Mission Canyon

Format:	Paperback 432 pages

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Synopsis

Evan Delaney, novelist and legal go-fer, is dressed as Diana Ross in order to crash a fancy-dress party and serve a summons, when she hears that Franklin Brand is back in town. Brand is the hit-and-run driver who sentenced Evan's lover Jesse to life in a wheelchair, and killed his best friend. Since the accident, Brand has been avoiding justice overseas; but if he's back, Evan and Jesse are determined to get him, helped by the dead boy's brother Adam. Brand had been a high-flier in Mako Technologies, a cyber-security firm, and this is where Evan starts looking. She quickly uncovers evidence that Brand was embezzling funds, and that Adam's brother knew all about it. So maybe that hit-and-run wasn't an accident at all? Then the policeman investigating is killed, and Adam and Jesse both come under suspicion. The plot has more twists, thrills and spills than a white-knuckle ride, and is complicated by the confused emotions of the main parties involved: Jesse feels a survivor's guilt; Adam resents the fact that Jesse is alive while his brother died. But there are more corpses - including a near miss for Evan herself - to come before the bad guys are finally brought to book.

Book details

Published
16/02/2004

Publisher
Coronet Books

ISBN
9780340822524

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Jacket review

'Gardiner is on her way to the top.' -- Bookseller 20030411 'An explosive new thriller ... a strikingly good story' -- Publishing News 20030411 'Very well written, racy and witty' -- Tangled Web 20030411

UK Kirkus review

This is a thriller that really keeps you on the edge of your seat. The tension is there right from the first moment when Evan Delaney, dressed as Diana Ross, gatecrashes a smart fancy-dress party. She is there to deliver a summons on behalf of her lawyer boyfriend. Within minutes of her arrival she is off again on a street chase that will lead to mayhem and murder. Evan's boyfriend Jesse and his best friend Isaac have been the victims of a hit-and-run driver. Isaac is dead, Jesse is crippled, Isaac's brother Adam traumatised. Their anger at the driver, who has escaped prosecution by fleeing the States, is rekindled when he returns to Santa Barbara. From here on the mission is to hunt him down. But this isn't as simple as it sounds. The police have a different agenda and Evan finds herself in their way. As the plot unravels, more and more of the characters become involved with computer giant Mako Technologies. Frauds, scams and money laundering have dragged the innocent down with the guilty. Even Jesse has a secret which seems likely to lead to his death. Through it all Evan moves purposefully, confronting all likely suspects and dodging danger. By the end of the novel nothing is what it seems. There are corpses aplenty for the dedicated thriller reader. But there is humour too. Evan's gluttonous, nosy female cousin Taylor Boggs blunders through the text. It is thanks to her that Evan has the most bizarre bridal shower party ever, is shanghaied to Las Vegas and gets to watch some revealing CCTV. Finally the story ends where it began, at Mission Canyon, scene of the first 'accident'. Evan Delaney made her first appearance in China Lake, and this is a well-crafted sequel. The language is racy and the plot intriguingly intricate. Characters are well developed, including the variety of types to be found in the police force. Best of all, however, is the breathtaking pace. Gardiner certainly knows how to capture and keep her reader. (Kirkus UK)