‘Seventeen’ by John Brownlow | @JohnBrownlow @JennyPlatt90 | #blogtour #20BooksOfSummer

Welcome to my stop on the blogtour for Seventeen by John Brownlow. My thanks to Jenny at Hodder for the invitation to join and for the fab review copy.

Author : John Brownlow
Title : Seventeen
Pages : 420
Publisher : Hodder & Stoughton
Publication date : August 17, 2022

| ABOUT THE BOOK |

Behind the events you know are the killers you don’t.

When diplomacy fails, we’re the ones who gear up.

Officially we don’t exist, but every government in the world uses our services.

We’ve been saving the world, and your ass, for one hundred years.

Sixteen people have done this job before me.

I am Seventeen. The most feared assassin in the world.

But to be the best, you must beat the best.

My next target is Sixteen, just as one day Eighteen will hunt me down.

It’s a dog-eat-dog world and it gets lonely at the top.

Nobody gets to stay for long.

But while we’re here, all that matters is that we win.

| MY THOUGHTS |

Film rights to ‘Seventeen‘ have already been sold and it’s easy to see why because this is one heck of a ride.

The reader first meets Seventeen, as he is know, during a mission. But it’s pretty much all downhill for him from there. There seem to be things going on that he isn’t being made aware of, things that could lead to disastrous events. Then, in the midst of all of that, suddenly his next mission involves his predecessor. Sixteen disappeared years ago. To be the best, you have to beat the best and so Seventeen needs to eliminate Sixteen, just like Eighteen will one day kill Seventeen. Right now, Seventeen may be the most feared assassin in the world but the job is turning out to be a bigger struggle than he bargained for.

John Brownlow is definitely an author who knows how to get the reader’s attention from the get-go. From the moment Seventeen was introduced to me, I couldn’t help but like him. He has such a delightful sense of humour which immediately won me over. He’s quick-witted, determined, possibly slightly psychopathic. But for someone who isn’t supposed to have any feelings, certain moments seem to be getting to him. Will they be getting in the way of him accomplishing his mission?

Throughout the mission, Seventeen reflects on his life and how he got to be this big, bad assassin. It really helped to get a decent feel for this character, to know where he came from, to see how he came to travel this path few of us would ever consider.

Once I started reading, I couldn’t stop. The short and snappy chapters really make this such an addictive read. It’s vivid and utterly believable. ‘Seventeen‘ is tense, fast-paced and action-packed and I can absolutely see how well it will translate to the big screen. Shooting scenes, and blowing stuff up, and chases with whatever available mode of transport … it all keeps you on the edge-of-your-seat. There never seems to be any time to catch your breath. Let’s not forget the wonderful cast of secondary characters, although in this world of espionage you never know who you can trust.

It’s a bit like James Bond without the fancy gadgets, or maybe like Jason Bourne. But I’d like to think that Seventeen can hold his own just fine in the spy environment. That said, I was never really sure I knew where things would end up. It’s such an unpredictable and dangerous lifestyle, and I couldn’t even hazard a guess as to who would survive this crazy cat-and-mouse game.

Admittedly, I don’t know much about the spy genre. I just know what I like and I know I liked this. It was a fun and thrilling ride which I really enjoyed.

Bookshop UK

| ABOUT THE AUTHOR |

John Brownlow wrote the film Sylvia, which is about the relationship between Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes, starring Gwyneth Paltrow and Daniel Craig; the TV series Fleming, about Ian Fleming’s work as a spy and the genesis of James Bond; and the TV series The Miniaturist, adapted from Jessie Burton’s bestselling novel. John holds dual British/Canadian citizenship and lives north of Toronto.

20 Books of Summer : 19/20