A tense political story of espionage and intrigue.
In Spacek’s debut novel, an American Ivy League university graduate embarks on a year of teaching in China, unaware he’s in for the adventure of his life.
In 1998, one of Andrew Callahan’s professors at Harvard recommends that he spend a year at the International Affairs University in Beijing, post-graduation. He eagerly accepts but soon realizes things may not be what they seem. During his time in Beijing, Andrew’s opinions of Chinese society are challenged and, sometimes, reinforced, as when he sees a tent village in the middle of a city: “I remembered that one of the first words I had learned in Chinese class was chi ku, which meant ‘eat bitterness.’ It could describe how migrants endured hardship, but it was also applied to the resilience of Chinese people as a whole.” Andrew befriends Will Carter, a fellow American teaching at the university; he also quickly develops an interest in the dean’s assistant, Lily Jiang, who’s also the daughter of a high-ranking Chinese general. Andrew and Lily form an illicit relationship, and before long, he becomes embroiled in a spy mission that puts the lives of Lily and her family—as well as his own—in jeopardy; it all leads to an action-packed conclusion. Spacek tackles complex topics in this thriller, such as international relations at the turn of the millennium and how the relationship between two global superpowers affects their respective citizens; at one point, for example, Andrew reflects while reading Chinese students’ essays about attending American universities and bringing back tech: “Our neoliberal economic professors…had emphasized the benefits of the free flow of labor and goods but, frankly, I was having second thoughts after noting how many of my students considered the theft of intellectual property a national prerogative.” The writing style is tight and eschews extraneous details. The pacing is similarly controlled; Andrew and Lily’s relationship develops naturally, and the rising action doesn’t feel rushed. The characters are also likable and easy to root for when they face seemingly impossible odds.
A tense political story of espionage and intrigue.Pub Date: June 21, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-63758-386-9
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Post Hill Press
Review Posted Online: July 7, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Fast-moving excitement with a satisfying finish.
The feds must protect an accused criminal and an orphaned girl.
Maybe you’ve met him before as protagonist of The 6:20 Man (2022): Ex-Army Ranger Travis Devine, who’d had the dubious fortune to tangle with “the girl on the train,” is now assigned by his homeland security boss to protect Danny Glass, who's awaiting trial on multiple RICO charges in Washington state. Devine has what it takes: He “was a closer, snooper, fixer, investigator,” and, when necessary, a killer. These skills are on full display as the deaths of three key witnesses grind justice to a temporary halt. Glass has a 12-year-old niece, Betsy Odom, and each is the other’s only living relative—her parents recently died of an apparent drug overdose. The FBI has temporary guardianship of Betsy, who's a handful. She tells Travis that though she’s not yet 13, she's 28 in “life-shit years.” The financially well-heeled Glass wants to be her legal guardian with an eye to eventual adoption, but what are his real motives? And what happens to her if he's convicted? Meanwhile, Betsy insists that her parents never touched drugs, and she begs Travis to find out how they really died. This becomes part of a mission that oozes danger. The small town of Ricketts has a woman mayor who’s full of charm on the surface, but deeply corrupt and deadly when crossed. She may be linked to a subversive group called "12/24/65," as in 1865, when the Ku Klux Klan beast was born. Blood flows, bombs explode, and people perish, both good guys and not-so-good guys. Readers might ponder why in fiction as well as in life, it sometimes seems necessary for many to die so one may live. And what about the girl on the train? She's not necessary to the plot, but she's a fun addition as she pops in and out of the pages, occasionally leaving notes for Travis. Maybe she still wants him dead.
Fast-moving excitement with a satisfying finish.Pub Date: Nov. 12, 2024
ISBN: 9781538757901
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2024
As usual, Evanovich handles the funny stuff better (much better) than the mystery stuff.
Stephanie Plum’s 31st adventure shows that Trenton’s preeminent fugitive-apprehension agent still has plenty of tricks up her sleeve, and needs every one of them.
The current caseload for Stephanie and Lula—the ex-prostitute file clerk at her cousin Vincent Plum’s bail bonds company, who serves as her unflappable sidekick—begins with two “failures to appear.” Eugene Fleck is suspected of being Robin Hoodie, who robs from the rich and, yes, distributes the proceeds to the poor. Racketeer Bruno Jug, who’s missed his court date on charges of tax evasion, is also suspected of drugging and raping a 14-year-old. But neither of these fugitives can hold a candle to Zoran Djordjevic, aka Fang, a self-proclaimed vampire wanted in connection with the gruesome fate of his late wife and three other missing women. As usual, Stephanie’s personal life is just as helter-skelter as her professional life as a bounty hunter. She’s managed to get herself engaged both to Det. Joe Morelli, of the Trenton PD, and Ranger, a former Special Forces agent who runs a private security firm; she thinks she may be pregnant; and she’s willing to marry the father, whichever of her fiances that turns out to be. On top of it all, her nothingburger schoolmate Herbert Slovinski suddenly pops up at one of the funerals she ferries her Grandma Mazur to, hitting on her relentlessly and gilding his importunities by cleaning and painting her shabby apartment and laying new carpet. Luckily, Lula’s on hand to offer cupcakes that stave off the worst disasters, and whenever this hodgepodge threatens to slow down, another FTA appears, or fails to appear.
As usual, Evanovich handles the funny stuff better (much better) than the mystery stuff.Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2024
ISBN: 9781668003138
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2024
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