Red Cell

CIA analyst Henshaw’s assured debut, an exciting espionage thriller, puts him solidly in the ranks of the top writers of the genre. After recuperating from wounds sustained in a gone-bad mission in Venezuela, CIA field agent Kyra Stryker is assigned a Langley desk job in Red Cell, an analysis unit whose only other member for the moment is cranky but brilliant Jonathan Burke. Meanwhile in Beijing, the long-time Chinese CIA spy known as Pioneer realizes, after his cover is blown, that he’s in desperate trouble. As relations between China and Taiwan deteriorate, China readies an attack. The USS Lincoln aircraft carrier group enters the Taiwan Strait, where the Chinese bring a secret weapon into play. Henshaw deftly weaves together all the major and minor players—the U.S., Chinese, and Taiwanese governments; the spies who provide information; and the analysts who turn that information into intelligence. The masterfully handled air-and-ship battle at the end is worthy of Tom Clancy. Agent: Jason Yarn, Paradigm Agency. (May)