Park Plaza

Cox's ( Hartman's Game ) glittery 10th novel clearly demonstrates his knowledge of gemology and the milieu of the auction house, as well as a marked ability to build suspense early and maintain it thereafter. German baroness Helene von Brandenburg, whose pedigree is better furbished than her pocketbook, has decided to sell the Malabar Angel, an outsize diamond whose few flaws can perhaps be polished up with an inventively constructed provenance. WhenNew York City's Park Plaza Hotel agrees to hold the auction, former Marine turned security assistant must secure the premises. Enter Ilse Nachtigal, a German terrorist just out of prison and bent on avenging her lover's death, and Frank Hermon, an IRA bomber who can't pass up the chance to make some quick cash. Can these two outpace not only Clifford but a hotel manager, who doesn't take them for the newlyweds they claim to be, and a priest with personal and religious concern for the ownership of the historic rock? Poor characterization of hero Clifford's wife (she has no redeeming qualities) along with a rather predictable ending detract only slightly from an otherwise taut read. (Feb.)