Sierra Six is an explosive entry in Mark Greaney’s Gray Man saga with a deeper than ever insight into Court Gentry’s psyche and roots. Testament to the outstanding writing found in these books, Mark Greaney brilliantly circumvents the traditional linear narration for an unconventional route this time as the narrative moves forward in two parallel chains of events, one for current timeline, and one for Court Gentry’s first ever mission with the infamous Goon Squad twelve years ago.
After being branded persona non grata once again following the events of Relentless, Courtland Gentry is operating in the shadows as a hitman with strong moral codes. During a straightforward mission to plant surveillance bugs in the Turkish embassy in Algiers, Gentry gets more than he bargained for when he comes across a man who was supposedly killed twelve years ago. When Gentry takes a shot at his target, his cover is blown and his tech support for this particular mission, an Indian college grad, is captured. Racing against time, he follows the trail to India where he finds out his past isn’t done with him just yet.
There’s no denying the appeal of vivid and breathtakingly awesome action sequences in the Gray Man books. Sierra Six pushes the envelop of realistic and cinematic shootouts and hand-to-hand combat without tipping into the unbelievable. Whether Gentry’s taking out his adversaries with lightning quick headshots or jumping from one building to another in a wild foot pursuit in the urban sprawls of India, the beautifully descriptive narration keeps you on the edge of your seat with its WOW factor.
Gray Man has always been an enigma for readers. Mark Greaney reveals trickles of Gentry’s past but never the complete picture. It comes as a huge game-changer that Sierra Six dives deep into the makings of Gentry as the withdrawn and relentless assassin with a penchant for undertaking the most dangerous contracts and missions. We see Gentry as a young singleton operator in his mid-20’s who has grown comfortable in operating on his own. Against the wishes of his handler, he is added to the Golf Sierra team, led by Zack Hightower, after the team loses a member during a time sensitive mission in Pakistan. This book is undoubtedly one of the lengthier Gray Man books, but for great reason as we get to see Gentry’s uneasy interactions with his team and his makings as a fluid and adaptive team-player with wisdom imparted on him by his experiences from his first mission with the Golf Sierra team, a mission that heartbreakingly molds him into an even more ruthless killing machine.
I noticed some inconsistencies with regards to location research and cultural and linguistic nuances. The story takes place predominantly in South East Asia, particularly India and Pakistan. Research on India was laudably extensive despite the COVID travel restrictions. However, descriptions of Pakistan and the spoken languages (Hindi-Urdu) felt a bit alien based on my exhaustive experiences in the region. This could have simply been a fluke due to aforementioned COVID restrictions but came as a slight shock as Mark Greaney’s writings have always captured and reflected realistic descriptions of environments and situations.
Sierra Six fuels the readers with dangerously high doses of adrenaline from its rapidly evolving plot and escalating action sequences while grounding the story with pragmatic characters and unnerving threats of the modern world. Not only is this one of the best Gray Man thrillers so far, but will also undoubtedly be one of the most talked about thrillers for 2022. Buckle in for a reading frenzy because the Gray Man is back with a bang!
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