Hard Rain by Barry Eisler (2004, Paperback, Reprint)

Eisler’s “Rain” series is about John Rain, an assassin who has the ability to make his victims appear to have died of natural causes. Depending how you feel about the subject, the entire series may or may not appeal to you. Rain is a complex character with a code of honor of his own. He does not enjoy killing, but it is a job for which he gets paid well. He was taught how to kill in Vietnam and the effects of what he did there remain with him to this day. “Hard Rain” is the second in the series, which should be read in chronological order; otherwise some references to past events may not make full sense. Eisler has a keen eye for detail and we become intimately familiar with Rain’s surrounds, which in the first two books are almost exclusively in Tokyo, Japan. We become familiar with politics of Japan and the immense level of corruption within its government. By using our imagination and visualizing Rain’s battles, we also become martial art experts by proxy. Interesting stuff for men; I am not so sure about most women. Rain’s self-imposed isolation, both emotional and physical, can become a burden that some readers may find difficult to deal with. By the third book I was becoming a little jaded myself, even though the action remains ferocious.

I can see some unusual redeeming qualities to Eisler’s books: they made me aware about security, privacy, and self-protection at a level that could be life-saving in big city living. Luckily, Rain’s paranoia is not catchy. After all not, everyone is my potential enemy and nobody is likely to want to kill me because some agency wants to have “deniability” for its actions. Conspirationalists will love these books since they will provide further fodder for their “fertile” imaginations.

In “Hard Rain” John is working with Tatsu, a mysterious and classical agent of Japan's FBI. Tatsu may the last honest man in Japanese Government and he has works for decades to cleanse the Japanese government of its deeply-seated and systemic corruption. Tatsu convinces the ever-cautious Rain to kill Murakami, a brutal gangster and assassin who also specializes in making his killings look like suicide. Rain thinks of Murakami as someone who may be too much for him to take out. Indeed, killing the dangerous and elusive Murakami becomes a difficult task, one that leads to personal loss for Rain. There are some unexpected twists in the plot that I didn’t see coming, but overall Eilser follows the very successful formula he started in his first book, “Rain Fall.” If you don’t mind reading about the crunching sound one’s neck makes, as his neck is broken, by all means, you can’t do any better than “Hard Rain.” Definitely not for the squeamish, but a delight for those of us who want a few days’ of fictional entertainment to break us away from CNN News. Eisler is a true expert at both Japan and the martial arts, so besides being entertained, I also feel that I learn something from each of his books. “Hard Rain” is no exception. Eisler is an adroit writer, with a knack for thoughtful dialog and a sharp insight into fight action. I enjoyed “Hard Rain” a lot.