Hitman’s Creed
Edward Kendrick
Silver Publishing [link to buy]
ASIN B005N4NDDO

Rating: 2 out of 5 Paddles

Hitman’s Creed is the tale of Glenn, a 34-year-old, bisexual hitman that has gone into retirement, and Joey, a 21-year-old student who has a habit of saying things he shouldn’t.  You may think I’m kidding, but I’m not.  The word vomit is almost the only defining characteristic that Joey has.  He’s gay, he’s protective of his mom, he wants to be a cop, and his brain has a terrible habit of arriving to the party half an hour after his mouth gets there – and he lets us know about that every time it happens.

Glenn moves to Joey’s small town to shed his life of crime, and somehow, through about 60 pages of contrived dialogue, meaningful glances, and one all-too-convenient mistake, entangles himself in Joey’s private life.  This is pretty fortuitous, since the man that has been planning to murder Joey’s mother is about to make an attempt on her life after sitting in the shadows for seven years.  As they make preparations, Joey and Glenn consider navigating a romance, despite their age difference and the differences between their past and future careers.

And that’s pretty much what happens.  They consider it.  Joey tells his mother things about his interest in Glenn that most sons would never tell their mothers.  Glenn tells Joey’s mother things that are pretty out of character for a man that is supposed to be somewhat tight-lipped.  There’s a lot of talking between Glenn and Joey that coyly dances around the idea of romance.