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A huge step up from the current capacities of our present day computers comprises the theme of David Ignatius’ book. The concept is a Quantum computer which is depicted as being so fast with the ability to decrypt any encryption in existence. The possession and use of such a device will easily make anyone having and using it masters of the digital world.

The novel depicts a conflict between the United States and China to get the where-with-all to develop the first working model of a Quantum computer. Harris Chang, a CIA agent, is assigned to investigate a possible breach of a Quantum research lab by a suspected Chinese informant. The hunt for the suspected mole leads Chang into a world of cutting-edge technology and into a situation where he is involved in a fine line between loyalty to his country and possibly treason.

The possibilities presented by this computing advance are described in easily understood language. The description of the stresses and strains placed on Harris Chang make for an excellent introduction and understanding of this man. Chang is, by his own definition, not a Chinese American, but an American by birth and inclination. His investigations are underscored by a possible mistrust by his boss and co-workers of his ethnicity. The novel itself is backed up by the description of what could be the results of possession of the first working models of this huge advance in computation.

Extremely well written and easily carrying the reader into a world of digital advance, and allowing the reader a rapt attention to the situations and characters involved.

11/17 Paul Lane

THE QUANTUM SPY by David Ignatius. Quercus (November 7, 2017).  ISBN 978-1681440279. 288p.

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A Different Class of Spy

Set in England in the early 1900’s, the novel uses the founding of the British Secret Service to spin a very well done story about people involved in its inception.

Captain Vernon Kell is looking to set up such a service to serve England both at home and abroad but finds that upper-class individuals traditionally used in high-level government work are not suited for the dirty work needed to get things done in the world of spying. He is working under orders to find some evidence of German activity involved in obtaining secret information on British activities that are geared towards bettering British military capabilities. The use of upper-class gentlemen to do the field work in the spy game gets several killed with no useful information obtained.

One of the men is a policeman named Bill who is killed by Russian anarchists. The killing is noted by Bill’s friend, a man named Wiggins. Kell approaches Wiggins to help find and arrest Bill’s killers and has hit on the best person possible for the job. Wiggins served in the British war against the Boers in South Africa, and as an urchin on London’s streets helped the great detective Sherlock Holmes form a group of children into “The Baker Street Irregulars.” Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the creator of Sherlock Holmes, places this group into activity aiding Holmes in several novels.

The description of London at the point the novel is set in is extremely well researched by H.B. Lyle. We have the combination of horses and horse-drawn wagons, with early motor cars, buses, and trucks; slum areas and homes for the well-to-do, and the beginnings of opportunities for the poor class to climb the economic ladder thanks to the burgeoning industrial revolution.

This novel is obviously the first of what should be a series of books about the organization that later became both MI5 and MI6. The principal characters are in place and a period that has the problem of impending war looming over it. The book stands quite well on its own and the author’s styling is certainly an attraction for novels that will follow.

11/17 Paul Lane

THE IRREGULAR by H.B. Lyle. Quercus (November 7, 2017).  ISBN 978-1681440279. 288p.

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A Jack Reacher Novel, Book 22

Jack is back and all is right in my world. I just feel safe knowing he’s out there, fictional though he may be. I do find it necessary to block out the image of Tom Cruise as Reacher, it really doesn’t work in the books, not with descriptors like Bigfoot and the Incredible Hulk, with “fists like Thanksgiving turkeys.”

So a few books ago, I think in Make Me, Reacher had his usual brief affair with a woman, this time an Asian American named Chang, and this new book starts out with her leaving him because of his unusual, traveling man life choices. So he’s having a bad day when he gets on the first bus going anywhere, gets off and finds a pawn shop with a West Point class ring in the window. It’s a tiny ring, obviously from a tiny woman who must have gone through hell to get to graduation, so why would the ring be pawned? And that is the mystery at the heart of this latest story…that leads to the opioid crisis. Because that’s what’s happening in the world, and therefore in contemporary crime fiction. And Child does it very, very well.

Of course, that’s not all of it. Reacher decides to track down the owner and return the ring to her. The pawn shop owner is persuaded to let Reacher know that he bought the ring from Jimmy the Rat, and where to find him. Jimmy the Rat isn’t as forthcoming, seeing as he has seven of his motorcycle gang with him. But we all know that Jack can deal with seven on one fights, and he does. He keeps following the trail, which gets murkier but he gets a little help from a woman detective and a former FBI agent turned private investigator.

The writing is sparse as always, and there is enough action and suspense to keep the pages turning. Lee Child is probably the best thriller writer working today, and this book is an excellent example of his work. Don’t miss it.

11/17 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

THE MIDNIGHT LINE by Lee Child. Delacorte Press (November 7, 2017).  ISBN 978-0399593482. 384p.

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A Steve Flynn Thriller

Headhunter is Nick Oldham’s third book featuring Steve Flynn, an ex-cop and ex-Marine, and beginning at the precise moment that he is in the process of killing one of the men that decapitated his girlfriend. This time he finds himself up against a powerful international crime family that had his girlfriend killed in order to get at Steve. And that is just the beginning.

Steve surrenders to the police after the murder and one of the officers set to guard him until he can be brought to jail is the prettiest cop on the force. Needless to say, a mutual attraction between Steve and her develops and takes root.

Like Oldham’s previous novels, we get action after action while Steve goes after the Bashkims crime family. Taking place in England, the Canary Islands, and Malta, the scenes move rapidly through the locales of Steve’s hunt. A hunt which also includes cooperation with the American government, Steve’s ex-supervisor, and the pretty girl.

There are no hidden meanings, but for those that like plenty of action and the ultimate triumph of justice, this is your book. Will the pretty girl appear in the next novel featuring Steve? Hmm, tune in later to find out, but we know in advance that there will be enough action to keep readers happy and coming back for more.

11/17 Paul Lane

HEADHUNTER by Nick Oldham. Severn House Publishers; First World Publication edition (November 1, 2017).  ISBN 978-0727887290. 224p.

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