Wow! The pace of this book is incredible – this is one you’ll pick up, read at every opportunity and it will have to be prised out of your hands!
I really loved Abir Mukherjee’s Wyndham and Banerjee historical crime series, but I didn’t know whether I’d feel quite the same about a modern thriller as they aren’t my usual fayre. I’m quite happy to report that I loved this too.
The story opens with a bomb explosion in an LA shopping mall and we are immediately thrown into the heart of a terrorist cell committed to causing atrocities on American soil. In London, a man is arrested on suspicion of being involved as his daughter seems to be connected to events in the USA. Finally allowed to go home, he finds a woman looking for him – an American woman who believes that his daughter is with her son. Together, they embark on a journey that takes them into serious danger as they try to find their children before the law does. Meanwhile, a maverick government agent is also picking up the trail and uncovering threats from within the FBI.
I’m really not used to reading such high-stakes, jet-setting, fast-paced thrillers – I’m usually more at home with a good murder mystery! However, I found myself immersed in this right from the start, even as I watched with horror as the characters of the opening scene revealed their true purposes. I found myself rooting for the parents of the children and Agent Mistry who all put themselves in mortal danger to protect the innocent. It was intriguing to be placed into scenes with the terrorists too – an interesting but slightly terrifying look at the manipulative tactics, coercion and gaslighting of the young recruits.
This is recommended to anyone who wants a book they won’t be able to put down. If high-stakes thrillers are your thing, this is definitely one you won’t want to miss.
Thanks to NetGalley for my review copy. Opinions are entirely my own.
Header photo by Lianhao Qu on Unsplash
