In an effort to mend both mind and body, the pair decides to take a long jog through Prospect Park. Upon their return to the apartment Frank sorts through a packet of mail amidst which is a curious envelope. It is distinctly old, complete with a two cent stamp and a postmark dated December 31, 1899. Amanda tears open the envelope to discover an invitation for the twosome to attend a meeting of the Manhattan History Club the following Saturday. The subject of the lecture to be given by a man named Adrian Murdock is to be time capsules.

Frank tries to rationalize the odd invitation. He surmises that they had become better known than they would have liked as a result of publicity about the incident at the Paragon Hotel and some journalist had probably mentioned Frank’s keen interest in history. Tempted by the subject of time capsules and the intriguing manner in which the invitation was issued, Frank and Amanda decide to attend. They are warmly greeted at the meeting by a woman who introduces herself as Karen and offers them their choice of beverage. Karen then introduces them to Professor Murdock. Murdock tells them of his interest in the Crypt of Civilization which will be the subject of his lecture.

Despite his intense interest in the subject of the lecture, Frank begins to drift off into a deep though troubled sleep. When he awakes on the beach in Asbury Park, Amanda is nowhere to be found. Jeff Cochran, the police chief can scarcely believe Frank's rambling story of the lecture, and it is obvious to both men that Frank has been drugged. Frank is desperate to find Amanda but has few clues to aid him. Fortunately Cochran believes Frank’s story, not judging him as a psychotic suffering recurring effects of his horrible trauma in the Paragon Hotel.

David Morrell has perfected the art of writing a thriller. His prose is terse and stark, using a minimum of carefully chosen words to relate his story. The reader is quickly drawn into the action of the story. Though the language is simple and direct, the story line is anything but. What begins as an effort to find a woman missing under peculiar circumstances segues into a complex world of a video game come to life, and a desperate attempt to win the game for to lose it spells death to the player.

Interesting tidbits of information about such diverse subjects as global positioning satellite receivers, time capsules, and survival techniques add an extra measure of enjoyment to the novel. Scavenger is the ultimate scavenger hunt where the clues are not at all obvious and the ultimate prize yet to be revealed. Facts about the New York Public Library system and English Literature boost the intellectual content of what might have been simple escapist fare. One even gets a history of the scavenger hunt which actually began in England in the late nineteenth century.

Though most devout readers and writers tend to disparage video gaming as mindless, Morrell correctly points out that the skills needed to succeed require that the player learn to think quickly and about more than one topic at a time. These tasks are certainly good exercise for our brains. In addition they help condition our reflexes to produce more rapid response to stimuli. Though parents of teenagers apparently addicted to such activities may despair at the hold the games have over their children, these bits of information may help them feel that their kids are learning something.

Though Morrell doesn't overload his novel with graphic violence, he does not shirk from its use. There are several scenes in which people die, violently. The descriptions of the details of their deaths are faithfully recorded. It appears that the author does not use these descriptions for their shock value but for the intensity and reality of a difficult situation.

I have not read Creepers the novel in which the two main protagonists make their debut. Although Scavenger reads logically enough without the back story of the previous novel, I suspect the knowledge of the events in the Paragon Hotel would increase the reader's understanding of the psyche of Amanda and Frank and add to the enjoyment of the succeeding book. For those that don’t recognize Morrell as the creator of Rambo, this outstanding writer hasn’t lost his touch with this latest effort.

--Andy Plonka