Avenger

October 6, 2003
Audio reviews reflect PW
's assessment of the audio adaptation of a book and should be quoted only in reference to the audio version.
Fiction
AVENGER
Frederick Forsyth
, read by Eric Conger. Audio Renaissance
, unabridged, eight cassettes, 12 hrs., $39.95 ISBN 1-55927-947-8

Conger's coldly precise narration complements the riveting prologue to Forsyth's latest thriller, which describes the ghastly murder of a young aid worker in 1995 Bosnia; however, his impersonal approach isn't as effective during the exposition-laden first half. This plodding segment consists of an excessively detailed search for the killer, interspersed with lengthy segments describing protagonist Calvin Dexter's background, from his inception and eventual service in Vietnam to his public career as a New Jersey attorney with a sub-rosa practice as Avenger, an astonishingly capable righter of wrongs. Forsyth's considerable fan base may relish the hours devoted to the warm-up, but less patient listeners will be tempted to fast forward to the novel's second half, when Avenger is hired to find and capture Zoran Zilic, a Serbian criminal ensconced beyond the reach of free world law enforcement. Once Dexter locates Zilic's seemingly impenetrable lair, both author and reader quicken their pace. Grueling physical challenges, chilling escapes, a splendid final surprise and a plot development involving none other than Osama bin Laden compensate for the novel's less-than-thrilling early padding. Simultaneous release with the St. Martin's/Dunne hardcover (Forecasts, July 28).

Starred review from July 28, 2003
"The master is back," the promo goes, "with his best thriller since The Day of the Jackal." A bold statement: while no Jackal, this strong and memorable novel is his best in decades, and as good as The Odessa File
and The Dogs of War.
It is the story of vigilante Cal Dexter's pursuit of a Serbian warlord into the jungles of the fictional Republic of San Martin. Dexter, former Vietnam tunnel rat, now small-town attorney and clandestine kidnapper of refugees from justice, is after Zoran Zilic, a gangster who has escaped Serbia with a fortune but not before savagely killing an American aid worker who happens to be the grandson of a billionaire mining magnate. It's the magnate who sets in motion the operation against Zilic, first through a man known as "The Tracker," who locates him, then via the Avenger, whose task is to bring Zilic to American justice. But Zilic is protected in his South American jungle compound not only by the best security money can buy but also by a top FBI man who plans to use the warlord to help take out a dangerous terrorist named Usama bin Laden; much of the narrative takes place within weeks of 9/11, and is laced with irony. Forsyth fans won't be surprised that the action, always exciting, is supported by numerous briefings on matters geopolitical, historical and scientific; with Jackal, Forsyth established the now traditional formula of thrillers that educate as well as entertain. The digressions are frequent early on but no page lacks interest and the novel's second half, which focuses on the Avenger's attempted snatch of Zilic, is pure gold. This will hit bestseller lists high and hard and a sequel seems likely.

May 15, 2003
Unassuming attorney Calvin Dexter bumps around his empty suburban home, waiting for a chance to exact horrible revenge for wrongs done to him years ago. It's up to CIA Agent Kevin McBride to stop him.

Copyright 2003 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2003
" The Day of the Jackal," " The Dogs of War," " The Odessa File--"these Forsyth blockbusters helped define the international conspiracy thriller. Forsyth's newest novel, his fourteenth, could well return him to those lofty heights. Once again, his crisp narration leads readers through labyrinths of criminal and espionage plots and through land mines of warfare, historical, contemporary, and threatening (the book stops on September 10, 2001). One of the amazing features of Forsyth's writing is the way he spotlights seemingly random, unconnected events, usually involving armed conflict, and then gradually weaves them all together into a seamless plot. This time out, World War II, Vietnam, Bosnia, and Cambodia take turns commanding center stage, held together by two protagonists: a middle-aged lawyer and an aging business tycoon, who have both suffered devastating losses. The tycoon's loss, that of his grandson on a relief mission in Bosnia, becomes subsumed in the mission of attorney Calvin Dexter, grieving father and former 'Nam tunnel rat, whose mission in life is to bring justice to those who have gotten away with murder. Perhaps the most fascinating part of the book is the in-depth chronicle (based on real-life stories of surviving veterans) of the excruciating, perilous work of the tunnel rats in ferreting out the Vietcong in their vast underground lairs. Forsyth's extraordinary care with detail, his solid voice, and his exquisite pacing make this a totally engrossing thriller.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2003, American Library Association.)