Customer Reviews

Trust No One (Center Point Platinum Mystery (Large Print))

5 star:		(36)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Do NOT start Gregg Hurwitz's new novel Trust No One at the end of a long day when you have to get back up early the next morning. This is the only warning you get.

Hurwitz is a good writer, dependable for action and intrigue. I've read his novels and his comic book and I always find myself flipping through the pages till I reach the end of whatever story he's spieling. I loved last year's offering, The Crime Writer, which, like Trust No One, is a stand-alone novel. His Tim Rackley books are great, but I really enjoy the way Hurwitz can twist characters and plots till you're not sure who's doing what to whom. Or sometime what's really at stake.

In this book, there are a lot of things at stake. The main character gets woken up in the middle of the night by a Secret Service team that yanks him away and doesn't give him a choice. He doesn't know what's going on, and the event immediately reminds him of the last time he crossed paths with the Secret Service.

Nineteen years ago, at the tender age of seventeen, Nick Horrigan was forced to leave town or be arrested for the murder of his stepfather, a decorated Secret Service agent. Nick's own father was irresponsible and left the family, but Nick idolized him anyway. In a few short chapters, though, Hurwitz makes us care a lot about his stepfather.

Past and present converge in an explosive encounter that leaves one man dead, and with Nick delivering the murder weapon. The action picks up even from this breathtaking beginning and hammered me to the pages. The first night I admit that I started the book late. I should have known better. I read until I went blind that night, simply couldn't make out any of the words on the page anymore.

I got up the next morning and marched through the rest of the book without breaking stride. Hurwitz has created a thoroughly enjoyable potboiler involving powerful politics played out against a lethal background of secrets. There are a lot of twists and turns in the book, and every time I seemed to figure an event out, or get to where I could predict how a character would act, Hurwitz threw another curveball into the mix. I enjoyed the relationship Nick has with his mother, her new husband, and her stepdaughter. I especially liked the scene with Induma, his ex-girlfriend.

Hurwitz writes really tight, driving dialogue and I found myself blistering through the scenes at a frantic pace. With the first-person narrative, he's able to delve deeply into the characters and make me feel like I was carrying Nick Horrigan's burden part of the way with him, and I rooted for the character from page one.

So, do pick this book up for sheer entertainment, but do block out the time to read it. Hurwitz grabs you by the throat with this one, and he doesn't let go till he's finished with you.

OK, lot's of strong reviews on this one, but at the risk of alienating some fans, Gregg Hurwitz's "Trust No One" falls short on several levels - yet another run of the mill government conspiracy theory fantasy lacking depth, substance, and credibility. But to give credit where due, Hurwitz keeps a brisk pace, action trumping intellect, and if the political rants are simple minded and stereotyped, the author at least pulls a couple well-telegraphed twists to maintain some semblance of ambiguity.

Nick Horrigan is a benign character - a thirty-something recently-resigned worker for a non-profit, barely making enough to keep the Cartoon Network running on his cable TV. But Nick's docile life overdoses on adrenaline when a bunch of SWAT thugs bust into his apartment, hauling him off to a SoCal nuclear plant to defuse a terrorist who will only speak to Nick. Nick has no idea who this politically correctly-named "Mike Milligan" terrorist is, but before LA is reduced to a Chernobyl-like waste land, Nick's made Mike's connection to his Secret Service step dad, murdered nearly two decades earlier under circumstances for which Nick has since blamed himself. Predictably, Nick finds himself tangled in a Byzantine hodgepodge of politics and conspiracy, with the help of a bum and his former girlfriend fending off the best of the elite secret operatives of the United States has to offer.

Hurwitz's tale of Nick's quest to find the truth of his step dad's demise suffers from thinly drawn characters and pedestrian prose ("The silence was what told me I had finished talking." That, and your lips not moving, I guess). But mainly, it takes total suspension of belief to buy the preposterous chain of events, and the ease in which a social worker instantly transforms to a steely eyed operative, outsmarting Senators and Presidents and multiple three-letter agencies, bringing the mighty and powerful to their knees. The same black helicopter crowd that believes the same government that can't run a railroad or a Post Office can pull off ridiculously convoluted covers-ups, while apparently having no problem accepting that a kid and his drunken homeless buddy can outmaneuver the evil feds.

A couple hundred pages in, Nick observes, "You try getting wrapped up in a government conspiracy. It can wear a person down." Exactly.

I rode on the Vroman's Bookstore bus to the L.A. Festival of Books and author Gregg Hurwitz was on our bus. I had never heard of him nor had I read any of his books. However, he was so engaging on the way over that I thought about giving his book a try. I went to the booth of another independent bookstore, Book'em Mysteries in South Pasadena, who was at the festival and looked around for his already published books; I didn't purchase one. Then I proceeded to my author's panel, mysteries, and Mr. Hurwitz was at this panel. Again, he was engaging, entertaining and a lot of fun to listen to. I was anxious for Trust No One to come out. When it came out and I purchased it, I somehow had lost the enthusiasm and pursued other books in my pile. I just returned from a quick trip to LA this past weekend (it is now August) and before I left I realized I couldn't go without a book thus Trust No One got slipped into my trusty messenger bag. I started it on the flight down (a two plane trip) and I was totally enthralled in this book from the moment I started it! It was a terrific ride and one I would highly recommend especially if you haven't read anything by this author. You absolutely, positively won't be disappointed. I think I will now go and investigate his backlist and see what other page turner is in store for me -- I do have another plane trip coming in the very near future. Enjoy!

The story line of this book has already been well described so I won't repeat it. I have only recently discovered Gregg Hurwitz, but plan to read all of his books. This is a very interesting story with many twists and turns. I think one of the most important things an author can do is create a character or characters that you care about. He does this with Nick Horrigan, the protagonist, and a few people around him. Of course, there are many others that you don't trust or aren't sure what to think, which keeps the interest up throughout. He is an excellent writer and I would enthusiastically recommend this book.

Just like the hero Nick Horrigan gets jerked out of his condo at the beginning of the novel, the reader gets swept into a rush of action and intrigue from beginning to end. When you finish, you realize that the action has really only run over the course of days, yet the author has created rich characters that you feel you know well; an exceptionally well-crafted book. You feel Nick's pain, isolation and guilt, and find yourself warning him, as the title suggests, to Trust No One. Now the reader may figure out a portion of the mystery before Nick does, but it is almost as if the author deliberately leaves you these clues, because that answer is only part of the total picture. Through flashbacks, the reader is given insight and rationale not only for Nick's emotions, but also for his ability to dodge the bad guys. Just a fun, highly recommended read; just be prepared not to put this book down for long.

Admittedly, I'm not an avid reader of novels; usually due to the fact that I just lose interest when I have to pause for any length between readings. Definitely not the case with this book. It has an over-the-top story line that reads much like you may experience watching a season of "24"; you'll find yourself trying to out-guess the author and solve the twists, only to get thrown another wrench into the mix. It managed to keep me interested and looking forward to the next opportunity I had to read it. Hurwitz delivered what I expect in a work of fiction: pure entertainment and fun to read. For me, a perfect escape.

Having never read anything by Gregg Hurwitz, I came into "Trust No One" with no pre-judgments.

From the start, the synopsis roped me in. I was eager to read a thriller, and this one seemed to have all the elements of a great story - a terrorist seizes a nuclear reactor and the only man he will talk to is our main character, Nick Horrigan. Nick made a mistake years ago that resulted in the death of his stepfather and put him on the run, and now he has a chance to redeem himself. Nick lives his life by his stepfather's dying words: TRUST NO ONE.

When Christopher Reich said this book was "Fast-paced", he wasn't kidding. As soon as we start to read, the terrorist subplot is over by page 32. That's a pretty big selling point behind this novel, and I must admit, I felt a little cheated. I was expecting Joe Leland taking on terrorists in "Nothing Lasts Forever"; but instead I got Keanu Reeves taking on Dennis Hopper for the first 15 minutes of "Speed".

As the book progressed, we learn that Nick was blackmailed into living off the grid. For no discernable reason, he heads to Alaska and worked in a cannery for nine years. There, he met a one-eyed man known only as Liffman who apparently taught Nick everything he needed to know about car bombs, wiretaps, knife fighting, shooting, etc. Every time I thought Nick couldn't possibly know how to do something, he pulled the Liffman macguffin out of his hat, and the plot continued. How convenient!

What else is convenient? Nick's friends. Homer the Hobo, who can perform facial surgery. His mother's 3rd husband, who can glean information about police reports and missing persons. His ex-girlfriend Induma, who can get DNA evidence with the skill of a master thief. I also found it odd that the author could find a Looney Tunes cliché for almost every situation Nick found himself in.

After finishing this novel, I discovered that Gregg Hurwitz is not only a novelist, but he is an accomplished comic book author for The Punisher MAX, Foolkiller, and Wolverine. Now, that's _not_ meant as an insult - Frank Miller is a superb comic writer who gave us Sin City and helped to bring 300 to the silver screen. I simply feel that "Trust No One" would have worked better if Gregg Hurwitz presented the story in a comic book format as opposed to a thriller novel.

I also discovered that "Trust No One" was released in the UK in August of 2008 with a different title - "They Know". It feels like the title was changed to plant a not-so-subliminal message for X-Files fans to purchase this book - but that's just my opinion.

I will admit, there was a nice little plot twist late in the novel, and I did enjoy the ending, since it was not horribly clichéd as I feared it would be.

This novel can easily be finished in a day or two, and if that's your cup of tea, this is a good choice. However, if you prefer a little more meat on your thriller novels, I'd suggest Robert Ludlum's "The Bourne Identity".

I'm a big fan of the Mystery/Thriller genre. Some of my favorites authors include long-time stalwarts in the field Michael Connelly, Lee Child, Jonathan Kellerman, Harlan Coben, James Lee Burke and Robert Crais. Having read most if not all of their books, I'm always in search of that author that would quench my thirst for more. I was hoping that Gregg Hurwitz' "Trust No One" would fit the bill. However, this was not the case. I will say that the author kept my interest enough to complete the book. Perhaps it was the writing style and that (IMHO) the story was a little far-fetched. I just do not feel it was in the class of a Harry Bosch novel or a Dave Robicheaux. I won't go into summarizing the story, as that can be found in the description. Suffice to say that I probably wouldn't seek out another Gregg Hurwitz novel.

See story lines above.
"Why would some terrorist want to see me?" That's what Nick Horrigan was thinking when a SWAT team so rudely interrupted his evening, not knowing that the next week of his life would be filled with unimaginable surprises.
Horrigan is a very likable and compassionate character. This is definitely one of Hurwitz's best novels. It's all been said before but worth repeating. Fast-paced, engrossing, and a true thriller.

"Trust No One" is a suspenseful page-turning thriller that encompasses themes ranging from familial relationships, to the evil that men do, to political chicanery. It involves a true mystery and the pacing is generally fast enough to keep it in the thriller mode although there were times when I wondered if we hadn't already been down this road a few times before. The plot is convoluted at times but never preposterous or hard to follow.

At age 17, Nick Horrigan assumed responsibility for the death of his stepfather who was a secret service agent who worked on a detail to protect the Vice President of the USA. Already feeling crushing guilt for a bad decision that may have resulted in his step father's death, Nick is arrested, treated as a terrorist, and ordered to leave town for a long time. He flees to Alaska where he lives in hiding for the next 9 years before finally returning home to SoCal where he lives quietly off the grid for another 8 years.

One night Nick's life is again disrupted and his paranoia refueled when a SWAT team and secret service agents break into his home, nearly destroy it in a search, then transport him to the nuclear facility in San Onofre where a suspected terrorist is asking for him. Nick confronts the "terrorist" who is really a former colleague of his dead step father who entrusts a key and a dubious mission of some kind to Nick before being killed by the "rescuers".

Nick goes from being a hero in all the media to being a paranoid on the run as he begins to piece together the circumstances of his stepfather's death 17 years ago and the current death of Charlie, the purported terrorist who Nick knows wasn't a terrorist. Nick is suddenly on the run, pursued by both candidates in a presidential election for what he knows, and eventually by the entire secret service apparatus in Southern California.

As the title suggests, who can Nick trust? He does have a small disparate group of allies but is poorly equipped to deal with the secrets he uncovers of crimes committed 17 years earlier and the effect that they could have on a national election today. There is a major revelation in the last 100 pages that will startle some readers but which others will have tuned in on much earlier. My sole quibble with "Trust No One" is the shallow characterizations that kept me from getting too invested in their lives. Nick is subject to some of the worst luck and malevolent forces imaginable but he just doesn't have the moxie I would have liked as the protagonist; indeed, the novel is about choices and decisions we make, including whether to run from problems and when to confront problems. Unfortunately, Nick seemed carried along by the action more often than directing the action. Still, a worthwhile read that will interest readers in the mystery and suspense as well as in the internal workings and morality of the presidential campaigns of two quite different candidates.