Graveyard of Memories by Barry Eisler

Published by Thomas & Mercer on February 11, 2014

John Rain thinks back to 1972 when, at the age of twenty, he was a bagman for the CIA in Tokyo (a city Barry Eisler paints in vivid colors). Rain's violent reaction to violent circumstances places his life in danger and the only way to remedy his plight (and to earn the continued backing of his CIA handler) is to carry out a difficult assassination of a prominent Japanese politician. Hence begins Rain's life as a professional killer.

It's interesting to contrast the younger Rain, reckless and arrogant, with the mindful man that he becomes later in life (as chronicled in earlier novels in the John Rain series). The younger Rain, if not quite dismissive of morality, is still working out his own code of honor. He is just starting to learn the value of ancient Japanese rituals. He's also starting to learn the tradecraft that will keep him alive in a dangerous profession. He has not yet "come to grips with that ever-present weight" that becomes more burdensome with age (particularly if you spend a lot of your time killing people).

True to form, Eisler makes John Rain a likable guy, which is why readers buy John Rain books even though his profession is less than admirable. It's a neat trick to turn a killer into a sympathetic character. In Graveyard of Memories, Eisler builds empathy for Rain by making him awkward and shy and improbably sensitive in his interaction with a young woman in a wheelchair to whom he is attracted. This is an odd love story, but it works.

As is typical of a Rain novel, the plot is intricate without becoming convoluted. Rain suspects he is being manipulated and possibly double-crossed, but he isn't sure who is pulling the strings. The story eventually focuses on his effort to answer that question. Toward the end, Eisler deftly ties the plot into real-world corporate and CIA scandals. But it isn't so much the plot that drew me into this novel as the characterization of John Rain. It was a refreshing change from the norm to read about a thriller character who realizes that he needs to become wiser. I've enjoyed other Rain novels but this one is my new favorite, simply because it adds new and credible dimensions to a complex character.

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