Page-Turning Novels You'll Race Through—and Read Again
Smart,
compelling and all featuring women who stand up for those in need—these
five new books will keep you hooked until the last page. (Don't be surprised if
you end up with a new heroine to admire.)
By Mark Athitakis
5 of 5
City on Edge
By Stefanie Pintoff
400 pages;
Bantam
When it comes to thriller
settings, Stefanie Pintoff knows that Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade can be
even better than the Super Bowl or a visit from the pope. Although each scenario
promises lots of behind-the-scenes action and hordes of innocent people
standing in harm's way, the parade also has a unique potential for the absurd—snipers
among Snoopy and Spider-Man balloons! domestic terrorists aboard Santa's
sleigh!—and Pintoff squeezes every bit of drama she can from the
setup. More remarkably, she makes it all seem plausible. The novel's
protagonist, Eve Rossi, is the head of a covert FBI team of sharp, scruffy
agents, most of them ex-cons, charged to investigate an assassination attempt
on the New York police commissioner and his daughter's kidnapping. Pintoff is
equally comfortable writing about high-tech hackers and gutter-level knife
fights, tough-as-nails cops and vulnerable kidnapped teens. Above all, though,
she excels at reminding us that a clock is always ticking—ransom due
for a kid, an imminent attack on the parade—and tops off the tale
with a wild, high-tension climax. Hang on.
— Mark Athitakis
Published 02/07/2017