Threat

I expected so much from this book and whilst I enjoyed the read I was unfortunately a little disappointed Harm was obviously a very difficult book to emulate.But on the positive side a good tale with lots of hair raising moments scattered throughout the length of the Novel keep your interest from 1st to last

I was blown away by this book. I chose it because it looked different from my usual reads and I was not wrong. I loved the characters and the story was fast paced and totally unexpected. I would definitely give more stars if they were on offer. A fantastic book.

I always find it a bit scary reading book two of a series when book one was one of the best debut books I've read for a while so I was initially a little apprehensive about reading this. Shouldn't have been, it more than met my expectations.
Having first met Rina in Harm in 1974, that first book went back to the 60s to explain some of her background that made her what she became. This is a series and usual series rules apply but there is enough of the background from Rina's past included in this book so it makes sense. I am not sure however if missing book one would mean you miss out on the 70s stuff. Either way, it's a cracking read and not overly long, so why not?
This book was just as well written as his previous. Just as gripping and absorbing and kept my attention nicely throughout. As well as Rina, we also revisit Lizzie, now a rather intriguing dominatrix with a bit of an interesting and eclectic client list and Rina's sister Georgie who is getting on well with her studies. As we saw from the end of Harm, Rina has got herself involved with gangland London and this continues throughout this book although she does get herself in a bit of a pickle a couple of times with "assignments" and personal clashes, she is a very clever and astute woman of means and manages to get out of jail admirably.
In this book, she is embroiled into the seedy sordid world of vice and corruption. Coming against the establishment as she fights for the good. Will she manage to expose those doing wrong and bring the whole house down in time?
I said in my review for Harm that I had got to know Rina enough to consider her as a friend. So, it was lovely to be able to reconnect with her in this book. Even though she walks a bit on the dark side, she still maintains that ethos of right and for that, she will always be, to me, a loveable anti-hero. That and I still want her in my corner in a fight!
I was nearly not going to mention the whole celebrity author thing as Mr Fraser more than proved himself as an author to me in Harm, but there are those out there that may well start on book 2 (yes - there are such people!) and so it is worth repeating here. It is also worth mentioning that both his books are hard hitting, close to the knuckle, adrenaline filled rides that are not sweet little cosy mysteries. There is language, there is violence, set in a seedy world. Captain Hastings this is not!
So, all in all, a brilliant follow up and I really can't wait for book three. Hope it's soon...

I received a free ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

before I started checked on amazon there a book before this threat well once started could not stop reading then started fade to the dead and was brilliant the story so good and highly recommend the twists and plot so good I hope I get to review your next book a top notch read

I received this from netgalley to review.
London 1961: George Preston is in control of crime in west London, and Rina Walker is his favourite contract killer. Now 21, she is living next door to her lover Lizzie, now a fearsome dominatrix whose clients include a seniour member of the government.
Absolutely fantastic read.
Had me gripped from the start.
read in less than 24 hours.
Lots of action from the start. Thrilling fripping book with a clever storyline.
Can't wait to read more from this author.
Highly recommended.
Definetley worth more than 5*.

Difficult to categorise this effort from Hugh Fraser. It concerns a lesbian assassin who works for hire, for various London gangsters, the Intelligence services and just about anybody else you can think of.
The plot flies off at different tangents and ,at times, is on the edge of incoherence. There is lots of sex and violence and our heroine is suitably indestructible and seems liable to kill anyone who looks at her the wrong way.
Having said all that, the book is hugely enjoyable. It's written with real brio and having started at breakneck speed, it gradually accelerates to a spectacular conclusion. Despite being completely bonkers this is a tremendous read and is thoroughly recommended.

‘Threat’ by Hugh Fraser, is the second book to feature Rina Walker, a highly skilled assassin who is in demand from members of London’s gangland. Set in 1961, this story follows Rina as she becomes embroiled in the search for some missing working girls on behalf of Tony Farina. Seven girls have gone missing from the streets, the latest of which was found dead.

Rina’s investigations lead her into a tricky confrontation with a killer who has unexpected connections. When fulfilling her contract puts her sister’s safety at risk, Rina knows that she needs to get Georgie away from London and the deadly lifestyle she has created for herself. This forces Rina to accept an offer of work from an unexpected source in order to ensure that Georgie’s safety is guaranteed.

From undertaking a dangerous assignment for MI6 which puts Rina’s own life at risk, to exposing not only espionage but also the thoroughly depraved actions of a member of the aristocracy, this story is full of action and thrills. This is not a cozy mystery by any stretch and elements of the subject matter is quite dark, although very sensitively and carefully handled, neither glossing over nor over emphasising some of the more objectionable parts of the plot. With the scenes in the secret bunker, it would be easy to go for sensationalism here, but even without that, Fraser still manages to make the scenes disturbing enough, the implications of what is happening abundantly clear.
Rina is a very strong and likeable character. Influenced by her past but determined to make a good life for her sister, as well as bettering herself by reading all of the books that her sister is learning at school. You can easily be forgiven for forgetting that she is an anti-hero, essentially nothing more than a cold blooded killer. The character is not over written and there are no excuses made for what she does. She has a clear sense of right and wrong, but also a survival instinct which makes you root for her, in spite of her choice of career.

The setting of 1960’s London is also an interesting one. It allows the freedom of an alternative lifestyle for Rina, while removing some of the conventional trappings, such as mobile technology, which make setting up a modern crime thriller extremely tricky. I’m not old enough to know anything of the 60s, but the descriptions are so vivid you can really begin to experience the changes in the landscape of London at the time. From dancing in clubs, to carrying a gun on a plane (hard to imagine these days), Fraser writes the contrasts very well. And yet I had to remind myself of the setting at times when thinking about what Rina was preparing for dinner; pie and mash, cans of beans. So pedestrian and normal for an assassin and yet so natural for the time. I don’t know why I wouldn’t expect a killed to be sitting down to pie and mash and yet it did still make me smile.

The plot is dark, the action thrilling and the writing compelling. I really enjoyed this book, and it was a fast read which I got through in less than a day. Don’t be put off by Rina’s lifestyle; you’ll be rooting for her all the way. I was and I can’t wait to read the next instalment.

A thoroughly satisfied 5 stars.

Thanks to Netgalley and publishers Urbane Publications for my copy of Threat in exchange for my honest review.