Thursday, May 20, 2010

The Terrorist-Peter Steiner

The Terrorist
Peter Steiner
Minotaur, Jun 1 2010, $$23.99
ISBN: 9780312373443

Septuagenarian former CIA field operative Louis Morgan remains in self imposed exile in France. He has never forgiven his former firm for accusing him of being a terrorist and for other reasons. Thus when the agency asks him to help in the war against terrorism, he empathically declines.

The CIA never accepts no when they ask so they arrest the teenage son of Morgan’s friend on false charge of abetting terrorism. His handler informs Morgan that sixteen years old Zaharia Lefort will be renditioned if he fails to cooperate. Fuming, Morgan heads to Algeria before confronting his former agency in New Jersey with what his handler demanded he retrieve.

The third Morgan espionage thriller (see Le Crime and L'Assassin) is a great tale of a retired agent still capable of doing the job even when his mission differs from the Agency’s. The confrontational exciting story line is fast-paced and filled with a strong support cast that includes the hero’s lover, a personal enemy who brings a lot of CIA power to an anti Louis vendetta and the beleaguered teen. The Terrorist will be on the shortlists as one the best sub-genre novels of the year.

Harriet Klausner

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