U.S. Marshal Lucas Davenport is back in Masked Prey, a new crime thriller in the popular series by author John Sandford.
A sinister website appears on the internet. Created by an unknown party, the site shows photos of children of prominent political leaders in various normal daily scenes. Posted along with the photos are an array of extremist articles advocating violent political opposition to the U.S. government. A threat to take some kind of action against the kids in the photos is clearly implied.
The website looks dangerous. Concerned senators bring in Lucas Davenport to investigate who is behind the site. Lucas has personal experience with website programming. Working with the FBI, he begins by looking into already established militant political groups. He runs into some angry, surly misfits, but nobody who seems to fit the suspect he's looking for.
Lucas worries he's after the hardest prey to catch --- a ruthless, lone wolf type with no ties to any militant group. Then the worst happens. A kid gets shot and killed by a hidden sniper. Lucas and his team get a lead and race onto the trail of the shooter.
Masked Prey opens slowly, with much material on the threat of dangerous internet websites. It takes a while for the plot to get moving, but the action soon speeds up to finish in the trademark breakneck style of author John Sanford.
Showing posts with label Political Conspiracies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Political Conspiracies. Show all posts
Saturday, July 18, 2020
Monday, April 20, 2020
Thriller Novel Classics - The Essential Reading List
Coronavirus Reprint - This list was previously published by this Blog. If you can get your hands on any of these classic titles, they make for great reading during the current virus shutdown.
Here's a list of classic novels that are essential reads in the Suspense Thriller genre. The list is generally chronological beginning with the modern day thriller advent in the 1960s. The Thriller genre is here defined as page-turner novels with strong action and suspense plot elements.
Here's a list of classic novels that are essential reads in the Suspense Thriller genre. The list is generally chronological beginning with the modern day thriller advent in the 1960s. The Thriller genre is here defined as page-turner novels with strong action and suspense plot elements.
Fail Safe by Eugene Burdick - Nuclear War thriller envisioned, as a technical system failure brings the US and USSR to the brink of catastrophe.
Seven Days in May by Fletcher Knebel - Political crisis thriller as the Joint Chiefs plot a coup to take over the American government.
Goldfinger by Ian Fleming - Best of the James Bond spy thriller series.
Ice Station Zebra by Alistair MacLean
Day of the Jackal by Frederick Forsyth - Assassination thriller plot played out against an international canvas.
The Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton - Biological contamination crisis at a secret Nevada desert scientific facility.
The Taking of Pelham One Two Three by John Godey - the Big Heist thriller set beneath the streets of New York City.
Black Sunday by Thomas Harris - Terrorist plot to hijack a blimp and pilot it into Super Bowl stadium crowd.
Marathon Man by William Goldman - Best ever interrogation scene shudderingly enacted in a dentist's chair.
The Boys From Brazil by Ira Levin - Nazi Conspiracy thriller with a new, chilling science fiction angle.
Jaws by Peter Benchley - Natural Environment thriller at a seacoast resort town menaced by a Great White shark.
The Towering Inferno by Richard Martin Stern - Disaster thriller scenario as an unstoppable fire rages inside a giant skyscraper.
The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum
The Hunt for Red October by Tom Clancy - Military thriller plays out as a Soviet nuclear sub crew attempts to defect to U.S.
Firefox by Craig Thomas - Techno/Military mission as a U.S. agent tries to steal a high tech Soviet fighter plane and fly it out of Russia.
The Firm by John Grisham - Legal thriller sees a young lawyer join a law firm with secret organized crime connections.
True Crime by Andrew Klavan - Race against time thriller as a reporter tries to halt a wrongful execution.
The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown - Follows chain of historical puzzle clues to revelation of a sensational religious secret.
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson - Swedish government conspiracy thriller with a hacker/punk female lead character.
Sunday, April 23, 2017
THE CIRCLE Portrays Sinister Social Media World
The movie version of The Circle is out staring Tom Hanks and Emma Watson. The original novel by Dave Eggers is a creepy portrayal of both the pervasive influence, and the growing threat, of an all-powerful social media environment.
The Circle is the name of a powerhouse social media network community which seems to be a combination of Google, Facebook, Twitter, and Amazon all rolled into one overwhelming entity.
When Mae Holland gets a coveted job at The Circle headquarters, she is awestruck by the perfectly conceived design of the corporate campus and the perfectly aligned functions of the Circle operating model.
At The Circle, community joining and total sharing is the ultimate value above all else. Complete transparency of all individual lives of Circle members is required. Accepted Circle wisdom is:
All that happens must be known.
Secrets are lies.
Privacy is theft.
As Mae Holland gets ever more deeply immersed into her life within the Circle network, it becomes her only self-reality. But there are consequences. Meanwhile, the influence of The Circle over all aspects of human lives continues to grow exponentially. The goal is that every person on the planet must be required to have a Circle account. The Circle plan for absolute watching and knowing is being put into motion, as Mae eventually learns.
The Circle is a timely and chilling dystopian depiction of an insidious social media presence that in many respects is already here.
The Circle is the name of a powerhouse social media network community which seems to be a combination of Google, Facebook, Twitter, and Amazon all rolled into one overwhelming entity.
When Mae Holland gets a coveted job at The Circle headquarters, she is awestruck by the perfectly conceived design of the corporate campus and the perfectly aligned functions of the Circle operating model.
At The Circle, community joining and total sharing is the ultimate value above all else. Complete transparency of all individual lives of Circle members is required. Accepted Circle wisdom is:
All that happens must be known.
Secrets are lies.
Privacy is theft.
As Mae Holland gets ever more deeply immersed into her life within the Circle network, it becomes her only self-reality. But there are consequences. Meanwhile, the influence of The Circle over all aspects of human lives continues to grow exponentially. The goal is that every person on the planet must be required to have a Circle account. The Circle plan for absolute watching and knowing is being put into motion, as Mae eventually learns.
The Circle is a timely and chilling dystopian depiction of an insidious social media presence that in many respects is already here.
Monday, February 27, 2017
Thriller Novel Classics - The Essential Reading List
Here's a list of classic novels that are essential reads in the Suspense Thriller genre. The list is generally chronological beginning with the modern day thriller advent in the 1960s. The Thriller genre is here defined as page-turner novels with strong action and suspense plot elements.
Fail Safe by Eugene Burdick - Nuclear War thriller envisioned, as a technical system failure brings the US and USSR to the brink of catastrophe.
Seven Days in May by Fletcher Knebel - Political crisis thriller as the Joint Chiefs plot a coup to take over the American government.
Goldfinger by Ian Fleming - Best of the James Bond spy thriller series.
Ice Station Zebra by Alistair MacLean
Day of the Jackal by Frederick Forsyth - Assassination thriller plot played out against an international canvas.
The Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton - Biological contamination crisis at a secret Nevada desert scientific facility.
The Taking of Pelham One Two Three by John Godey - the Big Heist thriller set beneath the streets of New York City.
Black Sunday by Thomas Harris - Terrorist plot to hijack a blimp and pilot it into Super Bowl stadium crowd.
Marathon Man by William Goldman - Best ever interrogation scene shudderingly enacted in a dentist's chair.
The Boys From Brazil by Ira Levin - Nazi Conspiracy thriller with a new, chilling science fiction angle.
Jaws by Peter Benchley - Natural Environment thriller at a seacoast resort town menaced by a Great White shark.
The Towering Inferno by Richard Martin Stern - Disaster thriller scenario as an unstoppable fire rages inside a giant skyscraper.
The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum
The Hunt for Red October by Tom Clancy - Military thriller plays out as a Soviet nuclear sub crew attempts to defect to U.S.
Firefox by Craig Thomas - Techno/Military mission as a U.S. agent tries to steal a high tech Soviet fighter plane and fly it out of Russia.
The Firm by John Grisham - Legal thriller sees a young lawyer join a law firm with secret organized crime connections.
True Crime by Andrew Klavan - Race against time thriller as a reporter tries to halt a wrongful execution.
The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown - Follows chain of historical puzzle clues to revelation of a sensational religious secret.
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson - Swedish government conspiracy thriller with a hacker/punk female lead character.
Fail Safe by Eugene Burdick - Nuclear War thriller envisioned, as a technical system failure brings the US and USSR to the brink of catastrophe.
Seven Days in May by Fletcher Knebel - Political crisis thriller as the Joint Chiefs plot a coup to take over the American government.
Goldfinger by Ian Fleming - Best of the James Bond spy thriller series.
Ice Station Zebra by Alistair MacLean
Day of the Jackal by Frederick Forsyth - Assassination thriller plot played out against an international canvas.
The Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton - Biological contamination crisis at a secret Nevada desert scientific facility.
The Taking of Pelham One Two Three by John Godey - the Big Heist thriller set beneath the streets of New York City.
Black Sunday by Thomas Harris - Terrorist plot to hijack a blimp and pilot it into Super Bowl stadium crowd.
Marathon Man by William Goldman - Best ever interrogation scene shudderingly enacted in a dentist's chair.
The Boys From Brazil by Ira Levin - Nazi Conspiracy thriller with a new, chilling science fiction angle.
Jaws by Peter Benchley - Natural Environment thriller at a seacoast resort town menaced by a Great White shark.
The Towering Inferno by Richard Martin Stern - Disaster thriller scenario as an unstoppable fire rages inside a giant skyscraper.
The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum
The Hunt for Red October by Tom Clancy - Military thriller plays out as a Soviet nuclear sub crew attempts to defect to U.S.
Firefox by Craig Thomas - Techno/Military mission as a U.S. agent tries to steal a high tech Soviet fighter plane and fly it out of Russia.
The Firm by John Grisham - Legal thriller sees a young lawyer join a law firm with secret organized crime connections.
True Crime by Andrew Klavan - Race against time thriller as a reporter tries to halt a wrongful execution.
The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown - Follows chain of historical puzzle clues to revelation of a sensational religious secret.
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson - Swedish government conspiracy thriller with a hacker/punk female lead character.
Thursday, October 20, 2016
OUR KIND OF TRAITOR a Tense Spy Drama
Our Kind of Traitor (new on DVD) is a gripping drama about the clash between honorable values and political corruption within the murky world of government spy agencies. The movie is based on a novel by John LeCarre.
British couple Perry and Gail are on vacation when they meet Dima, a flamboyant character, and a money launderer for a Russian crime syndicate. But Dima's gang is now controlled by a ruthless new boss who is eliminating the old guard and Dima fears he and his family will soon be assassinated. He wants to defect to Britain for safety, and he uses Perry as intermediary to help him do so.
Perry makes contact with British agent Hector from MI-6. Dima has information about high British officials who are in the pay of the Russian syndicate. Dima will provide those names in exchange for political asylum. Hector agrees, but he has his own agenda of revenge against a particular government official that he wants to satisfy at the same time.
The movie follows a tense operation in Switzerland as Perry and Hector's team try to get Dima and his family to safety, leading up to violent fight with the Russian gangsters at a safe house in the Swiss Alps.
Our Kind of Traitor is a chilling story of lies and betrayal, in which a Russian defector is a more honorable traitor than the politically corrupt traitors high up inside the British government itself.
British couple Perry and Gail are on vacation when they meet Dima, a flamboyant character, and a money launderer for a Russian crime syndicate. But Dima's gang is now controlled by a ruthless new boss who is eliminating the old guard and Dima fears he and his family will soon be assassinated. He wants to defect to Britain for safety, and he uses Perry as intermediary to help him do so.
Perry makes contact with British agent Hector from MI-6. Dima has information about high British officials who are in the pay of the Russian syndicate. Dima will provide those names in exchange for political asylum. Hector agrees, but he has his own agenda of revenge against a particular government official that he wants to satisfy at the same time.
The movie follows a tense operation in Switzerland as Perry and Hector's team try to get Dima and his family to safety, leading up to violent fight with the Russian gangsters at a safe house in the Swiss Alps.
Our Kind of Traitor is a chilling story of lies and betrayal, in which a Russian defector is a more honorable traitor than the politically corrupt traitors high up inside the British government itself.
Saturday, July 2, 2016
THE TUNNEL a Distrubing Crime Puzzle
The Tunnel is a ten-part crime series now seen on PBS. Back episodes are available on Comcast Infinity.
The series opens with a bizarre puzzle: a female body is found in the Channel Tunnel that runs between England and France. The body is placed exactly on the boundary line between the two nations. What's more, the body is in two pieces, taken from two different corpses. Half of the body is from a French congress member. The other half is from an English call girl.
An oddly matched team of English and French detectives is assigned to the case. The French woman, Elise Wasserman, is socially detached. The English detective, Karl Roebuck, is a sardonic cynic. They work grudgingly together at first.
Bizarre new deaths continue to occur as an anonymous killer, the Truth Teller, stages shocking murders meant to expose the ills of society and the political system. A distorted voice on the phone announces his intentions.
The Tunnel is a gripping and disturbing mystery with no sure sense of where the plot will go next. The awkward chemistry between the two main characters adds another element of uncertainty.
The series opens with a bizarre puzzle: a female body is found in the Channel Tunnel that runs between England and France. The body is placed exactly on the boundary line between the two nations. What's more, the body is in two pieces, taken from two different corpses. Half of the body is from a French congress member. The other half is from an English call girl.
An oddly matched team of English and French detectives is assigned to the case. The French woman, Elise Wasserman, is socially detached. The English detective, Karl Roebuck, is a sardonic cynic. They work grudgingly together at first.
Bizarre new deaths continue to occur as an anonymous killer, the Truth Teller, stages shocking murders meant to expose the ills of society and the political system. A distorted voice on the phone announces his intentions.
The Tunnel is a gripping and disturbing mystery with no sure sense of where the plot will go next. The awkward chemistry between the two main characters adds another element of uncertainty.
Monday, May 2, 2016
EXTREME PREY a New Crime Thriller by John Sandford
Extreme Prey by John Sandford is the newest entry in the crime thriller series that features Minnesota State Police investigator Lucas Davenport.
The Iowa Presidential campaign trail is the background for the novel. A threat has been made against a candidate. Lucas is on indefinite leave from police work, but he agrees to look into the threat as a free lance consultant.
What Lucas finds increasingly worries him. Evidence develops that indicates the threat is not only real, but clearly dangerous. But the threat comes from an unlikely source: a bitter and resentful farm family following near-psychotic political motives. The race to stop an assassination plan crisscrosses the rustic Iowa landscape, hurtling toward a tense, explosive finish.
Extreme Prey has a crackerjack plot and is written in such a smooth, fast paced style that the novel practically reads itself. Once again, John Sandford shows why he is one of the best crime thriller authors working today.
An outstanding read. Highly recommended.
The Iowa Presidential campaign trail is the background for the novel. A threat has been made against a candidate. Lucas is on indefinite leave from police work, but he agrees to look into the threat as a free lance consultant.
What Lucas finds increasingly worries him. Evidence develops that indicates the threat is not only real, but clearly dangerous. But the threat comes from an unlikely source: a bitter and resentful farm family following near-psychotic political motives. The race to stop an assassination plan crisscrosses the rustic Iowa landscape, hurtling toward a tense, explosive finish.
Extreme Prey has a crackerjack plot and is written in such a smooth, fast paced style that the novel practically reads itself. Once again, John Sandford shows why he is one of the best crime thriller authors working today.
An outstanding read. Highly recommended.
Saturday, March 24, 2012
New Thriller THE FEAR INDEX a Timely Warning
The new Robert Harris thriller The Fear Index is a timely warning about what can happen in nervous world financial markets when a hyper-powerful computer trading program gets too smart and decides to go rogue.
Dr. Alex Hoffman, a mathematics genius, creates the VIXAL algorithm to execute large scale, instantaneous financial trades for a hedge fund. But when VIXAL begins to operate autonomously outside of human controls, the result is potential market chaos.
At the same time, Hoffman himself comes under attack in a series of anonymous actions that threaten to destroy his entire life.
This stylish, literate thriller is a cautionary warning about the potential for a sudden financial market collapse and the threat of unchecked artificial intelligence advances. What happens when the technology outgrows its human creators?
For those new to British writer Robert Harris, his previous work includes the chilling political suspense novel that was the basis for the film "The Ghostwriter." He is also the author of the excellent suspense novels "Enigma," "Fatherland," and "Archangel."
BEACH RATING: 3 and 1/2 Palm Trees
Dr. Alex Hoffman, a mathematics genius, creates the VIXAL algorithm to execute large scale, instantaneous financial trades for a hedge fund. But when VIXAL begins to operate autonomously outside of human controls, the result is potential market chaos.
At the same time, Hoffman himself comes under attack in a series of anonymous actions that threaten to destroy his entire life.
This stylish, literate thriller is a cautionary warning about the potential for a sudden financial market collapse and the threat of unchecked artificial intelligence advances. What happens when the technology outgrows its human creators?
For those new to British writer Robert Harris, his previous work includes the chilling political suspense novel that was the basis for the film "The Ghostwriter." He is also the author of the excellent suspense novels "Enigma," "Fatherland," and "Archangel."
BEACH RATING: 3 and 1/2 Palm Trees
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