Keeley Hawes seriously kicks butt in the best crime thriller I've watched all year

Julie and Edward in a press shot for The Assassin - both looking into the camera with a target on them. Julie is holding a gun

(Image credit: Amazon)

Prime Video UK has just added The Assassin, a gripping new crime thriller that I just can't get enough of.

The series, which sees Bodyguard and The Durrells star Keeley Hawes play Julie, a retired assassin who is now living a quiet life on a secluded Greek island, is one of those shows that comes along every once in a while and just captivates you. From the very first episode, the show had me gripped so tightly that I barely thought of anything else until the series came to its stunning end.

The story follows Julie, who is now retired and hiding out in a tiny Greek cottage. And for a while, her quiet life works perfectly - that is until her estranged son Edward (The Good Doctor's Freddie Highmore) visits from England with some difficult questions.

As she struggles to tell Edward that this entire life has been built on not just one lie, but a whole mountain of them, Julie soon finds her past catching up with her and the pair are forced to go on the run.

Soon Edward (who couldn't be less like his killer mum if he tried) is drawn into Julie's dangerous world, and the pair are left fighting for their lives as they try and work out who is trying to kill them, and why.

Julie and Edward look out the window of a yacht in The Assassin — The Assassin is a series you don't want to miss. (Image credit: Amazon)

Soon secrets and lies from both Julie and - believe it or not - lovely Edward, and spilling out and threatening their already fragile relationship... but in the face of tragedy and horror, could this road trip that no one asked for bring the mother/son duo together?

The best thing about this show is the main characters, both Keeley Hawes and Freddie Highmore are phenomenal as Julie and Edward, and the scriptwriters also deserve a special mention because not only is this a chilling thriller, it also has some hilarious one-liners.

With their relationship strained to say the least, Edward and Julie's dialogue is sarcastic and condescending, but in a refreshingly brilliant way. One minute you will see someone being killed with a cheese fork, and the next you will be laughing about an off-the-cuff quip from Edward.

Honestly - this is a show that you can't afford to miss, and I couldn't recommend it more.

All six episodes of The Assassin are available in the UK and Ireland on Prime Video now.