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In this follow-up to The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell, Dugoni again turns away from his legal thrillers to write a riveting story of boys becoming men and the risks they take along the way. Weaving together three timelines with ease, he recreates the horror of war and its effects on the survivors, with a message that will bring many to tears.
Abbott’s ingeniously plotted 22nd novel (after Never Ask Me) is a skillfully complicated tour de force with multiple suspects, an engrossing backstory, and a baffling puzzle with twists guaranteed to stun.
This will mostly appeal to fans of the author’s previous works and similar crime novels that have sprung up in the Arab world since the 2011 uprisings.
With lean prose and spot-on local color, this plot-driven thriller pulses with tension and fraught escapes, the action capped by a courtroom drama as good as any from Grisham. A must-read for fans of legal thrillers and/or spy novels.
Boyle's fiction rises above the stereotypes of urban noir, not so much for the plot as for the quirky, flawed female characters with rich inner lives, the gritty dialog, and atmospheric street settings, in which authentic details abound. Offbeat humor leavens the mix and adds to the fun.
The author deftly portrays her female characters, especially Mel, whose neediness is remarkable. Recommended for readers more interested in family interplay (think Anne Tyler) than in thrills and chills.
Bailey delineates a host of characters with consummate skill. While the requisite twists are not always startling, the plot is pleasingly complex. Admirers of Nicci French's "Frieda Klein" series will enjoy this absorbing mystery.—Ron Terpening, formerly of Univ. of Arizona, Tucson
Abbott is a master of misdirection, though multiple red herrings and ever-tightening entanglements lead to a conclusion that some might find confusing. Still, the suspenseful plot with its numerous twists will appeal to readers of Harlan Coben or Gillian Flynn. [See Prepub Alert, 1/22/18.]
Those who enjoy Mediterranean or Neapolitan noir (Sandrone Dazieri, Massimo Carlotto, Giancarlo de Cataldo) will feel right at home in a world where chaos and vulgarity reign. [See Prepub Alert, 3/12/18.]