Mark began the meeting by reciting the creed and Astrid read the twelve steps. Valencia, with her little daughter Lucia, came in late and sat in the circle after parking Lucia on the sofa with a Bluey episode.
When Mark concluded his opening remarks and asked for discussion, Valencia spoke up. She was having a hard time tracking her brother who lived in L.A., a long way from New York City. He seemed to have some dodgy friends who might be leading him into a gang, and Valencia was very worried for his safety. But there was no way she was going to drag her little child into her brother's mess.
Booker, Mark, and Astrid, came up with a solution-they were all seasoned assassins who had given up their jobs after turning their lives around and joining Assassins Anonymous. Valerie figured that she could find her brother in a few days-if she allowed her friends to babysit Lucia, who they all adored, they could help her while working on their amends to the people they harmed. Piece of cake!
Of course they forgot that the "anonymous" part of their relationship meant no last names or real personal knowledge. Valencia left Lucia with the other attendees, and after they successfully brought her to one of their fortified hiding places and fed her lots of pizza, she spiked a very high fever. Since none of them had any parenting skills or ideas of how to treat her, they headed to a close walk-in clinic. The nurse started asking easy questions like Lucia's last name, their relationship to the girl, and her medical history. They had no idea of the answers and had to make a run for it before Lucia was put into state custody, and suddenly their survival skills kicked in big time.
To make things worse, the Russians had it in for Mark and Astrid who blew up the Russian Mafia's Coney Island restaurant, and they were out for revenge. While the assassins had taken a vow to no longer murder their enemies, they still could use non-lethal force in self-defense. And Mark, aka The Pale Horse, might have been the greatest hitman alive, but he was also a parent, though he'd never met his son. When the assassins find out that Mark's child is being held alongside his mother in a Russian trap, their new "sobriety" is challenged. Must they sacrifice their personal resolve to do better when faced with impossible circumstances, or is there another way to get the job done?
This is the third book in The Assassins Anonymous series, and it's just as good as the first two. Members of the group, skilled, seasoned killers, have made a pledge to turn their lives around after hitting rock bottom, and are determined to keep it. Unfortunately, they haven't been forgotten by the organizations that employed them or by enemies they've made along the way. There is visible growth surrounding the characters in the three books, and it will be interesting to see how Hart will document their further struggles. Down will come baby, cradle and all?
Reviewed by Donna Ballard
June 16, 2026
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