Derek Haas

Now a new dad, the infamous Silver Bear finds himself staying up late to give a bottle and changing diapers--all while leading the double life of a contract killer. The struggle is not with his conscience. He enjoys his gig. But a child forces him to weigh selfishness versus safety. Continue in his line of work, and he'll always wonder if he's putting his child's life at risk. When the next assignment comes, both Columbus and his partner Risina are surprised to find that the mark is another assassin: a brash, young man named Castillo. An assassin on the rise, he's responsible for slaying a high profile CEO. As Columbus closes in on his target, he realizes that Castillo is a younger version of himself. It's almost like looking in a mirror. Castillo has even studied Columbus' work. Yet as much as Columbus sees himself in this young man, his assignment is clear. Then, Castillo learns that his hero and unwitting mentor has a family--a revelation with enormous ramifications. Now that he knows Columbus's weakness, he will go after it and exploit it. Just as Columbus would have done...

The way I die is two taps to the head, stuffed in the trunk of a rental sedan, my body set on fire. The way I die is both arms broken, both legs broken, tossed off a cigarette boat in the middle of Lake Michigan, bricks in my pockets to weigh down the corpse. The way I die is acid in a bathtub, pushed out of an airplane, strung up and gutted in an old textile warehouse in Boston. My name is Copeland. My name is Columbus. The way I die is a shotgun in my mouth, my finger on the trigger. It is the middle of February on Mackinac Island, a tiny community off the northern Michigan coast. But Columbus isn't here to enjoy the picturesque surroundings. Reeling after the death of his wife and relinquishing his son, he lives in isolation—in self-imposed punishment and exile. Forgotten and alone. Nameless to his neighbors. But even if he runs and hides, Columbus is never alone for long. Ten years after Columbus—one of the most original anti-heroes in contemporary fiction—first exploded onto the scene in The Silver Bear, Derek Haas delivers another riveting thriller that promises heart-pounding action and shocking twists until the very last page.

He wants you to know him, maybe even admire him... "A natural killer," his mentor--a middleman named Vespucci--once said he was. He is the consummate assassin, at the top of his form, immune to the psychological strains of his chosen profession. He is what the Russians call a Silver Bear. He calls himself Columbus.It's the name a middleman gave him, ten years ago, when he discovered a dark, new world of fences, clients, marks, jobs, jack. Not that his real name meant much to him anyway. He never knew his father or his mother, a prostitute who became dangerously involved with an earnest young congressman named Abe Mann, then a rising political star. The magnetic Abe Mann has since become the Speaker of the House. He is currently running for his party's nomination in an exhausting presidential campaign, weaving his way across the country. Columbus is not far behind.But as Columbus pieces together his past and prepares the seamless assassination of his mark, the criminal underworld he has always ruled begins unraveling violently around him in this tight and chilling debut that has been compared to The Manchurian Candidate and The Day of the Jackal.

From acclaimed author and screenwriter Derek Haas comes a unique and thrilling twist on a family story--what happens when an elite assassin becomes a father? Now a new dad, the infamous Silver Bear finds himself staying up late to give a bottle and changing diapers--all while leading the double life of a contract killer. The struggle is not with his conscience. He enjoys his gig. But a child forces him to weigh selfishness versus safety. Continue in his line of work, and he'll always wonder if he's putting his child's life at risk. His partner, Risina, serves as his fence. Like Columbus, she's good at her job and likes doing it. An unusual take on working motherhood . . .When the next assignment comes, both Columbus and Risina are surprised to find that the mark is another assassin: a brash, young man named Castillo. An assassin on the rise, he's responsible for slaying of a high profile CEO. A guy so well-protected that the details of this hit are staggering, even to Columbus. And as Columbus closes in on his target, he realizes that Castillo is a younger version of himself. It's almost like looking in a mirror. Castillo has even studied Columbus' work.Yet as much as Columbus sees himself in this young man, his assignment is clear. Then, Castillo learns that his hero and unwitting mentor has a family--a revelation with enormous ramifications. Now that he knows Columbus's weakness, he will go after it and exploit it. Just as Columbus would have done. . .

The latest thriller featuring the sleek and sinister Silver Bear--from leading Hollywood scriptwriter Derek Haas.Columbus has retired. or so he thinks. He and his lover, Risina, a mysterious rare-book dealer, have fled to a tiny Italian coastal village where no one knows their names. And yet Columbus has trouble letting go. His paranoia is justified when, one day, he notices a suspicious man following him, and within days he's back in Chicago trying to figure out why his old fence has been kidnapped and maybe even killed. The ransom note left behind demands Columbus by name. The Silver Bear must now sever this last link with his dark past if he and Risina are to ever have hope at a new life. yet Risina seems to show a remarkable knack for the kill herself . . . and perhaps there won't be a chance for turning back.

In the shadowy world of hitmen, one man stands alone. His name is Columbus. They call him the Silver Bear. It means he will take on any assignment, complete it, and walk away clean. Columbus thinks he is immune to the pressures of his chosen career. But fate intends to prove him different. In these three novels, collected for the first time, Columbus finds himself in ever greater danger: a target, and on the run...

When you need to get rid of a Presidential candidate, you need THE SILVER BEAR. Columbus, the most respected and feared hitman in the criminal underworld, has killed many times using many weapons, including his bare hands. An assassin at the top of his profession, immune to the pressure of his chosen life, gliding silently beneath the view of law enforcement, he is what the Russians call a Silver Bear. When Columbus takes the contract on a congressman running for President, he discovers that his quarry is tied to his own mysterious past. Soon, he's fighting to stay alive - and to make sure his target does not...