The Silenced

January 17, 2011
Battles's perfunctory fourth thriller (after Shadow of Betrayal) falls short of the standard set by the first two entries in his series featuring operative Jonathan Quinn, who specializes in disposing of dead bodies and cleaning crime scenes so as to leave no evidence behind. Given his high personal standards and a conscience, Quinn works only for those he considers good guys, usually the darker departments of the U.S. government. When David Wills, a client based in London, gives Quinn and his team a series of jobs that requires them to clean up after assassinations, Quinn finds himself dealing with not only the requisite bodies but also another team of unknown origin that's bent on stopping the assassinations. As the jobs continue, Quinn begins to doubt Wills's motives. Hopefully, next time out Quinn will have a more exciting plot to tidy up after.

March 1, 2011
Battles fourth book in his Jonathan Quinn series is arguably his best yet. Quinn is a cleaner for a deep-cover government agency called the Office. His job requires him to dispose of bodies and clear away the evidence. Here he receives an assignment that will take him a couple of weeks in several cities to accomplish. On his mission, Quinn learns that someone with powerful connections is out to eliminate him and his familyhis past was apparently not buried deeply enough. Now he must utilize all his skills and contacts to stop his unknown enemy, save his family and friends, and still complete his assigned task. While juggling all of these issues, he discovers that a Russian woman is following his every move and is willing to sacrifice anyone and everything for her own agenda. Intense and suspenseful, this novel is a one-sitting read. Battles is a no-nonsense pro at the thriller game; his fans will devour his latest, and newcomers will have no problem diving in headfirst.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)