Exposure: A Novel [Hardcover]

Alan Russell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 22, 2002

In Exposure, award-winning writer Alan Russell delivers an intricate, ambitious thriller that unfolds at break-neck speed against a glamorous and absorbing background.

England's most beloved philanthropist and her football-star lover die in a crash caused by a mystery car. A papparazzo-Graham Wells, the driver of that mystery car-would do anything to keep his terrible secret from getting out. So when a CIA operative blackmails him into engineering the scandalous downfalls of several high-profile celebrities, he has no choice. Nothing he's done is illegal-and his targets are certainly guilty of the acts he's caught on film-but he doesn't understand the purpose of his actions and the whole arrangement leaves a bad taste in his mouth.

Then Graham, desperately trapped in the hidden motives of the CIA, stops a superstar actress who thought she was alone from committing suicide. Lanie Byrne, the beloved Miss L, is perhaps Hollywood's biggest celebrity, and although Graham is feeling desperate himself, he has trouble imagining what could possibly cause this beautiful actress to want to die. This charitable act ignites a chain-reaction of political intrigue and personal danger from which there might be no escape.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Penzler Pick, April 2002: In this latest thriller from Alan Russell, the hero, or maybe I should say the antihero, is Graham Wells, a transplanted Englishman who is a successful paparazzo. He has learned all of the dirty tricks of his trade--the stakeouts, the subterfuge, the lying--anything and everything that will get him closer to his subject as he invades privacy in order to get the pictures which he sells for thousands of dollars to the tabloids. And, as Wells points out, who among us does not like looking at those pictures?

Then, in an instant, everything goes wrong for Wells. While stalking two high-profile celebrities in Paris, he accidentally causes their deaths during a high-speed car chase. If that sounds familiar, it is probably meant to. Wells panics, drives away from the scene, destroys the car he was driving, and makes his cowardly way back to the United States. But he is not in the clear.

Wells is approached by a CIA operative who tells him that what he has done is known, but will remain a secret if Wells agrees to do some work for the CIA. That work turns out to be destroying the reputations of certain celebrities. Wells has no idea why he's asked to do this and he doesn't care as long as his shameful secret is not revealed.

Wells is contacted by an acquaintance he met at a party. She tells him that Lanie Byrne, one of Hollywood's biggest stars, is going to be alone at her house for the weekend. The acquaintance works for Lanie and this is the second weekend in a row Lanie has given her staff the weekend off. The buzz is that Lanie is entertaining a high-profile lover and Wells's acquaintance wants a cut of any fee he gets for the photographs. Wells can't resist, and what he sees when he photographs Lanie Byrne will change his life.

He sees a woman in despair, intent on committing suicide as she drinks and pops pills. Wells saves her--an act that catapults him into a nightmare where losing his reputation is nothing compared to losing his life.

Because of the work he does, Graham Wells is a hard character to like, but it is impossible not to root for him as he battles unknown forces and begins to redeem himself, at least in the eyes of the reader. --Otto Penzler

From Publishers Weekly

With this novel of intrigue reminiscent of Eric Ambler, Russell (Shame; Multiple Wounds; No Sign of Murder; etc.) shows he's one of the best writers in the mystery field today. Like Ambler, who excelled at portraying the plight of the valiant amateur pitted against a diabolic ring of spies and assassins in such classics as A Coffin for Demetrios and Journey into Fear, Russell has a gift for telling a fully fleshed-out story with very human characters while supplying puzzles and corpses galore. Looking to land a major scoop, British paparazzo Graham Wells is chasing two of Europe's biggest celebrities, philanthropist Lady Anne Godwin (aka "Lady Godiva" after she posed nude for Playboy and donated the proceeds to a soup kitchen) and her French football-star boyfriend, Georges "Le Croc" LeMoine, when their car crashes in a Paris tunnel with fatal results. Our antihero flees the scene of the accident. Unlike the case of Di and Dodi, there actually are sinister forces at work here. Soon a CIA agent named "Mr. Smith" is blackmailing Wells into bringing about the downfalls of other celebrities. When Wells deviates from the script by stopping a leading actress's suicide, he really finds himself in trouble. Needless to say, no one is who he says he is, and everyone's motives are suspect. There's a delightfully wicked conspiracy that seems plausible in today's news and a charming, if blood-curdling, villain. It would be a crime to say more. This one is good to the last drop. (May 13)awards.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Minotaur Books; 1st edition (May 22, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312289243
• ISBN-13: 978-0312289249
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.2 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,427,921 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Winner!, June 7, 2002

By 

Joseph Cheng (San Diego) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Exposure: A Novel (Hardcover)

It's hard to say if there is a "typical" Alan Russell novel. He's given us whodunits, funny mysteries, psychological thrillers, and now suspense.

To date, my favorite Russell novel was the hilarious Hotel Detective but this book is equally enjoyable but in a very different way. It's gripping and suspenseful and the kind of book you want to finish in one sitting.

Exposure gives us a very unusual hero, a paparazzo. It was fun learning about the tricks of the trade, and seeing the world through Graham Wells's eyes. I never thought I'd find myself sympathizing or empathizing with a character like this--but Russell fleshes out a very real human being who is both likeable not so likeable.

What I really liked was the triad of villians. Also, there was a lot of fascinating information about German dueling fraternities.

This book has snappy dialog, great action, and characters with legs and baggage. You don't want to miss this read.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Russell on a Roll, June 7, 2002

By 

d. mentone (Tucson, AZ) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Exposure: A Novel (Hardcover)

Having read all of Alan Russell's novels, with each new one I find myself more impressed with his range. In EXPOSURE, he takes on the Russian mobsters, White House insiders and the CIA, movie stars and the paparazzi that hound them. He carries us to Rio, Paris, rural Spain, Bosnia, New York, Los Angeles and back country Ojai, and makes all those places come alive.

Graham, the paparazzo, is a complex fellow who very gradually wins our sympathy, which makes the first half of the book less compelling than the last half, when the snowballing action and the evil closing in on the characters we've begun to hurt with and pull for takes us on a wild thrill ride.

Lanie, the movie star Graham can't quite decide whether to exploit or fall for, is a charming and credibly human study in the rewards and snares of celebrity.

EXPOSURE is Russell's most ambitious story, and it succeeds remarkably well.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Folks, Alan Russell is a treasure!, March 20, 2003

By 

A. Maccoun "Jackson" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Exposure: A Novel (Hardcover)

This is a story of mayhem, intrigue, sex, high-speed suspense, and plain old-fashioned fun. Alan Russell has a way with the turn of phrase and plot that keeps you amused, guessing, and waiting for the next morsel of wit or intrigue. He is a wonder and a man whose work is to be savored like a bite or French gourmet or a taste of exquisite wine. Truly a wonder and despite my own literary efforts, I remain envious.

Bravo! This is his best and they're all terrific. Buy this book.