This was the first title I’ve read by Hamilton, and I must say, he has a new regular reader.

The main character, Nick Mason, is a bad ass. In Exit Strategy, we follow Mason as he eliminates three men scheduled to testify against Mason’s owner, Darius Cole, in an upcoming retrial.

Yes, Mason’s owner.

Darius Cole helped Mason get an early release from prison. But Mason must now serve as Cole’s hitman on the outside.

Oh yeah, and the witnesses he must eliminate are in the federal Witness Protection Program (WITSEC).

Nick Mason was once a free man. A normal man. A man with a wife and a daughter. But that all ended when he was sent to prison.

Mason isn’t happy with Cole’s deal because he realizes he simply traded one form of imprisonment for another. As he pursues his targets, he also begins planning an exit strategy to get out from Cole’s grasp. But such a thing isn’t possible when Cole threatens to kill Mason’s ex-wife and daughter, who Cole keeps under surveillance. Even Mason’s roommate, Diana, for whom he has developed feelings, isn’t safe from Cole’s wrath despite also being owned by Cole.

Mason’s mission is all but impossible: Kill protected witnesses while preventing everyone he cares about from being killed. Yet failure results in death. But not his. His family’s.

Hamilton’s writing is pedal to the metal all the way, making this thriller easily readable in a couple days. The suspense, alternating points of view, and plot threads were woven seamlessly, making the novel flow like water and the pages turn almost automatically.

This sucker was action-packed, and I loved it: Raw, fast-paced action, an intriguing character, and even some legal thriller elements.

I just discovered Steve Hamilton, so I plan to go back and read the first installment in the Nick Mason series, and then continue reading each subsequent volume as it is released. This title somewhat reminded me of Don Pendleton’s Executioner series with a little John Grisham thrown in, if you’d like a point of reference.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for giving me the opportunity to preview this title.

I was blown away. The second Nick Mason book reads like a movie. Can't wait to sell it. The perfect summer beach book!