Red Queen

At the start of this nail-biting thriller, the first in a trilogy, Spanish author Gómez-Jurado (The Traitor’s Emblem) hooks the reader with the tantalizing opening sentence: “Antonia Scott allows herself to think of suicide no more than three minutes a day.” Antonia is a genius, whose off-the-charts intelligence and analytical skills have made her a valued member of a covert organization that handles sensitive criminal investigations. Following the near-fatal shooting of her beloved husband, which has left him in a coma and for which she blames herself, Antonia has become a recluse in her Madrid home. But she’s drawn back into the fray by the kidnapping of Carla Ortiz, a Spanish bank executive and “heiress to the richest man in the world.” Antonia’s handler partners her with disgraced police inspector Jon Gutiérrez, and together they pursue the possibility that Carla’s abduction is linked to the grisly murder of a young boy, whose corpse was drained of its blood. Frequent and often startling plot twists help compensate for a few contrivances that lessen interest toward the end. Lisbeth Salander devotees will find much to like. Agent: Tom Colchie, Colchie Agency. (Mar.)