Meet Sam Capra, a CIA agent now living in London with his wife Lucy who is seven months pregnant. Sam is hooked on Parkour, the art of moving in, around, and over unusual spaces. Not only does Parkour provide him with an adrenaline rush, it helps him escape from tight places throughout the novel.

As Adrenaline begins, Lucy asks Sam what he would say to her if this were their final day together. Shortly thereafter, in the midst of his presentation at CIA headquarters, Sam receives a frantic call from Lucy imploring him to leave the building. As Sam exits, the building explodes and all of his colleagues are lost. When Sam reaches the street, he sees Lucy being taken away by a man with a distinctive scar.  

Sam Capra is taken to an isolated cell, interrogated, water-boarded and suspected of treason. When CIA agents discover an offshore account, suspicion mounts that Sam and/or Lucy are both involved especially since they are the only survivors. After more than four months of incarceration, Sam is transferred to a hospital and told he will be set free but under no circumstances can he look for his wife or newborn son.

Howell, his CIA superior, mentions a group called Novem Soles (nine suns) which may be involved with the kidnapping. At first, Sam takes a job as a bartender so that he can regain his weight and strength, all the while being kept under surveillance by Howell. Finally, he tries to arrange for a passport but is caught by Howell. On that very same day, an attempt is made on his life by a man with a Novem Soles tattoo. Sam ultimately stows away in a shipping container and lands in Europe where he is recruited by Mila, a woman who works for an unknown agency. In return for finding a kidnap victim named Yasmin, Mila will provide all the resources that Sam needs to find his wife and son.  

Adrenaline literally explodes off the pages, slows a bit in the middle with the narrative wandering a bit too far from the plot line, but fortunately finishes with page-turning action set in London, Amsterdam, Paris and New York.  Given the ending with several issues still unresolved, it’s exciting to think it’s the start of a series and Sam, our idealistic yet conflicted hero, will provide us with more reading enjoyment. This was my first Jeff Abbott thriller. It won't be my last

--Jerry Solot