Assassin’s Mace by Ron McManus is set against the backdrop of Russia’s special military operations. Palmer has fewer than one hundred days remaining on his two-year assignment. Then he can finally turn his attention to a future with Fiona Collins. Duty calls when he and his partner, Green, are dispatched to Saint Petersburg to extract a senior aerospace engineer, Dmitry Sokolov. Sokolov intends to defect and assist the United States with its hypersonic missile development program. The mission is complicated by Green’s personal history. Green’s father defected from Russia years ago under CIA protection. Green now returns under a false identity, aware that Russia never forgets betrayal. When a figure believed to be dead resurfaces, Palmer and Green’s carefully constructed plan begins to unravel. Soon, Palmer and Green are hunted by Russia’s Federal Security Services, including the relentless assassin Nikolai Ivanov. This forces Palmer and Green into a desperate race against time to complete their mission.

Assassin’s Mace by Ron McManus is intriguing and complex. With the fast-paced plot and action, I had a hard time putting the book down. The description of the events is vivid and leaves nothing to the imagination. It was easy to become part of Palmer and Green’s mission. The characters were realistic and relatable. Each had a special set of skills that was needed in the plot. Tension and danger pulsed through every chapter, keeping me on the edge of my seat as the chapters flowed into each other. The book was excellently written and has all the components necessary for success. I enjoyed reading the book and was impressed by the ending.

Jake Palmer is back and on his most dangerous mission yet. With around three months left on his contract with the US Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), he plans to take time out to marry his long-time love, Fiona Collins. His dreams are shattered when he’s entrusted with helping a Russian nuclear scientist defect to the West. This mission is fraught with danger as the FSB will do anything in their power to prevent the defection, including sending an assassin after Jake and his team. Along the way, he discovers plans that Russia, partnering with other nations, is planning a full-scale nuclear attack on the USA. As it’s the final book in the series, all bets are off, and Jake could fail and lose his life. Pursued through a dense forest close to the Russian/Finnish border in the north, does he get the defector to freedom, prevent the nuclear attack, and remain alive? All will be revealed when you read Ron McManus’s Assassin’s Mace.

End-of-series books are nerve-wracking for the reader, as there’s no guarantee that the protagonist will survive; this knowledge had me on the edge of my seat the entire time. The supporting cast in this novel is exceptionally strong. Alona Green, Jake’s partner, matches him stride-for-stride, MI6 agent Sania Reed goes above and beyond, and the defector Dmitry Sokolov plays a pivotal role in the entire narrative. Assassin’s Mace is the kind of political thriller that will keep you up at night, wondering if this could actually happen. This page-turning novel will appeal to all thriller fans, especially those who enjoy an edge-of-their-seat plot. I absolutely love how the story hinted at a brand new series for Ron McManus, which I’ll be first in line to read.