Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn

  

My rating: 2.5 of 5 stars

Category: Adult
Genre: Mystery, Suspense, Thriller
Content: Strong language, Assassins doing their thing

 

 Older women often feel invisible, but sometimes that's their secret weapon.

They've spent their lives as the deadliest assassins in a clandestine international organization, but now that they're sixty years old, four women friends can't just retire - it's kill or be killed in this action-packed thriller.

Billie, Mary Alice, Helen, and Natalie have worked for the Museum, an elite network of assassins, for forty years. Now their talents are considered old-school and no one appreciates what they have to offer in an age that relies more on technology than people skills.

When the foursome is sent on an all-expenses paid vacation to mark their retirement, they are targeted by one of their own. Only the Board, the top-level members of the Museum, can order the termination of field agents, and the women realize they've been marked for death.

Now to get out alive they have to turn against their own organization, relying on experience and each other to get the job done, knowing that working together is the secret to their survival. They're about to teach the Board what it really means to be a woman--and a killer--of a certain age.

 

I really loved the concept of this book, but I don't think it was executed all that well. It felt very implausible at times. First off, I had a hard time believing 60 something year old women would be able to survive some of these situations, especially when it involved hand to hand combat. All the other assassins just seemed a little dumbed down so that these 60 somethings could succeed. At times these women also acted a bit juvenile, so other than talking about menopause a few times, they didn't feel like they were in their 60s.

Then there is the problem of not really getting to know them all that well, except for Billie. I kept getting them confused with each other at first. There was the bombshell curvy one; the lesbian one, or were those two the same one? I think I'm still getting them confused. The um, I can't remember what she was; and then the grieving widow with a family; and then there was Billie, the ultra feminist one who protested in the 60s. That's pretty much all we find out about any of them, except Billie, because the book is from her point of view. Anyway, they felt like they just ticked off boxes, and had no real personality.

I picked this up because it reminded me of the movie Red, but the thing I liked about Red was the mix of male and female characters working together. This book was very heavy on the female characters, with most of the male characters being jerks. This also lacked the amount of humor I was looking for, and when it did include humor, sometimes it fell flat or felt juvenile. 

The book also contradicted itself with the whole, 'we don't want to kill innocent bystanders thing'. You'll know what I mean right from the beginning. And when we finally get to the reason behind why they've been targeted, it's really lame! 

Overall, this book was just ok. I feel like it could have been so much better if more character development had gone into it, with more well thought out jokes and humor, and more realistic situations for characters that are in their 60s, instead of making them seem younger.