When you’ve written four novels about the same poor bastard who keeps finding himself shot at, stabbed, ghosted, ghosted again, and held at gunpoint in both Silicon Valley boardrooms and Arizona cult compounds, you start to notice something:
Greg Newsome is a chaos magnet with a heart of gold and a Glock in his waistband.
So let’s get to it: I just wrapped Due or Die, the fourth Greg Newsome novel—and I thought it’d be fun (and slightly narcissistic) to compare it to book three, Cross My Heart & Hope to Die. For those keeping score, Cross was the one with the sniper, the Russian revenge plot, and Greg getting dumped so hard it left shrapnel. Due or Die is what happens when that same emotionally battered startup exec decides to “find himself” in the woods and instead finds a religious cult, a dead girl, and more bullets.
The Official Scorecard (100-point scale because I’m a sucker for precision)
| Element | Cross My Heart | Due or Die | What’s the Deal? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Humor | 84 | 91 | Due or Die has more dark humor. Gallows chuckles, survivalist snark, and mobsters delivering flower arrangements. Comedy = tragedy + distance, baby. |
| Style | 89 | 88 | Cross has that noir-tinted introspection. Due is grittier, more in-the-moment. I went for velocity over polish. Think Hemingway with caffeine withdrawal. |
| Writing | 90 | 91 | Tight prose, sharp dialogue, and a decent amount of blood. I’d like to thank my editor (and my caffeine addiction) for the pacing improvements. |
| Plot | 88 | 93 | Cross was chess. Due is chess with grenades. Cults, cartels, conspiracy—the mouse took the cheese and found a bear trap. |
| Drama | 92 | 95 | Cross had the emotional wreckage. Due adds physical carnage to the mix. More tears and more bodies. Balanced diet. |
| Philosophical Depth | 94 | 87 | Cross wrestles with identity, love, regret. Due punches those themes in the jaw and keeps moving. Less brooding, more bleeding. |
| Themes | 92 | 90 | Cross: love, loss, betrayal. Due: redemption, survival, spiritual manipulation. Still heavy, just wearing different camo. |
| Overall | 91 | 92 | It’s close, but Due or Die edges out Cross for sheer scope and chaos coordination. Like if Cormac McCarthy wrote Die Hard with a startup founder. |
So What’s the Verdict?
Cross My Heart & Hope to Die is about Greg trying to hold his life together as it falls apart. It’s emotional. Wounded. One part thriller, one part breakup novel. You feel for him. You want him to finally catch a break.
Due or Die laughs in the face of that break and kicks him into the woods.
It’s Greg unleashed. Not smarter. Not stronger. Just… more tired. And somehow, more dangerous. The stakes are bigger. The action hits harder. The humor is meaner. And yet, the heart still beats under it all—even when it’s breaking again.
Want in?
If you’re new to the series, maybe start with Write to Die or Cyphers & Sighs and work your way forward. But if you’re caught up, Due or Die is the next-level ride you didn’t know you needed. Greg Newsome, ladies and gents. The man who runs toward danger like it owes him money.
Got a favorite moment from the series? Think I scored these wrong? Think Greg needs therapy and a hug instead of another gun? Hit me in the comments or shoot me a note.
Danger Boy out.
Why not go here and buy them all!
