Countdown in Cairo

October 26, 2009
Hynd (The Enemy Within
) completes the Russian trilogy that features U.S. Treasury agent Alexandra LaDuca. A stark opening chapter concludes with LaDuca zipped in a body bag in a morgue outside Cairo, and the action then goes back two months to introduce the central puzzle—the sighting of Michael Cerny, a CIA agent believed to be dead, then the bang of a car-bomb explosion. After that breathtaking beginning, the action gets leisurely—too leisurely. It takes half the book for LaDuca to get to Cairo to solve the puzzle of Cerny, for whom she worked, following complications in New York and in Rome that weave into the action two major supporting characters, the Russian Yuri Federov and the Italian Gian Antonio Rizzo, who are in some respects more intriguing and complex than protagonist LaDuca. LaDuca's main partner in Cairo, Voltaire, provides more dramatic tension in his moral ambiguity than the offstage character, Cerny. Despite some plotting softness, this espionage thriller is stylish and provides an especially satisfying close without being in the least preachy.

November 1, 2009
The final book in Hynd's spy trilogy (after "Conspiracy in Kiev" and "Midnight in Madrid") has federal agent Alexandra LaDuca traveling to Egypt to face a deadly enemy whom she believed was dead. Alexandra lives for her faith and her country and will go to any length to get the job done. She only hopes that her new partner can be trusted. VERDICT This fast-paced adventure with twists and turns will keep fans of spy thrillers captivated; it may also appeal to readers who enjoy Alton Gansky or Eric Wilson.

Copyright 2009 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.