Terrific thriller, well worth hunting down at the library or the used book store.
Hall dives right into the action with a tense ten-page set piece. We follow Bill Kaiser as he attempts to break into a New York senator's apartment. When he nearly gets caught, he does what he always does in this situation: pretends to be crazy. Far better to go to a psych ward than prison, and far easier to break out.
Especially when you've got a nurse as gullible as Sharon Blautner. Sharon finds herself fascinated by the new patient, who seems significantly brighter than most of her patients. It's not long before she's let herself be manipulated into helping Bill break out.
The problem is that Bill is also fascinated by Sharon, and feels it his duty to help remedy some of the wrongs in her life; when people who've caused her trouble begin to turn up dead, the FBI is suddenly less willing to believe that she was an unwitting accomplice.
So Sharon's trying to catch Bill on her own (because she doesn't trust the FBI), Bill's continuing to "help" her and to work on his own plans (remember that Senator's apartment?), and there's a corporate tycoon who's played a key role in both of their lives.
The story moves at breakneck speed, and if Sharon's transformation from gullible dupe to superagent is a bit implausible, well, that goes with the territory. Other than that, the characters are vividly drawn and never less than convincing.
One caveat: Those who are bothered by scenes involving children in peril may wish to avoid this one.
No comments:
Post a Comment