A Conspiracy of Ravens

July 10, 2017
The University, a clandestine organization that has been fighting the forces of evil since WWII, squares off against the Vanguard, the world’s biggest criminal network, in McCauley’s run-of-the-mill third James Hicks thriller (after 2016’s A Murder of Crows). Hicks, who heads the University, has wanted to take on the Vanguard for years, but has never been able to get a line on the weapons-dealing group. When Hicks’s New York City headquarters is destroyed by a Vanguard-guided drone, bits of evidence in the debris give him enough clues to track down its leaders. One by one, operatives on both sides are picked off until the battle comes to a climax on the streets of Berlin. Those who like nonstop action and lots of muscular, snarly talk will have fun, but the brisk pacing leaves no room for characterization, subplots, or backstory. New readers will have to settle for a cursory description of what the University is, and they’ll have little idea why the Vanguard is so evil. Agent: Doug Grad, Doug Grad Literary.

August 1, 2017
McCauley's first two James Hicks spy thrillers, A Murder of Crows (2016) and Sympathy for the Devil (2015), offered affectionate jabs at John le Carre and his cozy names for George Smiley's world. Smiley's crew toils in the Circus, while Hicks and his colleagues attend University. Hicks has come up in the world: his enemies send a Hellfire missile to devastate a city block just because he is there. After surviving the blast, Hicks must identify and locate whoever wants him dead. It turns out to be a shadowy organization called the Vanguard. Once content to be criminals, their leaders now seek to topple governments, and they see Hicks as their primary obstacle. Standard thriller stuff, made worthy by some stunning set pieces. Like Hicks' inventive ways to flummox the hit teams who track him. Or scene-stealing Roger Cobb, who excels in extracting information. Sadistic? No, businesslike, as when he tells a captive, Tell me the truth, and you'll die with dignity. If you lie to me, I'll bake you. Solid fare for no-nonsense spy fans.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)