So over the last three days, I have finished two books. The first bookk finished was The One Plan: A Week by Week Guide to Restoring Your Natural Health and Happiness by Yogi Cameron Alborzian The second one was The Second Life of Nick Mason by Steve Hamilton. They are respectively, books 36 and 37 of 2016. I am going to write about the second book The Second Live of Nick Mason in this post. I will tackle The Open Plan in a post about yoga, maybe later this afternoon.
The Second Life of Nick Mason – Steve Hamilton
.I have been a fan of the novels of Steve Hamilton for many years now. The first Steve Hamilton book was Winter of the Wolf – Book #2 in the Alex McKnight series according to my records I read finished that book of Jun 7,2004. After finishing it, I quickly went to the library and checked out A Cold Day in Paradise -Book #1 in the series. I finished that book on June 12th of the same year! Needless to say I loved the books and the series ever since!!
In The Second Life of Nick Mason, Hamilton has created a great new anti-hero.in Nick Mason. Yesterday, I had lunch with an old (we are) high school classmate. We both talked about the fact that life is made up of choices. You make your choices and you live with them , always doing the best you can.
The Story
Well, Nick Mason throughout his life has made some bad choices. First to steal cars, then move unto burglary, and ultimately stealing from drug dealers. During that time, he made a good choice, he married and had a daughter. But then the ultimate “easy” heist came along – he made the wrong decision. It was supposed to be easy heist, drive into the harbor, take on some cargo and then drive it to the new owner. Right decision! Don’t do it! Nick’s decision do it! Of course doing it meant going against his pledge to his wife to stay clean. But Nick decides this one caper is all he needs to make things better for his wife and daughter. Bad decision! When the heist goes south, it costs him everything, wife, his daughter and his freedom. The sentence 25 years!
After five years in prison, along comes Darius Cole, a criminal mastermind Cole is serving a double life term, but still runs his empire from his cell. He offers Nick a deal. All Nick has to do is whatever he’s told to do when the phone rings.
Nick accepts. His conviction is soon overturned and he walks out of prison a free man. But is he free, Cole says “It’s not freedom, it’s mobility!” He is given a new house, a new car and more.But soon the phone rings and he is asked to become a hitman, something totally new and abhorrent to Mason.
Soon, Nick is being chased by cops both good and bad! Nick is soon fighting not just to regain his old life, but to survive in his new life!!
Bottom Line:
This book was a real-pager turner for me. I zipped through it in a day and a half and enjoyed every minute of the ride. I think Nick Mason is a terrific character, who is trapped between a rock and a hard place. He’s damned, if he does, and damned if he doesn’t. And while, what he does is wrong, he tries his damnedest it make it right! I for one was cheering for him!
Rating:
(really liked it)