John Rain might be trying to get out of the game?

cbr10bingo… Dream Vacation

Ok so this book falls into the “Dream Vacation” category for cbr10bingo for 2 reasons:

1. Tokyo and Osaka: John moved to Osaka to get away from the people who might want to kill him, but he travels back to Tokyo for most of the book.  I’ve never particularly wanted to go to Tokyo, but he makes it sound so interesting.  He goes to the little places that aren’t touristy, are off the beaten path, and that have great food.  The food he talks about in this book and the previous one make my mouth water as I’m lying in my bed (totally not hungry).
2. Rio de Janeiro: John meets a Brazillian woman in a “hostess club”, which is basically a high end strip club (in my understanding).  They become friendly because John knows a lot about Brazil, and he’s actually building up a secret identity to move there and start a new life eventually.  They talk about Rio in such loving terms, I totally wanted to go there.

Anyway, this book is about John trying to figure out his next moves.  There’s another guy his new bosses want him to take care of, but he’s more dangerous than anyone he’s dealt with before.  It takes a lot of planning and coordination to get to him, and then he slips away.

You wouldn’t think that an assassin would be that relatable as character, but Mr. Eisler makes John Rain a great character.  He’s got a semi-tortured backstory, a code of ethics he sticks to, and some endearing hobbies.  I like him, and I’m going to continue on with his story.