orphan x book review

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by Gregg Hurwitz ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 19, 2016

With his digital-age The Avenger, Hurwitz races by minor plot holes and spins a web of relentless intrigue with bursts of...

Kicking off a new series, Hurwitz ( Don’t Look Back , 2014, etc.) sets young Evan Smoak, a one-time government assassin, to work as a pro bono equalizer—one call brings a criminal to justice.

The 9/11 terror attacks made major bad guys targets for undercover termination, and so a darker-than-black government agency created the Orphan Program. That group trained throwaway kids as the world’s most efficient assassins "for solo, offline covert operations." Then "drones changed everything," and the Orphans were left in limbo. Orphan X, Evan, decided to freelance, his impetus being his belief that his Orphan mentor (and substitute father), Jack Johns, was murdered. Soon, a Hezbollah arms chief, a dealer in fissile material, and a serial rapist receive Evan’s justice. All it takes is a quick call to his victim’s hotline, 1-855-2NOWHERE. Evan’s back story arrives in short, scene-style chapters. The primary narrative follows Evan as he takes on new projects. His lair is a luxury Los Angeles condo, the atmosphere set by neighboring busybodies, where he has a secret vault with Google-level technology. Hurwitz offers a glimpse of Evan’s modus operandi as the assassin eliminates a dirty cop coercing an immigrant teen into prostitution. Then the tale spins down into double crosses and duplicities as Evan becomes a target and other former Orphans enter the fray. High-tech gadgetry abounds—microscopic internal GPS transmitters, a "fully pixelated contact lens" for digital communication—but Evan is old school too, mastering esoteric Filipino, Japanese, and Indonesian martial arts. Hurwitz closes with an unexpected narrative left turn, but even though he’s painted Evan adequately, including vague hints of possible romance with neighbor Mia, a widowed single mother, Evan will need another adventure or two before he grows into an empathetic hero.

Pub Date: Jan. 19, 2016

ISBN: 978-1-250-06784-5

Page Count: 368

Publisher: Minotaur

Review Posted Online: Nov. 3, 2015

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2015

SUSPENSE | SUSPENSE

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BOOK REVIEW

by Gregg Hurwitz

A CONSPIRACY OF BONES

by Kathy Reichs ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 17, 2020

Forget about solving all these crimes; the signal triumph here is (spoiler) the heroine’s survival.

Another sweltering month in Charlotte, another boatload of mysteries past and present for overworked, overstressed forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan.

A week after the night she chases but fails to catch a mysterious trespasser outside her town house, some unknown party texts Tempe four images of a corpse that looks as if it’s been chewed by wild hogs, because it has been. Showboat Medical Examiner Margot Heavner makes it clear that, breaking with her department’s earlier practice ( The Bone Collection , 2016, etc.), she has no intention of calling in Tempe as a consultant and promptly identifies the faceless body herself as that of a young Asian man. Nettled by several errors in Heavner’s analysis, and even more by her willingness to share the gory details at a press conference, Tempe launches her own investigation, which is not so much off the books as against the books. Heavner isn’t exactly mollified when Tempe, aided by retired police detective Skinny Slidell and a host of experts, puts a name to the dead man. But the hints of other crimes Tempe’s identification uncovers, particularly crimes against children, spur her on to redouble her efforts despite the new M.E.’s splenetic outbursts. Before he died, it seems, Felix Vodyanov was linked to a passenger ferry that sank in 1994, an even earlier U.S. government project to research biological agents that could control human behavior, the hinky spiritual retreat Sparkling Waters, the dark web site DeepUnder, and the disappearances of at least four schoolchildren, two of whom have also turned up dead. And why on earth was Vodyanov carrying Tempe’s own contact information? The mounting evidence of ever more and ever worse skulduggery will pull Tempe deeper and deeper down what even she sees as a rabbit hole before she confronts a ringleader implicated in “Drugs. Fraud. Breaking and entering. Arson. Kidnapping. How does attempted murder sound?”

Pub Date: March 17, 2020

ISBN: 978-1-9821-3888-2

Page Count: 352

Publisher: Scribner

Review Posted Online: Dec. 22, 2019

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2020

GENERAL MYSTERY & DETECTIVE | GENERAL THRILLER & SUSPENSE | MYSTERY & DETECTIVE | SUSPENSE | THRILLER | DETECTIVES & PRIVATE INVESTIGATORS | SUSPENSE | GENERAL & DOMESTIC THRILLER

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by Kathy Reichs

THEN SHE WAS GONE

by Lisa Jewell ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 24, 2018

Dark and unsettling, this novel’s end arrives abruptly even as readers are still moving at a breakneck speed.

Ten years after her teenage daughter went missing, a mother begins a new relationship only to discover she can't truly move on until she answers lingering questions about the past.

Laurel Mack’s life stopped in many ways the day her 15-year-old daughter, Ellie, left the house to study at the library and never returned. She drifted away from her other two children, Hanna and Jake, and eventually she and her husband, Paul, divorced. Ten years later, Ellie’s remains and her backpack are found, though the police are unable to determine the reasons for her disappearance and death. After Ellie’s funeral, Laurel begins a relationship with Floyd, a man she meets in a cafe. She's disarmed by Floyd’s charm, but when she meets his young daughter, Poppy, Laurel is startled by her resemblance to Ellie. As the novel progresses, Laurel becomes increasingly determined to learn what happened to Ellie, especially after discovering an odd connection between Poppy’s mother and her daughter even as her relationship with Floyd is becoming more serious. Jewell’s ( I Found You , 2017, etc.) latest thriller moves at a brisk pace even as she plays with narrative structure: The book is split into three sections, including a first one which alternates chapters between the time of Ellie’s disappearance and the present and a second section that begins as Laurel and Floyd meet. Both of these sections primarily focus on Laurel. In the third section, Jewell alternates narrators and moments in time: The narrator switches to alternating first-person points of view (told by Poppy’s mother and Floyd) interspersed with third-person narration of Ellie’s experiences and Laurel’s discoveries in the present. All of these devices serve to build palpable tension, but the structure also contributes to how deeply disturbing the story becomes. At times, the characters and the emotional core of the events are almost obscured by such quick maneuvering through the weighty plot.

Pub Date: April 24, 2018

ISBN: 978-1-5011-5464-5

Publisher: Atria

Review Posted Online: Feb. 5, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2018

GENERAL THRILLER & SUSPENSE | SUSPENSE | FAMILY LIFE & FRIENDSHIP | SUSPENSE

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by Lisa Jewell

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Thursday, March 4, 2021

Series review - orphan x.

In this combined series review, I will be reviewing all of the books and novellas in the Orphan X series by Gregg Hurwitz. These books are all published by Minotaur. This is an exciting adventure series that makes me think of a young Jack Reacher.

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It is ten years later, Evan has chosen to leave the program and now he is in a run for his life. Evan will not get away easily. No one leaves the program, so he is being trailed by someone with skills to match his own. Meanwhile, he has since lost his  handler/father-figure Jack. Despite being chased, Evan begins to use his inestimable skills to try and help others.

There are a couple of particular things of that I’m worth noting about Evan. First of all he has extreme case of OCD. Secondly he was raised by a list of commandments and part of his role as an assassin and he lives by those principles to this day. Also, he has a great love of  vodka. Can’t forget to mention that. Also, th ere is a character introduced in this series that has had a minor role throughout that I have enjoyed seeing from time to time.

This first book is most certainly action packed, gadget filled, and has excitement from beginning to end. What a great introduction to a thrilling series.

As this book begins Evan wakes up to discover that he is in a locked room and he’s been ambushed, he has also been drugged. Accompanied by his exceptional skills and exceedingly sharp wits, Evan determines a plan to escape. One thing Evan has kept on his person despite leaving the program is something called a RoamZone phone. This untraceable gadget allows him to be contacted by people who need his help. He receives a call for help, and knows that time is of the essence, thus he must escape. Will he able to escape and prove that the years of training as a specialized government assassin will be enough to save his life in the lives of others that he comes upon?

The victims that Evan help include a teenage girl trying to escape a sex trafficking operation. Another woman needs Evan's assistance and does everything he can to rescue her as well.  All along, the action and intensity remain at a fever pitch, 

What an exciting addition to an already thrilling series. I love seeing Evan get himself out of precarious situations. I also loved getting to know more and more about him as I read each book in the series. Readers following this series from the very beginning will no doubt have seen that Evan is indeed a man of strong morals, despite the training he has received and the many lives he has taken. 

In this book we are reminded of how Evan was pulled into a program from a young age and trained until he was 19 to become a government assassin. Skilled beyond belief, one thing his adoptive father/handler Jack wanted to always have him remember is that he was a human being first and not just a killing machine.  It is in this third book of the series that Evan loses his mentor, Jack. When Evan learns that the program's director, Van Sciver, is behind Jack's murder, Evan goes after him.

Meanwhile, now completely free of the program, Evan’s goal is to help as many people as possible, no matter the cost. However, with Von Sciver, who is called Orphan Y, having sent hit men after Evan, this definitely becomes a game of cat and mouse.

Along the way, Evan runs into sixteen-year-old Joey Morales. She failed the program and now Evan is sort of becomes a guardian and protector. She becomes part of Evan’s life. Another important person in his life is Prosecutor Mia Hall, who lives downstairs from Evan, as well as her young son Peter. It has been nice to see Evan evolve over the first couple of books in this series and to see more and more of his human side.

A bit more about Joey. She is brilliant computer hacker and programmer who has tried to become a machine. While she helps Evan track down his enemies, Evan becomes her pseudo father. No matter how smart and resourceful Joey is, Evan does not want her to be a part of the program. I absolutely love their interchanges. For example, I loved it every time Evan would remind Joey: language . 

Beyond Evan's exceptional skills and wits, his apartment is a veritable fortress that keeps him safe and has every tool and gadget he could ever need. It also houses all the vodka Evan could ever need in a lifetime.  For another exciting entry into a thrilling series, Hellbent  definitely fits the bill. 

The program has indeed been disbanded and Evan is doing whatever he can to get rid of whatever orphans are still alive, and this includes Evan. Not only is Evan determined to kill the president before he himself is killed, he still working on helping other people. So this is another game of kill or be killed.

Evan is not in this fight by himself because he’s continually getting help from his protégé, Joey. She is a gifted hacker and programmer who is instrumental in helping Evan work towards his goal. Meanwhile Evan remains good friends with his neighbor, single mother and Prosecutor Mia Hall and her young son Peter.

Evan Smoak was trained as a government assassin in a Black Ops government program. He dealt with burn-out and left the program. He has had many a fight for his life, because no one walks away from the program. But, as always, this highly skilled man manages to survive fight after fight.

Evan gets a call on one of the gadgets he kept, his  RoamZone phone,  from a desperate man. Max Merriweather is currently separated, just lost his cousin Grant due to a brutal murder, and it seems that he has even bigger problems on his hands. Before Grant died he had given Max a letter that was to be given to a reporter if something ever would’ve happened to him. When Max realizes that the reporter is missing and then his apartment was ransacked, he knew that he needed some help.

At this point in his life, Evan really planned on retiring. But, just one more case. And what a case this is! It doesn’t matter what Evan has to face, his exceptional skills, unending gadgets, and close association with computer hacker and pseudo daughter Joey Morales, Evan is up to the task.

As Evans stepped in to help Max, he quickly realizes the source of his problems. Evan discovers that an Armenian gang is involved. He has no trouble neutralizing the gang. However, it seems that killers are still after Max and whatever precious thing he was given to by his cousin. Along the way, Evan does something that I thought was really cool. He rescues a bait dog, which is a dog used in dogfights that usually cost a particular dog its life. He rescues the dog and brings it to Joey, and this is something that she has none too pleased with. As before, we see how Evan interacts with neighbor Mia Hall and her young son Peter. It’s evident that they have a connection, but with Evan being constantly surrounded by danger, it’s any wonder whether or not that will ever go anywhere.

I really loved this 5th book in this exciting series! How Gregg Hurwitz keeps raising the bar in this series just blows my mind. There might be some suspending belief while seeing how Evan can get out of every situation - insert any MacGyver episode - but oh, what fun! The book also has a measure of humor in each story and I enjoy that as well. Meanwhile, the human side of Evan is getting clearer and clearer, especially as his concern and protectiveness concerning Joey increases. 

Many thanks to Minotaur Books and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

Joey is heartbroken when she fails to stop the suicide of a young woman. Joey discovers something called The List, which is something that is around her college campus that rates young women based on their sexual prowess. Joy is determined to find out who is responsible for this list and for the girls suicide.  I have come to love Joey in the series in to see her work her own case as it were, was a true delight.

In what has proved to be my favorite book in this exciting series, Evan Smoak, aka The Nowhere Man, or Orphan X, gets a call from someone that claims to be his mother! Evan cannot believe this. He was abandoned at only a week old, later trained as a child to become a government assassin. Eventually Evan became burnt out and retired. He cannot refuse the opportunity to meet his mother and to find out things about his early life. What is more is that she asks him to help someone named Andrew Duran.

Andrew has managed to attract the attention of a brother and sister assassination team and if Evan doesn’t help him he definitely will not survive. Yes, another action packed book! Evan has his gadgets, including his RoamPhone, his skills and his wit. All the while, he deals with his OCD. Let the reader not forget his love of vodka, and his wonderful relationship with Joey, the hacker and programmer that Evan wants to keep out of the Orphan program. He becomes an excellent father figure to Joey. I love the fatherly role he has taken on with her and how while she continues to humanize him, and he tries to keep her on the right track in life so that she never has to experience her first kill.

This was the most personal, sentimental and emotional book in the series that’s far. We learn more about Evan's childhood and how difficult his life was once he was pulled into the program. Readers also meet and get to know Andrew, who is not only an alcoholic, separated from his daughter, but who lives in slovenly conditions that completely clash with Evan’s highly OCD nature.  In this book we even see that Evan was able to find out more about why  his mentor and handler was killed.

I have to say that microdrones that looked like dragonflies in this book kind of made me laugh. Meanwhile, Evan’s softer side, his more human side, definitely comes out in this book. Of course we see his relationship with Joey growing, him drawing closer to neighbor Mia and her son Peter, how he interacts with other neighbors in his building, and his reluctant connection to Andrew. 

The finale was thrilling and gives me great hope and excitement for the next book in the series. I am on pins and needles waiting for that book. Excitingly, I will be getting it as a print ARC and cannot wait for that to arrive in my mailbox one of these days.

8 comments:

Glad to see this, I've been wondering about this series and was afraid it was too high voltage and intense for me

I've never read his work, the books look interesting. Great reviews.

One of my favorite series - I am a serious fangirl for this one.

The series sounds great. Thanks for putting it on my radar.

I love that you compiled this series into one post!

This series sounds interesting great review

Good on you for finishing a series. I struggle with that😂

wow!! new author and series to me; as always you impress with your reading and reviews.

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Orphan X : Book summary and reviews of Orphan X by Gregg Hurwitz

Summary | Reviews | More Information | More Books

An Evan Smoak Novel

by Gregg Hurwitz

Critics' Opinion:

Readers' rating:

Published Jan 2016 368 pages Genre: Thrillers Publication Information

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About this book

Book summary.

" Orphan X is the most gripping, high-octane thriller I've read in a long, long time. Hang onto your seat because Gregg Hurwitz will take you on a dizzying ride you'll not soon forget!" -Tess Gerritsen

The Nowhere Man is a legendary figure spoken about only in whispers. It's said that when he's reached by the truly desperate and deserving, the Nowhere Man can and will do anything to protect and save them. But he's no legend. Evan Smoak is a man with skills, resources, and a personal mission to help those with nowhere else to turn. He's also a man with a dangerous past. Chosen as a child, he was raised and trained as part of the off-the-books black box Orphan program, designed to create the perfect deniable intelligence assets - i.e. assassins. He was Orphan X. Evan broke with the program, using everything he learned to disappear. Now, however, someone is on his tail. Someone with similar skills and training. Someone who knows Orphan X. Someone who is getting closer and closer. And will exploit Evan's weakness - his work as The Nowhere Man - to find him and eliminate him. Grabbing the reader from the very first page, Orphan X is a masterful thriller, the first in Gregg Hurwitz's electrifying new series featuring Evan Smoak.

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"Starred Review. Hurwitz, known for this kind of adrenaline-producing fiction (notably The Survivor , 2012), adds enough humanity to the action to make this a standout, and readers should get in at the start." - Booklist "Starred Review. Bestseller Hurwitz ( Don't Look Back ) melds nonstop action and high-tech gadgetry with an acute character study in this excellent series opener." - Publishers Weekly "Hurwitz closes with an unexpected narrative left turn, but even though he's painted Evan adequately, including vague hints of possible romance with neighbor Mia, a widowed single mother, Evan will need another adventure or two before he grows into an empathetic hero." - Kirkus "This isn't simply Hurwitz's 'best thriller yet' or 'a terrific new thriller' - Orphan X is an order-of-magnitude leap into stardom. It's the most exciting thriller I've read since The Bourne Identity . Fans of Jack Reacher, Mitch Rapp, and Jason Bourne will LOVE Evan Smoak, and the deadly, secret world of the Orphan Program. A new thriller superstar is born!" - Robert Crais "What is Orphan X? A thrill-a-minute read with twists and turns galore. I'm looking forward to Evan Smoak's next adventure." - Phillip Margolin " Orphan X is the most gripping, high-octane thriller I've read in a long, long time. Hang onto your seat because Gregg Hurwitz will take you on a dizzying ride you'll not soon forget!" - Tess Gerritsen "Gregg Hurwitz's Orphan X is his best yet - a real celebration of all the strengths he brings to a thriller." - Lee Child "Brilliantly conceived and plotted, his character Evan Smoak, Orphan X , deserves his own niche in the thriller hero hall of fame. Read this book. You will thank me later." - David Baldacci " Orphan X is the most exciting new series character since Jack Reacher. And Reacher would love this guy. A page-turning masterpiece of suspense enriched by compassion and insight." - Jonathan Kellerman "Exciting and mind blowing! A perfect mix of Jason Bourne and Jack Reacher, ex operative Evan Smoak turns on the action and shows off all the right moves as he sets out to help the downtrodden, and perhaps save his own humanity along the way." - Lisa Gardner

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Gregg Hurwitz Author Biography

Gregg Hurwitz is the New York Times #1 internationally bestselling author of 23 thrillers including the ORPHAN X series. His novels have won numerous literary awards and have been published in 33 languages. Gregg currently serves as the Co-President of International Thriller Writers (ITW). Additionally, he's written poetry, screenplays and television scripts for many of the major studios and networks, comics for AWA, DC, and Marvel, and political and culture pieces for The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, The Bulwark and others. Gregg lives with his Rhodesian ridgebacks in Los Angeles, where he continues to play soccer, frequently injuring himself.

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Book Review: Author kicks off new series with ‘Orphan X’

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“Orphan X” (Minotaur), by Gregg Hurwitz

Gregg Hurwitz delivers a masterpiece of suspense and thrills with his latest novel, “Orphan X,” that invokes the best of “Batman,” ’'The Bourne Identity” and “The Equalizer” films.

The Orphan Program is a secret government program that takes children and turns them into sanctioned lethal assassins. Evan Smoak was told that his designation was Orphan X (the letter, not the number 10), meaning there were at least 23 others. That was years ago. When he became an adult, he took a fake last name and became “the Nowhere Man.” When he’s assigned to kill a fellow orphan, he refuses, resulting in the death of his handler whom Smoak considered his father. He goes underground and leaves the orphans behind.

Years later, he’s working as a freelancer who helps people when they have nowhere else to turn. When he successfully saves someone, Smoak tells that individual to give his phone number to the next person who needs his services as a way to pay it forward. Plus it preserves Smoak’s anonymity.

Then he receives a phone call from a young woman who needs him to stop a police officer who’s using her and others in a sex slave operation. She fears that he’s coming after her younger sister.

What Smoak knows when it comes to lethal solutions for the greater good is the polar opposite of his ignorance of human emotions and trying to fit into the real world. And just when he thinks he can let his guard down, his past returns to haunt him.

The human side of Smoak makes this thriller top- notch. The reader truly cares what happens to him along with the people he cares about and those he’s trying to save in the midst of the mayhem.

Turn off the real world and dive into this amazing start to a new series.

http://gregghurwitz.net/

Book Review: Orphan X by Gregg Hurwitz

Orphan X is the first book in the Orphan X series featuring Evan Smoak, also known as the Nowhere Man. It’s an action thriller featuring a man spoken only in whispers with a very high-level set of skills called upon by those in the most desperate circumstances looking for his help. Cool premise huh?

Please note that the article contains affiliate links. This means if you choose to purchase Orphan X via one of these links, I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you to support the blog. These links do not affect my final opinion of the product.

In my attempt to try out all the different notable entries in the action/thriller genre, Orphan X was a book that kept popping up on lists on books of this genre as one that should definitely be considered. When I read the premise above, I was instantly intrigued and so keenly picked it up on Kindle and read through it in a few days.

Orphan X introduces us to the character of Evan Smoak, also known as The Nowhere Man – someone whose name is only discussed in whispers as someone who can help you out no matter the situation. You call him and if he considers your case serious enough, he will come. Only pass his number onto those who really need his help. Raised as an orphan as a child and trained since a young boy to be the ultimate killing machine, he’s a dangerous man who you really wouldn’t want to mess with. However, there’s far more to the story that stops this from being a basic “good guy who’s a badass beats-up bad guys”. Embroiled in this back story is his mentor who Evan sees as a father figure, one with whom a relationship forms that was likely not the intention when Evan was brought into the programme. Evan broke away from the orphan programme after no longer wanting to be involved – however many years later it appears they may have found him and be right on his tail.

It’s a genuinely gripping tale filled with not only cool action scenes but heart too. There’s a side story that accompanies the main tale that gives us a look into Smoak away from the action, allowing us to build an opinion on his character. This not only gives us a different viewpoint to the action scenes that take place but it gives us the main character in an action series who we genuinely like.

Characters – 4/5

As mentioned above, Evan Smoak in Orphan X is really well written. Hurwitz gives us Smoak’s thoughts as different events happen. He gives us an insight into Smoak’s opinions, his reactions to events and much more. This gives us a far deeper look into a character that has all the right to be a carbon copy of any of the other action heroes we find in these types of books but simply isn’t. On top of this, he has Smoak go through quite a personal experience that has you genuinely drawn in and flipping through the pages to find out the result.

Without giving away too much of the plot or characters, I must say that the villain of Orphan X was a little disappointing. I wasn’t particularly convinced by their motives and I didn’t particularly care for them. However, there is definitely a sense that this isn’t the focus of the book and that there’s a much larger problem going on than the one villain may suggest.

The additional characters that accompany Evan including a possible love interest and his mentor all give you better insights into Evan’s character and how he is with different people – building further onto the layers of his personality. They’re all distinct and have their own motives and reactions that make their personalities feel genuine and believable – which is all you can really ask for supporting characters.

Summary – 4/5

I was surprised at how much I enjoyed Orphan X . I had heard good things about it, so went in with some fairly high expectations and came out with those expectations met. I’d say if you’re looking for your usual action thriller book but with more heart and personality, I’d definitely recommend picking up Orphan X . You’ll not only find in Evan Smoak the usual cool, suave character we’re used to but you’ll also find a sensitive and genuinely likeable main character too.

The plot is a tad thin but, being the first in the series, it’s a great introduction with some backstory, a gripping relationship-focused main plot and a lot of twists and turns that will make sure you want to pick up the sequel and subsequent books too.

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Best-selling author Gregg Hurwitz discusses the new thriller in his ‘Orphan X’ series

LOS ANGELES, CA. (WECT) - Evan Smoak is back in action again. New York Times best-selling author Gregg Hurwitz brings back Orphan X for his eighth thriller novel, “ The Last Orphan ,” which releases next month.

After being removed from a foster home and trained as an assassin in the CIA’s Orphan Program, Smoak continues his transformation from off-the-books government killer to “Nowhere Man,” the solitary underground operator at the other end of the phone who willingly provides help to the most desperate in society. In The Last Orphan, Smoak is reluctantly drawn into a mission by the President of the United States, and he must decide whether the deal to win his freedom is worth going back on the promise made years ago to use his potentially lethal skills and assets only against those who deserve it.

“Each mission that he does on his own, is him getting a tiny piece of his soul back in certain ways and his own understanding of himself,” Hurwitz says of Smoak. “Here’s this man who, when he was trained when he was a kid, his handler from the CIA told him, the hard part won’t be making you a killer. The hard part is going to be keeping you human. So, his whole life has been a tension between these things and each one of the stories is about him going out and confronting some nearly impossible mission to help somebody else who’s in need, and to try and find access to a part of himself that he’s never been able to.”

Fans of the Orphan X books will enjoy Smoak’s continued relationship with recurring characters, including teenage hacker Joey Morales, armorer Tommy Stojack, and fellow former Orphan Candy McClure. With The Last Orphan, Hurwitz has now matched the number of novels in his Marked Man series, which ran from 2002 to 2014. Those eight books, although similar in theme, did not center around the same character.

“I thought back to the books and characters who I loved so much growing up, whether that was Jason Bourne, or James Bond, or Jack Reacher or (Bob Lee) Swagger, and I always knew that I wanted to have some kind of character that would continue,” Hurwitz said about creating Evan Smoak. “But, I had to wait to write him until I really had a sense of what of how I could differentiate him from all the other characters that have come before. And so it was a long ways into my career, 16 books in, when I finally felt that I was ready, and I had thought enough about and around this character, to devote my time to it.”

Hurwitz has written 24 thrillers and young adult thrillers since his 1999 debut, The Tower. It’s not the only genre the Harvard grad has done. He’s written two screenplays for films, The Book of Henry (2017) and Sweet Girl (2021), crafted stories for several comic book characters including Batman , Penguin , Wolverine and Punisher, and he’s also published poetry. He says switching between styles takes some getting used to.

“I feel in a lot of ways that writing in these different forms, it helps to be an overall writing shape,” the married father of two says. “But some of them are very different muscles, so it does take a bit of entry. I can usually transition from one to another. But when I transition to a whole multitude of them, a lot of times it starts to kind of come apart. I do a lot better focusing completely on one project, having like a very focused creative burst of energy for days, ideally weeks or months. I don’t always have that luxury because of competing deadlines. Then to pick up the focus on put it down on something else, it does take some time to kind of readjust and reacclimate to the cadence and the tenor of a different form to try and maximize that form.”

Hurwitz says he has worked on adapting the Orphan X books for TV and film and is waiting for the right set of creative partners to take the project to production, so Evan Smoak fans might be able to enjoy the character in a new way.

“We get inquiries almost every week from actors or directors who are looking for it,” Hurwitz said. “I’m just waiting to find really the right match because I think I’m not going to do the adaptation or if it’s a TV show, do the show running. Moving forward, I need to have somebody who’s a partner who I feel like really understands the story and the DNA of the character. And then I’ll be ready to move on.”

Gregg Hurwitz’s The Last Orphan goes on sale in bookstores and online on February 14, 2023.

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Gregg Hurwitz’s Orphan X Series Summary And Review

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My summary/review of the Orphan X (Evan Smoak) series by Gregg Hurwitz is just that, a summary and review. However, because there are now eight books in the series, and I don’t want to spoil the whole series, I’m only going to focus on the first four books. Nevertheless, there might still be spoilers (minor or otherwise), so proceed cautiously. I am starting with the Goodreads summary and, from Gregg Hurwitz’s website, a trailer (for those books that have one) for each of the first four books in the series: Orphan X, The Nowhere Man, Hellbent, and Out of the Dark. Then I will list the last four books (with trailers so you can choose to play it or not) in the series: Into the Fire, Prodigal Son, and The Last Orphan.

My overall review of the series aims not to spoil anything (but again, see the warning above). I was thrilled to have an opportunity to interview Gregg Hurwitz (linked). Please check it out!

**I just added a Teaser Tuesday for Lone Wolf (Orphan X #9) , which releases on February 13, 2024. It is linked.

Orphan X Summary

Goodreads Summary: The Nowhere Man is a legendary figure spoken about only in whispers. It’s said that when he’s reached by the truly desperate and deserving, the Nowhere Man can and will do anything to protect and save them. But he’s not merely a legend.

Evan Smoak is a man with skills, resources, and a personal mission to help those with nowhere else to turn. He’s also a man with a dangerous past. Chosen as a child, he was raised and trained as an Orphan, an off-the-books black box program designed to create the perfect deniable intelligence asset: An assassin. Evan was Orphan X—until he broke with the program and used everything he learned to disappear. But now, someone is on his tail. Someone with similar skills and training who will exploit Evan’s secret new identity as the Nowhere Man to eliminate him.

Finlay Donovan Is Killing It Book Information

Publisher: Minotaur Books (January 19, 2016)

The Nowhere Man

Goodreads Summary: As a boy, Evan Smoak was taken from a children’s home, raised, and trained as part of a secret government initiative buried so deep that virtually no one knows it exists. But he broke with the programme, choosing instead to vanish off the grid and use his formidable skill set to help those unable to protect themselves.

One day, though, Evan’s luck ran out . . .

Ambushed, drugged, and spirited away, Evan wakes up in a locked room with no idea where he is or who has captured him. As he tries to piece together what’s happened, testing his gilded prison and its highly trained guards for weaknesses, he receives a desperate call for help.

With time running out, he will need to out-think, out-maneuver, and out-fight an opponent the likes of whom he’s never encountered to have any chance of escape. He’s got to save himself to protect those whose lives depend on him. Or die trying . . .

Information:

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Minotaur Books (January 17, 2017)

To some, he was Orphan X. Others knew him as the Nowhere Man. In Hellbent, Jack Johns was a boy named Evan Smoak. Taken from an orphanage, Evan was raised inside a top-secret government programme and trained to become a lethal weapon. By Jack. And yet, for all the dangerous skill he instilled in his young charge, Jack Jones cared for Evan like a son.

But Jack knew too much about a programme that had gone rotten – he was a loose end that needed to be dealt with. But if you go after the only person who ever treated him like a human being, you can guarantee that the Nowhere Man will be coming for you. Hellbent on making things right . . .

With  Hellbent , Gregg Hurwitz raises the bar again with a masterclass in hi-octane thriller writing.

Book Information and trailer

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Minotaur Books (January 30, 2018)

HELLBENT Trailer:

Out of the dark:.

To some, he was Orphan X. Others knew him as the Nowhere Man. But to Jack Johns, he was a boy named Evan Smoak. Taken from an orphanage, Evan was raised inside a top-secret government programme and trained to become a lethal weapon. By Jack. And yet, for all the dangerous skill he instilled in his young charge, Jack Jones cared for Evan like a son.

Publisher‏ : ‎ Minotaur Books (January 20, 2019)

Out of the Dark Trailer:

Next four in the orphan x series by gregg hurwitz (with trailer- so you can decide to watch it or not), into the fire.

Publisher: Minotaur Books (January 8, 2020)

The Prodigal Son

Publisher: Minotaur Books (January 26, 2021)

Publisher: Minotaur Books (February 8, 2022)

The Last Orphan

Publisher: Minotaur Books (February 14, 2023)

Orphan X Series By Gregg Hurwitz: Overall Review 

First, and I can’t stress this enough. DO NOT BE ME. Do not look at Gregg Hurwitz’s Orphan X Series and say, “There are eight books in it, and become overwhelmed. I started this series before Dark Horse came out. That is the sixth book in the series. Furthermore, once I started it? I could not stop. No lies. I binged this series on audiobook (Scott Brick is FABULOUS) and listened to all six books in a week. To be fair, I’m on disability and only work very part-time. However, I think my point still stands. The Orphan X series gets under your skin, grips tight, and doesn’t let go.

Thank you to Gregg Hurwitz and Minotaur Books for agreeing to and making this interview, overview, and review happen.

When we first meet Evan Smoak, it is ten years after he decides to go off the grid from the “Black Ops Programme.” Through flashbacks, we learn how he was abandoned and then recruited by the Black Ops Programme, which trained him as a spy and assassin. Since no one has ever dared to drop out of the Programme, they aren’t going to let Smoak go quietly. So, on the run,  he decides to use all his years of training to help others. Armed with a RoamZone phone (1-855-2-NOWHERE), he simply answers, “Do you need my help?” One of the very few conditions for his help? If you know someone else in need, pass the Nowhere Man Number to them.

Hurwitz writes brilliantly intertwines idiosyncracies into Evan Smoak. He is a vodka connoisseur (we talked a little about this in my interview with Hurwitz), has OCD, and tends to get into fights with inanimate objects throughout the series. He’s been tripped up by his anti-gravity bed, a balloon, and various spices.

One thing Evan Smoak has kept with him after leaving the Black Ops Programme? Ten commandments he still lives by.  They have been my laptop’s screensaver for a while now.

From Gregg Hurwitz’s Twitter (linked) Account

Orphan X, the first book in Gregg Hurwitz’s New York Times Best Selling series, is loaded with action and more gadgets than Mission Impossible and doesn’t let you go until the end. The best part? That is just the beginning because this series just doesn’t stop. You will tear through each book like you were driving the Autobahn. Smoak is rarely caught off guard, but the few times he is? Just wait for it. He won’t be cowed for long between Smoak’s wits and physical aptitude.

Remember what Confucius say: ‘Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves.’

Throughout the series, we learn more about Evan Smoak, including all the different vodkas he loves, his time in the Black Ops program, and his guiding principles. And if saving people from situations such as sex trafficking rings isn’t enough, he might try to kill the president before he is killed. Then we are introduced to the incomparable, tenacious teenage girl, Joey. And as much as I would LOVE to go in-depth about who Joey is and what role she plays? Those would be significant spoilers. Safe to say that, as mentioned in the interview with Gregg Hurwitz, Joey, and Evan’s vibe is EVERYTHING.

If Orphan X is made into a series? This is Evan and Joey.

Overall, I can’t recommend the Orphan X series enough. I don’t read these types of thrillers. This is not a psychological thriller. But when I tell you I tore through this series in no time? No lies. Buy Orphan X, and if you don’t like it, I’ll refund you (ok, I’m kidding because I’m broke, but you can find me and throw it at me, for sure). The only other book I’ve ever said that about is Six of Crows/Crooked Kingdom.

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Book Review: Orphan X

The Nowhere Man is a legendary figure spoken about only in whispers. A kind of modern-day Robin Hood, it’s said that when he’s asked by the truly desperate and deserving, the Nowhere Man can and will do anything to protect and save them.

But he’s no legend.

Evan Smoak is a man with skills, resources, and a personal mission to help those who have nowhere else to turn.

He’s also a man with a dangerous past. Chosen as a child, he was raised and trained as part of the off-the-books black box Orphan program designed to create the perfect deniable intelligence assets — i.e. assassins. He was Orphan X.

But Evan broke with the program, using everything he learned to disappear.

Now someone is on his tail. Someone with similar skills and training. Someone who knows Orphan X. Someone who is getting closer and closer. And will exploit Evan’s weakness — his work as The Nowhere Man — to find and eliminate him.

Author Gregg Hurwitz has penned 22 thrillers, including two thrillers for teens. In addition to novels, he writes screenplays and spec scripts, and written, developed, and produced television programs. He is also a comic book writer, having drafted stories for Marvel (Wolverine, Punisher) and DC (Batman, Penguin). As it all that weren’t enough, he has published academic articles on Shakespeare, taught fiction writing at USC and guest lectured at UCLA and Harvard. To research his thrillers, he has sneaked onto demolition ranges with Navy SEALs, swum with sharks in the Galápagos, and gone undercover into mind-control cults. He is actively working to end polarization in politics and on college campuses, producing several hundred commercials and publishing editorials in The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, Huffington Post, and The Bulwark.

Orphan X is the first of six (so far) installments in the series. In it, he introduces Evan Smoak, the Nowhere Man, who risks his life to help people who are have no one else to turn to. He carries a RoamZone telephone that he answers by asking, “Do you need my help?” After he renders assistance, he instructs his clients to “find someone who needs me. Give them my number: 1-855-2-NOWHERE.”

Evan lives in a 7,000 square foot apartment high above Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles. The building, known as Castle Heights, was once quite posh, but its prime has passed, making it the perfect place for Evan to reside without drawing attention to himself. His eclectic and frequently annoying neighbors are hilariously determined to get him to attend homeowners association meetings.

His apartment is a technological fortress, equipped with sensors, cameras, and a 400 square foot vault that he accesses through what appears to be a normal shower wall. But his computers, arsenal, and other tools are stored there. Although not an expert hacker, he has enough skill and assistance from professionals to have hacked into federal databases, as well as those maintained by police departments, so he has access to a vast network of information that assists him with the cases he handles. He de-stresses by drinking designer vodkas and meditating, and sleeps in a high-tech levitating bed.

Evan was a child when he was selected to be trained as part of a top-secret government Orphan program. His handler, Jack Johns, took him into his home and taught him everything he would need to know to carry out his missions. Evan Smoak is not his real name and in the program he was known only as Orphan X. He came to be known as one of the most skilled Orphans, his talents surpassed only by Orphan Zero, and has left a trail of death and subterfuge around the world. His resources are vast, transferred and accounted for through complex electronic configurations and numerous shell companies registered outside the United States.

As the story begins he is called upon to help a young woman who has been ensnared by a local cop in sex trafficking. Her younger sister is about to be indoctrinated and Morena Aguilar has to save the innocent young girl from that fate that has made her life miserable. So she calls Evan for help.

But Evan doesn’t take the information he receives from those who call on him for help at face value. He investigates their claims of distress, stakes out the locations where they agree to meet, ensuring that he hasn’t been followed, and thoroughly researches their backgrounds. Only when satisfied that it is safe to do so does he get involved.

Now someone seems to know things they shouldn’t. They’ve determined Evan’s whereabouts when that shouldn’t be possible. Gotten too close. When Evan figures out that the attempts on the life of the woman he is trying to help were actually attempts on his own life, he is thrown completely off balance. Her story and background seem to check out, but something is not right about the case. He has to figure out what it is in order to save her . . . and himself.

Complicating matters is the Deputy District Attorney, Mia, who resides in Evan’s building. She’s the widowed mother of nine-year-old Peter. And Evan feels that he has to help her when she is in danger, even though he does not handle more than one case at a time. Getting to know Mia is dangerous for both of them, but for different reasons. She offers Evan a glimpse into a kind of life he has never known. He has never been part of a family or experienced the kind of harried, messy, but loving day-to-day existence that is Mia’s life as she juggles her home responsibilities and career. But he knows that becoming part of Mia’s world will endanger her and her son. And letting them into his is, of course, unthinkable.

Interspersed between chapters detailing current events, flashbacks tell the story of Evan’s time with Jack. Hurwitz provides deftly-timed glimpses into the brutal way he was trained to be “a weapon” for solo, offline operations, and the advice dispensed by Jack, including the Ten Commandments to which Evan must adhere at all times. Hurwitz describes the day that Evan lost Jack, and the reasons Evan blames himself and is haunted by that day’s events. On that day, he started a new life. He “decided to put his training to personal use. A pro bono freelancer, helping others who could not help themselves. Either way he had a calling, aligned with the heading of his own moral compass.”

The Tenth and most important Commandment was seared into muscle memory: Never let an innocent die.

Orphan X is a gripping, fast-paced exploration of a uniquely complex character. Jack’s training of Evan was different than the training provided the other Orphans in the program. He taught Evan to respect life, telling him, “The hard part isn’t turning you into a killer. The hard part is keeping you human.” Because Evan is both an assassin and a philanthropist, his two natures are often in conflict. Despite what he was trained to be and do, Evan is not just likable, but remarkably empathetic. His duality is relatable, his conflict demonstrating that Jack succeeded at teaching him to retain his humanity, even as he leaves a trail of dead bodies in his wake.

Hurwitz hurls Evan into a cat-and-mouse game full of shocking twists that unfold at an unrelentingly fast pace. The story is populated with supporting characters that are deliciously despicable and quite often meet ends that they deserve. There is simply no good place to stop reading because virtually every chapter ends with a cliffhanger that propels the story forward. The cleverly-plotted mystery keeps readers guessing until the very e3nd with Hurwitz expertly setting the stage for the next installment, The Nowhere Man .

Orphan X is an enthralling, ingenious thriller featuring a fascinating protagonist who has many more secrets to discover, layers to explore, and desperate clients to assist. It’s a perfect blend of action, intrigue, high-tech fun, and an engrossing character study.

Also by Gregg Hurwitz:

The Orphan X series

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one electronic copy of Orphan X free of charge from the author via Net Galley . I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own. This disclosure complies with 16 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 255, Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

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Word of Mouth

Submitting a book for review, write the editor, you are here:, dark horse: an orphan x novel.

Gregg Hurwitz returns with his seventh thriller featuring the hero who goes by many names: Orphan X, The Nowhere Man, or simply Evan Smoak. Evan is a specially trained government assassin who once worked for the off-the-books Orphan Program. Since breaking with the Program, he has blazed his own trail as The Nowhere Man, assisting those who need his help the most.

To say that Evan carries with him a unique moral compass would be quite an understatement. He will have it put to the test in DARK HORSE as the lines will be blurred between the good guys and the bad guys, perhaps in a way he has never experienced before.

"Evan Smoak always has some trick up his sleeve. He’s far from your typical action hero, and his mix of smarts and stubbornness continues to be a winning combination."

The book opens with the 18th birthday party of Anjelina, the beautiful daughter of Aragón Urrea, a well-respected man in South Texas who is also the kingpin of a major drug dealing operation. As Aragón steps away from the festivities for a moment to deal with a disloyal “subject,” he returns to a melee of broken windows and people shouting that Anjelina has been taken. He immediately processes this as meaning only one thing: his archrivals, the Leones cartel, has kidnapped his precious daughter. This means war!

Aragón gets in touch with Evan and is immediately impressed when the latter indicates that he does not want anything by way of compensation for the job of finding Anjelina --- no money, no credit, no permission. Aragón confesses that he is not a good man and believes his daughter’s abduction is God’s way of punishing him.

Evan calls on one of his most trusted colleagues, friendly young hacker Joey, to do some digging into Aragón before paying him a visit. Once this is done, they meet face to face. All the details about Anjelina are given to Evan, as well as everything Aragón knows about the cartel and how they operate.

The next matter to clear Evan’s conscience is to understand how Aragón’s business works and what products he trades. When he learns about the popular China White, a knock-off of tramadol and oxycontin that is actually the much stronger and often deadlier fentanyl, he tells Aragón that he will not continue working for him unless he torches all of the China White. Initially, Aragón’s men take abrupt offense to this demand. But Aragón needs to be a man of his word, and nothing in the world means more to him than his daughter. So he lights fire to his batch of China White in front of Evan, who is then satisfied.

Of course, Aragón deals with other deadly products, so there will be more ups and downs in their arrangement. For the most part, though, they are able to iron things out so that Evan can make a full commitment on behalf of himself, Joey and a few other random contacts to put together a full blitz against the Leones in an attempt to gut them from the inside out. The plan is to keep them occupied with other problems that will allow Evan to swoop in and save Anjelina, and bring her home safe and sound.

It is not as easy as it sounds, and that is the fun of DARK HORSE. Evan Smoak always has some trick up his sleeve. He’s far from your typical action hero, and his mix of smarts and stubbornness continues to be a winning combination.

Reviewed by Ray Palen on February 11, 2022

Dark Horse: An Orphan X Novel by Gregg Hurwitz

• Publication Date: December 27, 2022
• Genres: Fiction , Suspense , Thriller
• Mass Market Paperback: 496 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Paperbacks
• ISBN-10: 1250253241
• ISBN-13: 9781250253248

• Mystery, Thriller & Suspense
• Thrillers & Suspense

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Orphan X: A Novel Kindle Edition

“Brilliantly conceived and plotted … Read this book. You’ll thank me later.” -- David Baldacci The first in the international bestselling series! Who is Orphan X? The Nowhere Man is a legendary figure spoken about only in whispers. It’s said that when he’s reached by the truly desperate and deserving, the Nowhere Man can and will do anything to protect and save them. But he’s not merely a legend. “Excellent…A smart, stylish, state-of-the-art thriller…might give Lee Child’s Jack Reacher books a run for their money.” —The Washington Post Evan Smoak is a man with skills, resources, and a personal mission to help those with nowhere else to turn. He’s also a man with a dangerous past. Chosen as a child, he was raised and trained as an Orphan, an off-the-books black box program designed to create the perfect deniable intelligence asset: An assassin. Evan was Orphan X—until he broke with the program and used everything he learned to disappear. But now someone is on his tail. Someone with similar skills and training who will exploit Evan’s secret new identity as the Nowhere Man to eliminate him. “Hurwitz melds nonstop action and high-tech gadgetry…in this excellent series opener.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review )

• Book 1 of 9 Orphan X
• Print length 386 pages
• Language English
• Sticky notes On Kindle Scribe
• Publisher Minotaur Books
• Publication date January 19, 2016
• File size 3743 KB
• Page Flip Enabled
• Word Wise Enabled
• Enhanced typesetting Enabled
• See all details

• In This Series
• By Gregg Hurwitz
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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com review.

“This isn't simply Hurwitz's 'best thriller yet' or 'a terrific new thriller'- Orphan X is an order-of-magnitude leap into stardom. It's the most exciting thriller I've read since The Bourne Identity . Fans of Jack Reacher, Mitch Rapp, and Jason Bourne will LOVE Evan Smoak, and the deadly, secret world of the Orphan Program. A new thriller superstar is born!” ―Robert Crais “What is Orphan X? A thrill-a-minute read with twists and turns galore. I'm looking forward to Evan Smoak's next adventure.” ―Phillip Margolin “Orphan X is the most gripping, high-octane thriller I've read in a long, long time. Hang onto your seat because Gregg Hurwitz will take you on a dizzying ride you'll not soon forget!” ― Tess Gerritsen “Gregg Hurwitz's Orphan X is his best yet -- a real celebration of all the strengths he brings to a thriller.” ― Lee Child “From the explosive opening where a boy begins his dramatic transformation, Orphan X blows the doors off most thrillers I've read and catapults the readers on a cat-and-mouse chase that feels like a missile launch. Brilliantly conceived and plotted, his character Evan Smoak, Orphan X, deserves his own niche in the thriller hero hall of fame. Read this book. You will thank me later.” ― David Baldacci “Orphan X is the most exciting new series character since Jack Reacher. And Reacher would love this guy. A page-turning masterpiece of suspense enriched by compassion and insight.” ― Jonathan Kellerman “Exciting and mind blowing! A perfect mix of Jason Bourne and Jack Reacher, ex operative Evan Smoak turns on the action and shows off all the right moves as he sets out to help the downtrodden, and perhaps save his own humanity along the way.” ― Lisa Gardner

About the Author

GREGG HURWITZ is the New York Times bestselling author of more than a dozen novels, including the #1 international bestseller Orphan X , the first in a series of thrillers featuring Evan Smoak. He has also written young adult novels: The Rains and its sequel, The Last Chance . Hurwitz's books have been shortlisted for numerous literary awards, graced top ten lists, and have been translated into twenty-eight languages. Hurwitz is also a New York Times bestselling comic book writer, having penned stories for Marvel ( Wolverine , The Punisher ) and DC ( Batman ). Additionally, he has written screenplays for many major studios and written, developed, and produced television for various networks. Hurwitz resides in Los Angeles with two Rhodesian ridgebacks.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

St. martin's press.

The Morning-Beverage Measure

After picking up a set of pistol suppressors from a nine-fingered armorer in Las Vegas, Evan Smoak headed for home in his Ford pickup, doing his best not to let the knife wound distract him.

The slice on his forearm had occurred during an altercation at a truck stop. He usually didn't like to get involved with anything or anyone outside his missions, but there had been a fifteen-year-old girl in dire need of help. So here he was, trying not to bleed onto the console until he could get home and deal with it properly. For now he'd tied off the cut with one of his socks, using his teeth to cinch the knot.

Home would be good. He hadn't slept in a day and a half. He thought about the bottle of triple-distilled vodka in the freezer of his Sub-Zero. He thought about a hot shower and the soft sheets of his bed. He thought about the RoamZone phone in his glove box and how it was due to ring any day now.

Forging west through gridlocked Beverly Hills, he entered the embrace of the Wilshire Corridor, a stretch of residential towers that in Los Angeles qualified as high-rises. His building, the flamboyantly named Castle Heights, was the easternmost in the run, which gave the higher floors a clean line of sight to Downtown. Unrenovated since the nineties, it had an upscale dated vibe, with gleaming brass fixtures and salmon-tinged marble. Neither posh nor trendy in a city that revolved around both, Castle Heights suited Evan's needs precisely. It drew the old-fashioned well-to-do — surgeons, senior partners, silver-haired retirees with long-standing memberships at country clubs. A few years back, a middling point guard for the L

Product details

• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B010M4T5C2
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Minotaur Books (January 19, 2016)
• Publication date ‏ : ‎ January 19, 2016
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• File size ‏ : ‎ 3743 KB
• Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
• Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
• Print length ‏ : ‎ 386 pages
• Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ 1250758793
• #88 in Assassination Thrillers (Kindle Store)
• #138 in Conspiracy Thrillers (Kindle Store)
• #160 in Assassination Thrillers (Books)

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About the author

Gregg hurwitz.

Gregg Hurwitz is the New York Times, #1 internationally bestselling author of 23 thrillers, including the Orphan X series, and two award-winning thriller novels for teens. His novels have won numerous literary awards, graced top ten lists, and have been published in 33 languages. Gregg currently serves as the Co-President of International Thriller Writers (ITW).

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Book review: Orphan X by Gregg Hurwitz

Orphan X (aka Evan Smoak), is being described by many as ‘the next Jason Bourne or Jack Reacher’. Indeed many of my fave authors are attesting to the fact via quotes of endorsement on the book and / or via author Gregg Hurwitz’s website .

And—though I’m sometimes cynical about that kind of publicity—I’m relieved to say the accolades are well and truly deserved in this instance.

The Nowhere Man is a legendary figure spoken about only in whispers. It's said that when he's reached by the truly desperate and deserving, the Nowhere Man can and will do anything to protect and save them. But he's no legend. Evan Smoak is a man with skills, resources, and a personal mission to help those with nowhere else to turn. He's also a man with a dangerous past. Chosen as a child, he was raised and trained as part of the off-the-books black box Orphan program, designed to create the perfect deniable intelligence assets---i.e. assassins. He was Orphan X. Evan broke with the program, using everything he learned to disappear. Now, however, someone is on his tail. Someone with similar skills and training. Someone who knows Orphan X. Someone who is getting closer and closer. And will exploit Evan's weakness---his work as The Nowhere Man---to find him and eliminate him.

I was disappointed in Hurwitz’s last book, Don’t Look Back ; but have been a fan for a while and heard him speak (several times) when he was at a Writers’ Festival in Brisbane (Australia) a decade or so ago.

Given the fuss attached to Orphan X, I had high hopes… and I was not disappointed. In fact I was possibly surprised as it easily surpassed my heightened expectations.

Orphan X (or the Nowhere Man) is not your typical operative or assassin. Hurwitz goes to great pains to tell us that the former orphan, adopted by a man who shaped him with one goal in mind, is ordinary. He can kill you with his pinky finger but is nothing special to look at. There’s no ex-military forces look about him. He’s not described as ruggedly handsome. Instead he blends in with the crowd. He’s forgettable.

However, looks aside (and don’t we all wish that was possible!) he’s far from ordinary.

And like many of the former assassins in novels, (the man known as) Evan Smoak developed a conscience. He got out of the business which saw him working deep undercover for some government agency and now helps the helpless.

Until his past catches up with him.

I LOVED Evan Smoak and everything about him. Hurwitz drip-feeds us information about Evan’s past through memories of his ‘adoption’ by Jack Johns and the years that followed. The novel’s written in third person but we’re in Evan’s head so privy to his thoughts… from his obsessive attention to detail to his difficulty in dealing with others and trusting those around him.

The inclusion of the cast of eccentric characters from Evan’s apartment building is a great idea. On top of that, there’s the potential love interest in Mia… and his relationship with her adopted son Peter, reminding him very much of his own story.

Hurwitz has set this up perfectly so we know there’s more to come. More backstory to be learned about Evan’s life as Orphan X… not to mention his life before meeting Jack. (Why did Evan have to change his surname, for example…?) And then there’s Mia and Peter and some of Evan’s neighbours, all of whom I’m looking forward to meeting again.

I must admit I occasionally got lost in the fight scenes. Hurwitz is very detailed and graphic and I think my eyes glazed over (as they so often do during ‘action’ sequences). It’s obviously something he’s researched extensively however, as many (many) different fighting styles are referenced.

Hurwitz also offers up every boy’s (or man’s) wet dream via Evan’s apartment… it’s a bit like a bat cave with its reinforced walls and secret rooms.

I could not put this book down and easily read it in a night. The pacing’s great and the action keeps coming. And the fact I’m calling Evan by his first name is also a sure sign I’ve developed some kind of kindred bond with the gentle hero.

I’ll be surprised if this isn’t picked up for the little or big screen at some point but until then I’ll (im)patiently wait for the next instalment!

Orphan X by Gregg Hurwitz will be released by on Penguin UK  on 25 February 2016, but is available now elsewhere, including here in Australia.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley.

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Oh I think I may give it a try. I think I need a break again from fantasy/sci-fi. Great review!

Thanks Daniela!

Well that’s a book I would never have considered, I think you just may have changed my mind. I know what you mean by being a bit leery of the old “critical acclaim”, I just reviewed one that had peer acclaim and many 5 star reviews. How the heck do you review that when you don’t like it!

I just read another with lots of author endorsements on the cover, but I noted they talked more about the series and characters than this particular book!

I like the sound of the protagonist. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

You’re welcome Martha. I read something later about the film rights being sold to Sony as a vehicle for Bradley Cooper, so I hope that plays out!

Just read Nowhere Man. Absurd on every level. Should not be classified under crime – maybe adult fantasy. All the women want him! All the baddies copter in for meat auction and must die! Aaargh!!!!

Nooooo! Say it isn’t so! I’m hoping to get / read it soon. I loved the first in this series so much I’ll be disappointed if the second is a let-down!

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Hi, I’m Deborah… a seachanger living on Australia’s Fraser Coast, in Queensland. I write about books and life in general.

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Orphan X Books in Order (11 Book Series)

Orphan X is a series of 11 books written by Gregg Hurwitz. Here, you can see them all in order! (plus the year each book was published)

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Last Updated: Monday 1 Jan, 2024

• Orphan X Books in Order

Orphan X, Book 1

Gregg Hurwitz

Buy a Bullet

Orphan x, book 2.

The Nowhere Man

Orphan x, book 3.

Orphan X, Book 4

Orphan X, Book 5

Out of the Dark

Orphan x, book 6.

Into the Fire

Orphan x, book 7.

Orphan X, Book 8

Prodigal Son

Orphan x, book 9.

Orphan X, Book 10

The Last Orphan

Orphan x, book 11, can you list the orphan x books in order.

Yes, the Orphan X series by the author Gregg Hurwitz follows a specific chronological order. To get the most out of Evan Smoak's story, we recommend reading the novels in order. You can find the sequence and add them to your cart for purchase through our links to Amazon. Andrew may also be a fascinating character you come across within the novels.

What is the correct Orphan X series in order to start reading for a new fan interested in the books in order?

To dive into the world of Evan Smoak and the Orphan X book series by Gregg Hurwitz, you should begin with "Orphan X," followed by the subsequent books as published by Macmillan Publishers. Our website lists the entire series in the correct order to enhance your reading experience.

I am looking for the Orphan X series order that includes all the books released to date. Could you provide it?

Certainly, the Orphan X series by Gregg Hurwitz should be read in the order they were released to fully understand the evolution of the protagonist, Evan Smoak. You can easily shop for all the books in the series on our site, with easy access to add them to your cart.

Where can I find the Gregg Hurwitz Orphan X book series listed?

You can find all the books from the Orphan X series listed on our website. Each book, penned by author Gregg Hurwitz, is available for you to read about and then shop using our links to Amazon.

How many Orphan X books are there, and what is the sequence I should follow if I want a fulfilling series experience?

The Orphan X series by Gregg Hurwitz comprises multiple books. For the ideal reading order, we suggest you follow the sequence in which the books were published, starting with the first one titled "Orphan X." Our website lays out the complete list from top to bottom for easy navigation and shopping.

What is the primary theme of the Gregg Hurwitz book series known as Orphan X?

The primary theme of the Orphan X series is the thriller-packed life of Evan Smoak. He is a skilled operative who was part of a covert program but now uses his abilities to help those in desperate need. Each book in the series delves deeper into this intriguing and action-packed storyline.

Who is the author of the Orphan X series and when were the order of books released?

Gregg Hurwitz is the acclaimed author behind the Orphan X series. The books have been released by Macmillan Publishers, with the first novel hitting shelves in February 2016, and subsequent novels being released regularly afterward, including the latest installment in November of the previous year.

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