cover image The Book of Spies

The Book of Spies

Gayle Lynds, . . St. Martin's, $25.99 (390pp) ISBN 978-0-312-38089-2

A legendary library, containing written works dating back to ancient Rome and Greece, forms the tantalizing background of this winning thriller from bestseller Lynds (The Last Spymaster ). When The Book of Spies , one of the bejeweled volumes of the Library of Gold (a rare book archive people have sought for centuries) surfaces, the CIA links a terrorist plot with the library and a cabal of powerful men who have been its keepers. Rare-book expert Eva Blake and former intelligence agent Judd Ryder have personal reasons for joining in the hunt for the library. Eva, released from prison for vehicular manslaughter in the death of her husband, learns that her husband, an authority on the library, is alive. A sniper shot Judd's father, a CIA agent, soon after the father claimed to have learned important information from the library. These two complicated, appealing characters complement the satisfying, conspiracy-laden plot that smoothly moves throughout Europe at breakneck speed. (Apr.)