Forsyth's first novel in five years, and while it doesn't quite
match the white-knuckle tensions of The Day of the Jackal or the
baroque plottings of The Devil's Alternative, this big tale of
global Realpolitik balancing on the kidnap of a US President's son
is still a standout thriller - sophisticated, stingingly
suspenseful, and grounded in the author's trademarked attention to
authentic detail. As usual, Forsyth builds slowly, seeding multiple
plot lines that will eventually detonate the main action. It's
1990, and, independently, right-wing cabals in both the US and
Russia are running scared on two counts: with Soviet and US oil
reserves near zero, the Arabs will soon own the world economy; and,
with a giant arms-reduction treaty okayed by Gorbachev and American
President John Cormack, each nation's defense industry is about to
go belly-up. The solution? The two cabals conspire to destroy the
treaty and then, acting alone, to go after oil by invading Iran
(the Russians) and installing a puppet regime in Saudi Arabia (the
Americans). How? By emotionally breaking Cormack - and
American-Soviet ties - by kidnapping his young son, Simon, a
student at Oxford, and then letting slip that the snatch was a
Soviet job. Enter Forsyth's lone-wolf hero, veteran hostage
negotiator Quinn, drawn out of retirement. Quinn's ballet of wits
with the thuggish kidnappers forms the intricate puzzle/centerpiece
of the novel's first half; when all of Quinn's efforts go terribly
awry, however, Forsyth switches from intellectual to visceral
satisfactions as the negotiator becomes the vengeful hunter (aided
by a sexy FBI agent) to track down the kidnappers and their bosses
across Europe and America - even as President Cormack crumbles and
international chaos looms. No one does it better. A crackling good
read that's sure to soar up the best-seller lists. (Kirkus Reviews)
The kidnapping of a young man on a country road in Oxfordshire is
but the first brutal step in a ruthless plan to force the President
of the United States out of office. If it succeeds, he will be
psychologically and emotionally destroyed. Only one man can stop it
- Quinn, the world's foremost Negotiator, who must bargain for the
life of an innocent man, unaware that ransom was never the
kidnapper's real objective . . . The Negotiator unfolds with the
spellbinding excitement, unceasing surprise and riveting detail
that are the hallmarks of Frederick Forsyth, the master
storyteller.
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