read, there’s never really anything too challenging or insurmountable that Evan can’t overcome, which makes for a predictable and, ironically, unexciting narrative - he’s far too powerful a character.

Hurwitz is still pushing the District Attorney single mom Mia as a viable love interest for Evan and it continues to feel forced, unconvincing and unnecessary. And the conclusion was much too neat with all but the cliffhanger wrapping everything up cleanly and conveniently.

But Hurwitz knows how to write well so his novels never become so boring as, say, a Lee Child novel, which feel to me like reading a manual on spanners. Hurwitz sets up Into the Fire as the final Orphan X book but, even without that cliffhanger, I suspect the books are too popular for him to stop writing them at this point.

It’s a smooth read that’s occasionally exciting but Into the Fire never really rose above your average action thriller – a genre story done well but nothing memorable, sensational or original either. ...more

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Jun 19, 2020 Sean Peters rated it it was amazing

Following the 2019 blockbuster hit Out of the Dark, Evan Smoak—aka Orphan X aka The Nowhere Man —returns in the latest high-octane thriller from New York Times bestselling author Gregg Hurwitz.

Now, following intense few years of being hunted by the very government that once plucked him from an orphanage as a boy and turned him into a skilled, calculated killer, Evan Smoak wants to retire. But what is retirement for a guy like Evan, who broke from the Orphan Program and went on to become a feare Following the 2019 blockbuster hit Out of the Dark, Evan Smoak—aka Orphan X aka The Nowhere Man —returns in the latest high-octane thriller from New York Times bestselling author Gregg Hurwitz.

Now, following intense few years of being hunted by the very government that once plucked him from an orphanage as a boy and turned him into a skilled, calculated killer, Evan Smoak wants to retire. But what is retirement for a guy like Evan, who broke from the Orphan Program and went on to become a feared vigilante known as the Nowhere Man?

Of course, nothing is ever that easy in the life of Evan Smoak, who once again finds himself outnumbered and up against the odds.

Max Merriweather has nowhere to go. Previously, his cousin Grant, a forensic accountant, gave him an envelope containing a flash drive with instructions to hand everything over to a media contact should anything ever happen to him—which, of course, it does. Someone, after first appearing to try and save Grant’s life following a serious car accident that leaves him unconscious, ends up killing him in the hospital. Then they take out the LA Times reporter who was supposed to take the envelope.

Suddenly, Max fears for his life and turns to the Nowhere Man for help.

Evan, unable to turn his back on Max, jumps in to lend a hand—but when he and Joey Morales, his smart-talking sixteen-year-old protegee, discover that Grant’s flash drive contains detailed readouts regarding various criminal records, he inadvertently finds himself sucked into LA’s dark underworld, where danger awaits him at each and every turn. Complicating matters further is Evan’s inability to respond physically the way he’s used to after sustaining a series of concussions that leaves him battling troubling symptoms on top of the bad guys.

With any hope of retirement put on hold until he’s able to save Max and make sense of the information in their possession, Evan must first run through yet another gauntlet of dangerous adversaries to save the day. But this time, with everything working against him and the clock rapidly ticking down, he realises he may have met finally met his match.

Gregg Hurwitz brings here one of the best in the series so far, one of Evan Smoak's toughest challenges, in fact, challenge after challenge, but also with touches of great humour, especially from Joey.

Evan Smoak—who has emerged as one of the genre’s premier heroes alongside the likes of Mitch Rapp, Scot Harvath, Jack Reacher, Victor The Assassin, Ryan Kaine's 83 series, Beatrix Rose, John Milton, Dewey Andreas, John Stone, Kyle Achilles —waits a bit longer to hang up the roam zone, and with Hurwitz continuing to find creative ways to use his star protagonist, the sky is the limit for this franchise moving forward.

Start reading this series.....

Exploding with action packed sequences, a lot of story in one book

Five stars

...more

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Jan 27, 2020 Chad rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2020, netedel-2020, netgalley-2020

Hurwitz has done it again with his Orphan X series. The Nowhere Man takes on what may be his last case in a down on your luck, working man who is sucked into a large cover up after being asked to hold onto some incriminating data. I like how Hurwitz ratchets up the tension in this one. Every time X thinks he's got all the bad guys, he finds out there's another ring of bad guys above that one. I also like his interaction with Joey. I like seeing Evan become more human, and curious to find out wha ...more

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Oct 05, 2019 Rose rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: netgalley, my-reviews, thriller, 2019-best-reads

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for my advance copy of “Into the Fire” by Gregg Hurwitz – for my honest review

This is the 5th book in the Orphan X Series. I have read all of the previous books in this series, and am a fan.

For those who have not read one yet, They really do no require reading in order as they are a good stand alone read as well.

“Into the Fire” – WOW, what a roller coaster – fast paste and exciting. I am giving this book all 5 starts. It was a fun read from start to ...more

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Oct 15, 2019 Lisa Gardner rated it it was amazing

Orphan X is one of my favorite characters! Great addition to the series.

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Oct 22, 2020 Kat rated it it was amazing

Shelves: library-3

In the last(???) of the Orphan X series, Evan Smoak takes on city corruption in Los Angeles that has already ripped one family apart… and may be threatening the few people he has come to care about in his spartan existence. I liked how this wound down the series, keeping the badass Orphan X missions (and all the Joey scenes—so my favorites!) while showing Evan’s human side and that he couldn’t keep up the former assassin turned hero defender side of what he did forever. The last action scene was ...more

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Dec 28, 2019 The Cats’ Mother rated it it was amazing

Shelves: arc-or-netgalley, series, action-or-suspense-thrillers, continue-this-series, x-read-in-2019

With only a few days left in the year, I found myself reading two books in parallel - a paperback of Blue Moon by Lee C, and, when a bout of insomnia necessitated starting an ebook so I could read in the dark, I allowed myself the pick of my pending ARCS, and started this. Next day, a dilemma - which to continue? The latest from one of my all time favourite series, or this? Turns out there was no contest - the Orphan X series is just that good. Don’t worry Jack, I’ll return to you shortly...

Into With only a few days left in the year, I found myself reading two books in parallel - a paperback of Blue Moon by Lee C, and, when a bout of insomnia necessitated starting an ebook so I could read in the dark, I allowed myself the pick of my pending ARCS, and started this. Next day, a dilemma - which to continue? The latest from one of my all time favourite series, or this? Turns out there was no contest - the Orphan X series is just that good. Don’t worry Jack, I’ll return to you shortly...

Into the Fire is the fifth full book in this series. If you haven’t read any of the previous ones, I recommend starting from the beginning, forgiving the pretentious and rather ridiculous vodka-name dropping and trusting me that the books will get better and better as Evan grows on you. While each story stands alone, there are multiple ongoing characters and knowing his backstory adds a whole other dimension to this story. This is another winner.

When Evan Smoak’s trusty RoamPhone rings to announce his latest mission, he has already decided that it will be his last, feeling that he has almost done enough to atone for his past. Max Merriweather, divorced black sheep of a successful family, is being chased by crooks after a thumb-drive full of evidence, entrusted to him as a safety net by his accountant cousin Grant, who has just been murdered. Taking out the nasty Armenian gangster in charge seems simple, but Evan soon learns that the conspiracy goes much higher up and to protect Max he will need to endanger himself as never before.

What a thrill-ride! Hurwitz has a knack for putting Evan in increasingly preposterously dangerous situations, and finding outrageously original ways for him to extricate himself by always being one step ahead of the bad guys.
One battle has him desperately trying NOT to hurt his attackers, since his code involves not harming the innocent. The souvenir that he retains made me adore him all the more, and led to some of the more humorous scenes in the book.

It sometimes feels as if he has it too easy but in this one Evan is handicapped by a serious head injury - I sort of wish the author had consulted a neurosurgeon to get the medical details right as none of what he does would’ve been possible with a blown pupil - but I forgive him as these are not exactly realistic scenarios! I love the way he MacGyvers his way out of trouble but also how his loyal friends come to the rescue once more.

I was slightly worried that all the references to this being his last outing as The Nowhere Man, so the ending introduced an unexpected and intriguing twist that sets us up for an interesting change of direction that ensures there will be at least one more book - and hopefully many more.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc which allowed me to give an honest review. Into the Fire is published on 28th January - and if you’re a fan you’ll want to clear your calendar for it!

...more

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Feb 17, 2020 Mark rated it it was amazing

If you loved the last 4 Orphan X all you need to read is this...yep, it’s as good and you will love it

If you haven’t read anything in the series then this book is perfect to start with and if love it then there are 4 more to enjoy

Evan Smoak, Orphan X is helper/vigilante to the most desperate,
the people in such dire circumstances no- one can help them, along comes Evan and when he sorts it he leaves them a new mobile number telling them to pass it on to anyone who they think needs him.....and so ...more

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May 22, 2020 Terence M rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: audio-five-stars, audio-cloud, audio-itunes

A brief review will be written as soon as I am able.

5.0 Stars of 5.0 - "It Was Amazing!"
Into the Fire (Orphan X, #5) by Gregg Hurwitz.
Narrator: Scott Brick - (A brilliant interpretation!)

Another amazing book in the "Orphan X" series! Full of pace, energy and credibility-bending intensity, this book, for me, undoubtedly deserved a 5-Stars Rating!

I have listened to all six books in this series (including a novella, #1.5), and every one of them deserved and was awarded a 5-Stars rating! An wonder ...more

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Feb 28, 2020 Skip rated it really liked it

Shelves: thriller

Do you need help? Evan Smoak continues to help the helpless as a sort of penance for the terrible things he did for his country. This time, it's Max Merriweather calling: the family loser, whose cousin gave him an envelope to give to the press, if he is ever killed. Then, the chosen reporter has disappeared, permanently. And, Max is running from gangsters. Evan does what he does best and eliminates the problem; however, turns out there are a series of people, who are committed to ensuring Max's ...more

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Feb 02, 2020 Dee Arr rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: action

Once again, someone is in trouble and dials the 1-855-2-NOWHERE, and Evan Smoak answers. He believes this is going to be his final job as he plans to retire and leave his hidden life as ORPHAN X behind. Unfortunately for Evan (and his new client, Max), this last case proves to be bigger and more dangerous than ever.

Gregg Hurwitz’s fifth offering in the Orphan X series is just as good as the preceding novels. If you’ve never read an Orphan X story, you’re in for a treat. Evan Smoak is a modern-da ...more

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Nov 27, 2019 Cindy Burnett rated it it was amazing

Hurwitz’s new entry into the Evan Smoak series is fast-paced, clever, and highly entertaining. Now that his enemies are vanquished and he is no longer being hunted by anyone, Smoak is ready to leave the job of the Nowhere Man behind him. As he struggles with what to do next, Smoak receives one last Nowhere Man request that appears to be an open-and-shut case so he reluctantly takes the job. What seems like an easy job blossoms into the most dangerous and challenging mission of his life. Hurwitz ...more

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May 05, 2020 San rated it really liked it

I didn't have opportunity to read previously book in this series and even if it could be read as standalone, I sometimes felt like I was missing on something. I really loved Evan Smoak character. He's ex-government agent known as Orphan X, now the Nowhere Man. Now he helps people who are in danger. Now he's helping Max Merriweather whose cousin was murdered and he left Max a clue. Max is determined to find out who killed his cousin and this puts him in great danger.

I highly recommend Into the Fi ...more

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Aug 30, 2020 Michael Martz rated it liked it

Methinks this may be my last Orphan X book. I like my thrillers to be a little more realistic and 'Into the Fire', like others in Gregg Hurwitz's series, forces the reader to basically suspend disbelief immediately upon opening. I don't mind doing that for sci-fi or dystopian future novels, but for something happening now with today's people and technology, nah.

So, Orphan X is Evan Smoak. He's an American ex-black ops legendary assassin. He 'dropped out' of the program and is living a luxurious, Methinks this may be my last Orphan X book. I like my thrillers to be a little more realistic and 'Into the Fire', like others in Gregg Hurwitz's series, forces the reader to basically suspend disbelief immediately upon opening. I don't mind doing that for sci-fi or dystopian future novels, but for something happening now with today's people and technology, nah.

So, Orphan X is Evan Smoak. He's an American ex-black ops legendary assassin. He 'dropped out' of the program and is living a luxurious, but anonymous, existence and occasionally takes up the role of the Nowhere Man, defender of basically anyone who needs his help and has his top secret phone number. That's his chosen method of paying back society for all the wrong he's done. He's a Jason Bourne type of guy, albeit with a better memory and access to all sorts of contacts who can do things for him, like the 16 year old girl super hacker who can get into any computer system on the planet within seconds.

The action in Into the Fire begins with Smoak getting a call from a young man who'd been given an envelope to deliver to a reporter in the event of his brother's death. His brother, a talented forensic accountant involved with both sides of the law, had been murdered and it's apparent the killers know he has something they want and they'll kill (and kill, and kill....) to get it. Smoak quickly dispatches the first set of murderous Armenian criminals, but wave after wave continues to come out of the woodwork and obviously some high level folks are pulling the strings. The Nowhere Man does 'save' his client and the good guys survive, but only after some incredibly unbelievable action.

Hurwitz's writing is just OK, occasionally of the breathless variety, but propels the action, of which there's plenty, along quite well. The dialogue varies from decent to laughable. Hurwitz does attempt to soften the Smoak character a bit in this one, going into his past life and taking him into social situations that humanize him. The plot, at a high level, is decent with an understandable story, likable characters, and a nice conclusion. There's plenty of action, but so many situations and sequences were simply too far out there for my taste. ...more

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About Gregg Andrew Hurwitz

Gregg Andrew Hurwitz

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Gregg Hurwitz is the critically acclaimed, New York Times and internationally bestselling author of 20 novels, including OUT OF THE DARK (2019). His novels have been shortlisted for numerous literary awards, graced top ten lists, and have been published in 30 languages.

He is also a New York Times Bestselling comic book writer, having penned stories for Marvel (Wolverine, Punisher) and DC (Batman, ...more