Code name: Jet 

Twenty-eight-year-old Jet was once the Mossad’s most lethal operative before faking her own death and burying that identity forever. But the past doesn’t give up on its secrets easily. When her new life on a tranquil island is shattered by a brutal attack, Jet must return to a clandestine existence of savagery and deception to save herself and those she loves. A gritty, unflinching roller coaster of high-stakes twists and shocking turns, JET features a new breed of protagonist that breaks the mould.

 I recommend sitting down and devoting a few hours to this breathtaking book; if you don’t someone might moan about the lack of chores being seen to, or the dirty pile of washing that is being constantly added to because I promise you, you’re going to want read this right through to the end. It’s a little different for me as I do not usually read spy novels however this one has definitely given my favourite genres a shake and persuaded me to take up a new style. Russell hits the ground running as soon as the first page with ease and skill. Although I am not a reading spy books generally Blake taught me the world where the spy apparatus, and kill or be-killed moves are an every day occurrence in a way that I couldn’t help but keep turning the pages to digest more.

 The style of writing is clean and sharp with plenty of drama and high intensity situations and Jet is an extremely competent assassin; a mix of high skill with vigour and insolence. It’s really interesting to see a character so competent and strongly developed. She is definitely not a damsel in distress, however Blake has managed to create a realistic and ruthless assassin who also manages to be compassionate and sensitive and have real human qualities. She has depth and feeling that changes her from difficult to relate to, changing to a character that I ended up really feeling for. The descriptions are extremely graphic at time however they have a sense of eloquence without being tedious. The logistics, details and jargon were sufficient without being in excess i.e. the weapons used, and were used cleverly to give a background and flavour of the genre without confusion or becoming monotonous. The plot did jump backwards and forwards which for some readers may prove confusing however it was done cleverly so it was still possible to distinguish the different events and the different characters as a whole. Overall the structure is well formulated whilst the plot is solid and continues to construct the various plot lines and character profiles that grow throughout the book whilst the drama keeps the narrative striving forward with pace and danger.

When I read this book I knew I had found myself a new author to get my teeth into. Being a new reader of Russell Blake, finding the book my accident I was genuinely impressed by the good writing style, the interesting character of Jet, and the winding plot line bringing in new dramas, dangers and ruthless characters. Jet is an edgy action thriller that will throw you to all corners of the world, jet-setting to escape dangers from every direction. Overall we have an interesting foundation, a bucket of action, an stylish deceptive main character and a writing style that sweeps it into a seamlessly excellent book!