Robert Garcia, a dangerous and unfeeling assassin of jihadist terrorists, has been exalted by social media as "Paladine", a living paladin whose mission is to rid the earth of evil for the betterment of mankind. In this installment of the series, Paladine's pseudo-protogee, Ayisha Cullen, convinces Garcia to help crack open the ISIS organ trafficking trade in an operation that leads to another assignment that could be the end of both of them.
Eade puts the emphasis squarely on spy tradecraft in this series: Everyone uses burner phones destroyed after each use, webcams are disabled before laptops are accessed, and even smart TVs are suspect. Indeed, agents access a wide range of tools and weaponry, including high-tech listening devices, state-of-the-art firearms. and Garcia's beloved Glock, nicknamed Mr. Reliable. A last-minute disguise ploy of Garcia’s is shockingly fascinating. Some readers will find the armory discussions and professional details overwhelming, and some plot threads get tangled, but technothriller fans will relish the engaging action scenes.
Although the focus is largely on action, Eade doesn’t forgo character development. Garcia remains a chilling cipher: After a scene of appalling violence, he "slipped back onto the beach, swung the Valkyrie into the water, and walked slowly to his car." Indeed, his actions seem to be defined by his damaged psyche--"Robert had never questioned the orders of his superiors. He never asked himself whether a certain kill was right or wrong." Adding a little relief to the violence is his relationship with his elderly Greek friend Dimitri Galanos, who is "able to tame a part of Robert’s savageness with an education on the Zen art of fishing." Readers who like coolly competent killers plying their trade with unadorned prose will find themselves quickly turning pages until the end.
Takeaway: Fans of hard-edged spy thrillers who revel in well-choreographed violence will enjoy delving into this dark, conspiracy-laden world.
Great for fans of: Clive Cussler, Robert Ludlum.
Production grades
Cover: A-
Design and typography: B+
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: B-
Marketing copy: B-
‘Robert had no on/off switch’ – more exploits of Paladine!
Reviewed in the United States on December 11, 2020
Said once and said again, Kenneth Eade is one of our strongest thriller writers on the scene and the fact that he draws his stories from the contemporary philosophical landscape is very much to his credit. Kenneth Eade may be best known to readers as the author of ’Bless the Bees: The Pending Extinction of our Pollinators and What We Can Do To Stop It, and A Bee, See: Who Are Our Pollinators and Why Are They In Trouble? - two superlative books about his concern for our environment, a topic he takes to the top level in his superb books. Eade is an international business lawyer, based in Los Angeles, specializing in international law, Internet Law, appeals and complex litigation. He is a member of the Bar of California, the federal District Court for the Central District of California, and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal. He holds a Juris Doctor in Law from Southwestern University School of Law, and a B.A. in Liberal Studies from California State University, Northridge. He is also an accomplished filmmaker and a freelance writer for the Los Angeles Daily Journal as well as an environmentalist.
Kenneth places before us a very contemporary topic – Terrorism. And in presenting his intensely suspenseful story he has created a new series – PALADINE ANTI-TERRORISM THRILLER NOVELS, of which AN EVIL TRADE is Book 5. And for those following Kenneth’s main characters, ‘unlikely anti-hero Robert Garcia was an unremarkable man, tapped out of a promising military career to become a death squad assassin for the CIA.’ To date we have learned to know Robert Garcia aka Paladine, and in this new episode we gain new insights into his mind.
In summary, ‘Robert Garcia tackles the ISIS human organ trade and then is faced with a decision whether to save his life by doing one more impossible job. Unlikely anti-hero Robert Garcia, a dangerous and unfeeling assassin of jihadist terrorists, has been exalted by social media as "Paladine", a living paladin whose mission is to rid the earth of evil for the betterment of mankind. In this installment of the series, Paladine's pseudo-protégée, Ayisha Cullen poses as an organ transplant patient to crack open the ISIS organ trafficking trade in an operation that could be the end of both of them.’
In his Prologue to this story Kenneth details why we are fascinated by horror stories; “Whether it is the savage being that lurks insides of us; that piece of forgotten ancient genetic code of the human genome or a hidden trait that has been our collective blood through the millennia, we have a curiosity with the macabre…’ This is a fine prep, as the more we get to know Paladine, the more we want to know his exploits!
Another top-flight novel from the master of intrigue – one of the best of the series. Kenneth Eade has become our go-to man for thrillers. Highly recommended Grady Harp, December 20
