THE PRISONER'S WIFE

Living in Paris in 2004, former CIA spy Shawn Maguire accepts a freelance job to find an Iranian named Darius Osmani.

Abducted by the CIA after claiming to have information about a nuclear device, Osmani is being interrogated in one of its secret "black prisons" as a suspected terrorist. Maguire's efforts to track him and avoid his own downfall are complicated by his attraction to Osmani’s wife, Danielle. Maguire was drummed out of the CIA for drinking and violent behavior. A major burnout, he's out of money, attending meetings for sex addiction, mourning the death of his wife and under pressure from his former bosses to do a nasty job for them. As spies go, Maguire is a decent, straight-shooting soul—and not only when he's putting his skills as a sniper to work. As he searches for Osmani, on a road that takes him and Danielle to Morocco, Egypt and the political danger zone of Pakistan—where U.S. intelligence has secret plans for the soon-to-be-reinstated female prime minister—he must remain on his toes with the seductive wife and his old CIA pal Bobby, who is still with the Company. Conspiracies abound in this book, a sophisticated and suspenseful effort with crackling dialogue and evocative scenery. Maguire is a first-rate protagonist, complicated and heroic. And the book does a great job capturing the casual lawlessness of the American intelligence effort via its rendition campaigns and the propping up or deposing of criminal leaders depending on America's needs. For those who wondered where spy novels could go in the aftermath of the Cold War, John le Carré isn't the only one providing the answers. They also can be found here and, one hopes, in a batch of sequels.

Though this is McDonald's first adult novel, it boasts the assurance and authority of a veteran spymaster, making us feel like we've been reading this author for years.