RELENTLESS

In Maloof’s thriller, a Russian oligarch, a wealthy tech mogul, and two former MIT classmates storm databases and cross continents on a quest to unlock a power that the world has never seen.

The story opens with an eccentric genius sitting in front of a wall of computer monitor in an undisclosed location, tinkering with complex code. His moniker is Nomad, and his skills allow him to tap into the computer camera of a close friend, Francois LeGrande, at the precise moment a mysterious person enters his apartment. Before Nomad’s eyes, the intruder murders Francoisin cold blood and steals a project that he and Nomad were working on. His death kicks off an international hunt involving countless characters, some with suspect motives. As the chapters unfold, readers meet the thriller’s main character, Kate Preacher, who’s military trained and whose genius goes beyond tactical combat skills; she also has hacking expertise and the ability to navigate the rough waters of the darknet. Her unique talents come in handy after a terrorist attack in Paris leaves her on the run from a shady billionaire, Russian hitmen, and rogue freelance bounty hunters; all have plans that concern the NanoVault, which is said to contain world-changing information that remains a mystery to those who seek it. Each chapter of Maloof’s thriller complicates the plot while offering plenty of images of violence and bloodshed in fast-paced prose: “Kate’s mind filled with images. Automatic gunfire shattering the building’s glass doors. Bullets ripping through the security guard’s body.” There are some red herrings along the way, and intriguing, repeated motifs that the author ably employs throughout the narrative. A mystery this big requires a wealth of detail, and the complexity can make the work hard to follow at times; there are also a large number of characters, not all of whom seem entirely necessary to the plot. That said, it’s an engaging adventure that illuminates just how far some people will go in pursuit of a goal.

An ambitious, if occasionally overcomplicated, novel that packs a punch.