Duty calls to this moody detective, but how is he supposed to do his job when the world’s most elusive assassin has been hired to take him out on page one?
In Otho Eskin’s fast-paced new thriller, Head Shot (Oceanview Publishing), Washington D.C.’s top homicide detective, Marko Zorn, gets an unexpected wake-up call (literally) when he arrives home after a long night at the police headquarters only to be shot at on his own doorstep. To make matters worse, he’s just been given devastating news about the death of an old flame. In Eskin’s second Zorn novel following The Reflecting Pool (our review here), our hero juggles several seemingly unrelated murder cases, all while trying to keep the well-aimed target off of his own back.
Vickie West, a former lover and celebrated actress, has been murdered during a stage performance — at the suicidal climax of the Ibsen play Hedda Gabler, no less. Heartbroken, Zorn is forced to reassign the impossible case to his partner Lucy when he finds himself under new orders by not only the Secretary of State and FBI Director, but also the shady fixer Cyprian Voss for the same job — the lucky triple-dipping bastard! — protecting lovely Nina Voycheck, the visiting prime minister of Montenegro, from impending assassination.
With a sordid history, an aversion to guns, and a fondness for valuable cars and women with expensive tastes, Zorn stops at nothing to find the answers he seeks. In his eyes, the rules of the game are merely suggestions. Confidential government facts are twisted, favors from mafia lawyers are called in, and a visit to one particular Supermax prisoner is long overdue in his search for the notorious contract killer.
However, while Zorn manages to keep the threats on Voychek’s life to a minimum, it appears as though he is leaving a trail of bodies with every step toward what could be the same assassin. What is the common thread that connects him to these victims? Could it be because Zorn had a secret hand in the assassination of the former regime leader? Will his actions from the past lead to the most disastrous consequences? Law enforcement is convinced it is Marko Zorn himself behind the murders as the victims continue to pile up; it’s the price to pay for being the servant of so many masters.
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE MAKES FOR AN AUTHENTIC PORTRAYAL
As a former lawyer and diplomat for the United States Foreign Service, Eskin has personal experience with politics and crime that make this book feel very plausible in an “insider” way. This isn’t to say that Eskin’s use of political dialogue is hard to understand. He leads the reader through these procedurals in a way that is accurate, easy to understand, and compelling!
Nina Voychek is an empathetic and strong-willed leader — the kind we hope is embedded in our own government and systems at play. She isn’t the only strong female character Eskin writes into the story, though. There are several other intelligent women navigating the criminal worlds of politics and the justice system within Zorn’s inner circle. It’s great to see their individual personalities shine through the otherwise serious responsibilities entrusted to them.
With Head Shot, as in The Reflecting Pool, Eskin has succeeded in creating an attractive, daring multitasker of a hero — or more accurately, anti-hero — with a brand of snarky nonchalance that makes him an entertaining narrator on this exciting ride. If these first two books are any indication, it’ll be great fun to see where the series goes in the next Marko Zorn adventure.
For more information about Eskin, visit his BookTrib author profile page as well as the Head Shot book trailer.
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