Fiction Addict

Genre: Thriller

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

Publication Date: August 2009

Reviewed by Jake Chism

Nick Heller has just received one of those phone calls you never want to get. His brother, Roger, has vanished without a trace leaving his wife and son behind with no answers. They call on Nick to use his background in intelligence to find Roger and determine what went wrong. As Nick digs deeper into the disappearance he senses foul play among the startling connections that link back to another case he has been assigned to. The closer he gets to the answers, the more he realizes he is up against an enemy that is seemingly untouchable. Unfortunately for the bad guys, they have greatly underestimated Nick Heller.

It’s been two years since Joseph Finder wowed us with the edge of your seat thrill ride, Power Play. Fans will be glad to know that Vanished is everything they have been anticipating and well worth the wait.  Finder’s fingerprints are all over this one: corporate intrigue, intense action scenes, and strong characters that effortlessly carry the story. As always Finder’s research and preparation shine through giving us a revealing and fascinating glimpse into private intelligence.

In Nick Heller, Finder has given us the kind of character that puts novelists on the map. Nick will have you cheering one moment while he is dismantling foes, and shedding a tear the next as he reaches out to his troubled nephew. This is a wondrously flawed hero that easily draws us in with his wit, humor, and humility.

Vanished is the first book in a new series, and Finder couldn’t have written a better character to carry us along. I don’t know how he does it so well, but Joseph Finder only continues to raise the bar with each new offering. And the best part? Nick Heller has only just begun.