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Well, the first thing I look for in a novel is interesting characters. This book stars Skye Maddox who is no ordinary assassin—she is meticulous, principled, and views her work as both a profession and a challenge. Hired by Milo Williams, a grieving father whose son was murdered after a botched kidnapping, Skye is tasked with eliminating everyone responsible. Milo provides her a starting point, but the real mission is to climb the ladder of crime, one target at a time, until she reaches the true mastermind.
I also love books with a lot of action, and this one has it in spades. As she works her way through the criminal underworld of Washington, D.C., Skye’s assignments pit her against violent gang members, corrupt judges, and ruthless mob bosses. Each step forces her deeper into a deadly web of organized crime, Yakuza involvement, and betrayal. Along the way, she gains reluctant allies—like Brandon, a terrified mouthpiece for a mobster who wants out, and her therapist Jayla, the only person who knows her true name and glimpses her conflicted psyche.
Even in a high-action book, I like to meet complex characters like Skye. Her assignments are never just about pulling the trigger. Skye prides herself on precision, creativity, and leaving law enforcement baffled in her wake. But her professional detachment is tested as she confronts echoes of her traumatic past, the ghost of her first kill, and the dangerous possibility of trust and connection in a world where both are liabilities.
Suspense is another factor I look for in a new book. In this one, the tension escalates as Skye maneuvers between rival factions—Hetman’s criminal empire, Kobayashi’s Yakuza contingent, and law enforcement circling closer to the truth. Every move sharpens the line between hunter and hunted, and Skye must decide whether she’s fulfilling a contract, enacting justice, or simply proving herself the best at her deadly craft.
In the end, True Target is just what I look for when I want a fun read: a high-stakes thriller that blends relentless action with psychological depth, following an assassin bound by her own rules, haunted by her past, and driven toward a final reckoning where survival means outsmarting everyone—including herself.
Skye Maddox is a contract assassin driven by both personal demons and professional discipline. Hired by grieving father Milo Williams to hunt down the chain of men responsible for his son’s death, Skye takes on a mission that escalates into a war with Washington, D.C.’s most dangerous underworld figures led by a man known only as Hetman. As she climbs Milo’s ladder of revenge, Skye uncovers a web of corruption that links drug dealers, judges, mobsters, and even international crime syndicates.
The story escalates through brutal shootouts, betrayals, and psychological games, as Skye pushes deeper into Hetman’s empire. Each success makes her a bigger target. In the end, she must weigh the cost of finishing Milo’s revenge against the danger of becoming just another expendable weapon in someone else’s war.
Enjoy an Excerpt
When Jayla stood, Skye raised a palm to stop her. “Yes. Yes, all right. I just finished an assignment, but it was part of a larger contract so I’m feeling like both the situations you mentioned. I’m on the job, and I just took a player off the board.”
Jayla jotted in her notebook. She always collected the euphemisms Skye used for her profession. “So, tell me about this latest assignment. How do you feel about this player you’ve taken off the board? Was it, in your mind, a just action?”
“You always want to go there,” Skye said, shaking her head. “What did I tell you? The first rule of the assassin’s doctrine. The target has got to deserve it.”
“Oh, yes,” Jayla said with a half-smile. “Your job, while criminal, does have rules.”
“I misspoke earlier,” Skye said, sliding a slim dagger out of her boot. “It’s not a job. It’s a profession. All professions have their rules. For doctors, rule number one is ‘do no harm’, right? For an assassin, it’s that the target has got to deserve it.” Skye began to absently flip the dagger in the air, catching it by its tip each time. “In this case, this bastard kidnapped my client’s son. I don’t know how they got him. My client kept his family totally under the radar. But once he got the ransom demand, the client agreed to pay, and the ransom money was in transit but not fast enough to suit the kidnappers. They killed the boy, I think just to make a point. Just to be snotty. The action took place overseas and no way the police would ever have gotten close to the killer.”
Jayla nodded. “I think I understand. So, you were hired to…”
“Correct the balance,” Skye said, standing.
About the Author: 
Austin S. Camacho is the author of eight novels about Washington DC-based private eye Hannibal Jones, five in the Stark and O’Brien international adventure-thriller series, and the detective novel Beyond Blue. His short stories have been featured in several anthologies and he is featured in the Edgar nominated African American Mystery Writers: A Historical and Thematic Study by Frankie Y. Bailey. He is a past president of the Maryland Writers Association, past Vice President of the Virginia Writers Club, and one of the creators of the Creatures, Crimes & Creativity literary conference.
Buy the book at Amazon or Barnes and Noble.
A distraught woman hires private investigator Hannibal Jones to track down her daughter who has run away, trying to escape the homeless shelter life her mother has come to accept. When Hannibal finds Connie Blanco she is entwined in a gang war and somehow connected to a murder. The corpse is barely cold before a second murder follows and Hannibal finds himself entangled in a complex plot revolving around stolen drugs…but who is the mastermind of this twisted scheme?
Austin S. Camacho is the author of seven novels about Washington DC-based private eye Hannibal Jones, five in the Stark and O’Brien international adventure-thriller series, and the detective novel, Beyond Blue. His short stories have been featured in several anthologies including Dying in a Winter Wonderland – an Independent Mystery Booksellers Association Top Ten Bestseller for 2008. He is featured in the Edgar nominated African American Mystery Writers: A Historical and Thematic Study by Frankie Y. Bailey. Camacho is also editorial director for Intrigue Publishing, a Maryland small press.
