Four months ago, I reviewed Kyle Mills’ 2005 novel “Fade” (read my review).
Mills had announced a couple years ago that he was writing a new book featuring that novel’s titular protagonist. It was the direction he decided to go after helming Vince Flynn’s bestselling Mitch Rapp series for nearly a decade.
Due to the fact that 20 years have passed since “Fade” was first published, Mills said this would be more of a “reboot” than a sequel to the first novel — something that could serve as a new starting point for readers (and a new starting point for the series).
It’s a novel concept. It isn’t often that you see a literary protagonist exhumed by an author after being dormant for two decades. But that is the genesis of Mills’ new novel “Fade In.”
I was lucky enough to be picked to get an advance reader copy of “Fade In” as part of the Fade Nation ambassador program.
“Fade” is the nickname of Salam al-Fayed, a former Navy SEAL who readers presumed was dead after the climactic events Mills’ 2005 novel.
It turns out Fade wasn’t dead after all.
He was in a two-decade-long coma in the hospital where he was shot. In the intervening years, doctors also removed a bullet that was lodged in his spine (an injury that made our hero question his existence in “Fade”).
As a child of the 1970s and 80s, this sort of “resurrection twist” that was epitomized in primetime soap operas of the era (anyone remember “Who shot J.R.?”).
And since Salam al-Fayed has a retro vibe himself (he wears Looney Tunes boxers and favors musicians like Belinda Carlisle), it is only fitting that he’d find himself resuming his life in such a manner.
Fade has spent his adult years as something of a fish out of water. And being “asleep” for two decades only enhances that aspect of our protagonist in “Fade In.”
We have a character who hasn’t experienced all the socio-political upheaval the world has gone through the past 20 years.
It certainly gives Fade a unique perspective on things.
The events of 2005’s “Fade” found our protagonist on the run from law enforcement and the federal government.
Death seemed like a reasonable option for a man who faced a debilitating injury and time in a jail cell.
The early stages of 2025's “Fade In” focus on al-Fayed rehabilitating from his coma in a tranquil rural setting at Thompson Training and Rehabilitation.
Fade has been given a fresh identity and a potent cocktail of fluids, medication, and chemicals (administered via ports put in his body) from a device referred to as the Mystery Machine.
All of it is provided compliments of a wealthy technologist named Jon Lowe.
In social media posts, Mills describes Lowe as a “compilation of tech savants we’ve been seeing for years now, and a real-life friend who wants to act on a grand scale to improve the life of others.”
The question is whether his motivations are pure, or if that much power is a catalyst for corruption to seep in — a point of ongoing debate in the book — and in today’s society.
Lowe shares certain similarities with a character named Nicholas Ward, who was featured in the Mitch Rapp novel “Enemy at the Gates” (also written by Mills — read my review).
In that novel, Ward is a wealthy entrepreneur who started a foundation designed to rid the world of its ills (the character was presented as sort of a cross between Bill Gates and Elon Musk).
Lowe serves a similar purpose as the narrative unfolds in “Fade In.”
In the employ of Lowe is Matt Egan — a past colleague and “friend” of Al-Fayed’s, formerly with the Department of Homeland Security.
Egan was a key character in the first novel, and we soon learn that his personal life has taken a turn for the worse. As such, Egan has become cold, distant, and difficult to get a read on.
We soon learn Fade’s fancy rehab comes with a price.
Egan has been tasked by Lowe to put together a special unit of enforcers to help facilitate the goals of Lowe’s organization… and they need Salam al-Fayed to be part of this “offensive capability.”
Before we know it, our protagonist is thrust into a world of intrigue he never imagined possible. Fade is the proverbial “man without a country” — his future and the future of the established world order hangs in the balance.
On a terrific episode of “No Limits: The Thriller Podcast,” Mills talks about al-Fayed’s evolution as a character and the impetus for writing “Fade In.”
“I write books because there are subjects that interest me,” said Mills. “And all that technology that’s right around the corner, or maybe is being developed now or even implemented now…I love that stuff.”
“It’s sort of like when I first met Tom Clancy. He’d go through, you know, Boeing’s financial statements. They would talk about projects and he would figure out what they were doing from all these different places and put it all together.”
(FUN FACT: Kyle's father was the real-life inspiration for the character Dan Murray in Clancy's novels.)
As it regards bringing back a comatose Fade for a new series, Mills said it “just took a few days and I was right back in Fade’s head. And he’s got the same sort of deadly skill set as Mitch Rapp, but from a personality standpoint, he’s like the polar opposite.”
“[Fade] is a little bit of a pop philosopher. He’s obviously a little bit clinically depressed. Maybe has some substance abuse problems.”
Mills saw bringing back the character as an opportunity to explore some of the key geopolitical issues facing the world today.
They also discussed the cover art for “Fade In” during the episode.
Mills said the “gun consultant” he used for the novel gave feedback on the “crosshairs” featured in the design (and changes were made based on his input):
“Fade In” works as both a sequel to the 2005 novel and a “fresh start” for a new thriller series.
(I enjoyed the pop culture references and the nods to “Mission: Impossible.”)
Compared to some of his contemporaries, the ambiguous and cynical nature of Mills’ protagonist better reflects the world we live in today (pretty cool considering the fact that Salam al-Fayed was introduced to readers 20 years ago).
I’m excited to see where things go from here!!
If you’d like to learn more about Kyle Mills and his novels, visit his website at kylemills.com.
>> Order your copy of “Fade In” here.
>> If you enjoyed my review of “Fade In” by Kyle Mills, be sure to follow me on Twitter/X — @TheJonCrunch
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