Brad Meltzer's newest offering, The Escape Artist, will seem very familiar to Meltzer's fans. Meltzer is known for political conspiracies, "could it be true" historical background, breathless action, and convoluted plot twists. The Escape Artist has it all.
The best thing about The Escape Artist is Nola, an artist with a troubled past and an almost supernatural gift of observation. She uses her skills as the Army's artist in residence. When she dies in a plane crash, the Army coroner happens to be the father of one of Nola's Girl Scout friends. He recognizes that this corpse is not Nola, and the chase to figure out the truth digs him in deeper than he could have expected.
Nola's character is so troubled and so gifted, she deserves her own series. In The Escape Artist, she shows not only her artistic skills, but also her survival and combat skills. Throughout the book, Meltzer flashes back to Nola's childhood. She was sold to a malicious man as a child; his monstrous, abusive behavior toward Nola shaped her into a killer. Her art was her only escape.
As is his style, Meltzer's story is totally implausible. He twists the reader around, taking a long time to reveal who the bad guys and good guys are, and who was that corpse from the plane crash? He throws in a lot of historical information about a secret group of spies, enough to make you wonder, "How much of this is really true?" Probably some of it. . . . The good thing about Meltzer is that even though you might roll your eyes at the plot twists and unbelievable story elements, his books are still fun to read. Pop up the popcorn and dive in.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!
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