From Publishers Weekly
Slickly paced suspense, droll humor and extreme violence are deftly balanced in Thayer's (Ringer) new thriller, a tale of sniper vs. sniper that's the literary equivalent of shooting the rapids in a tiny canoe. Manhattan-based federal prosecutor Owen Gray loses his big case against mob boss Carmine "Chinaman" De Sallo, but the don loses an even bigger stake when he's shot dead at the post-trial press conference-by a rifleman stationed several blocks away. Gray's good friend, NYPD detective Pete Coates, draws the case and taps into Gray's experience as a Marine sniper in Vietnam to pinpoint the high-rise firing site. There, the cop finds the shooter's "signature," a shell with a red ring painted on it. When the shell is identified as Russian-made, Gray and Coates turn to the beautiful Adrian Wade, a State Department security expert stationed in Moscow, to help ID the sniper; he turns out to be the mentally unstable Nikolai Trusov, who long ago was bested by Gray in Vietnam and who's now come to the States to force the ultimate grudge match. After Trusov plays nasty cat to Gray's mouse, including threatening the lawyer's adopted children, Gray lures the Russian to his childhood ranch in the wilds of Idaho for a shooters' showdown; meanwhile, Coates and Wade set up every high-tech trap possible against Trusov. But the Russian outsmarts his electronic trackers, setting the stage for a duel in a granite-ridged valley that is soon stained with both men's blood. Featuring reasonably believable plot devices and characters, as well as some informative sniper lore and witty banter to periodically relieve the tension, this deft thriller should win Gray a new host of fans.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Library Journal
Owen Gray is a New York City district attorney and the adoptive father of three orphaned Asian children. Previously, Gray was the premier marine sniper in Vietnam, where he was credited with 96 kills. The past is mostly forgotten, though, at least until a Mafia chieftain standing with Gray in front of a courthouse is killed by a sniper. Days later, a petty crook is shot through the head while Gray is walking with him toward a waiting police van. Unbeknownst to Gray, the sniper is a figure from his past who nearly drove him to suicide. What starts as seemingly random violence on the streets of New York is actually an invitation to a deadly duel between the world's two best snipers. This latest suspense yarn from the author of Pursuit (LJ 3/1/86) provides plenty of excitement for action fans and their libraries.
--Charles Michaud, Turner Free Lib., Randolph, Mass.Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
