Mystery/Thriller Book Reviews
Page Two of TwoA Gentleman's Game by Greg Rucka
Bantam, October, 2004Hardcover, 335 pages
ISBN: 0553802763
Ordering information:
Amazon.com
London's Underground is hit by a devastating terrorist attack
when three young Muslim extremists explode firebombs
in moving subway trains, killing 372 people. Tara Chase,
Minder One of Her Majesty's Secret Intelligent Service (MI6), is
ordered to assasinate Dr. Faud bin Abdullah al-Shimmari
as retaliation. Tara successfully takes out the good doctor in a
mosque, but then the op goes wrong and a Saudi prince is killed.
Now Tara is on the run from her own government, which has
disavowed her in light of the international furor the death caused.
Now considered a rogue, Tara has one more chance to
save her career and her life. But there are quite a few people who
think Tara needs to be taken out, once and for all.
For most Westerners, it is still difficult to understand why al-Qaeda and its related groups want to kill westerners. Rucka takes readers deep into the world of islamic terrorism -- and it's terrifying. His portrait of William Leacock aka Sinan bin al-Baari, the young Englishman who becomes disenchanted with England and becomes a jihadist, is as fascinating as it is disturbing. Rucka also dissects the bureacracy of the spy business; the complicated interplay between politics and intelligence makes for interesting reading. (Who knew how much time an assassin had to spend filling out forms and following procedures?) Minders like Chase aren't even allowed to carry weapons on the streets of London, for example. Greg Rucka's graphic novel heroine easily makes the leap to prose in this intelligent, gripping, raw-edged thriller.
--Claire E. White
London Bridges by James Patterson
Little, Brown, November, 2004Hardcover, 391 pages
ISBN: 0316710598
Ordering information:
Amazon.com
When a small Western U.S. city is firebombed, FBI agent Alex Cross is
called onto the scene. Geoffrey Shafer aka the Weasel, a
vicious serial killer from Alex's past has been spotted near
the scene in a surveillance film. When the FBI later receives a
call from the Wolf, the situation escalates into even graver danger.
The Wolf threatens to firebomb large cities, including New York and
Washington D.C., if the FBI won't do precisely what the Wolf wants.
The Wolf, a Russian gangster and psychopath, is one of the worst enemies
Cross has ever faced. To make matters worse for Alex Cross, the
Wolf has somehow managed to involve the Weasel, a serial killer that
Alex encountered in D.C. Alex is extremely alarmed and puzzled to see the
highly intelligent and deranged Weasel working together with the
Wolf.
Forced to face two of his greatest villains -- Alex
must work swiftly because the Wolf is not known
for his patience, but is well-known for his brutality.
This is another must-read thriller from James Patterson. We last saw the Wolf, a criminal mastermind and psychopath, in Patterson's riveting thriller, The Big Bad Wolf. The Wolf is a ruthless and cunning killer who will stop at nothing to fulfill his insane schemes. However, despite his cruel pattern of destruction and intensity he often manages to appear calm. One of the Wolf's favorite tortures is called zamochit, in which he breaks the bones of his victim one by one -- sometimes starting with a little finger. Patterson is remarkably skilled at characterization and his characters, like Alex Cross who has appeared in ten of Patteron's novel, are very believable. Thriller fans and Alex Cross fans will enjoy this well-paced novel which is full of non-stop action.
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