Around the world, twenty-two people have been murdered. The victims fit no profile, the circumstances vary wildly, but one thing links them all: in every case the victim is branded with a number.
With police around the globe floundering and unable to identify any pattern, let alone find a killer, CIA Analyst Quinn Mitchell is called in to investigate.
Before long, Quinn is on the trail of an ice-hearted assassin with seemingly limitless resources – but she’s prepared for that.
What she isn’t prepared for is the person pulling the strings…
Time for a bit of global conspiracy thriller-type action. Scorpion by Christian Cantrell is released this week so I decided I would give it a go and see what the heck all the fuss was about.
Quinn Mitchell is great at her job. She excels at analysis and following clues. If you want someone to pick apart vast quantities of data to discover the virtual needle in the virtual haystack, then Quinn is the person for the job. What Quinn isn’t is a field agent. As the result of personal trauma, she has spent years hidden away from the world in the safety of an office. Circumstance however forces Quinn out into the world. She is tasked with tracking down an assassin. There are few clues and no immediate connection between the victims. Where is the pattern and can Quinn break the murderous chain of events before others die?
One of the things I liked about Scorpion is that there are chapters written from the perspective of Quinn’s antagonist. These insights help to shed a little light on what is happening but up until the final grand reveal, there is still much left to guess. I’ll be honest, I’d be pretty impressed if you manage to figure it all out prior to that point. About halfway through the novel, the narrative veers off on an unexpected tangent that turns everything on its head. Up until then, things were very much in the realms of traditional cat and mouse global chase territory. Suddenly the implications of every character’s actions are thrown into question. It’s always a good sign when an author can surprise a reader, even one as jaded as me.
The near-future science fiction elements are subtly done and feel grounded in reality. The ascendency of crypto-currency, holograms and whatnot certainly fall into the realms of plausibility. I always worry a bit that technobabble might distract me from the core of a story but in this instance, everything makes sense and fits comfortably within the confines of the narrative.
When we reach the novel’s end there are still some questions that remain unanswered. More than likely this is going to drive some readers to distraction. Personally, I like this approach. The plot successfully alludes to a much bigger game at play. I felt like I’d just experienced the prequel to a much larger story that I am keen to read. Will this story ever see the light of day? I hope so.
This is a great example of a summer beach read. Pacy, with lots of twists and turns, Scorpion entertains from page one. There is a cinematic quality to the writing that I really liked. Cantrell does a good job of flipping the perspective between Quinn and her quarry in alternating chapters. If you are looking for a novel to get lost in that will keep you entertained, Scorpion could be the book for you.
Scorpion is published by Michael Joseph and is available from 24th June.
My musical recommendation to accompany Scorpion is the soundtrack to The Capture by Dave Rowntree and Ian Arber. It has just that right sense of tension and drama about it that perfectly captures the novel’s tone.
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