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In this standalone thriller, Grant introduces computer consultant Marc Bowman, and right out of the box, he is fired from the same company that employs his wife. Bowman has this idea that he is sure will make him millions, only he needs the data he collected from the company to run tests, so he steals it.

The impact of that bad decision gets more and more twisted and dangerous every day. First his computer, along with his million-dollar idea, is stolen, then his wife walks out on him. Marc has the unfortunate problem of believing every person he speaks with, despite their conflicting stories, so he never knows who to really trust.

Ultimately, he finds himself on the run, zigzagging from one unreliable character to the next, dodging bullets and more in a race to stay alive and keep one step ahead of whoever is out to get him.

Grant writes his character into a corner, and the only way out is to use a ploy that doesn’t really work and creates a rather unfortunate ending. For readers who enjoy corporate espionage or high tech thrillers.

Copyright ©2014 Booklist, a division of the American Library Association.

10/14 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

Another opinon:

A novel opening with the speed and power of a machine gun and continuing in that mode all the way to the very end. Marc Bowman is a computer expert working as a consultant.  His problems begin with his going to work on a normal Monday at a high tech company he is currently solving problems for.  He walks in, is escorted to his boss and fired being told only that there are cutbacks in personnel throughout the company.

Going home his wife, who is an executive level employee at the high tech company he was fired from, returns home and demands that he return company property he stole when leaving.  He did load a flash drive with data that he was developing and refuses indicating that it was his plans for a design of a breakout software package and not property of the firm. An argument ensues and  his wife stalks out, the first of a week long set of problems  for Marc.

The next morning he awakens, his wife still gone and finds the front door wide open. Marc of course calls the police. Sets of run ins with the police that came in response to his call, Homeland Security and the FBI, running and hiding ensue throughout the remainder of the week, all apparently are due to the content of the material on the flash drive.

What’s going on and what  are the  problems Marc attempts to answer in the midst of trying to rectify the breakup with his wife. This is a book that will capture the reader from the start and not let go until the end.  It is  an all nighter and definitely one to make anyone reading it a fan of Andrew Grant anxiously awaiting his next book.

10/14 Paul Lane

Note: Andrew Grant is Lee Child’s brother.

RUN by Andrew Grant. Ballantine Books (October 7, 2014). ISBN 978-0345540720. 288p.

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There’s something wrong with Zoe Kincaid. Her stunted size and figure are that of a pre pubescent teenager rather than a twenty-year-old. To date none of the doctors or tests have yielded any results and her parents are ready to write it off as a fluke, but after being embarrassed out of college Zoe has had enough.

Unbeknownst to her parents, Zoe submits herself for a series of genetic tests and finally gets an answer: physically her body stopped aging at fourteen. Only one other person has ever been known to suffer this same disorder and further testing could show the exact gene responsible. Zoe is all set to sign on for whatever it takes – after all, her genes could be the key to agelessness – but lawyers have determined that if Zoe is only physically fourteen, she is still a minor. Without the consent her parents refuse to give, any further study of Zoe and her condition are a no go.

When a group called the Network steps in and offers Zoe what private doctors can’t, she jumps at the opportunity. But the Network is the focus of a government investigation determined to unmask and dismantle the organization. In Zoe’s quest for answers has she actually placed herself in the hands of a group of murderers?

This latest from Peikoff is certainly a thought provoking one. On one hand there is the seemingly endless quest for longevity and immortality (should we, shouldn’t we, and what are the ramifications of an un-aging population?). On the other there are the politics involved in medical research.

Some aspects of the book do come across as far fetched, but most of story works. The Network itself is an intriguing prospect, and one I’m sure exists in some throughout the scientific community (though that may just be a bit of conspiracy theory talking).

9/14 Becky LeJeune

NO TIME TO DIE by Kira Peikoff. Pinnacle (August 26, 2014). ISBN 978-0786034895. 448p.

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David Slaton was a “kidon” for the Israeli Mossad. Kidon are assassins doing the work called for by the agency. He left the service to marry a girl he was very much in love with and settled down in Virginia in the U.S., expecting to live an ordinary life.

Unfortunately, the Mossad finds they need his particular talents once more. A scientist in Iran has brought that country to the brink of perfecting a nuclear tipped ballistic missile.

Several attempts to assassinate him, all unsuccessful and resulting in loss of life on the part of the assassins, were tried. The head of the Mossad believes that a source within the organization has been leaking information to the Iranians to prevent the assassination.

In order to circumvent the leak, it is decided to reactivate David. Aware that he would not be willing to come out of retirement the decision is made to kidnap his wife and return her only when the job is done.

Larsen makes the search for David’s wife, and the attempt to kill the Iranian scientist into one of the most exciting novels in a long time. Action runs from Sweden to Switzerland and of course, Iran in a torrid pace. This is not a book that can be put down without finishing it.

There are surprises, all within the scope of events depicted and are logical,and at several points just stunning. I’ve read previous novels by the author and never been disappointed, but Assassin’s Game might be his best. Highly recommended for a great read.

9/14 Paul Lane

ASSASSIN’S GAME by Ward Larsen. Forge Books; First Edition edition (August 26, 2014). ISBN 978-0765336729. 384p.

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Marco Jameson is in an impossible situation. Brought to Denmark as part of a clan led by his uncle, he has no legal citizenship, no legal identity, and no real education. Everyone in the clan is at the mercy of Marco’s uncle, including Marco’s own father. So when Marco makes a dangerous discovery that threatens his very life, he has no one to turn to. Alone and on the run, Marco vows to do the right thing but now the very people he once called family are out for his blood.

Meanwhile, Department Q is about to undergo a bit of a change. The head of homicide is stepping down and Carl Mørck’s own worst enemy has been put in charge. Mørck is pretty well determined to continue on as usual until ordered otherwise. After all, his department has a highly successful solve rate and is the frequent praise of local media.

After solving yet another case, one bungled by Department A, Mørck reluctantly allows his assistants to choose their next case. It’s a missing persons almost three years old involving a ministry employee who vanished after returning from a trip to Africa. The case is as cold as can be and there are no real leads to speak of. Not until Marco Jameson crosses their paths, that is.

My favorite grumpy detective and his crew are back! Yes, Mørck’s gruff and brash nature is one of the things that makes this series a favorite of mine. He’s just a fascinating character – one that Adler-Olsen does a truly wonderful job giving the reader real insight into. Mørck’s own inner monologue throughout the narrative shows that in spite of being a clever detective, he’s a bit clueless when it comes with interacting with other people.

Part of it, of course, comes from the events laid out in The Keeper of Lost Causes – the case that cost him a colleague and left his partner paralyzed from the neck down. Since then, Mørck has taken it upon himself to give Hardy a home and plays a pretty big role in the man’s recuperation. He does have redeemable characteristics after all.

And while all three of the main characters – Mørck, Assad, and Rose – continue to grow and evolve as the series progresses, Adler-Olsen always has a great cast of supporting characters in each book. In The Marco Effect it’s Marco himself who really shines.

Another excelling addition to the Department Q series, and one that can easily be read as a stand alone if you’re new to Adler-Olsen’s work.

09/14 Becky LeJeune

THE MARCO EFFECT by Jussi Adler-Olsen. Dutton Adult (September 9, 2014). ISBN 978-0525954026. 496p.

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Kernick delivers another fast paced engrossing novel concerning an attack on London by a terrorist group. He uses characters from a previous book but without having read that, the allusions to people and events in that book are sufficient to allow the reader to understand enough to enjoy this one as almost a stand alone.

Deputy Commissioner Tina Boyd and Detective investigator Mike Bolt of the London police are brought into the investigation of an explosion in a London cafe set by terrorists who had previously attacked a hotel in. The terrorist,s in a phone call to the authorities, announce another attack in twelve hours time from the cafe atrocity.

William Garrett, nicknamed “The Fox,” captured by Tina after the events in Siege,  indicates that he knows who the bombers are and will only talk to Tina.  He will reveal who they are, but only at a price.

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Charlotte Alton is leading a double life; the well known London socialite is also known in criminal circles as Karla, a fixer who specializes in information of the most sinister kind. Karla can wipe out all traces of a person and conversely can reincarnate them into someone else with a few strokes of a keyboard.

No one knows of her dual identity save one man, Johanssen, who needs her help to break into an experimental prison to kill a woman housed there. Unfortunately, the prison is run by Quillan, a man who would dearly love to kill Johanssen, and Karla can’t find any trace of the targeted woman.

Not only does she need to get Johanssen in, she also has to get him out, at seemingly impossible odds. Determined to keep her client safe, Karla keeps digging and doesn’t like anything she finds.

Most of the characters are duplicitous in this very complex layered story, but Giltrow keeps it tight and moving. The graphic violence and torture has this thriller bordering on horror, like Douglas Clegg or Chelsea Cain books, so be forewarned that it is not for the squeamish.

Copyright ©2014 Booklist, a division of the American Library Association.

9/14 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

THE DISTANCE by Helen Giltrow. Doubleday (September 9, 2014). ISBN 978-0385536998. 368p.