The Paladin marks the 11th novel by David Ignatius and, like his previous works, has a very suspenseful, made-up plot grounded in a very plausible national security challenge. For several decades now, Ignatius has managed to succeed at two careers at once—in the journalistic world he’s an accomplished columnist for the Washington Post, and in the literary world he’s a popular writer of spy thrillers. His books are rooted in the same expert reporting that has distinguished his journalism. In The Paladin he concocts a story about a CIA operations officer who chases a group of hackers and software designers intent on using fake news to trigger global financial chaos. It’s a great read and, in characteristic Ignatius fashion, leaves you wondering whether what you’ve just read is a thinly-disguised version of something that has actually happened, is currently happening, or may happen soon.
Isaiah Quintabe, the protagonist of this fabulous debut crime novel set in Long Beach, is nicknamed IQ for a reason. A brilliant young man who excels in school, he loses his parents and revered older brother as a teenager, leaving him orphaned and adrift. After turning to crime – and using his brains to pull off artfully conceived robberies – he shifts his attention to solving crimes in his inner-city neighborhood and eventually becomes a local folk hero. Ide gives readers a richly developed character in IQ, as well as other sidekicks and antagonists who grace the narrative, and a plot that is absorbing, refreshing, and at times very funny. One of my favorite novels of the past year.
The Hunting Party (William Morrow, $26.99), by the young British author Lucy Foley, is the perfect mystery for the winter holiday season. A group of friends from Oxford, now in their 30s, schedule their annual New Year’s reunion at a luxurious hunting lodge in a remote part of Scotland. As soon as they arrive, a monster storm descends, leaving them snow-bound with no way to get out. On the second day, one of them—the reader doesn’t know who—is found dead, apparently murdered. Who did it? Foley alternates from character to character to tell the story, pin-balling her readers from one plausible theory to the next. As the narrative evolves, long-held secrets and simmering grudges emerge, adding to the suspense. As for the culprit? Is it one of the Oxford group? Or maybe one of two lodge employees who take care of the place? Or the strange couple who happen to be the only other people staying there at the same time? Get your cup of tea, light a fire, and sit down with this engaging, entertaining who-dunnit. And check the weather before you book a room in a Scottish hunting lodge in winter.
