Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Assassins have always been kind of cool, from Comics to movies, books and games; The Bride from Kill Bill, Ezio from Assassin’s Creed, Deadshot, Deadpool, Fitz, Margot Fenring, Lady deWinter … the list goes on and on. But what about the real assassins? Is the reality drab and unimpressive, zhuzhed up and made glossy and slick for entertainment? Well, a little yes, a little no.

This book has a wry humor which I appreciated as the author looks into the history of assassins, from the Thuggees to the Sacred Band of Thebes to Hashashins and so many more. Each assassination covered in the book is given context, from the politics surrounding fathers, sons and grandsons to the cities, countries and kingdoms beyond which led to external stresses. Because it’s not just how they die, or who killed them, but how their deaths affected the world they left behind.

Like Darius III, who was — for a time — a postmaster in Persia, overseeing mail. This book shows us how he rose to power and why. Alas for poor Darius, Alexander the Great was on the way up, which meant people like Darius were now on the way down. Scattered in between all the gory and politically motivated deaths are stories from the bible, such as Cain and Abel, or Amnon and Absalom. There are even accounts of female assassins, be it wives who wanted to be rid of a husband or the women of Sarmatian who stood up to Hannibal, or even the Poison Damsels of India.

For all that this is a slightly grim subject, the deaths are handled with respect — if with a little mordant humor at times — and the historical trivia is fascinating. I’m going to be buying a physical copy of this book for my shelves. If you’re interested in history, politics, empires, kings and queens, this book has just enough detail to be interesting without being overwhelmed. And, if you’re interested in world building, there are enough evil kings and plots here to fill so many, many books or campaigns.

NetGalley, E Horn