There is no sophomore slump in THE DECEIVED. Building upon the characters he created in his first thriller, THE CLEANER, Brett Battles has expanded the world of Jonathan Quinn, even adding what I’m guessing will be a force to reckon with in this continuing series.
A quick refresher for those who have not read THE CLEANER: Quinn is a clean-up man for various groups and organizations. In other words, when there is a body to get rid of and never to be found, Quinn is your man. THE DECEIVED has a few references here and there to the previous book, so if this novel intrigues you, make sure to read THE CLEANER beforehand.
Quinn is about to start a job down at the docks with a body that was found in one of the containers. He feels as though he is not getting the full story, so he declines, only then to be given the information he wants. Once he starts working, he discovers the body is that of one of his closest friends: a retired spook. Quinn is seriously thrown by this discovery, so he wants to find out who did it, but the only clue is a mysterious string of numbers followed by two letters that were carved into the container.
Quinn thinks finding his pal’s girlfriend Jenny might be helpful, figuring he can break the news to her or even find out where he might have been that lead to his death, only to find out that she has been missing for a few weeks. This is what drives this vastly superior tale of espionage, leading Quinn into the world of a shadow group trying to control the government.
Who can he trust as he searches for this missing woman, especially when things turn bad quickly? Perfect example: a house blowing up right before he is about to search it. There’s a mysterious group of men always one step ahead of him. Were they behind it all? And how does Jenny’s boss — a congressmen running for president — figure into this conspiracy?
Battles’ writing has greatly improved over THE CLEANER, not relying on recycled ideas this time out, which I felt hindered the first book. I was throughly hoodwinked at this one’s reveal. It’s truly a marvel to see a writer come back so strong after what was a terrific, but flawed debut, only to improve with his scope of idea. I’m guessing that we’ll be seeing more of Quinn and all his new playmates in future volumes. I, for one, eagerly await what other tricks Battles will pull out of his black ops knit hat. —Bruce Grossman
“As the man came abreast, Quinn slammed his elbow into his solar plexus.”
OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF THIS AUTHOR:
• THE CLEANER by Brett Battles
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- The Cleaner
- Killer Year: Stories to Die for … from the Hottest New Crime Writers
- BULLETS, BROADS, BLACKMAIL & BOMBS >> The Gorton’s Fisherman Came in from the Cold
- BULLETS, BROADS, BLACKMAIL & BOMBS >> The Girl Can’t Help It
- The Berlin Conspiracy
