Buy a Bullet

An Orphan X Story (Evan Smoak)

By: Gregg Hurwitz

Narrated by: Scott Brick

The Nowhere Man is a figure shrouded in secrecy - a near legendary figure who helps those lucky few who are given the means to reach out to him. Before he was the Nowhere Man, Evan Smoak was a highly trained government operative known to a few as Orphan X. This is the story of Smoak's first outing as the Nowhere Man, where after completing a mission in Northern California, he happens to spot a young woman at a coffee shop. Brutalized and under the control of a very powerful, unscrupulous man, her life is in danger if she doesn't escape. And the only person that can help her do that is a man with the background and skills of the Nowhere Man.

©2016 Gregg Hurwitz. (P)2016 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.

Short and sweet

Highly enjoyable read. The writing is tight and Scott Brick's narration is awesome as usual. I do think it would be better if you read the previous book so you have some idea of the character since there isn't any sort of intro on this one. I'm hoping it is being released in anticipation of a formal sequel soon.

Perfect keystone to Orphan X

Hurwitz spun a masterful story when brought Evan Smoak to life. This short story was perfectly written for the reader wanting to understand who Evan is.

Short but satisfying!

Cool to hear about how it began. Scott Brick is the perfect narrator for this series,

not bad

not a bad short story, though I thought it could have been a little more detailed

Short story - overpriced

This is book 1.5 of the Evan Smoak series. While it doesn’t contain spoilers to book 1, Orphan X - it’s brevity would best be enjoyed after that background. This review may contain spoilers to previous books.

Short story of a self-identified case that restarts Evan’s “career” as The Nowhere Man. Surveillance and then rescue. Enjoyable hour.

I enjoyed it, but this really should have been included as a bonus in another novel or all the shorts bundled into one - $4 for a 35 min audiobook is too much.

Narration:
Scott Brick was great.

This is a FUBAR, To be a book require to be at least 4 hrs, this is not more than than 6 pg, this is an insult to the word BOOK

This is a FUBAR! Wherever this is 6 pgs is an insult to the word “BOOK “

To the point

Greg gets todays reader sometimes it just has to be to the point short and sweet

Thin story

Not much of a story. Not worth listening to unless you want a short uninteresting story.

My third short story of today

I'm not a fan of very short stories of less than 2 hours in length, but after listening to the 38 minute Buy a Bullet by Gregg Hurwitz and the 27 minute Second Thoughts by Steven James, both today, I may change my mind. Both stories are wonderful (the third short story today is the 84 minute The 4th Man by Lisa Gardner which is excellent, but not as good as the others.)

Before Orphan X I was not a big fan of Gregg Hurwitz. His earlier novels are very good, but I listened as much to hear Scott Brick's narrations as for the content. The beginning of the Orphan X/Evan Smoak series changed that. Buy a Bullet will tide me over until the release of Nowhere Man in two weeks.

Caution - Novella Prequel

What did you like best about Buy a Bullet? What did you like least?

Just finished the original book (Orphan X) in the series, and was looking for the next book in the series. Purchased the book the audible app on my phone, so I wasn't aware it was a novella until after partway into the book.

Story was just ok, it provided some limited, additional background to the original. Not anywhere close in quality to the original book though, and in hindsight (having heard the story and knowing it was a novella), I would not have purchased this. Overall felt like the author was running a bit low on funds, and decided to write a quick novella for a bit of extra cash.

Would you be willing to try another book from Gregg Hurwitz? Why or why not?

I enjoyed the original book in the series, and so am going to buy the second full length sequel. Will not purchase any future novellas though.

Would you be willing to try another one of Scott Brick’s performances?

Definitely. Scott Brick did a great job of bringing the character to life.

Could you see Buy a Bullet being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

Potentially yes. In many ways this book reminded me of Robert Ludlum's original Bourne books.