Reading: The Death Trust by David A. Rollins

In my bid to catch up on a couple of series that I have sadly neglected to read I have just started The Death Trust by David A. Rollins.

Rollins writes thrillers with a strong military background against enemies who threaten the safety of entire countries. The level of research he puts into each novel appears to be enormous and this pays great dividends with the result being high-powered thrillers that are completely engrossing.

The Death Trust is the 3rd book by David A. Rollins but the first to feature Special Agent Vin Cooper of the US Air Force Office of Special Investigations. Cooper comes off as a slightly cynical guy, burnt by a few setbacks in his life (just gone through a divorce, punched out a Colonel – things like that) but is more than willing to push things (such as punching out a Colonel, I guess). His military record is handily summarised at the start of the book telling us that he’s a more than capable soldier and will more than likely provide us some entertainment in the pages to come.

Plenty of humorous quips in the first 20 or so pages that had me smiling:

I’m not good with flying. Not any more. Not since Afghanistan. But they’re into it with a passion in the USAF, as you might expect.

And this one too:

I hoped Germany was more welcoming. I’d never been there but my grandfather had. I remembered him saying that it was not a very friendly place, and that people had shot at him and his tank often. But that was a long time ago.

I get the impression that The Death Trust is aimed at the US market, more so than Rogue Element and The Sword of Allah which both had strong ties to Australia. This puts Rollins in slightly uncommon group of authors who set their series in a country other than their own.

Others off the top of my head are:
Lee Child, an Englishman who sets his books in the US,
Elizabeth George, an American who sets her books in England,
Michael Robotham, an Australian who sets his books in England and
Marshall Browne, an Australian who has a series set in Italy plus a book set in Japan.

Anyway, so far so good, The Death Trust shows a lot of promise and actually reminds me a little of Nelson de Mille's John Corey books.

Appearance by P.D. Martin

P.D. Martin is on the appearance trail here in Australia with the recent release of her second book, The Murderer's Club. Like the first book, it features her Australian FBI profiler Sophie Anderson.

Martin will be at another launch night (the first official launch was back in early November) on December 8 at Leo's Spaghetti Bar in St Kilda where she will be signing books answering questions and generally charming all.

I've recently received a review copy of the new book and am feverishly reading the backlog to get to it.

The Dingo Dilemma - the 4th Kylie Kendall

Claire McNab is a transplanted Australian living in LA and, while she is little known here in Australia, her books are very popular in the US.

She has 3 series on the go, the first featuring Carol Ashton, the second a thriller series featuring Denise Cleever and the third a detective mystery series featuring Aussie-in-LA Kylie Kendall. It's the Kylie Kendall series that will expand by one book (The Dingo Dilemma) in December 2006.

Kylie Kendall has inherited a private detective agency in Los Angeles, a pretty daunting proposition given she was born and bred in Outback Australia.

From what I hear it's a humorous mystery series but, alas, I am yet to read any of McNab's books. If someone can chime in with a little info of their own it would be much appreciated. Until then, it's another author that is on the "to do" list.

The Release of Peter Corris' 30th Cliff Hardy novel

Allen and Unwin will be launching the 30th Cliff Hardy novel on Tuesday 5th December. The Undertow continues the most enduring private detective series in Australia and reconfirms Peter Corris' unofficial title as the father of Australian crime fiction (as if he needed it).

The 4th Hal Challis novel

The word is out that the 4th book in Gary Disher's Hal Challis & Ellen Destry series will be released by Text Publishing in March 2007. The title is Chain of Evidence and will follow on from The Dragon Man, Kittyhawk Down and Snapshot - definitely something to look forward to in the new year.

Could there be a new Wyatt book in the offing too? We'll just have to wait in hope.