Book Review: Nemesis by Gregg Hurwitz

Nemesis is the latest book in the Orphan X series by Gregg Hurwitz, and wow, this one hits differently. I’ve been following Evan Smoak’s journey from the beginning, and while every book is a high-stakes thriller, this time, it’s all much more personal.

Evan Smoak, the former Orphan assassin turned Nowhere Man, has always lived by his own strict set of rules. His Ten Commandments have kept him alive, kept him sharp, and most importantly, kept his mission clear.

But in Nemesis, those rules start to crack. His closest friend and confidant of 15 years or so, Tommy Stojack, who usually provides Evan with weapons, combat gear, and vehicles, has crossed a line that Evan can’t simply ignore. For Even something like supplying weapons to someone who used them in a way that led to the deaths of innocent people is an unforgivable betrayal.

But still, nothing is quite as black and white. While Tommy did something unforgivable, he wasn’t acting out of greed or malice; he was merely keeping a promise to an old friend. So yeah, this isn’t a black-and-white mission like Evan is used to. It’s extremely messy, emotional, and the story is full of questions that just don’t have very easy answers.

While there are two parallel storylines, the tension between Evan and Tommy is what truly is all about. Their bond goes back years, and watching that friendship being destroyed bit by bit is painful. Evan was always proud of his moral choices, but here, it’s all put to the ultimate test. He is the man we know to enforce justice from book to book, but what does justice even look like when someone he cares about is on the wrong side?

On the other hand, Joey, his teenage hacker protégé, whom we had already seen before, has her own struggles in this book, and as always, she brings a raw honesty that Evan desperately needs. She’s caught between wanting to belong and knowing she never truly will, and her relationship with Evan is a very interesting part of the series.

She constantly pushes him and calls him out when he is too rigid, and forces him to see things from some perspectives he’d rather ignore. Their dynamic continues to be one of my favorite parts of the books, and it’s clear that she is one of the few people Evan genuinely lets into his world.

As for Evan himself, I love how the author keeps evolving his character. In earlier books, Evan was a lone wolf, completely self-sufficient, almost robotic in the way he did things in his very efficient style. But over time, we’ve seen the kinks forming in that armor.

We’ve seen him in Prodigal Son where he was already surrounded by his found family. We’ve seen him let people in, build connections, and question whether he even wants to continue on this path. The isolation, the guilt, the weight of every choice is all catching up to him, and it makes for an incredibly emotional ride.

The story is, of course, is just as intense as ever, although maybe with less action than before. But what sets Nemesis apart is that the fights aren’t just externat, but they’re internal. Evan’s fight with Tommy isn’t just about taking down a target. It is more about figuring out who he really is and what he’s willing to sacrifice for his personal beliefs. The book doesn’t offer any easy resolutions, either. There’s no neat bow tying things up at the end. Instead, we get a temporary ceasefire, an uneasy pause that makes it clear that the damage done here isn’t going to fade anytime soon. And also a shocking, bitter-sweet ending that well…

It’s interesting that I seem to have changed along with the Orphan X series. Initially, I loved the constant action and the lack of too much emotional involvement in the story. However, as the series progressed, I also grew older, and now that Even Smoak gets much more humane and the story is also less action but more emotion, I seem to enjoy this slightly mellower style more as well. Initially, I thought I’d be annoyed by the departure from the original style, but I have really embraced it.

So yeah, it’s a departure from the usual Nowhere Man structure, but I think in the best way possible. The high stakes are emotional and Evan feels more human than ever. I’d say, it’s a book that will linger long after you turn the last page, and if this is any indication of where the series is heading, I can’t wait to see what happens next.