“Takes readers along the fast-paced, enthralling story side by side with great characters. A book like a great Hollywood thriller – action-packed, brutal, sexy and yet profound.”
NO MAJOR SPOILERS
Bad-ass Action, and…
…I am not promising too much here. We are starting on sacred ground in San Francisco! Marcus – the antihero – is not even thirty and already fed up with the world. Terrible hallucinations are following the SAP consultant who tries to flee into his job and the alcohol.
His torment seems to have ended when he meets Milo. A very aggressive and tough woman with long black hair, low sexy voice and a mysterious aura. Marcus is mesmerized and risks everything in order to save Milos life.
Milo accepts him as her prentice. She teaches him everything she knows but also has her secret reasons in doing so. Milos past leads them into a chaotic nightmare in Japan.
The Characters
The figures in this book are very complex and well designed. Take the promising prolog, one of the many occasions where Marcus confronts himself with his father:
‘What would he say if he saw me like this, decorated with countless scars, the huge burn on my hand, the bullet wounds? If he knew about the things I had done to save her, to be with her. Would he think that I’ve finally grown up? That I have surpassed him? That the cowardly failure has become a monster? Nothing. He would say nothing, well aware it was him who has created that monster.’
Who is Marcus? What is the role of his father? In each chapter I discovered new elements that made me challenge my picture of Marcus. Why? It is because no one is describing his character for you. You get what you ‘see’, what is happening, what is been said. I reshaped my picture many times and I figured out that I am full of prejudices. So getting to know all the figures from the first person perspective of Marcus is a brave and very effective move. It adds an emotional view rarely been found in thrillers these days and especially adds to the tension of a character like Milo. You will see her the way Marcus is seeing her and as the reader without the rose-colored glasses you’re put in a strange position. There is this big gap between my picture of Milo and the one Marcus gave me. Seeing this gap vanish throughout the story as Milo and Marcus move closer together just feels great.
Its not like there are only two characters in this book. Their antagonists, their friends were designed with a high level of detail too, were shouting and joking. Its very entertaining.
High-Speed Action
M.E. Fiends fluent writing is vast and the author manages to keep this speed from the beginning till the end presenting brutal and badass content. Highly sensitive or soft minded individuals should definitely stay away from this mysterious book which makes me curious as hell.
Based on a true story? An author who wants to stay anonymous? A main character that disappears from one day to the other? I found myself typing in dates and locations into google several times because the series of events in this book just sounded that realistic! And even though I could clearly see some similarities to Quentin Tarantino I need to mention that Fiend has its very own style when it comes to funny and cool dialogue, deep emotional conflicts and sometimes disturbing hallucinations. Meaningful character development is something you only can do in a book and Fiend has done a heck of a job when it comes to that! Marcus entrance into Milos dire universe is more than grappling and gives a terrifyingly realistic insight into a mind walking over an edge that I personally would be scared of. Its another of those moments where I asked myself: ‘Who was actually writing this book?’ It is one of these questions you will ask yourself especially when reading the stunning final with Marcus.
Conclusion
Brutal, full of tension, relentless and as thrilling as an actionthriller should be. Add lots of dark humor, meaningful and loveable characters that experience deep emotional changes and you will have the thriller of the year 2018!
Reviewed by:
Angelika Braun
Added 27th February 2019
NO MAJOR SPOILERS
I just have fallen in love. Many thanks to Mainbook Germany for an awesome night. I am usually not big with words so I am trying my best here.
So.. much.. Content
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As an IT consultant Marcus is working 80 hours a week. Together with his friend Patrick he travels from one customer workshop to another around the world. The tremendous stress is taking its toll on him. Caffeine pills and lots of alcohol keep the body running. He is suffering from blackouts, hallucinations and depression.
All changes when he interrupts the surveillance mission of the mysterious Milo on coincidence. He totally falls in love. Maybe it is the freedom Milo emanates. Maybe it is his own past.. whatever it is, he is willing to give up everything he has. Marcus stumbles into a chain of shocking events full of tension which kept me on the edge of my seat many times until he saves the life of his Angel of Death. What astonished me the most was that even though Marcus has become a murderer I felt empathy for him. It is probably due to the circumstances that he had to. But still.. there are many situations in which I found myself having pity on him as he is the victim of fate. What would I do if my husband is in danger? Would I act different? It were those many similar questions I had throughout the story until I realized that Marcus hasn’t just simply changed, but has become another person. Has he changed for the worse? The better? What defines good and evil especially if you had to do these terrible things just to survive or to save a loved one? Telling a story from the first-person perspective seems to be undervalued as Fiend is using this fact for an amazing trick which literally pulled the rug from under my feet. And I am excited to see how other readers will react on this.
The tone of the book changes when they arrive in Milos Hideout in Texas. It is where the story is getting even better as it is so goddamn funny to see how much pain and agony Marcus has to suffer. ME Fiend really makes sure Milos harsh training doesn’t get boring at all until they face the antagonist, Kan. Another of many crazy detailed characters I would like to highlight. Kan is a choleric Yakuza boss who has a deep common past with Milo and very special reasons to engage both for a seemingly simple mission: ‘Get me my briefcase.’ Kan is the perfect enemy for a dangerous ‘couple’ like Marcus and Milo.
The story of the whole book is much deeper then it looks and unfolds very slow but what actually happens progresses tremendously fast. In the end I got much more then I expected and cannot wait to see what Fiend has to boast for part 2 and 3.
Writing Style
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Absolutely fluent. No interruptions. No cuts in storytelling. Every action and thought is reasonable. During reading very often I felt like being in an action movie. Every part of the plot is fast. Fighting scenes and shootouts in combination with the sarcastic Marcus and Milo are a lot of fun. The author has done a very good job in developing the feelings of the protagonists throughout the story. Marcus is willing to do everything for his angel of death. Soon Milo is willing to bring sacrifices for her student too.
Summary
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‘Milo – ANGEL OF DEATH’ is a thriller packed with action reminding me of Tarantino’s greatest works.. while surpassing them! Seriously! Fiend doesn’t spare his readers not a single second, his book is beautifully entertaining. Be ready for a story full of blood, violence, tension, a really funny and amazing love-story and two impressive characters that will surprise you many times!
Quotes
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There is only one goal. Follow Milo. That is all that counts … all that matters … all that is left.
–
On the parking lot Milo regards my ridiculous outfit closely.
‘I look like an idiot wearing that stuff.’
‘You don’t need a fake beard or hat for that.’
Reviewed by:
Vanessa Zita
Added 7th February 2019
NO MAJOR SPOILERS
6 out of 5 stars: I am absolutely thrilled!
Milo is a very charismatic and dangerous character who I couldn’t sympathize with in the beginning. But this is changing after she gets to know Marcus who has its own bunch of problems. It is the ideal situation for a book which left me in awe.
Marcus is a depressed IT consultant fleeing into his work. What from? The reason is never said directly though the author gives like a thousand secret hints of what happened and the author is doing it in a very clever way. I think I know what happened. And this alone makes me want to read the book again to see if I’m right.
I don’t want to spoil anyone therefore let me just say that the emotional chaos and confrontation of Marcus with his own mysterious past nearly binds him to his Angel of Death. Without knowing they make the perfect couple though it doesn’t seem like it at all in the beginning.
So Marcus chases his woman from San Francisco to London and saves her life more or less out of pure luck. Milo accepts Marcus as a student and takes him with her to Texas. But this is not a ‘thank you’ as she has her own reasons for training him.
In the middle of the book I started to see Marcus as another person, but not only because he has changed. You can feel there is something wrong with him, mental illness maybe? Schizophrenia? And this is an interesting aspect as he is the guy telling the story.
The same goes for Milo who starts to realize her student may have an even worse past then herself. Milo and I had the same questions. Why was it so easy for Marcus to give up his own life? What is the story with his father?
Marcus doesn’t care at all about these things. He is where he thinks he belongs to. At the side of his ‘woman’ he has fallen in love with, living the life he never dreamed of, knowing that he can never reveal his feelings to Milo. But slowly… very slowly their relationship change. This lovestory enjoys developing itself. The book cover says this is based on a true story. I had the feeling whoever wrote these lines was in love. I felt this with every word chosen and the way Marcus speaks about Milo. It made me smile each time.
To avoid misunderstandings I need to make clear that both of them, Marcus and Milo, they are not good people. But they aren’t bad either. Milo teaches him her codex. They are not assassins. They never kill unless they have to. Facing Milos dark world is as fascinating for Marcus as it was for me but as a reader I need to say that sometimes you need to have some balls!
This Action-Thriller deserves its name and has no other destination then Hollywood! Period. Punching and shooting is one thing, but to have a cool one-liner in each and every situation is a must for the two protagonists. This book has amazing fighting scenes where each one feels like its own choreography. It has an enjoyable, memorable lovestory of which I definitely need to know how its going to end. And its being told by Marcus himself. A depressed man haunted by his past suddenly finding a woman who discovers that there is a man willing to sacrifice his life for her. I feel sorry for those missing this book!
And it is getting even better as this is a Trilogy!
So now to the most important thing: When is the second part coming?
Reviewed by:
Vince McNamara
Added 1st February 2019
NO MAJOR SPOILERS
The sad thing about a book like this is that this story has to end sometime. And what an end that was. And what an awesome trip it was.
The main reason I got that excited was because I had no idea what awaited me. I got the book from my son as he knew I am a huge Tarantino fan. He nearly forced me to read it. And once I started it I couldn’t stop.. Now unfortunately it is over and facing this brutal and terrific end I am looking on Marcus, the main character of who I thought I would know. Do I?
Now looking back I would have never imagined where I would land with Marcus especially considering where he (we) started – in a ‘shitty’ hotel in san Francisco.
But don’t get me wrong. As this reminded me on Tarantino movies it surely will do the same for you. This book is brutal and bloody and you need to have some nerves of steel. But this brutality never comes without any reason and almost in slow motion it is taking a hold of Marcus. In order to save his ‘woman’ – that’s what Marcus calls Milo secretly all the time – he becomes a murderer. And Marcus constantly confronts himself and me as the reader with this:
‘I killed a human being. What the hell have I done? Was it self-defense? … I am a cockroach, a goddamn asshole, a dirty bastard. What am I supposed to do?’
I personally felt with him, deeply. You will get caught by overwhelming occurrences. He is a person with lots of problems in his life he is desperately trying to escape from, even has hallucinations. When he falls in love with this amazing killerwoman – and I mean killer – everything is changing from one day to the other:
‘She’s my guardian angel … My chance for redemption.’
Describing Milo is difficult. She describes herself as ‘problemfixer’ which actually means she does everything to achieve her goal. She seemingly doesn’t have any feelings for little Marcus who follows her against her will. But soon things are changing and they are changing goddamn fast and so is changing Milo. The way they ‘find together’ is described in such an awesome way I never read before. Surely it’s the most uncommon love story I ever read. My personal opinion on Milo? Finally a STRONG FEMALE CHARACTER that I will remember for years to come. Even the idea that a WOMAN is teaching a MAN in how life works is fantastic.
There were two or three ‘scenes’ – they felt like movie scenes – where anybody would stop the movie or the story. But this book still goes on to places I need to visit someday.
I did some research: The author is from Germany. The german version was released in May 2018. That means the publisher translated it into english without knowing if it will be a success or not. I am pretty sure they are absolutely convinced it will be. And I am too.
Count me in for the trilogy of the year 2018!
Reviewed by:
Olga Pavlov
Added 25rd December 2018
NO MAJOR SPOILERS
I got the tip for this book last week in UK. Thank you very much, Thomas!
In short: One hell of a masterpiece. This is a story every thriller fan should experience!
Here are the first 3 sentences of the book:
‘The explosions fade out into the desert. I fire at the target six times. The heavy recoil of my Remington revolvers is powerful.’
The words the author has chosen are extremely strong and really pulled me into this piece of art. There are so many ideas and things that show that the author must have been working for a very long time on this. Each and every page kept me entertained and the love for the detail of Mr. Fiend (what is that name supposed to mean?) helped me create strong pictures in my head. Especially during the fighting scenes and in the desert. It make me think of Kill Bill, but this plot has so much more to offer!
Milo and Marcus – Two amazing characters for Hollywood cinema:
These are the most impressive character studies I have seen in years. The question I asked me the most is ‘Why did they choose to start with a book instead of a movie?’ The dialogue, the characters felt so alive for me… I also like the way the dialogue was build in into the plot. There are so many feelings: I was laughing, sad, shocked, had cold shivers running over my body, even crying. I felt empathy for two characters (and that is a very strange thing) that I even don’t really know after finishing this book. The characters feel real but never talk about themselves. Hell they even really don’t know each other. The reader only gets the information that is been said. Their are no flashbacks, no storyteller who talks about their past. Its all about the fantasy of the reader and I just love this concept of only picturing a character by the things that he is actually saying and doing. I cant wait to see what they will become in the overall trilogy as these characters feel deep, emotional, even 3 dimensional.
A story around the globe
So Marcus is chasing the love of his life around the globe and I mean that literally! Not only the dialogues and the characters feel alive. Same goes for the amazing trip from America to London to Texas to Japan, Tokyo. So we are talking about global entertainment now. Not only are the locations used and described realistically within the plot. Marcus describes everything with his own sarcastic look on things which sometimes really made me laugh. The plot is unbelievably fast and makes this story feel like an Hollywood action movie where you don’t have any time to breath. There really is no time for boredom!
I was reading this book within two days. 370 Pages. That rarely happens to me and my family was not quite happy about it. 😉
The author says this book is based on a true story. I don’t know what to say about that.
But I just can say that this book was a damn good use of my time!
Reviewed by:
Paul Schimmick
Added 3rd December 2018
NO MAJOR SPOILERS
A love declaration and a classic already
Reading ‘Milo – Angel of death’ really felt like reading the script for an upcoming blockbuster. The whole book is extraordinary, based on a true story and certainly would also be one of Mr. Tarantinos personal favorites.
It is an action-thriller that chases its readers and its two protagonists through its pages. With brutal force you are being pressed into the storyline and once you have met Milo the text will not leave hold of you until you finished this bloody amazing adventure.
The ‘hero’ Marcus Wirtmann is a german IT consultant from SAP trying to place his product at his customer in San Francisco. He is a sarcastic professional desperately looking for distraction from his daily routine. There was a terrible event in his family, maybe his childhood, resulting in nightmares and hallucinations with his father. The hatred for himself and his job is leading to an overuse of alcohol. When the mysterious Milo gets in his way he nearly gets obsessed and follows her against her will leaving behind his former life he hated anyway.
Milo is a latin-american woman who faces her enemies with a samurai sword. She mastered the art of fighting and shooting and seems to have a brutalized past with the Yakuza. She is running away from her past too, forced to hide in the texan desert being on her own. Milo is withdrawn of everyone, can trust nobody therefore drinks whiskey like water and earns her money as a very well paid ‘freelancer’.
Both characters couldnt be more diverse from each other but are so very much the same on the inside. It is hard to say who of them is more enriching for the life of the other one. Seeing Marcus cracking Milos hard shell piece by piece while hiding his true feelings for her simply is a blast.
What makes this text also very entertaining surely comes with the clash of the two total different worlds of Marcus and Milo and how Marcus is handling and describing his shift from one to the other. His transition into a criminal is comprehensible and is even more impressive in its evolution as I actually had sympathy for him. Seeing this depressed man being transformed into an happy outlaw really gave me satisfaction.
The book feels different from the books I usually read and I tried to understand why as the concept is not new. Its because I havent seen it being executed in such an emotional way before. M.E. Fiend takes the time his characters need and he is doing it with all the love he obviously must been having for them. Marcus transition doesnt feel like a tool necessary to go on with Milos plot, it feels like a whole story itself – even surpassing the mission that leads them to Tokio in the end. It is like their journey to Japan is more the beginning of very long road in bringing together two staggering characters and how they are changing each other. This approach clearly separates the book from the crowd.
This emotional rollercoaster combined with the fast evolving action is a revival of a genre that died in the 70s. Its an ‘uncensored’ and surprising love declaration for !adult! readers willing to finally face a grandiose action-thriller again. It is one of these books that you will remember for a long time and I dare to call it a classic already.
Reviewed by:
Alexander Graber
Added 13th September 2018
