Read Thriller Online

Authors: James Patterson

Tags: #General, #Fiction, #Romance, #Suspense, #Thriller, #Anthologies (multiple authors), #Fiction - Espionage, #Short Story, #Anthologies, #Thrillers, #Suspense fiction; English, #Suspense fiction; American

Thriller

®

To Dennis Lynds and all thriller writers,

past and present.

May their stories live forever.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction by James Patterson

9

JAMES PENNEY’S NEW IDENTITY

13

Lee Child

OPERATION

NORTHWOODS

33

James Grippando

EPITAPH

53

J. A. Konrath

THE FACE IN THE WINDOW

67

Heather Graham

EMPATHY

87

James Siegel

KOWALSKI’S

IN

LOVE

99

James Rollins

THE

HUNT

FOR

DMITRI

121

Gayle Lynds

DISFIGURED

139

Michael Palmer and Daniel Palmer

THE

ABELARD

SANCTION

159

David Morrell

FALLING

177

Chris Mooney

SUCCESS

OF

A

MISSION

195

Dennis Lynds

THE

PORTAL

221

John Lescroart and M. J. Rose

THE

DOUBLE

DEALER

239

David Liss

DIRTY

WEATHER

259

Gregg Hurwitz

SPIRIT WALKER

273

David Dun

AT THE DROP OF A HAT

291

Denise Hamilton

THE OTHER SIDE OF THE MIRROR

311

Eric Van Lustbader

MAN

CATCH

331

Christopher Rice

GOODNIGHT,

SWEET

MOTHER

341

Alex Kava

SACRIFICIAL LION

357

Grant Blackwood

INTERLUDE

AT

DUANE’S

379

F. Paul Wilson

THE POWDER MONKEY

397

Ted Bell

SURVIVING

TORONTO

419

M. Diane Vogt

ASSASSINS

439

Christopher Reich

THE

ATHENS

SOLUTION

447

Brad Thor

DIPLOMATIC

CONSTRAINTS

467

Raelynn Hillhouse

KILL

ZONE

485

Robert Liparulo

THE DEVILS’ DUE

495

Steve Berry

THE

TUESDAY

CLUB

513

Katherine Neville

GONE

FISHING

541

Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child

AUTHOR

BIOGRAPHIES

559

Introduction

This book is a trailblazer on two counts. It’s the first short-story

anthology of thrillers ever done, and it’s the first publication of a

new professional organization: International Thriller Writers, Inc.

By nature writers tend to be loners, happy with their work, their

families and a few close friends. But we also yearn occasionally for

collegiality. For years we’ve all said to one another, “Why don’t we

organize?” Then in June 2004, Barbara Peters, of the legendary Poisoned Pen bookstore in Scottsdale, Arizona, held the first-ever

thriller conference in the United States. She invited six writers—

Lee Child, Vince Flynn, Steve Hamilton, Gayle Lynds, David

Morrell and Kathy Reichs—and one editor, Keith Kahla, of

St. Martin’s Press, to give presentations about the various aspects

of writing and publishing thrillers. Clive Cussler spoke at the luncheon.

With only two weeks to publicize the event, Barbara thought

she’d be lucky if a hundred people registered. In the end some 125

attended and, to everyone’s surprise, not all were there to learn

about writing. Many were readers who wanted to meet some of

their favorite thriller authors. Here for the first time was concrete

10

evidence of what most of us had long suspected: there was a demand among fans for a thriller writers’ organization, too. If we held

conventions, readers would likely attend, as well as us. And if we

awarded prizes—there have never been awards specifically for

thriller books, stories and films in the English language—that interest would only grow.

On the last day of the conference, in the sunny restaurant at

the Biltmore Hotel in Scottsdale, several of the attendees stood

around talking. Gayle Lynds, a highly accomplished thriller writer,

mentioned that she thought the conference indicated the time had

come to create an association for thriller writers. Adrian Muller,

a journalist and freelance conference organizer, pointed out that

the association should not be limited to the United States. Barbara Peters said she’d be willing to hold another, larger convention. Realizing that she’d almost committed herself, Gayle quickly

announced, “I can’t organize this alone, though.” Her husband, the

incomparable Dennis Lynds, added, “She’s right. She can’t.” Barbara merely smiled and said, “Pull in David Morrell. He’s perfect.”

And that’s what happened.

Adrian Muller volunteered to send out e-mails to every thriller

author he could find to see if there was enough interest among writers to form a group. A few days later, Gayle and David had a long

telephone call, discussing their workloads and a potential thriller

organization that would be international in scope. They agreed to

jointly head the effort, and over the summer of 2004 Adrian,

David and Gayle talked and exchanged e-mails. Adrian arranged

with Al Navis, who was orchestrating Bouchercon 2004, the great

congregation of mystery readers and writers, to assign a room in

which the thriller authors could meet.

The response to Adrian’s e-mail was impressive. Author after

author said that an association was a great idea. A meeting was

held on October 9 in the Metro Toronto Convention Centre and,

after many discussions, International Thriller Writers, Inc. was

born. In November 2004, members were solicited. That response

11

was likewise incredible. Currently there are over four hundred

members, with combined sales exceeding 1,600,000,000 books.

This is all quite astonishing, and fitting because thrillers provide such a rich literary feast. There are all kinds. The legal thriller,

spy thriller, action-adventure thriller, medical thriller, police

thriller, romantic thriller, historical thriller, political thriller, religious thriller, high-tech thriller, military thriller. The list goes go

on and on, with new variations constantly being invented. In fact,

this openness to expansion is one of the genre’s most enduring

characteristics. But what gives the variety of thrillers a common

ground is the intensity of emotions they create, particularly those

of apprehension and exhilaration, of excitement and breathlessness, all designed to generate that all-important thrill. By definition, if a thriller doesn’t thrill, it’s not doing its job.

Thrillers, though, are also known for their pace, and the force

with which they hurtle the reader along. They’re an obstacle race

in which an objective is achieved at some heroic cost. The goal

can be personal (trying to save a spouse or a long-lost relative) or

global (trying to avert a world war) but often it’s both. Perhaps

there’s a time limit imposed, perhaps not. Sometimes they build

rhythmically to rousing climaxes that peak with a cathartic, explosive ending. Other times they start at top speed and never ease

off. At their best, thrillers use scrupulous research and accurate details to create environments in which meaningful characters teach

us about our world. When readers finish a thriller, they should feel

not only emotionally satisfied but also better informed—and hungry for the next riveting tale.

Henry James once wrote, “The house of fiction has many windows.” That observation certainly applies to thrillers, and this anthology is an excellent example. When Gayle Lynds suggested

producing it, International Thriller Writers, Inc. sent out a call to

its members for stories. Many replied, and thirty were ultimately

selected for inclusion. I was contacted about acting as editor and

readily agreed, while Steve Berry, another ITW member and

thriller author, took on the responsibility of managing director.

12

When the book proposal was finally shopped by agent Richard

Pine, himself an ITW member, several publishers expressed interest and, after a bidding war, MIRA Books acquired the rights.

Generously, each of the contributors to this book donated his

or her story. Only ITW will share in the royalties, the proceeds

earned going into the corporate treasury to fund the expansion of

this worthwhile organization. The theme of this anthology is simple. Each writer has used a familiar character or plotline from their

body of work and crafted an original story. So you have something

known, along with something new. As you’ll see, the variations

are captivating, as the writers’ imaginations soared. Each story is

prefaced by an introduction from me that sets up the writer, his or

her work and the story. At the book’s end, there are short biographies of each contributor. What a pleasure it was to read the stories

as they came in, and it’s my hope that you’ll likewise relish the

tales.

So prepare to be thrilled.

And enjoy the experience.

—James Patterson

June 2006

P.S. More can be learned about ITW through its Web site at

www.internationalthrillerwriters.com. Check it out.

Lee Child’s debut novel was
Killing Floor,
a first-person narrative introducing his series character Jack Reacher, and although clearly a fast-paced thriller it shared characteristics

with the classic limited-universe Western. At the time Child

was also an experienced media professional, aware that his

second book had to be written before significant reaction

to his first had even been received. To avoid stereotyping—

which can affect a writer as much as any performer—Child

determined to make his second book,
Die Trying,
as different as possible, albeit part of the same series. His plan was

to stake out a wide “left field, right field” territorial span

between books one and two, one in which the rest of the

series could happily roam. Therefore
Die Trying
featured

third-person narration and a classic high-stakes, multistrand thriller structure. But, in its first draft, that structure

went one strand too far. There was a character—James Penney—who had an appealing introduction and backstory, but

who clearly didn’t have any valid place to go. So Penney

wasn’t featured in the completed novel. Instead, he languished on Child’s hard drive until a request came from an

obscure British anthology for a short story. Child repack-
14

aged Penney’s narrative and added a prequel-style ending,

featuring a brief glimpse of Jack Reacher’s early career. The

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