Invisible Armies

I read after I get into bed, sometimes only a page or 2. Not with this book. I found the character extremely engaging. And while the female lead starts a somewhat of spoiled brat her journey thru the book had me concerned as if she was my little sister. It has some delicious twists.

Danielle Leaf, in India to study yoga at an ashram, agrees to deliver a passport to a woman in a remote village at the request of her old friend/boyfriend, Keiran Kell. What begins as an afternoon motorcycle ride thrusts Danielle into a maelstrom of intrigue, conspiracy, anti-corporate protest marches, high-tech espionage, and several life-threatening situations. That Keiran is a genius computer hacker both complicates and alleviates the problems they fall victim to once the plot is set in motion. They find themselves involved in a mysterious war between a strange multinational corporation and a well-organized anti-globalization protest movement. And behind the obvious conspiracy is an even deadlier secret. Jon Evans, winner of the 2005 Arthur Ellis Award for Best First Novel, has put together a book that is a page-turner from the very beginning. As the story races along through India, France, England and the United States, it is hard to get anything done-other than reading. Danielle is an extremely likeable character and her cohorts and enemies are also interesting. Not only is the book exciting and peopled with fascinating types, it also touches on some very real and thought provoking issues: 1. Can computer hackers really get into all kinds of "secure" systems? 2. Is there a possibility that drug companies run tests on human subjects in remote areas? 3. Are any of us safe from corporate/medical/ conspiracies if they are taking place? These and more are crafted into this novel. The book would make a terrific movie, but even lacking that venue I heartily recommend it. I rarely read thrillers, but this one hooked me from start to finish. NOTE: Jon's first novel, Dark Places (called Trail Of The Dead in the UK) won an Arthur Ellis Award. Booklist called his second book, The Blood Price, "fantastic," and Publishers Weekly praised it as "a highly readable, inventive thriller." His next, The Night of Knives, is slated for UK publication in December 2007 (US date to be announced). Armchair Interviews says: Buy this book and get hooked on it yourself.

As a previous commenter wrote, Evans has invented a new genre-- travelogue as thriller. He's been all over the world, and he writes about it with authority and compassion. This his best work to date. It's a savvy and nuanced page-turner about multi-national corporations and the zealots who oppose them. PW's review doesn't give it the credit it deserves. This is not a formulaic story about Danielle Leaf the action hero. It's about her awakening as a human being. The book examines issues of individual culpability and the American character, and it's smart enough not to point fingers. For good measure, it also gives a bird's eye view of the fascinating techie underground. I totally want to go to defcon now. I absolutely loved this book.

In Bangalore, India, renowned hacker Kieran Kell asks his former girlfriend Danielle Leaf to deliver a package to Jaylitha. She agrees, but on her way, kidnappers from the international giant corporation Kishkinda abduct her. Not long after her incarceration begins, another prisoner French expatriate Laurent joins Danielle in lock up. They exchange their tales of woe. He says he is a former Legionnaire who jointed the INVISIBLE ARMIES protesting globalization polluting of the earth; she explains she was delivering a package when she was kidnapped. Laurent informs her that Jaylitha is dead; killed by Kishkinda subcontractors to prevent his proof that they are turning Bangalore into a toxic industrial wasteland. He enables them to escape and she joins him on a series of adventures that make Danielle wonder if Laurent is a double agent. This tense suspense thriller focuses on the war between international corporations and local environmentalists. Whereas Laurent is a plausible hero in spite of martial arts skills that should have him competing in the UFC, Danielle does not come across as a viable superhero sidekick. Still genre fans will appreciate the battles in DARK PLACES between adversaries who share the same belief of no surrender, no compromise. Harriet Klausner