Harlan Coben’s blistering and bracing The Boy from the Woods (Grand Central) is a hybrid mystery-thriller featuring a unique blend of concepts and themes. Starkly original, in fact.
Our hero is Wilde, who as a boy was (almost) quite literally raised by wolves — at least, in the same wild they inhabit. Today, he’s also the not-quite-stereotypical special ops vet, haunted by a dark past. The problem is, the disappearance of a child in the present forces Wilde back into the world of mystery from which he emerged with no memory; back into the woods at the risk of remembering a childhood better left forgotten. Coben adds bullying, corruption, duplicitous politicians and scuzzy media types to the mix in a book that keeps getting better and better.
Of course, with Coben, those parts actually add up to an even greater whole. The Boy from the Woods is as much an action novel as a psychological thriller, as much a riveting read as a superb character study in which Coben challenges himself by taking his story outside his suburban comfort zone. A must-read for any mystery or thriller fan. (Read BookTrib’s review here.)
James Rollins is no stranger to posing brilliant “What if?” questions that have longed fueled his string of perennial bestsellers. With The Last Odyssey (Morrow), though, he has topped even himself by postulating that maybe, just maybe, the events portrayed by Homer in The Illiad and The Odyssey were real.
That’s the dilemma facing Gray Pierce and his stalwart Sigma Force after a medieval shipwreck is discovered in the ice of Greenland. The contents of the ship that once fueled a war long past become fodder for any number of conflicts in the present, as the literal, and figurative, gates of hell are opened. In lesser hands, such a far-fetched concept might have been laughable. But in Rollins’ able grasp, we’re treated to a relentless rollercoaster of a read that never lets up or lets us down.
Look up “perfect thriller” in the dictionary and you’ll find a picture of James Rollins, reigning heir apparent to the likes of Alistair MacLean, and all his considerable talents are on display in The Last Odyssey. (Read BookTrib’s review here.)
After losing my breath on Coben and Rollins, I settled in with C. J. Box’s Long Range (Putnam) in the hope of catching it. Boy, was I in for a surprise.
That’s because Box ventures a bit out of his wilderness comfort zone by pitting Wyoming game warden Joe Pickett against a master sniper who’s just tried to assassinate a local judge with no shortage of enemies. Accompanied by his deadly sidekick, Nate Romanowski, Pickett descends into a hellish underworld of depravity that will test his will as much as his skills, especially when the action takes a uniquely personal turn.
Box is consistent as it gets, but in Long Range, he reaches for a different brand of brass ring and effortlessly captures it in his grasp. He contrasts the wide-open expanse Pickett is bound to protect with the claustrophobic nature of civilization into which he musts venture. Brilliant in all respects.
Christine Feehan continues her hybrid paranormal-thriller series with typical mastery in Lethal Game (Berkley).
When dark hero Malachai Fortunes is severely wounded while rescuing American soldiers in Afghanistan, he journeys to California to convalesce where he meets the mysterious, potential femme fatale Amaryllis, who seems to possess miraculous healing powers that make Malachai suspect she’s a fellow Ghost Walker. The fact that they’re going to join forces isn’t the question so much as when and who they will be going up against.
Feehan never disappoints, but there’s a level of emotion and angst in Lethal Game that takes the book to an entirely new level. Add to that the battle scenes early on, action scenes later, characters vividly fleshed out, along with a twist-laden ending, and you’ve got the recipe for thriller that’s superb in all respects.
Former crime reporter Christi Daugherty has created an apt doppelganger for herself in newspaper reporter Harper McClain, who dominates the action in Revolver Road (Minotaur).
When rock star Xavier Rayne disappears, McClain takes up the investigation, getting a sense early on that something more foul is afoot. And she should know, given that her own life is being threatened by a mysterious caller, forcing her into hiding away from her beloved Savannah, Georgia. Turns out McClain’s instincts were spot-on when Rayne turns up murdered. The case, though, flushes her out into the open where that threatening voice shows up, determined to add another body to the pile.
Revolver Road is psychological thriller writing of the highest order, culled from the school of Lisa Gardner and, especially, John Hart for its wondrous realization of the new South, both gothic and otherwise.
Add Don Bentley’s Matt Drake to the list of special operators charged with missions ranging from difficult to impossible. Good thing Drake’s on the job in Without Sanction (Berkley), a job that brings him back to Syria.
He has a bad history in that country, but a rogue Pakistani scientist with vital information has specifically requested that Drake retrieve him. Given that he has information about a devastating new chemical weapon, Drake takes the assignment that seems almost certain to be some kind of trap. Something he’s all too used to, giving the rapidly shifting allegiances in the high-end intelligence world that he inhabits. But the stakes are too great to back off, even with the odds growing that Drake won’t leave Pakistan alive.
This is a thinking man’s action thriller, kind of what you’d have if you mixed John Le Carre with Brad Thor. Without Sanction is cerebral when it wants to be and action-packed when it needs to be. A great combination that Bentley handles in adroit fashion.
