Fool Me Once (Century)
By Harlan Coben $37.00
Coben's king of the twist and his 28th novel has a pretty good one. Chances are you'll devour it in one sitting - and if real life does get in the way - you'll be counting the hours till you get back to it. Maya Burkett is ex-special ops, home from the Middle East (a bungled mission) and suffering PTSD - so far, so predictable. Then Maya witnesses her husband's murder and, two weeks later, sees him on her nanny cam. You'd think having married into a wealthy and powerful family would make Maya's life easier, but you'd be wrong. Post nanny-cam Maya does what she does best - goes into battle mode. That search reveals long-buried family secrets. Maya's a determined, unrelenting character and - by his own admission - one of the most damaged Coben has written. She isn't maternal and hates the suburban, soccer-mom grind that has seen many of her wild, fun-filled friends "die of slow societal suffocation". Coben's challenge is keeping the reader rooting for the rather cold and distant Maya and, for the most part, he succeeds. Watch out for the film version - America's sweetheart Julia Roberts has just signed on to star and produce.
Stasi Child (Bonnier)
By David Young $32.99
This is the debut novel from Englishman David Young - an ex-journo who's a graduate of the London's City University MA Crime Writing course (no, I didn't know they existed either). But, if the success of Stasi Child is anything to go by, they work. On the back of this Young signed a three book, five figure deal and TV rights have been snapped up. It's communist East Germany, 1975 - a teenage girl's body has been found at the foot of the Wall; the thing is she was going the wrong way (West to East) or was she? Oberleutnant Karin Muller is a strong character - flawed, tough, dogged and Young captures the icy, authoritarian bleakness perfectly. A self-confessed obsessive (he's had many jobs and enthusiasms before settling on crime fiction) Young's period detail - what kind of tyre tracks Stasi official's cars left - is impressive. The plot does become unwieldy at times - although the alternate time line device is done with skill. Young keeps the book focused on the crimes at hand - there's not much le Carre cold war as metaphor - but the ending suggests there's lots more to come from Muller and Young's Stasi Child.
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