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gervase_fenNasty, brutish and long, Terry Hayes' doorstep of a debut brandishes its influences on its proverbial sleeve. The rootless, identity changing super-spy narrator is Jason Bourne from the movie series, minus the brainwashing ; the twin track narrative following the elaborate plans of Pilgrim's target, the Saracen, is pure Frederick Forsyth ; the shorter and shorter chapters are here by way of James Patterson. What does Terry Hayes bring to the mix? An idealised New York cop, an idealised President, an all-comer's record at surviving waterboarding, a hacker straight of Die Hard 4.0...
There's probably a reasonably tense TNT mini-series in this, but as a crackerjack, captivating, original thriller it fails the Alice in Wonderland Red Queen test -- I can only believe, at most, six impossible things before breakfast. "The only thriller you need to read this year" says a flash on the cover. To which I would add the preceding words, "Make sure it's not."
There's probably a reasonably tense TNT mini-series in this, but as a crackerjack, captivating, original thriller it fails the Alice in Wonderland Red Queen test -- I can only believe, at most, six impossible things before breakfast. "The only thriller you need to read this year" says a flash on the cover. To which I would add the preceding words, "Make sure it's not."
