The Second Horseman [Large Print] [Hardcover]

Kyle Mills (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 2006

Brandon Vale is a career thief---the best there is. Or at least he was before he was thrown in prison for a jewel heist gone bad. And even more embarrassing, he had nothing to do with it. His time inside is going fairly quietly until the night he's broken out against his will by Richard Scanlon, the now-retired FBI agent who framed him in the first place.

 

Scanlon, who still has ties to the United States intelligence community, has discovered that a Ukrainian crime organization is auctioning twelve nuclear warheads to the highest bidder, but he can't convince the government that the sale isn't a hoax. The only way he can get his hands on the $200 million necessary to take the warheads off the market is to do something that goes against everything he stands for: steal it.

 

The choice Brandon is given is simple: help Scanlon and hope to live through it, or turn himself in and face the repercussions of his "escape."

 

Suddenly, Brandon finds himself with only weeks to plan a Las Vegas heist that that he's been dreaming about for years, but has always thought was probably impossible. And to make matters worse, Scanlon insists on choosing his team personally. Led by the relentlessly intelligent and undeniably beautiful Catherine Juarez, not a single one of the former government operatives he picks has so much as shoplifted a pack of gum in their lives.

 

As the day of the heist approaches, Brandon's carefully constructed plans begin to break down and he suspects that the elaborate double-cross he's devised to save himself could cost millions of lives. He finally has to ask himself just how far he's willing to be dragged into a game that he can only lose.

 

With this heart-stopping, all-too-real novel, Kyle Mills proves once again that he is one of the freshest and most original thriller writers working today.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

At the start of this strong thriller from bestseller Mills (Fade), career criminal Brandon Vale is in prison for a failed diamond theft when Richard Scanlon, an ex-FBI agent and security consultant, gets him released and offers him a job. The Ukrainian mob claims it has 12 nuclear warheads for sale, and Scanlon decides he'll save them from becoming ammunition in a terrorist plot by, with Brandon's help, coming up with the $200 million asking price by robbing a Vegas casino. With the aid of one of Scanlon's employees, Catherine Juarez, Brandon executes a brilliant plan, but finds himself mired in the terrorist plot. The likable Brandon wants nothing more than to be allowed to continue his life of cons and crime without the distractions of morality and patriotism, but this is not to be ("It was hard to believe that the planet's future—or lack thereof—was going to rest on the narrow shoulders of a thirty-three-year-old thief"). Fortunately for readers and the world, Brandon proves to be interesting, intelligent and more than equal to the task. (Aug.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

The Ukranian Mob reportedly has 12 nuclear bombs for sale. Richard Scanlan, a former FBI superagent and currently head of a Vegas-based intelligence contractor, wants the U.S. to purchase the weapons before a terrorist group gets its hands on them. The government's intelligence team discredits the reports so Scanlon decides to engineer the purchase on his own. To do so, he needs the help of superthief Brandon Vale, so he engineers Vale's escape from prison. Vale's not particularly interested in stealing nukes to save the world, but it beats prison. Mills layers his familiar doomsday theme with caper-novel particulars for a highly entertaining read in which the surprise is the twisted international political solution advocated by the president's key foreign policy advisor. Mills entertains, but he's also capable of keeping readers awake at night contemplating the terrifying vagaries of an increasingly dangerous world. Wes Lukowsky
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 529 pages
• Publisher: Thorndike Press (November 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786289880
• ISBN-13: 978-0786289882
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,028,096 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Kyle Mills is the New York Times bestselling author of twelve books, including the latest in Robert Ludlum's Covert-One series, The Ares Decision.

Growing up in Oregon, Washington, DC, and London as a the son of an FBI agent, Kyle absorbed an enormous amount about the Bureau, giving his novels their unique authenticity. He and his wife live in Wyoming where they spend their off hours rock climbing and backcountry skiing.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A New Way to Solve the Middle East Problem...Read On..., September 22, 2006

By 

John R. Linnell (New Gloucester, ME United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Second Horseman (Hardcover)

This story starts out interestingly enough as Brandon Vale, a career thief is being broken out of prison...by one of the guards...as he stumbles through the woods he expects to be shot and or captured, but it seems that someone has gone to a lot of trouble to arrange his escape.

As it turns out that person (Richard Scanlon)is the same one that put him in prison in the first place...and framed him to do it. Getting a little complicated? Think how Brandon must feel when he finds out.

It seems that there are some nuclear weapons on the black market, being sold by some Ukranian thugs. The price is 200 million. Scanlon with ties to the US intelligence community has been tasked to make the buy and get the nukes out of circulation. His first problem is that he needs 200 million dollars.

That's where Brandon comes in. After being convinced that his only alternative to saying "no" is to go back to prison, he agrees to engineer a heist of a truck transferring the proceeds from Las Vegas's casinos to a federal depository. However, his problems don't end there.

After pulling off the hijacking he is tapped to go to the Ukraine to make the purchase of the weapons as the person who was supposed to have done that has been killed.

I am not giving away anything to indicate that the person really running the show is the President's NSA Director. However, his plan for the nukes is not what everyone else thinks it is and I will leave the reader to find ouut what he is up to and how it all comes down.

While the thought that a person in that position would act in this manner is somewhat implausible, this is a very entertaining and tightly written thriller which should help those who purchase to pass these cool nights as we head into fall.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars COMPELLING NARRATION OF A FAST PACED TALE, August 29, 2006

By 

Gail Cooke (TX, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Second Horseman (Audio CD)

Kyle Mills proved his mettle as a first-rate thriller writer with such titles as Rising Phoenix, Storming Heaven, Free Fall, etc. He comes to the fore once again in this fast paced tale of a thief who must steal not only to save himself but others as well. Another person who comes to the fore again is voice performer David LeDoux with a compelling narration that holds listeners spellbound.

Brandon Vale is a good thief, meaning he is capable, deft and an expert at stealing. So, it's a bit ironic when he's sent to prison for a theft he didn't commit. However, he doesn't serve out his term as Richard Scanlon, the former FBI agent who framed Vale, rigs an escape.

According to Scanlon, a Ukranian crime syndicate is auctioning nuclear warheads, and the only way to get them is to come up with $200 million. It's imperative that this be done lest the warheads fall into enemy hands.

Obviously, $200 million isn't pocket change but it seems that it can be had by robbing a Las Vegas casino. Vale has little choice - either cooperate with Scanlon or return to jail and face further punishment for his false escape. Scanlon offers Vale plenty of help for the theft - of course, the help doesn't have any experience at robbery, The only bright spot is the beautiful and wise Catherine Juarez.

A robbery might be relatively simple but it turns out that there's more involved than theft. While Vale isn't at all familiar with international machinations, he's going to have to learn and fast.

Recommended.

- Gail Cooke

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A great effort from Mills - 4 1/2 stars, October 20, 2006

By 

Timothy J. Kindler (Rochester, NY) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Second Horseman (Hardcover)

Like many authors today and like he did himself with his previous work, Fade, Mills uses the topics of terrorism, al Qaeda, and Middle East turmoil as the backdrop for the storyline of his latest work. Unlike Fade, however, which dealt directly with the subject, Mills' latest work actually only covers these topics in a more secondary fashion. With The Second Horseman, Mills presents the story of Brandon Vale, a career criminal who somewhat unexpectedly finds himself broken out of prison. Presented with an offer he cannot refuse, Vale must orchestrate the theft of $200 million from a Las Vegas casino in order to purchase 12 nuclear weapons (and keep them out of the hands of terroists). Vale proves to be an interesting, even likeable, character. A solid supporting cast of characters makes this a compelling read. All in all, The Second Horseman is not quite as good as Mills' previous work, Fade, which in my opinion was fantastic, but it is very close. This will be well worth your time.