Overkill

In her latest thriller, Brown tackles a subject that's sure to be a hot-button issue for many of her readers. Zach Bridger, a former NFL star whose career collapsed, hasn't been married for the past five years. But his ex-wife, Rebecca, never changed her legal documents, which means that after Rebecca is put in a coma following a vicious attack, Zach must decide whether to keep her alive or remove her from life support. Until now he's kept her alive, out of respect for her family, but Zach has just learned that her attacker has been released from prison, and that changes everything. To put the man back behind bars, the authorities need to file a murder charge, and the only way to do that is for Zach to take Rebecca off life support. Brown has constructed a suspenseful story around a meaty premise, but the highlight here is her presentation of Zach's struggle: Can he justify sentencing his ex-wife to death in the pursuit of the man who destroyed her life? A smart, thoughtful novel.

Early in this overly long romantic suspense novel from bestseller Brown (Blind Tiger), Kate Lennon, a "smart, savvy, ambitious state prosecutor," arrives at the door of Zach Bridger, a former professional football player who lives in splendid isolation in rural North Carolina. Kate's goal is to bring Eban Clarke, sociopathic scion of a wealthy family, to justice. Eban has recently been released from prison early after serving only two years for participating in an orgy that left Rebecca Pratt, Zach's ex-wife, in a persistent vegetative state, her body hooked up to life support equipment. Though they'd been divorced for five years, Rebecca had previously signed documents granting Zach her medical power of attorney. Doctors had urged him to allow Rebecca to die, but he had resisted out of deference to her father's religious beliefs. Kate informs Zach that, upon Rebecca's death, she plans on bringing a murder charge against Eban. Meanwhile, Eban, who has vicious plans for revenge, is ready to get back into the sex- and drug-fueled lifestyle he enjoyed before prison. The only obstacles in his way are tenacious Kate and Zach, whose budding romance creates complications. The string-straight plot offers no surprises. Brown has done better. Agent: Maria Carvainis, Maria Carvainis Agency. (Aug.)

Thriller Master Brown returns after 73 New York Times best sellers; the last, Blind Tiger, debuted at No. 5 on the New York Times best sellers list and No. 3 on the Combined Print & E-Book list. No word on plot, but there's a 500,000-copy first printing.