HEART OF THE ASSASSIN
Robert Ferrigno
Scribner
Futuristic Thriller
ISBN: 9781416537670
If you are not familiar with the first two books in Robert Ferrigno’s bold, groundbreaking Assassin trilogy, I would suggest that you read PRAYERS FOR THE ASSASSIN and SINS OF THE ASSASSIN before picking up HEART OF THE ASSASSIN. Although this final installment stands incredibly well on its own, you’ll want to read the series in order to fully appreciate Ferrigno’s achievement, which is to write a no-so-distant future history that is sharply and frighteningly defined while being well-populated by unforgettable characters, likable and otherwise.
What Ferrigno has done is to visualize what is currently known as the United States as it may well exist before the halfway point of the 21st century. The east, west and north coasts are in the thrall of the moderate Islamic Republic, in which Washington, D.C., Detroit, Chicago and New York City (among others) are totally destroyed or abandoned. The southern states have unified under Christian rule as the Bible Belt; radical Islamists control California; and the western states have been seized by the Aztlán Empire, the nation formerly known as Mexico. There is an independent state here and there, but I’m sure you get the idea of what things look like.
As HEART OF THE ASSASSIN commences, it is evident to the governments of both the Bible Belt and the Islamic Republic that the divorce of the United States’ most populated and powerful sections is not working. Aztlán, hungry for territory and smarting from past defeats, threatens from the South; Canada seeks territory in the North; and Europe and Asia hover like carrion, hoping to pick off what pieces they can. The rumored discovery of a legendary religious and political icon in the radioactive ruins of Washington, D.C. provides the Republic and the Belt with the opportunity to peacefully reunite. Rakkim Epps, a genetically enhanced warrior who figured so prominently in the first two volumes, is dispatched to Washington to reclaim the icon, if in fact it actually exists. He is not unopposed, however. The Old One, an Islamist who has been manipulating some events and taking advantage of others since the early years of the 20th century, wants to reunite America as well, but under fundamentalist Islamist rule.
As HEART OF THE ASSASSIN progresses, the Old One finds that he is at long last nearing the end of his life, even as he plans one last masterful stroke to bring his plans to completion. He is aided by his daughter Baby, whose beauty is matched with a dangerous cunning and political savvy, and the ever-dangerous Lester Gravenholtz, a seemingly indestructible assassin who was almost murdered by Rakkim and who seeks revenge against him. Rakkim finds his considerable skills tested to the limit as he searches for a treasure whose existence may be the only hope for the future of the United States, even as powerful and maniacal forces are set against him, not only from outside the Republic but also from within.
From an unforgettably modified Golden Gate Bridge to the heartbreaking ruins of Washington, D.C. and the 24/7 parties of Miami in Nueva Florida, Ferrigno utilizes action, mystery, grim humor, speculation and violence to tell a story that seems so real you will swear you see your own reflection in the eyes of the individual characters as you read about them. Every time you blink will seem like a waste of time, a distraction from the impulse to read as quickly and thoroughly as you can, in order to devour this nightmarish, provocative and prescient feast for the heart and mind. HEART OF THE ASSASSIN succeeds as a travelogue, entertainment, noir thriller, speculative work, and --- perhaps most of all --- a cautionary tale of events that are unfolding right at this moment. It is a work that 50 years from now will be hailed as a classic, or banned, or, more than likely, both. Read it now while you still can.
--- Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub
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