The Gray Man

To be honest, I'm a little puzzled why this book has such high reviews on Goodreads. Certainly it was an interesting story, Greaney does write good action scenes, and the book is un-put-downable, but man, the writing is ... overwrought? Technically, the author tries way too hard to establish the fact that The Gray Man is a tough, mean, capable assassin by telling us every second. Show, don't tell. The prose is adjective-laden, and the narrator doesn't call the main character by name but by his attributes such as “The American Assassin”, “The Gray Man”. I personally hate that, and this reminds me of the fanfiction I used to read. Gah. I can't help but giggle each time the narrator calls Jim or whatever his name is as “The Gray Man”, “the American Assassin”. I keep imagining the Marlborough man narrating the story. ...

And yes, can you please stop reminding me he is a Feared Killer of Bad Men. It was already enough that the story highlighted that the man is a capable and feared assassin. You don't have to keep telling the reader that through the omnipresent narrator, who seems to think terribly highly of our hero.

So, this novel is weak on the technical side. The only reason why the book is so well-received is because it's such a page turner and a well-crafted tale. In the end, that wasn't enough for me.