Customer Reviews

Exit Strategy (Nadia Stafford)

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

After Nadia Stafford took justice into her own hands, she had to leave the police force. She finally ends up becoming a hitwoman for a small mafia family, whilst at the same time trying to keep her tourist lodge solvent. However, when one of her hits is mistaken for the work of a serial killer, she joins forces with five other assassins to stop the killings before they are all exposed.

Nadia as a heroine is a bit of an enigma. Even though we're in her head, there are still parts of her that remain a mystery. And I liked this. I liked having to think about her motivations. As a hitwoman she's decisive and professional, but there's something inside her that's not functioning quite properly. I'm hoping we gradually find out more about her in upcoming books. I wonder, if she'll ever have to confront all the things she's denied.

Of the other hitmen - Jack, Evelyn, Quinn and Felix - we spend most time with Jack, who is Nadia's mentor, and Evelyn who was Jack's mentor.

...Jack said, "You saw my note, right? It said 'wait'."
"That was a note? I thought it was a haiku."

Jack brings new meaning to the word taciturn. Whilst he uses the minimum number of words to get his point across, and none if he can say what he wants to non-verbally, his presence looms large on the page. He remains a complete professional, focused on the job at hand, and yet there is a chemistry between him and Nadia that is almost tangible - probably moreso because the two of the them don't acknowledge it. Yep, I think I'm gonna be a Jack/Nadia shipper.

Kelley Armstrong writes characters who feel like real people, whether they're an ex-cop hitwoman, or the world's only female werewolf. In Exit Strategy this is emphasized in the 'victim vignettes'. Two or three pages we spend with the victims of the serial killer before they're murdered, as they just go about their daily lives. In just a few pages they become real people, not just red shirts. By the time you read about Gracie and Cliff you'll be biting your fingernails.

One of the most memorable scenes for me in Bitten (Otherworld Bk1) has nothing to do with werewolves. It's the scene where Elena is pursued by a killer through an airport parking lot. You were there with her, and Exit Strategy has a similar feel. Would I recommend this book to everyone - no. If the reason you read Kelley Armstrong's books is for the urban fantasy element, then this one might not be for you. If on the other hand it's for her dialogue, and the way she makes characters come alive on the page, then give it a try.

Fans of Kelley Armstrong's Otherrworld series know that she usually delivers strong plotting, tough female characters (usually with a hunky male counterpart for some sizzle), and an overall fun read. In this book, however, the transition to the real world from the Otherworld strains the reader's credulity to the utmost. The plot is straightforward enough: a hitman has turned serial killer, and a group of other hitmen get together to take him down before he draws too much attention to their profession. OK as far as it goes... but it's one thing to have hitmen as heroes, another to have them as uncomplicated heroes. The hitmen Nadia meets (all of whom kill people for a living, some without caring why or who the hit is on) turn out to be hunky, well-educated, charming, and altruistic, far more concerned with 'doing the right thing' than the general public. By t he end I found that it required less suspension of disbelief to read Industrial Magic or No Humans Involved; once you accept witches and demons, the story flows. Asking the reader to buy this image of hitmen... no one, or two, but three mega-attractive remarkably altruistic hitmen... made this a very silly and ultimately unsatisfying read for its genre; fans of realistic mysteries or suspense novels will be very disappointed.

Before I started reading fantasy, I was devoted to Robert Ludlum, Tom Clancy, and Michael Crichton. What's common about the thrillers these gentlment write is that they grab you by the throat and don't let go til it's over and even then, often leave your head spinning wanting more.

That's what I'm comparing "Exit Strategy" to. While I liked the book, I definitely find it lacking for an entree into the thriller genre. The last 80-100 pages are what I would expect--the book was darn near impossible to put down and written tightly enough to keep things moving, but the setup was far too long. Fans of Ms. Armstrong's who cross over to this book to read her will probably like this book, but thriller fans may well not--and like as not, "Mystery Thriller" is where this book is placed on the shelves and where it will have to be compared.

"Exit Strategy" opened with an excellent hook. Nadia, a professional hitwoman, performs her contract and discovers that her 'hit' is being credited to a serial killer, "The Helter Skelter Killer." Nadia is understandably concerned that the Feds are going to lay all the Helter Skelter killer's crimes at her feet.

When Jack, a hitman of her acquaintance, offers her a chance to join a team that's being funded by a mysterious source to catch the Helter Skelter killer, Nadia takes him up on it. You see, Nadia is not just a hitman--she's a former cop who lost her job when she went vigilante and took justice into her own hands. Our heroine has got a past--one that leaves her screaming from nightmares many nights.

From there, we meet the rest of the team: Evelyn, a white haired lady who's about to retire from the business but is still actively recruiting proteges so she can leave her mark on the profession; Quinn, a lawman who's gone vigilante; and Felix, a man of many disguises. The quintet embarks on a US-wide chase of the Helter Skelter killer. Each member of this team has his or her own story and motivation--they're folks who are a law-onto-themselves who are hiring out to do a lawful task for various motives of their own.

The problem is the interior portion of the book is seriously lacking in suspense. Armstrong stepped out on a limb by giving us several passages from the killer's point of view. I'm of two minds as to whether showing us the killer as he is working is a good idea or not--in this case, I clearly knew the killer was a he and that eliminated a very interesting possibility.

Further, there was a lot of time needed to set up the character of her five-person team. If "Exit Strategy" is going to be followed with a sequel or more--this is going to pay off, because we will have a very interesting cast of characters to play from.

The finale was a standout. If Ms. Armstrong had kept that kind of pacing through the whole novel, it'd be a 5 star book. At the end, "Exit Strategy" left me wanting more. Ms. Armstrong shows she has the chops to write thrillers and stand among the giants. I'd strongly recommend reading "Exit Strategy" as background and picking up the second book of this series based solely on those last 80-100 pages.

This follows my personal experience with "Women of the Otherworld." Ms. Armstrong's "Women of the Otherworld" are some of my favorite fantasy novels; however, I stopped reading both "Bitten" and "Broken" and have not reviewed them, because I do not think it would be fair to do so. "Industrial Magic" was excellent and I have found the rest of the series to be of similar caliber. I sincerely believe the second book and those following of the Nadia series will improve and very likely take their place along with the other greats writing the thriller genre.

Plot was okay, but not as good as her other books, and none of the romance.

While slightly slower than I prefer, and a little light on the romance (which relates to personal preference rather than a flaw in the story), this unique approach to a serial killer tale nevertheless held my attention throughout. I look forward to the next Nadia Stafford book.

I just finished reading Exit Strategy. I'm a huge Kelley Armstrong fan, loving every second of her other series. This book has nothing to do with her other series! I knew and expected that going in, but others might not. There is NOTHING paranormal about this book. What it is--a good action slash mystery. There's a hint of possible romance...but the story doesn't get bogged down by it.

Storyline? A female ex-cop who's been disavowed tried to put her life back together by purchasing an old hunting lodge. Of course, the lodge teeters on the brink of making it or failing forcing the main character to find additional income to keep the place afloat. An opportunity comes her way putting her into the business of part-time hitman (or person). Everything goes along smoothly until there seems to be a brash of serial killings that are gaining national attention and bringing her part-time career choice in jeopardy. In comes the "who done it" part...an interested party offers to pay to hunt down and stop the killer in the hopes of easing off the spotlight on the business. The main character Nadia is asked to join her mentor and a small group of other hitmen to try and do the job.

I'm not willing to give it a 5 star rating as much as I love the author just because while the book was good, it wasn't great. Compared to some other authors, sure...great book! Compared to the level of work I've seen her put out in the past...Exit Strategy is a good book.

All in all, I think Ms. Armstrong is trying something new and this book is her attempt with training wheels. Its good, its fun, and I expect future additions to the series (as she gets a little more comfortable with the characters and storyline) will be great! She's just not quite up to par with her usual body of work just yet.

All that said, I'd recommend it to a friend (in fact I have) and I will certainly buy the next book in the series when it comes out.

Plot Summary: Nadia Stafford is an ex-cop who owns a struggling lodge up in Canada. She loves her little business, but to make ends meet she employes her unique talents on the side - she is a hitwoman for a Mafia family. Nadia considers herself strictly a small-time pro, so she's surprised when her sometime mentor, Jack, shows up with an intriguing offer. A former hitman has turned serial killer, and he's bringing down all kinds of law enforcement heat on their small community. Jack is assembling a team of professional killers to track the guy down and take him out. This is just the kind of job that appeals to Nadia's sense of vigilante justice, and she accepts the toughest assignment of her young career.

I think this is one of those times when my expectations led me astray, and I wasn't happy with Exit Strategy in the beginning because it wasn't shaping up to what I thought it would be, but once I was able to let go of those preconceived notions, I had a great time with it. Somehow I got it into my head that this was just as much of a romantic suspense novel as a thriller, but that's not the case. Sure, there's "sexual tension" sprinkled throughout the story, but it's ever so slight. Really, it's hardly worth mentioning, and I wish I hadn't kept waiting for "more" in that department, because that lead to my early disappointment. So forget any notion that there's romance in here, because there's not, and just approach this as an ensemble thriller with some good, solid characters.

I think Kelley Armstrong did a great job getting inside the mindset of the professional killer. She portrayed the successful pros as having strong attention to detail coupled with a stone cold temperament. They must be like Iceman on Top Gun, unshakable under pressure, and perfect in their execution. Nadia displayed remarkable intelligence under fire, and I figure that I'd last about ten seconds as a hitwoman myself, because compared to her I walk through my day oblivious, whereas Nadia was completely attuned to her environment.

If you struggle with the idea of a woman making a living as an indiscriminate killer, well so do I, and to make the idea a bit more palatable Ms. Armstrong made sure to invest Nadia with a moral code that allows her to knock off Mafia thugs with no remorse while making it clear that she won't take just any job. She must be convinced that she's taking out a bad guy who would otherwise escape our justice system, but it's clear that Nadia would never take a job on an innocent man, woman, or child. When the worst kind of scum can walk free on a technicality, isn't Nadia just a little bit justified in doing what she does? That's the premise the story wants you to buy anyway.

I admit to being frustrated by Jack, Nadia's mentor and peer. His habit of talking in incomplete sentences drove me nuts for the first half of the book, and then I just let go and adapted to his two-word sentences. He takes taciturn to a whole new level, but it's obvious that he cares for Nadia. What remains a mystery is how deeply he cares, and whether his feelings are platonic or romantic. Even if they are romantic, he's the type of guy who might never act upon them, so their relationship has an unsettled quality. They leave as much unsaid as said. Fortunately Ms. Armstrong keeps Jack and Nadia together in the second installment, Made to be Broken, so perhaps some of these unspoken questions will be answered.

I was introduced to Kelley Armstrong with the Otherworld Series. I enjoyed them so much that I thought I would give this series a shot knowing it had nothing to do with the paranormal. I am really not into mysteries but I was pleasantly surprised. Overall, it's worth the read. In my opinion, there were a few flaws for me that could have made the book better if they were addressed. #1 No romance. If you are looking for some romance, you won't find it here. Some kissing, and longing for more, but thats about it. #2 The character of Jack does not speak in complete sentences, when he does speak...and it became very annoying to me throughout the book. I guess with having been familiar with Kelley's other books, I didn't expect this, nor did I enjoy this character flaw, though I know it is relevant to the type of person he is. #3 I think it was kind of silly for Kelley to set it up so Nadia apparently has no idea Jack really cares for her. It is so obvious to readers that it can't not be obvious to her. That kind of had me yelling at Nadia at times to wake up or smack herself in the head..come on...a girl knows these things! #4 The story was slow moving until about 3/4 of the way through. Despite those, I still enjoyed the book and am looking forward to the next one.

I've always loved Kelley's Women of the Otherworld series, so I decided to give this one a try. I thought I'd like it, but I enjoyed it much more than I even expected! The main two characters were interesting and likable. I liked the whole idea of Nadia and her "hitman/hitwoman" world. There was plenty of action, character development, and some romance/sexual tension. Kelley is an excellent writer and I can't wait for the next installment in this series!

Kelley Armstrong has always had the ability to draw believable characters. In her capable hands characters come to life, imbued with feelings and motivations that make sense. The reader may not always agree with the actions or reasons, but the author's skill provides a believable backdrop for the individual's actions. A good story directed by a craftsman is a lovely thing to read.

Nadia Stafford is a complex character. Cop, true-believer, killer, damaged soul - these are a few of the facets that make up the heroine in "Exit Strategy". This is not a book filled with main-stream characters. Nadia; her mentor, Jack; their fellow hit-men; and those that utilize their talents have scars -some of them obvious and others hidden deeply beneath the surface. Like most of us, the scars are what define these individuals and make their actions and decisions believable.

I really enjoyed this book and was happy to see the author successfully branch out into another genre. I love her "Otherworld" books and look forward to reading many more of them, but I hope she will not let Nadia and Jack fall by the way-side. This book was defiantly worth the read.