Mark Steyn Tempts the Thought Police

The last time author and media powerhouse Mark Steyn reviewed one of the Assassin books in MACLEANS magazine he got hauled before the Canadian Human Rights Commission, their version of the Black Robes. In his 2003 review of Prayers for the Assassin, Steyn talked about its depiction of an Islamic SuperBowl with sword-swinging male cheerleaders, and of an American Islamic state that punished Jews, homosexuals and uppity women. The HRC, in their typically obtuse fashion, thought those were Steyn's thoughts, not realizing he was quoting from my fiction. It cost him time and money to beat the rap. Not content to let the thought police sleep their dreamless sleep, Steyn just reviewed Heart of the Assassin in MACLEANS. Maybe this time they'll blame me. Thanks, Mark.

Second Printing

YEA! Just found out that Heart of the Assassin has gone to a second printing, less than three weeks after pub date. Thanks to all of you who have bought a book. And double-thanks to those of you who bought a book and told somebody else about it. And uber-thanks... you get the idea.

The Daily Beast Roars for Heart of the Assassin

David J. Mongomery, Mystery and Thrillers critic for the Daily Beast gave a great review to Heart of the Assassin this morning. I'm particularly pleased that he noted the human and family aspect of this final volume.

Robert Ferrigno brings his “Assassin” trilogy to a close with Heart of the Assassin, the final chapter in what has become an ingenious look at what the United States might be like if it underwent an Islamic revolution. Ferrigno posits a world in which America, wracked by years of economic devastation, moral decay, and never-ending conflicts, has undergone a civil war, splitting into two very difference sections: one a conservative Christian nation based in the former American South (“The Bible Belt”), the other a moderate Islamic Republic, centered in the city of Seattle.

Against this startling backdrop, Ferrigno has cast an intriguing, fast-paced thriller that sees the Islamic Republic and the Bible Belt both threatened with attack from the expansionist Aztlán Empire (formerly Latin America). In order to find a solution to this imperialist threat, Rakkim Epps, a biologically enhanced covert operative and hero of the series, must journey into the nuclear wasteland that is Washington, D.C. in an effort to find a holy relic that can bring the two halves of the United States back together.

Heart of the Assassin differs from the first two books in the trilogy with a more heartfelt and human focus. Rakkim is now married with a son, giving him both more to care about and more to lose, yet he’s willing to risk everything to save the country he loves. Heart still has the amazing sense of imagination of Prayers of the Assassin, and the action and suspense of Sins of the Assassin, but it also has an emotional resonance that brings the series to a fitting close.

Ferrigno on Jim Pfaff's radio show

Did a full hour on Jim Pfaff's radio show, which is broadcast out of Denver. I thought it went well. (Our gurantee, no more than five uhhs per sentence!)

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Best Tweet EVER

Reader Kevin A has been spreading the word about Heart of the Assassin. He just sent me this visual tweet whcih knocked me out. Enjoy.