The Searcher

August 24, 2015
The stranger to a community in need of salvation, bereft of his identity and most of his memories, is a familiar trope, and Toyne (the Sanctus trilogy) doesn’t make his take on it memorable. A tall albino, who comes to believe his name is Solomon Creed, may be the sole survivor of a plane crash outside Redemption, Ariz., which is soon threatened by the fire caused by the crash. Meanwhile, a corrupt ex-cop, Mulcahy, has come to town at the direction of a sadistic Mexican drug lord, Papa Tío. Mulcahy hopes to save his father’s life by cooperating with the man holding him hostage. And Solomon is convinced that he’s meant to help Holly Coronado, the attractive widow of the new sheriff, who just died in a road accident. There’s little imaginative about how the story lines relate to each other or the perils the characters encounter. Excerpts from the memoir of “King” Cassidy, the founder of Redemption, only slow things down in this predictable thriller. Agent: Alice Saunders, LAW Agency.

May 15, 2015

Having launched himself nicely with the "Sanctus" trilogy, Toyne begins a new series, featuring a man named Solomon Creed who arrives in Redemption, AZ, with no memory but the strong conviction that he's there to save someone's soul. Originally scheduled for May 2015; with a 50,000-copy first printing.

Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 15, 2015
A stranger arrives in a small Arizona town called Redemption. Yes, this sounds like Lee Child's Nothing to Lose, in which Jack Reacher turns up in a burg called Despair, Colorado, but here the stranger is an albino who thinks his name is Solomon Creedexcept he's really not sure about anything. There was a plane crash outside of town, and Creed may be the only survivor. The crash has started a rapidly spreading fire that remains a real threat to the small community. In another story line, Mulcahy is a corrupt cop who is in town at the behest of a Mexican drug lord who's holding the cop's father hostage. Interspersed throughout are memoir chapters from the founder of Redemption, King Cassidy. There is a lot of action; there are several brutal murders; and there are appearances from the occasional ghost. All these story lines eventually intersect, but there are plenty of open ends, as this is the first book in a series. With its touches of the supernatural, The Searcher will make readers of F. Paul Wilson's Repairman Jack series feel right at home.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)