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From *New York Times* bestselling author Jeff Abbott... *What if everything about your life was a lie? *Evan Casher is a successful documentary filmmaker with a perfect life--until the day his mother is brutally murdered. Suddenly pursued by a ruthless circle of killers, Evan discovers his entire past has been a carefully constructed lie. With only one chance at survival and no one he can trust, Evan must discover the shocking truth about his family--and himself... ** ### From Publishers Weekly An unassuming documentary filmmaker is plunged into the dark world of contract killing and espionage in this superior, fast-paced thriller, Abbott's eighth outing (after *Do Unto Others*). Evan Casher's safe, quiet life in Austin, Tex., begins to unravel when he discovers his mother murdered and barely escapes death himself, the first of dozens of close calls and harrowing twists as he finds himself the prey of a dangerous freelance spy ring known as the Deeps. This shadowy network is led by Jargo, a cunning, brutally efficient point man who believes that Casher has a computer file containing secret information about the organization's contacts. Casher is baffled until he learns the stunning truth: his mother, a travel photographer, and his father, a computer consultant, were actually secret agents, and large aspects of Casher's life were complete fabrications. (Turns out his girlfriend also works for the Deeps.) The action jumps from Texas to London to Florida as Casher tries to stay a step ahead of Jargo, find the computer file and rescue his father, who's being held by the Deeps. Abbott has fashioned another burst of white-knuckled suspense that's extremely hard to put down.* (Sept.)* Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. ### From Booklist *Starred Review* Those who disparage page-turners seldom appreciate what it takes to pull off a really good one, such as Abbott's engrossing hardcover debut, which follows a string of hardboiled paperback originals. There's nothing especially noteworthy about the story: no fancy props, global implications, history lessons, or distracting subplots. Just the familiar tale of a young man, a documentary filmmaker named Evan Casher, who awakes one morning to find his world turned upside down, his mother killed, himself pursued on all sides by enigmatic forces that range from menacing to sadistic, his loved ones in danger, everything he once believed in revealed to be a lie. Yet, with skilled handling of riveting action sequences, plot twists, and camera angles, all converging at breakneck speed, Abbott whips these simple ingredients into a near-perfect thriller that may indeed result in physical distress akin to panic for anyone trying to put the thing down before the last bullet flies. Fans of Harlan Coben, Lee Child, Joseph Finder, or John Grisham--anyone who enjoys a wild ride on a bumpy road--can cheer the arrival of our latest master of the fine art of the page-turner. Highly recommended. *David Wright* *Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved*