The story is devilishly complex. Here’s the skinny: John Gavallan, a fighter pilot who struck it big in the business world, is about to take a Russian company public on the New York Stock Exchange. But, less than a week before the offering, Gavallan learns the company, Mercury Broadband, may not be quite as gold as it appears. At stake is his own company, Black Jet Securities, and - maybe, just maybe - the life of his oldest and dearest friend, who has vanished somewhere in Russia while carrying out last-minute checks on Mercury.

That’s just the jumping-off point. The novel’s got double-dealing, double-crosses, shady characters (including Gavallan’s former lover, who’s got so many secrets it’s a wonder she can keep them all crammed inside her head), plot twists galore, and a rousing, race-against-the-clock finale that’ll leave you gasping for breath.

The thing about a really good thriller is, it keeps piling on the questions until the very end. Then, in a series of revelations that leave you breathless, everything is answered just in the nick of time. There’s nothing worse than a thriller that springs all its surprises early on, leaving us nothing but an extended chase scene. Like Jeffrey Deaver, who just loves to pile surprises on surprises on surprises, Reich, here, lets us get ourselves all nice and comfortable, thinkin’ we’ve got things all figgered out, then smacks us in the bag of the head with some new piece of business. This is a top-of-the-line thriller, and you absolutely must read it.

--David Pitt