Turncoat: A Novel of Suspense

Suspense takes a turn for the more sinister when a tale is set in foreign locales. Edgar Award winner Aaron Elkins knows this well and utilizes it to perfection in his thriller "Turncoat." Following on the heels of his acclaimed "Loot" and "Skeleton Dance," we knew it would be a riveting read. We weren't disappointed. Opening lines set the scene and pique interest: "For everybody else in America it was the day JFK was killed in Dallas. For me, it would always be the day Lily's father turned up on our doorstep. But first things first...." Among the first things is an introduction to Pete Simon, a man who has everything he could want. Twenty years married he is still very much in love with his wife, Lily; he enjoys his profession; their home is warm and inviting. Pete's plate is full until it is overturned by the appearance of a stranger at their door. The interloper appears to be mad, raving about money, death, forgiveness. Pete has never seen him before; Lily has. The stranger is her father, a man she said had died some years ago in France. On the following day the man's body is discovered. He is now truly dead, brutally beaten and abandoned. Worst of all, Lily vanishes leaving only a note imploring Pete to let her go, not to follow her. Where she could have gone or why she left is a mystery to her anguished husband. He has but one clue: the business card of a Barcelona antiques dealer. Of course, Pete goes in search of his wife little knowing the dangers he will face. Once in Europe he finds himself among those who cannot forget the atrocities perpetrated by the Nazis. As the path to Lily's whereabouts seems to be getting warm Pete is also met with dreadful secrets, long hidden secrets of collaboration with a vicious enemy. Would those who cannot forget seek to revenge themselves with Pete? Elkins's portrait of good and evil is stunning in every way. "Turncoat" is a taut thriller, and startling reminder of how the present is affected by the past. - Gail Cooke

This is a very original story about a couple living around the time of the Kennedy assassination. One day, an older man (the wife's long-thought-dead father) arrives with a roll of film. From here the entire mystery begins. He gets murdered and the wife disappears. The husband goes on to Europe to try and find her. Full of dark Nazi, french-political history, thisis another very good mystery novel from Elkins. Good job.

This was my first read of an Elkin's novel. Though the first 50 pages were slow to get going, after that the novel was a hoot. In addition to being a good read, I also learnt about the WW II french resistance - something that I would not normally be interested in at all (i.e. I am not a WW II or any type of history buff). I would recommend this book to friends, and think that I will track down some more books by Elkin.

It took a while for this one to get going - after 50 pages I thought that I was going to put it down. But then it heated-up. In addition to being a solid read, with an excellent plot line, I actually learnt about the French Resistance in WW2. I am not a fan of war history, so actually learning something while enjoying the suspense of the novel was a bonus. I will recommend this Aaron Elkin novels to friends - as it was the first book by Elkin that I read, I'll try to track down others of his as well.

Peter and Lily Simon have been happily married for seventeen years. Although both were born in France, they met in England where he served during World War II as an army air officer and she worked at the nearby Free French headquarters. They have been living the American dream for years but it becomes a nightmare in 1963 when Lily's father knocks on the door. Lily told Pete when they first met that her father died at the hands of the Germans. When Lily closes the door on her father without giving him a chance to speak to her, Pete demands explanations that Lily refuses to give. When her father is murdered, Lily disappears and Pete travels to Barcelona then to Veaudry, France where he learns what Lily has spent so many years trying to hide. After almost getting killed, Pete is finally able to find his wife only to have her kidnapped by professionals for hire. TURNCOAT is a fascinating thriller but it is also a family drama about a woman tortured by her past and the man who loves her so much that he wants to break the chain that bind her to a world that no longer exists except in memory. Aaron Elkins is a gifted storyteller and readers will come away from his latest endeavor wanting to read his previous works.Harriet Klausner