Absolute Zero [Hardcover]

Chuck Logan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 5, 2002

On one of the coldest nights in Minnesota history, the difference between life and death is literally the blink of an eye for Phil Broker, until recently St. Paul's most successful undercover cop. That blink will convey the urgent warning of a comatose man who knows the dark truth binding Broker to a remarkable cast of characters -- a weary anesthesiologist, a brilliant surgeon, a wealthy novelist, his exwife (a reformed exotic dancer), and her unrepentant pimp.

For Broker it all began when he agreed to take three big-city professionals on a canoeing trip across Minnesota's most remote lakes. One of the three is horribly injured in a freak October blizzard, and Broker embarks on a white-knuckle rescue against time and the elements, ending with a writer in a coma and his accountant dead. Suspicious of foul play, Broker follows a twisted trail of manipulation and revenge that leads back to the writer's beautiful wife -- and a ring of men caught in a deadly competition for her affections.

Absolute Zero is suspense writing at its finest, a novel whose surprising reversals and unexpectedly nuanced characters secure Chuck Logan's reputation as "one of the best of the . . . thriller breed" and blows the lid off Minnesota's best-kept literary secret.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Ex-cop Phil Broker, hero of Logan's previous three thrillers (The Big Law, etc.), takes a break from managing his small Minnesota resort in this latest outing and fills in for his uncle as a wilderness guide in the northernmost reaches of the state. It's hardly a pleasure trip: Broker's soldier wife, Nina, has just split with their child, and one of Broker's three clients, action writer Hank Sommer, is constantly fighting with his wife, Jolene, by cell phone while Dr. Allen Falken and lawyer Milt Bane look on. Caught by a sudden blizzard as they are kayaking, Broker nearly drowns until Sommer fights their kayak across the lake, but ruptures his colon in the effort. At a minimal hospital with no surgeon in snowbound Ely, Falken operates with local nurse anesthetist Amy Skoda, but Sommer goes into post-op coma and Skoda gets the blame. Then Sommer's sexy wife takes Sommer home early, and the kinky death of a CPA, Cliff Stovall, hits the news. Pondering Sommer's last words "tell Cliff to move the money" Broker teams up with Skoda to visit Sommer and Jolene, but Skoda gets info that puts their lives in danger. Lured back to Ely and tricked by experts, Broker and Skoda are put out of action, and the scene is set for a shattering surprise ending. Logan parlays the plot elements with the icy finesse of James M. Cain and draws characters so real you can feel the body heat steaming off the page. Once again, he proves himself an awesome storyteller with a unique voice and a flawless sense of place and mood. Major ad/promo; 6-city author tour; Harper Audio.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Continuing his winning streak, Logan (The Big Law) brings back recurring character Phil Broker, now as a wilderness guide rather than an undercover police officer. Broker leads three minimally equipped men deep into the Minnesota woods to hunt moose. Before they can bag a beast, however, a massive storm destroys most of their supplies and critically injures one of the men. As the troupe's guide, it falls to Phil to get to civilization and bring back a rescue team before the man dies. The rescue and subsequent events connect their four lives in unexpected ways. Readers will delights in the first-rate characterization and compelling plot filled with unexpected twists. Recommended for popular fiction collections. Jeff Ayers, Seattle P.L.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 400 pages
• Publisher: Harper; 1st edition (February 5, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060185724
• ISBN-13: 978-0060185725
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.4 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #465,052 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars fabulous suspense thriller, February 4, 2002

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Absolute Zero (Hardcover)

Phil Broker spent his years on the St. Paul's police department as a deep undercover cop. When he left the force, he owned and operated a small resort on Lake Superior. He also help his uncle guide hunters near Ely so he doesn't have time to think that his wife took their baby and went back into the Army after her maternity leave was up. Broker wanted her to stay stateside while she wanted him to go to Europe with her to watch the baby.

The effect of their separation leaves Phil vulnerable as well as miserable and on edge. When he guided three men into the wilderness to look for moose one became very sick. They were able to get him medical help, but something went wrong and the patient was technically brain dead. Phil believes he sees an awareness in the man's eyes and together they find a way to go after the person who seems to have gotten away with killing an innocent man.

Chuck Logan is going to do for suspense thrillers what John Grisham has done for legal thrillers. His prose is crisp, colorful and pointed with not one wasted word. Yet he makes scenes so realistic and colorful that the readers feel that they are mentally watching a video. ABSOLUTE ZERO has so many twists and turns that one never knows from one minute to the next what is going to happen except that this novel is absolutely perfect.

Harriet Klausner

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars the tape IS thrilling. But, after reading some excerpts . ., April 29, 2002

By 

data (Yuma, AZ USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Absolute Zero (Hardcover)

The suspense of which characters are going to gang up on which victims, made me forget about time, space and the pain of my broken foot.

This is the first Chuck Logan thriller I've read. Abridged audiotape. I'm glad I read the reviews because some of the vivid, descriptive prose in the hardback book has been omitted on the tape.

Now that I have read the reviews and seen the list of Logan's books, I have to say:

1)I cannot wait for the other books to be put on tape, so I'll read the paperbacks.

2)The other reviews sum up the characters and plot better than I can.

3)Yes, I did think it was lightweight at first. I said if there are no women on the flip side, I will stop the tape. (women appeared) I am so glad I didn't stop.

4)My daughter just returned from the store with pain pills and a Logan paperback. Which sack should I open first?

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars 3.5 Stars, March 22, 2002

By 

P. Thompson (Minnesota USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Absolute Zero (Hardcover)

This was my first Chuck Logan book, and I could sense that I was missing out on a lot of background story. I really liked how the book started out so fast-paced and intense, and kept it up for about the first 100 pages. And overall, I found the plot to be interesting and enjoyable, and the characters relatively interesting and well-rounded. I guess my only confusion was the relative lack of any moral barometer in the main character, Phil Broker. We are told he has a wife and young daughter, but then he spends much of the book pretty much going back and forth between 2 other women. I definitely felt like I was missing something that might explain his behavior. Including ostriches in the plot was interesting. And being from the Mpls./St. Paul area, it was kinda fun to actually know some of the towns/roads/areas he mentions in the book.