There’s nothing like a great thriller to add a bit of excitement to your summer vacation. Lots of big names are about to release, or have recently released, titles that will be great additions to any summer reading list. Grab a copy of one of these and head to the beach or out on the deck and enjoy some page turning adventure on your days off.
Robert Ludlum’s The Bourne Objective by Eric Van Lustbader: author Ludlum died in 2001, but this popular series has continued under the command of Eric Van Lustbader. The fast paced thrilling adventures of rogue intelligence office Jason Bourne began in 1980 with the Bourne Identity. The series is now a mega franchise of books and films. The latest sure-to-be page turning installment was released June 1st.
Innocent by Scott Turow: The thrills in Turow’s popular novels find their thrills in tension and suspense rather than in chases and fights, but that makes them no less gripping. Turow returns to the characters of his 1987 blockbuster debut Presumed Innocent, and by all accounts it was worth the wait for readers. Positive reviews are popping up everywhere including a starred review in Publishers Weekly which said “Mesmerizing prose and intricate plotting lift Turow’s superlative legal thriller, his best novel since his bestselling debut…” Innocent was released in May.
Inside Out: a novel by Barry Eisler: Political thriller author Eisler, returns in July with the second installment of a new series featuring black-ops agent Ben Treven. In a follow up to 2009’s Fault Line, Treven looks for a blackmailer who possesses tapes of CIA officers committing acts of torture against prisoners. Lots of action, lots of violence. Library Journal noted “this is a relentless and revelatory look into the human cost of those who torture on behalf of their country.“
The Spy: an Isaac Bell adventure by Clive Cussler and Justin Scott: Also just released, a page turning historical thriller continuing the series featuring Isaac Bell, detective. Questions over the apparent suicide of a weapons engineer uncover a plot against others working in the same field. Set in pre-World War I America, Booklist magazine said “This is a fine thriller, rich in character, period detail, and suspense.“ This series started in 2007 with The Chase.
In the Name of Honor by Richard North Patterson: a thriller set against the backdrop of the Iraq War and the traumatic stress many of its returning soldiers live with. A soldier kills a senior officer – who was not only his commander but also the husband of his childhood friend. Patterson gives readers a riveting and thought provoking legal thriller.
Spies of the Balkans by Alan Furst: coming later this month, a novel set in the early days of World War II and filled with the intrigue of spies and political maneuvering. Furst is the author of several other historical spy novels, including the Foreign Correspondent. An author in the tradition of Eric Ambler and Graham Greene.
