Matterhorn

Reich takes a break from the Simon Riske series with this exciting thriller featuring a former CIA agent investigating the death of his own son. While the Riske caper novels have a jaunty, devil-may-care attitude, this is more serious and packs a considerably more dramatic punch (longtime fans may find it reminds them of his early novels such as Numbered Account or The Runner). Mac Dekker, who's been living under a new name since he left the CIA, struggles to understand how his son could have fallen to his death. What was he doing on the Matterhorn, in the Swiss Alps, anyway? And how does a Russian agent--the woman who precipitated Mac's departure from the CIA--figure into it? To find the answers, Dekker will have to re-enter the dangerous world he left behind, but does he still have the skills he needs to stay alive? While Reich's fans will enjoy the book, it should also appeal to fans of spy thrillers. Another winner from a consistently satisfying writer.

A retired CIA operative returns to the fray in this unremarkable spy thriller from bestseller Reich (Once a Thief). Eight years ago, Mac Dekker was framed for treason by his supposed ally, Ilya Ivashka, before appearing to die in an explosion. Instead, Dekker found refuge working on a farm in an isolated Swiss village under the pseudonym Robbie Steinhardt. His peace is interrupted when he chances on a news report about a local man's fatal fall from the Matterhorn--and learns that the victim is his 29-year-old son, William. ID'd in the report as an IT exec, William was actually a CIA agent, Dekker soon learns, and he intentionally sacrificed himself to keep a flash drive of powerful secrets from Ivashka, who is now a Russian operative. Reluctantly, Mac reconnects with his old CIA contacts to unravel the specifics of Ivashka's mission--which involves the distribution of a deadly nerve gas in urban American water supplies--and avenge his son's death. Reich keeps his foot on the gas, but he underdevelops his lead character, and fails to wring enough sentiment from Mac's parental mission to make it pop. There's nothing here espionage fans haven't encountered before. Agent: Richard Pine, InkWell Management. (May)

The death of a spy in the Alps leads Mac Dekker, a former CIA agent, to resurrect himself and hunt down the culprits in Reich's (Simon Riske series) latest thriller. Dekker was presumed dead and had been living undercover in a small Alpine town, but he won't hide any longer when he learns that his son, also a spy, has died. The person responsible, Ilya Ivashka, was once someone Mac considered a brother, before Ilya defected to the enemy. After Mac makes his presence known, Ilya and other enemies will stop at nothing to put him in the ground for good. Even the people who loved Mac before he had to fake his death are not happy to learn that he has been alive all this time. The pace is relentless, and the spycraft is in full gear as Mac tries to get justice for his son and himself. There might be one too many coincidences in the story, but that is a minor nitpick for a thriller that entertains and well uses its terrific setting. VERDICT This would make a great movie, and fans of the Bond tales and special-ops action novels should add this to their reading lists--Jeff Ayers