This review will be posted on my blog on 4/25/19

Note: I was provided a free ARC of this book by the publisher in return for my fair and honest review. 

Amastan is part of an extended family, loosely connected by blood, deeply connected by their secret profession of assassin.  For centuries, it was known that those with legitimate grievances who needed them resolved quietly could, with the right whispers, buy a contract on another's life.  Even the city's leaders, the drum chiefs, have called on the assassins on occasion.  But when Amastan completes his final test and is officially accepted into the family, he learns that because of an incident ten years ago, there's been a ban on contracts.  Amastan is relieved - although he excelled at mastering the skills of being an assassin, he wasn't looking forward to his first kill.  His hopes of a quiet life are soon squashed, however, when Amastan stumbles across the body of a drum chief.  Whoever killed the chief made sure the body was hidden so that the proper rituals couldn't be observed, and his soul, his janni, now runs rampant through the city, looking for a person to possess. The drum chiefs lay an ultimatum before the assassins: find the killer before the changing of the seasons, or we will hold you responsible for this death.  Amastan must act quickly to find the killer, not just because of the shrinking time, but because another body has turned up in the city - and this time it's a fellow assassin.

The thing I enjoyed most about this book was the world.  The city of Ghadid is loosely Middle Eastern in feel, set in an unending desert with no other civilization in sight, and few visitors besides merchant caravans.  Everything in this way of life revolves around water.  Ghadid draws its water from an underground aquifer, its use allocated by the distribution of coins known as baat. When you trade baat, you are trading your access to water. At the time of the story its the dry season, where carelessly spending baat could cause you to die of dehydration.  What's more, the healing magic, as well as the ability to quiet or banish janni, requires water to function. All of this is woven into the world building, and made it a fresh location to visit and explore.  Sometimes I wish things had been described a little more directly - it took me a bit to realize that the city itself was built on several platforms over the sand, like a Venice without the water. 

Where the book fell a bit flat for me was unfortunately the plotting itself, tied into the character of Amastan.  While I enjoyed the parts of the mystery that were tied into the history of Ghadid, there were some investigative leaps that Amastan took too quickly, as well as some leads he didn't even consider pursuing until much too late.  Although my certainty was shaken briefly here and there by some red herrings, I was pretty certain fairly early on who the killer was (and I was correct).  I also wish the moment of Amastan's first kill had been more of a moment, given it is such a dilemma for him.   That said, the story itself is well-paced and a quick read - I breezed through it in a few sittings. 

THE PERFECT ASSASSIN is by no means a bad book, simply one I wish had been able to do more with the concept it set up.   I enjoyed the world-building, and there were some character moments that absolutely tugged at the heart strings. It's a fantasy book that's also refreshingly gender balanced, with no sexism in the class structure and queer characters existing in the open and in positions of power.  If you're looking for a quick fun fantasy read you can finish in a weekend, there's plenty to enjoy in this tale of a reluctant assassin.

I had to re-read the first couple of chapters a couple of times before it gained my interest. The book started slow but then it picked up with enough intrigue and unanswered questions that I eventually couldn't put it down without finding out more. Some parts of the book were a bit predictable, but I really enjoyed the characters Amastan and Menna. I think Menna is pretty bad-ass and I really enjoyed her character. I liked that there were enough twists and turns that it captivated me to find out what happened at the end. I'd give the book a 3.5/5 - mostly for it's slow beginning and there were a few parts I wanted to skim over, but overall a really enjoyable read.

I was very intrigued by the title of this story because I like the idea of a good assassin. The description of the story explained that the story takes place in the Middle East, which was a nice change from the normal locale of most stories. The town of Ghadid was well-written and I liked a lot of the features of the city (built high above the sands on pylons, water as currency) and was drawn to the story from the beginning. However, that is where my interest went away. I quickly became bored of the murder/mystery, having figured out who did it early on. There were no major suspects to choose between and the whole way that he went about solving the mystery seemed blah and slow. I do not feel like he put much effort into it, considering what was at stake. All of the characters fell flat for me, especially the background characters. I could not connect to them. I kept pushing through, hoping for a better ending, but I was not happy with the ending. It did not leave me satisfied or wanting more.

I received this book in exchange for an honest review, which has not altered my opinion of this book.

I was slightly nervous going into this book because I've seen many fantastical assassination books fall flat. However, I was glued to the story after page one. This story was so thrilling and emotional and action-packed, I was racing through the pages to find what happened. There are roof-top fights, corporeal souls of the deceased, assassins with ninja skills, politics, and a darkness that could not be denied but gripped me all the way through. This is going up there among my favorite books of this year.

Amastan is the quintessential cinnamon roll and watching him grow through this book was such a treat. He became a character that I would love to meet (in the daylight for tea)  and I love how his confidence grew throughout the book and how he was able to use his love for history and records to help solve the mystery that was dropped at his feet. This being said, he was so innocent that I couldn't help but figure out who the killer was before he solidly did, I nearly threw the book across the room. I really hope that there will someday be a book told from Meera's point of view because I would love to know more about her.

The only reasons I don't give it a full five out of five is that the concept of the world took me a bit to understand. I feel as though parts of it were never really explained and I had to do some serious thinking at the end of it. I also have to say that after the first few chapters, I felt a bit like Dihya and Azulay kinda melted into the background. What were their challenges? What did the others have to do to pass? I am full of questions!!

If you enjoy fantasy, assassins, just a touch of romance, revenge, and don't mind the bloody stuff I can't recommend this book enough! I can't wait for the series to continue and I'm quite upset that it's not until November. 4 out of 5 from me!

<I>Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.</I>

<b>Divine justice is written in blood.</b>

The Perfect Assassin was a very refreshing read for me. It came with a great array of elements I had not yet experienced in an assassin book. Being obsessed with the Assassin's Creed games, it very much reminded me of the Assassin's Creed Origins game, placed in Egypt surrounded by miles and miles of desert. It also felt like Alita: Battle Angel in a sense that they lived on top of sand dunes lifted in a way for protection, like worlds built on top of worlds. Needless to say K. A. Doore created a written master piece in world building. Even the currency used by the characters was so unique and really tied into the script beautifully. I just enjoyed every piece of this exquisite place.

While the characters were well diverse and distinctly individual, I felt there was a slight lack of character development or attachment, but perhaps Doore plans to further delve in the mystery that makes up Amastan in the sequel? I found it hard to stay fully engaged because I couldn't quite connect with him. He wasn't fully materialized in my mind enough to stay focused on his character.

In all the book was a fast paced read because I couldn't put it down, my love for assassins is strong! This book has murder mystery, epic world building, unique and diverse characters, and adventure, if any of these topics speak to you then this book is worth picking up. Who doesn't love a tortured assassin?

I look forward to reading the sequel!

5/5 stars, it's wonderful.

Thanks to Netgalley for the review copy.

I really loved this book. It's a coming of age story set in a dry world and Amastan is a new assassin. I habitually give myself 50 pages in any book I start because sometimes it can take me a while to get used to a new-to-me author's voice. This book has a bit of a slow opening once you get past the first chapter because there's a lot of worldbuilding the reader needs to know about. But I'm so glad I stuck with it through the necessary scene setting because it then grabbed me hard and fast.

The description is so vivid you can almost feel the sand between your teeth and feel the moisture evaporating from your body into the desert atmosphere depicted in this book. You'll want a glass of water to hand while you're reading. :)

I love the cultural details surrounding the world-building too, like the theme of modesty that ran a fine wire of verisimilitude throughout the whole book.

And can I just shout about the queer rep? It's explicit, (not graphic, this book is safe for sex-repulsed aces to read, there're a few chaste kisses, but that's it) on page and beautiful. Amastan is an Ace (asexual) hero, and I got strong demisexual vibes off of him. It was so refreshing to see that in fantasy (that I hadn't written myself). I loved it.

The mystery is well paced and all in all I had trouble putting this book down when I was supposed to be doing other things.

Amastan is my sweet soft deadly cinnamon roll and I want to protect him, as long as he doesn't have access to pointy things or anything he can put in my tea. XD

Read it, you won't be sorry. I've already pre-ordered book two.

Content Warnings: 

Violence, Gore, Assassination, Familial disturbance, loss and pain

There is such a thing as book chemistry. And when you like the book, sometimes it happens that you just don't love it, through no fault of the story. That happened to me when reading The Perfect Assassin.

The world described is very rich and well developed. And the storyline is very interesting, whoever it's just not the right fit for me.

I’m struggling to decide how to rate and review this. I decidedly did not enjoy it, yet I’m not sure that makes it a bad book.

I found this book incredibly boring. Now, that’s hard to do, when your premise is a fantasy murder mystery with assassins. But it was. So, so boring. For one thing, the book is marketed as being about assassins, but you find out within the first chapter that these assassins 1) operate within the boundaries of the legal system and 2) are no longer allowed to kill anyone, as per this legal system. So…no assassinating. I don’t think I liked this particular representation of assassins, though that’s just my personal taste.

But anyway – yes, folks start dying, and Amastan has to figure it out. It all felt a little bit contrived from the get-go. And then things just plod along at a snail’s pace. So much of the plot felt repetitive and so much was formulaic and predictable. It was like I could see this book’s behind-the-scenes outline, because I knew exactly everything that was going to happen. I mean, how can you have a decent murder mystery when there’s really only one suspect? It was so incredibly obvious what was going to happen, and it was just…so cliche. And so many scenes felt shoehorned, inserted only as filler.

I wasn’t as invested in Amastan as I wanted to be. I liked the idea of his character, but for some reason I just never connected with him. I didn’t care about any of the side characters, who were barely fleshed out. The book tried to have some interesting conversations about whether killing can ever be just or justified, but I just…didn’t care. It wasn’t as hard-hitting as it thought it was. There was just something keeping me at arm’s length the entire time.

So, why am I hesitating with this rating? Because I really enjoyed the worldbuilding. It was clever and original. Ghadid is a city built on pylons above the sand dunes to keep safe from wild jaani, spirits that can possess you and make you go mad. This was easily the best and creepiest part of the book; I loved this idea. Also, the worldbuilding is heavily tied with the economy; water is scarce and is therefore tied in with the currency. Little things about the world were interesting too. For example, people cover their faces in public. The world is casually gender neutral and queer. I wanted to know a little more about where Ghadid sat within the apparent “Empire” that came out of left field halfway through the book, but overall I do think the worldbuilding was pretty fantastic. Unfortunately that’s all I liked about this book.

I feel kind of guilty giving this such a low rating because I truly don’t think it was a terrible book by any means, but I was just…so bored. And it was so predictable. Basically, this is a great world to set a story in, but I very much wish it had been a different story than the one we got.

The Perfect Assassin thrills from page one, presenting a desert world full of mysteries and a family of assassins intent on keeping the balance of a dangerous city. Mystery meets fantasy meets coming-of-age tale, creating a compelling story of one man unsure of his place in this family of trained killers. He’s a complicated character, and that makes him fascinating to follow. He’s terrified of the jaan lurking about the streets but doesn’t hesitate to act in order to save a life. This isn’t just an assassin, going through the motions and providing a few well choreographed attack scenes. This is the story of a man born into a family of assassins who takes care to weigh the price of a life. It’s a fascinating tale that’s hard to put down.

A lot of expertise is shown in this carefully crafted narrative. It’s a well-done mystery story at its heart, revealing a hidden killer who appears to be intent on releasing jaan, or lost spirits, into the world to wreak havoc in the streets. A lot is at stake for our protagonist as he continues to get further involved in the unfurling events. There are surprises at every turn and an explosive reveal that turns the mystery into something much deeper and unexpected.

The jaan aspect was terrifying to imagine, providing a dark twist to this world. The fear our protagonist has of these spirits leaves an underlying unease as he walks through the streets and runs across the rooftops. Threats pop up out of nowhere, creating a setting where anything is possible.

Overall, The Perfect Assassin features solid storytelling and a compelling protagonist. This is a city filled with dark corners and a shadowed past that has many depths to be discovered. I look forward to following the journey of the reluctant assassin and his journey to do right by the world.

Fascinating with its use of different setting as compared to the traditional European centric worldbuilding, The Perfect Assassin is a brilliant novel that will keep you guessing until the very end.

K.A. Doore did well with the culture, the ideas, and the overall appeal of the world in this book. The characters weren’t given much background, but their strong self-belief gave them great potential.

The overall pacing of the book was quick with a hint of some slow burners. It would have gotten a better deal if they gave a more distinct background for our protagonist and took more time in honing him as an assassin instead of giving him just a few pages before becoming worthy already.

All in all, this is a fantastic read that will truly work your mind.

As a lifelong lover of fantasy, I’m always happy when I read a fresh, new take on world building. So when I picked up The Perfect Assassin, I was excited to see this wouldn’t be the kind-of-like-medieval-Europe-but-a-little-different world that I often find in fantasy. That, combined with the fun and developed characters, made this a really good read!

Even though I ended up really enjoying The Perfect Assassin, it didn’t start off as one of my favorite books. I mean, I recognized right away that the world building and character development was really impressive. But for some reason the story seemed to lag for me. It wasn’t until about halfway through that I really started getting wrapped up in this book. Once I did, however, I couldn’t put this one down!

I adored the characters. Amastan is such a precious cinnamon roll and the rest of the cast was equally interesting in their own ways. Even when the plot seemed to drag a bit, I kept coming back to this book in large part because of the wonderful characters. (And, of course, the world building made up for a lot too!).

The Perfect Assassin is definitely worth reading if you like fantasy or murder mysteries, or both! I might not have started off the strongest, but the ending blew me away. I’m excited to see what comes next!

By day, Amastan is an apprentice scribe. By night, he is one of the Basbowen family's newest assassins. Serving as the knife of Ghadid, the assassins only kill when there is a contract. Fortunately for Amastan, who is unwilling to take a life, there are no contracts.  Thinking himself safe from having to kill someone, he continues to train with his cousins and unexpectedly comes across the hidden body of a Drum Chief, one of the leaders of Ghadid. The Drum Chiefs decide it will be the Basbowen family's job to find out who killed him, and the job passes to Amastan. Keeping this task a secret, Amastan discovers someone is also killing assassins, leaving their bodies hidden so their jaan will run wild through the city and take more lives. It is up to Amastan to discover the killer and survive against increasingly powerful, angry jaan who would also have his blood.

I'm one of those fantasy readers who enjoys the typical magic, dragons, and Medieval setting. Of course, I read beyond that, but I'm always drawn to them. I was intrigued by this book's description, but a little apprehensive about actually reading it. Once I started, though, I had a tough time putting it down.

Far from the Medieval setting, Ghadid is clearly in the desert where the rains come for a season and the water must then last until the next rain season. As a desert city, it's culture was closely tied to the sands and water, but was richly imagined. It's not the kind of place I'd like to visit, but reading the book made me feel like I was there. I loved how well the setting, culture, and story wove together seamlessly.

I loved that the story kept moving and something new was always being discovered. Instead of getting bogged down in the history and description of Ghadid, it was woven through the narrative without being too much or too little. Doore did a great job at dropping the reader into the story and letting them figure things out as the story unfolded without everything becoming too confusing. At the beginning, I would have appreciated some description of what jaan were. I was puzzled for a couple of chapters, but it became readily apparent what they are quite quickly, especially when Amastan came face to face with one. They're an intriguing piece, and I did end up enjoying figuring them out on my own. The mystery of what they are adds to the feeling of fear of them. I completely understand Amastan's fear of jaan.

My one complaint would be that I figured out who the assassin was about halfway through the book. During the first half, I had no clue even though it turned out we'd been introduced to the assassin early on. Something seemed to change during the second half, though, and it felt like it was clear as day, which made me feel like Amastan must be as a dense as a brick. Either that or blinded by his unsettling feelings towards this person. It was a little jarring and somewhat annoying. Looking past that, though, in the grand scheme, it really didn't do too much to disrupt my enjoyment. After all, the best parts came after the revelation.

The whole book is wonderful. I tried to stretch out the reading as I really didn't want to have to think about what to read next, but I couldn't stop picking it back up. Fantasy and mystery mingled perfectly. The setting was breathtaking and, while the mystery eventually lost steam, it kept me guessing throughout the first half. But the best parts really are at the end. If the first two-thirds were great, that last third is just amazing. The story becomes action-packed and I had to remind myself to breathe.

The Perfect Assassin is the first book in the Chronicles of Ghadid series. I loved the first book so much I want to keep my eye on this series and see what Doore turns out next.


Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy. All opinions are my own.

The Perfect Assassin (The Chronicles of Ghadid #1) by K.A. Doore is an epic fantasy novel featuring a reluctant assassin from a family of assassins. I didn't know how much I needed to read about assassins who kill the dangerous and those who endanger their city. Doore is fantastic at world-building and the character arcs are pretty cool to follow over the course of the story - the city of Ghadid itself is practically a character in its own right. Amastan's just the best, by the way. One of my favorite elements was how closely morality and being a great assassin are tied together, especially since that doesn't come up all that often in such a poignant manner in many of the assassin books that I have read. I also appreciated that the magic system along with the economy are all about water in a desert where dying a thirst is always a possibility. This debut novel was very nearly earned five stars from me. The only thing that really held me back was that it didn't pull me in quite as soon as I would have hoped. Plus, I really wish there was a map of the city, but maybe there will be in the finished copy. Overall, this is a great debut and a solid fantasy series opener. I can't wait to read the sequel, The Impossible Contract - I don't know how I'm going to wait until November!

First of all, the setting is rich and extreme. The ideas of cities on stilts hovering over the desert, sand creeping into every corner and crevice, the sun burning from above and heat smothering you was a unique setting and had me feel thirsty the entire time I was reading. It also lends itself for the inspiration when it comes to the culture. People were tagels around their faces to protect them from the heat and white (clean) is the colour for mourning. Water is a rare resource and much of the daily life revolves around having enough to last the season; storms are a cause a cause for celebration.
There are also small amounts of magic that reminded me a little bit of the waterbenders in ATLA which is always a pluspoint to me. Then there are of course the jaan, demons/souls who are not quieted and terrorize the city. I am excited to learn more about them.
In general, I liked that this is more of a small scale fantasy. It focuses only on Ghadid. While there is mention of other cities and the empire, the story is confined to the city, making it easy to follow along and learn the intricacies of everything. It's a beautiful set up for more intrique and expansion in the next book.
Now to our main character: Amastan is very level-headed if unsure at times and it was very interesing to be in his head and follow his thoughts as he tries to solve the most recent murder. We learn just as much about the city's leader as about being raised as an assassin. Doore struck a good balance to only share necessary information but mix it up enough for it not to get boring. I loved his little exploration into romance (he's mlm and possibly on the ace spectrum!) while struggling to accept his fate.
The side characters were just as rich and diverse. We get people from many classes and professions. I think Thana and Yufit are probably my favourite, with Meena close after.
I am excited to see where this story will go.

I've given up on reading most YA books, they are usually too predictable, with flat characters to make it "easier to understand" instead of challenging young readers. This book was enjoyably different.

I was interested in this story after reading some online reviews, and was not disappointed.  The middle of the story lagged, to me, but maybe only because the beginning and end were so fast-paced.  Characters are introduced in a flurry, though several don't add to the story at all.  Three characters drive the action, and they are multilayered, which is nice to see in a YA novel.  

The main protagonist is homosexual, and I like that the sexuality of the characters is subtle, with a "taking-it-in-stride" feel... I've read some stories where the characters sexuality is SHOVED IN YOUR FACE and gay or straight, that's annoying.  This book has some gay characters, that's life for them, move on with that sweet, sweet story.

I enjoyed the ending the most; most YA endings are predictable after Chapter 2, but this one kept me reading until the end.  I'm interested in reading the following books, the next book "The Impossible Contract" comes out Nov. 2019, allegedly.  Hopefully that timeline stays where it is.

I'ts hard to review this book because it's amazing and it's difficult to find the word to review it as everything was really good.
At the beginning of the book it somehow reminded me of Terry Pratchett and his assassins. As I'm huge Pratchett fan this is big compliment from me.
But it was just the beginning and after some pages the book started to develop its own world and its own plot.
I would describe it as a fantasy mystery, a great fantasy and a great mystery at the same time.
The characters are likable and fleshed out, Amastan it's an unlikely and reluctant assassin that will evolve during the book as well as a good detective.
The world building is amazing and the descriptions leave you craving for more details.
The plot is fast paced, engaging and entertaining; I couldn't turn the page fast enough and I was hooked till the last page.
I look forward to reading other books in this series.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to Macmillan-Tor/Forge and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

I enjoyed this book for what it was. I went into it thinking it was going to be about assassins. There are assassins in it, but I would categorize this book as a mystery set in a fantasy world. We see little of the actual actions of the assassins, and deal more with the consequences of them instead. That being said, I still enjoyed this book. I am a fan of mysteries and loved the fantasy setting.

This is the author's debut book and they did an excellent job with the world building. I found myself wanted to know more and more about the city and surrounding desert.. I hope the world is expanded on even more in any sequels. I did find this book more plot driven and actually found it hard to care about any of the characters outside of the main character, Amastan. I was rooting for Amastan as he was was trying to solve several murders, while learning about his "family" and that maybe there isn't just good or bad, right or wrong. I look forward to reading the next book when it comes out.

I gave this book a 4 out of 5 stars.

This book is about queer assassins, which was awesome to read. It was written really well and I really loved being in the world.

High above the sands, the people of Ghadid are desperately waiting for the end of the season, but they will find that it’s not just running out of water that might kill them. Wild jaan are on the loose, a killer is stalking the streets and long buried secrets are being unearthed.

“Courage, after all, isn’t an absence of fear-it’s doing something despite the fear. I’ll know you’ll find that courage when you need it.”

The Perfect Assassin is what I can only call a cute assassin story. Don’t get me wrong there’s murders and assassins but it was such a soft, cathartic read. I think this comes down to the marshmallow that is Amastan. Amastan is an ace and homo-romantic assassin who has just completed his training but he’s not so sure he’s cut out to be an assassin, after all most don’t complete their training and feel relief that there have be no contracts for years and they might never have to take one. I loved following Amastan so much and I love him. The relationship between Amastan and Yufit was just so tender and it was a joy watching it unfold.

What I love about The Perfect Assassin is how it tackles the concept of assassins and murder. With Amastan at the front this isn’t a book that ignores the consequences of assassinating someone nor is it taken lightly, the Family don’t just run around murdering people willy-nilly. As Amastan says, they walk a very fine line between justice and murder.

Everything builds to a crescendo and as the story unfolds and the secrets come to light it gets intense. Even once the killer is revealed The Perfect Assassin still grips you until the very last word. I didn’t see that ending coming and even though it was bittersweet I couldn’t see it ending any other way. Which I think says something about Doore’s writing because I tend to prefer ending where everything wraps up nicely and the slate is wiped clean and everyone’s happy. Yet this was perfect because it didn’t do that, it was the only way to end it given how Doore doesn’t let any of her characters get off scot-free from the consequences of their actions.

I’m hoping the finished copy has a of map of Ghadid. Whilst it’s set entirely in Ghadid or on the sands below to it, a map of the city and it’s sections would have helped orientate myself a bit.

I highly recommend The Perfect Assassin. It’s a beautifully crafted story with an amazing setting and wonderful characters. Even as the pace ramps up Amastan is like a soft hug where the world is a more beautiful place with him in it.

Do you like mysteries and wished they had more of a fantasy bend? Do you like to be afraid of sand and constantly wondering if someone had poisoned your cup? The Perfect Assassin has all this and more. We follow Amastan, a newly initiated assassin who really just wants to read his history books, but those plans get thrown out the window when a drum chief winds up dead and it's a race against time and family secrets to stop a serial killer.

I had so much fun reading this book. Amastan was a delight, but so were his family. My favorite of the side characters was Tamella, the matriarch of the assassins. Everyone is a cousin and there is a very delicate truce between the council of drum chiefs and their murderers-for-hire. Those dynamics kept me on my toes until the very last page.

What I particularly enjoyed was the world-building. Ghadid is such a fully realized place, complete with environmental threats, intense political machinations, and a host of people who aren't nobles trying their best to make it from day to day. But most strikingly is the very casual queer representation shown throughout. Amastan is asexual and the way Doore introduces it fits with the world and its non-modern setting. There are also lesbian couples and it's never a big deal. I appreciated it so much.

If you have a hankering for murder, mystery, and thrills in a world with the most casual queer representation, definitely keep an eye out for this gem on March 26th.