DEFIANT

In this third espionage thriller in Maloof’s series, Kate Preacher is in bad shape, and the massive global conspiracy she’s been fighting is entering its endgame.

Following the events of the two previous novels, Relentless (2023) and Unstoppable (2025), superspy Kate is injured, and her network of allies and family members are either scattered and deceased. The world faces a grave threat from a massively powerful artificial intelligence named RILEE, which has been aggregating an unprecedented cache of information, including genetic and behavioral data, from people around the world. Some chapters present the point of view of Rileyne Mueller, the daughter and heir apparent to Klaus Mueller—the recently deceased mastermind behind the mysterious high-tech, AI-driven facility deep below the Alps. Others feature a genius hacker, known as Nomad, who’s also enmeshed in the AI plot. Maloof’s third series entry brings together and closes out several plot threads while leaving plenty of room for future stories in this world. He combines thriller and espionage tropes with contemporary concerns about AI and global oligarchy. The story zips around the globe to Manhattan, Paris, the Azores, Davos, and so on, and a dizzying assortment of intelligence organizations, clandestine operatives, and shadowy cabals appear; all effectively contribute to a rich, engaging thriller about a global conspiracy among the world’s elite. Although the story is unmistakably Kate’s, the book jumps around quite a bit to offer the perspectives of other major players, especially early on. Still, Maloof has excellent pacing and knows just when to build suspense and when to send readers careening through moments of urgency. The sheer scale of the work occasionally threatens to become overwhelming, but strong characterization keeps things grounded. In particular, Kate emerges as a compelling and believable protagonist—both in her role as international operative and as a grieving, relatable human being who’s trying to hold on to personal connections as she recovers from trauma.

A rare thriller that successfully combines quiet character work with timely, global intrigue.