The Tower

July 22, 2013
Federal agents probe a computer attack on the Hubble telescope, ostensibly the work of a religious cult, in this anxiety-inducing final addition to a trilogy by Toyne (Sanctus, The Key). The salty FBI veteran Franklin teams with recruit Shepherd, a Cambridge-educated cosmologist, to stay ahead of an enigmatic countdown, track missing scientists, and contend with a creepy duo of assassins guided by "the Archangel". Meanwhile, global civilization halts as everyone rushes home, submitting to a strange emotionâ"like that feeling you get when you're running late," in Shepherd's chilling phrase. It's all linked to the outbreak, eight months earlier, of a lethal affliction known as "the blight." Originating from the Citadel, a religious cloister in a fictional Turkish city,, the disease separates journalist Liv Adamsen from her love Gabriel Mann. As they seek to reunite, a religious prophecy may lead everyone to the end of days. Toyne's descriptive skill makes for a story that is cinematically vivid. With many characters separated by time and space, the plot takes a while to cohere, but the relentless pace makes the action addicting.

Simon Vance narrates this complicated thriller with quiet authority, holding myriad plot threads together. The destruction of the Hubble and Webb telescopes may be tied to a pandemic breaking out in a monastery in Turkey. The FBI, several journalists, and a fanatical religious group are all involved. Vance's narration is often filled with drama, as befits an apocalyptic story. Vance's American accents, particularly the Southern ones, prove a bit slippery at times, as when a British pronunciation comes out of an American. But his talent and skill are never in doubt, especially when he's careful not to give away a plot point too soon by revealing a villain via his voice on a phone call. G.D. (c) AudioFile 2013, Portland, Maine