The Big Law

Continuing the saga of loner ex-cop Phil Broker from The Price of Blood, Logan, a rising new maestro of suspense, explores the inner workings of the Federal Witness Protection Program in this crackerjack new spellbinder featuring dirty money, compulsion and revenge. When St. Paul, Minn., fading star reporter Tom James, a down-on-his-luck gambler, receives an anonymous tip that once-charismatic cop Keith Angland is on the take with the mob, the trail leads James to Angland's abused wife, Caren, who has decided to seek witness protection and turn over her husband's ill-gotten stash of $2 million in big bills and an incriminating videotape. (Caren is also Broker's ex.) While driving Caren to Broker's backwoods retreat, James persuades her to hide the tape and cash as he obsesses on stealing the loot for himself. An ensuing dispute with Angland at Broker's cabin provides James the opportunity to commit a convenient murder. Accusing Angland of the deed, James demands that the feds give him a new identity in exchange for the tape. The enthralling yarn becomes a cat-and-mouse game as Broker tries to locate James. Virtually seamless, the prose mesmerizes with intelligent contrasts between the monastic single-father hero and the obsessive-compulsive villain. The ingenious plot and cast of well-fleshed-out characters--including a Russian Mafia czar and a sexy editor--continue to mark Logan as a standout in the genre. (Nov.)