Out of the Dark
When darkness closes in ― he's your last, best hope. Evan Smoak returns in Gregg Hurwitz’s #1 international bestselling Orphan X series.
Taken from a group home at age twelve, Evan Smoak was raised and trained as part of the Orphan Program, an off-the-books operation designed to create deniable intelligence assets ― i.e. assassins. Evan was Orphan X. He broke with the Program, using everything he learned to disappear and reinvent himself as the Nowhere Man, a man who helps the truly desperate when no one else can. But now Evan's past in the Orphan Program is reaching out to him.
Someone at the very highest level of government has been trying to eliminate every trace of the Orphan Program by killing all the remaining Orphans and their trainers. After Evan's mentor and the only father he ever knew was killed, he decided to strike back. His target is the man who started the program and who is now the most heavily guarded person in the world: the President of the United States.
But President Bennett knows that Orphan X is after him and, using weapons of his own, he's decided to counter-attack. Bennett activates the one man who has the skills and experience to track down and take out Orphan X ― the first recruit of the program, Orphan A.
With Evan devoting all his skills, resources, and intelligence to find a way through the layers of security that surround the President, suddenly he also has to protect himself against the deadliest of opponents. It's Orphan vs. Orphan with the future of the country ― even the world ― on the line.
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Gregg Hurwitz
Gregg Hurwitz is a master of heart-pounding suspense, creating thrilling, high-stakes narratives that keep readers on the edge of their seats. With a career spanning multiple genres, Hurwitz is best known for his gripping crime thrillers, including the Orphan X series, which has earned him a dedicated global following. His books are not just fast-paced action-packed reads, but profound explorations into morality, redemption, and the shadows of the human psyche.
Born and raised in the United States, Gregg Hurwitz’s early fascination with storytelling led him to pursue a career that would span beyond writing novels to include screenwriting and graphic novels. This versatility has infused his work with a cinematic quality that’s evident in every page—characters who feel as though they could jump from the page into action-packed scenes, and plots that unfold with the precision of a high-octane thriller. Whether he’s delving into the mind of an assassin or exploring the depths of human resilience, Hurwitz masterfully builds tension while balancing moments of deep introspection.
Orphan X
In a world where shadows linger and justice comes at a steep price, the Orphan X series thrusts readers into a high-stakes narrative centered on Evan Smoak—a man with a past he can never escape. Trained as part of a covert government program that recruits children to become deadly operatives, Evan has long since broken free, but his past is never far behind. Now, operating under the alias "The Nowhere Man," he is determined to use his unique skill set to help those who have nowhere else to turn.
Orphan X consists of eleven primary books, and includes five additional books that complement the series but are not considered mandatory reads and series is set to expand with the upcoming release of one more book. The current recommended reading order for the series is provided below.
