A little over a year ago I reviewed The Last Child by this author, and loved it. When I was asked if I was interested in his latest offering, I eagerly agreed. John Hart writes a dark and dangerous thriller, and after some of the other stuff I had been reading, I was ready for a spine tingle.
Two brothers were raised together in an orphanage twenty years ago. Well, raised is a very loose term. They were chucked into a life with a stack of bullies and together they tried to survive. Then one day the youngest brother snaps and takes a knife to one of his tormentors. Big brother takes the blame and runs away, eventually becoming a Mafia hitman as a career. The younger brother is quickly adopted by the Senator’s wife and is taken away to a life of pampering and luxury. But all is not well.
With the death of his mentor, Michael has to escape the mob. They are convinced that he has the passwords and account numbers of many millions of dollars, and they want them back. But Michael is in love and his girl is pregnant. He wants nothing more than to retire and live a normal life. When the mob can’t find Michael, they go after his family, including the brother he hasn’t seen or heard from in 20 years. Michael feels responsible and sets off to find and protect his brother.
Sounds like a simple plot doesn’t it. Well that is just the beginning. Soon there are so many twists and turns that you need a road map to work out where you are. This is a far more complicated story than The Last Child, and so much better for the complications.
I do worry about Hart though. He appears to have serious childhood issues. And anyone who does bad things to children deserves the worst that any thriller writer can dream up. This book is thickly populated with adults who don’t like kids and Hart has a specific creative penalty in store for each of them. Sometimes he is scary.
But this is a good read. Make sure you give the kids an extra hug every day while you read it.
