Outlaw

August 26, 2013
Sullivan skillfully handles familiar plot elements and characters in his exciting second Robin Monarch novel (after 2012’s Rogue). While the U.S. secretary of state, Agnes Lawton, is secretly negotiating with the foreign ministers of China and India aboard a freighter in the South China Sea, armed terrorists seize the ship. The group claiming responsibility, the Sons of Prophecy, demands the release of all political prisoners in the U.S., China, and India, as well as a ransom of $500 million from each country. Meanwhile, the man pulling the intricate strings of the operation, wealthy Cantonese triad chief Long Chan-Juan (aka the Moon Dragon), has a multilayered plan that he expects will secure him billions of dollars and immense power. Ex-CIA agent Monarch and Chinese Ministry of State Security agent Song Le have less than five days to save Lawton and the others. Thriller fans fond of high-stakes rescue scenarios will be more than satisfied. Agent: Meg Ruley, Jane Rotrosen Agency.

October 1, 2013
Sullivan's fine follow-up to the stellar Rogue (2012) continues the adventures of former CIA operative and master thief Robin Monarch. A secret meeting on a tanker in the South China Sea brings together the foreign ministers of China and India, along with the U.S. secretary of state. They are meeting to discuss a sinister project that has been given the green light, but before the details are on the table, the tanker is raided, and the various envoys are kidnapped. An outrageous ransom demand forces the U.S. president to make a bold move and hire Monarch to stage a rescue. For the operation to be successful, Monarch must work with allies from the other countries, but can he trust them? Sullivan has created a fine adventure-thriller hero in Monarch, who fits perfectly into the Ludlum or Vince Flynn mode. The action and the surprises are nonstop. Readers will demand the next one in the series, pronto.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)

October 1, 2013
Who you gonna call when a dastardly terrorist cabal kidnaps the foreign ministers of China, India and the U.S.? Master thief and CIA alum Robin Monarch, of course. He'll shake things up for sure. When Secretary of State Agnes Lawton is snatched, together with her Indian and Chinese counterparts, from a hush-hush meeting aboard the oil tanker Niamey, her husband, Bill, strenuously opposes President Robert Sand's plan to pay Monarch and his team $15 million to rescue her. But it's actually a bargain, since the Sons of Prophecy, who claim responsibility, demand $500 million, plus the release of all political prisoners, for each of their three hostages. Dogging the footsteps of James Bond and dozens of wannabe Bonds, Monarch tangles with Vietnamese security forces during his inspection of Niamey, follows a clue to the Apocalypse Now Bar, arouses the ire of Shing-Tun triad leader Long Chan-Juan, the sinister Moon Dragon who pulls the strings from Hong Kong, and generally raises hell wherever he goes. Bashir Rhana, Monarch's counterpart from India, soon departs the action, leaving Song Le, of the Chinese Ministry of State Security, as the Bond girl. As she and Monarch question fences, mercenaries and arms dealers who lie, squirm, then try to kill them, the Sons of Prophecy step up their game, sabotaging the Suez and Panama canals, and the clock ticks down toward the moment when the secretary of state and her fellow diplomats will face the scimitar. An extended epilogue sorts out exactly who was responsible for which double cross for the benefit of those who care. As in Monarch's debut (Rogue, 2012), veteran Sullivan throws every popcorn-movie cliche you can think of into the mix. The result is the most soothingly predictable geopolitical thriller imaginable.

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