Killers of a Certain Age

Deanna Raybourn

71 pages 2-hour read

Deanna Raybourn

Killers of a Certain Age

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2022

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Character List

Meet the key characters, with insights into their roles, motivations, and relationships—spoiler-free.

Major Characters

A 60-year-old retired assassin who formerly worked for the clandestine agency known as the Museum. She relies heavily on her physical training and hand-to-hand combat skills to complete missions. Abandoned by her mother early in life, she maintains a fierce independence. She organizes her all-female squad, Project Sphinx, and takes charge when their retirement cruise is interrupted by a lethal threat.

Key Relationships

Close Friend of Helen Randolph

Close Friend of Mary Alice Tuttle

Close Friend of Natalie Schuyler

Subordinate of Constance Halliday

Mentor of Minka

Former Romantic Partner of Christopher Taverner

Colleague of Vance Gilchrist

Professional Contact of Martin Fairbrother

Professional Contact of Naomi Ndiaye

An aristocratic assassin from a family with a legacy of government espionage. As the daughter of an OSS member, she specializes in firearms and acts as the detail-oriented planner for Project Sphinx. She struggles with the deep grief of recent widowhood, appearing frail to outsiders while maintaining her lethal accuracy.

Key Relationships

Close Friend of Billie Webster

Close Friend of Mary Alice Tuttle

Close Friend of Natalie Schuyler

Subordinate of Constance Halliday

Cautious Associate of Minka

Host to Akiko

A breast cancer survivor and poison expert for Project Sphinx. She distills rare and untraceable toxins for the agency. Driven by the loss of family members in the Vietnam War, she views her lethal profession as a method to right historical wrongs. She hides her occupation from her wife by pretending to be an accountant.

Key Relationships

Wife of Akiko

Close Friend of Billie Webster

Close Friend of Helen Randolph

Close Friend of Natalie Schuyler

Subordinate of Constance Halliday

Associate of Minka

An uninhibited explosives and weaponry expert for Project Sphinx. The descendant of Russian Jewish radicals and Dutch resistance fighters, she embraces her heritage and utilizes her romantic history to gather intelligence. She approaches her deadly work with practical energy and a preference for heavy firearms.

Key Relationships

Close Friend of Billie Webster

Close Friend of Helen Randolph

Close Friend of Mary Alice Tuttle

Former Romantic Partner of Charles Sweeney

Subordinate of Constance Halliday

Associate of Minka

A founding member of the Museum and former British intelligence operative. Codenamed Shepherdess, she survived a concentration camp during World War II and previously served in an all-female squad called the Furies. She acts as a strict instructor to the Project Sphinx team, teaching them to weaponize their traditional femininity.

Key Relationships

Sister of Richard Halliday

Commander of Billie Webster

Commander of Helen Randolph

Commander of Mary Alice Tuttle

Commander of Natalie Schuyler

A seasoned agent in the Museum who initially acts as a supervisor for the young Sphinx team. He holds deeply sexist views, routinely treating his female colleagues as subordinates or objects. He harbors a massive ego and deeply resents situations where female agents prove themselves capable.

Key Relationships

Colleague of Charles Sweeney

Supporting Characters

A mild-mannered curator who acts as the second-in-command for the Museum's Acquisitions department. His primary responsibility involves outfitting the assassination squads with the necessary equipment for their missions. The Project Sphinx members view him with fondness and consider him a harmless contact.

Key Relationships

Colleague of Billie Webster

The brisk, highly skilled deputy head of the Museum's Provenance department, which handles research and target identification. She is pregnant and on medical leave. Possessing a deep background in art history, she communicates cryptically with field agents regarding internal agency politics.

Key Relationships

Colleague of Billie Webster

A British assassin who works for the Museum. He desires a traditional domestic life with a marriage and children, conflicting with the demands of his profession. He acts as a capable agent who genuinely respects women as his equals.

Key Relationships

Former Romantic Partner of Billie Webster

Colleague of Helen Randolph

A young Ukrainian app developer and computer expert. She serves as Billie's protégé and provides technical support for the team, utilizing her coding skills to create secure communication channels disguised as menstruation tracking apps.

Key Relationships

Protégé of Billie Webster

Companion of Akiko

Mary Alice's devoted wife who plays softball and enjoys a quiet domestic routine. She operates under the assumption that her wife works as an accountant, initially unaware of the lethal reality of her spouse's career.

Key Relationships

Companion of Minka

A retired Museum colleague who works alongside the Project Sphinx team in their early years. He smokes regularly and aligns himself with the male-dominated culture of the agency's older generation.

Key Relationships

Former Romantic Partner of Natalie Schuyler

Colleague of Vance Gilchrist

A former SOE member and Constance's brother. He acts as a recruiter for the Museum, seeking out women with combat skills and moral flexibility to join his sister's experimental new squad.

Key Relationships

Recruiter of Billie Webster

The head of the Museum's Acquisitions department. He acts as a cheerful but unwanted supervisor on early missions, expressing a strong preference for luxury travel and Swiss spas.

Key Relationships

Supervisor of Billie Webster

An ambitious Museum agent who joined the agency as a teenager after killing the wealthy employers who overworked his parents. He values financial gain and dreams of purchasing a specific Parisian townhouse.

Key Relationships

Colleague of Billie Webster