The Clause: Five Enemies, One Man, Zero Options

Thief Gill Underwood, a former Naval intelligence officer, gets much more than he bargained for when he and his lover, Trudy Elwell, steal jewels from the New Jersey apartment of Serbian gangster Tito Reykovic in this intricate thriller from Wiprud (Ringer). Included in the haul are the fabulous Britany-Swindol gems worth $150 million, which were stolen by the Serbian mob. Underwood soon figures out that the swag has attracted the interest of competing gangs, including the Cuban Corporation and the Chinese Nee Fat Tong. Meanwhile, the CIA, the FBI, and the European Organized Crime Task Force are busy intercepting voice traffic and pulling strings of their own. Using the precepts of Sun Tzu, Underwood begins an increasingly dangerous game of playing one group off against another. Amid almost comically obscene exchanges among the Serbians, the fast-paced action builds to a devilishly complex solution to who’s the real puppet master. Agent: Alex Glass, Trident Media Group. (Oct.)