BREAKING DESTINY

In Walters’ (Breaking Gravity, 2014) thriller, an American businessman is caught up in a secret organization’s plot to commit mass murder.

Joe Kettleman’s fishing trip takes a startling turn when two strangers try to kill him—first with a grenade (which doesn’t go off), and then with bullets. He narrowly survives the attempt and winds up in the hospital for a bullet wound and other injuries. But more bad news awaits: Doctors inform Joe that he has esophageal cancer. He opts to leave his life in Jacksonville, Florida, behind and spend his remaining days in a remote New Mexico cabin that he remembers fondly from his childhood. Months later, Joe is still alive and in need of supplies. During his sure-to-be weeklong trek, he spots what looks like a resort in the middle of nowhere. He soon meets Dr. Yoonie Brandt, who seemingly wants to escape said resort, which she says is a research facility, Arcadia, run by a group called the Order. It turns out that Yoonie is too important for the Order to let her go. She’s made a scientific discovery that will change the world—and, according to Yoonie, it’s why the Order has a plan to wipe out huge numbers of people. To prevent that, Joe and Yoonie will need help from people in a group known as the Resistance. This story initially centers on the protagonist’s surprisingly riveting history. Joe, who doesn’t know his birth name, grows up with a surrogate father, Jim Flint, a hit man that the Mafia sent to kill Joe’s biological dad years ago; Flint loves and raises the boy and teaches him such skills as hyperawareness of his surroundings. Walters adeptly manages the plot shift to Arcadia, gradually introducing sci-fi-infused elements, such as Yoonie’s discovery. Nevertheless, the novel ultimately feels like two loosely connected stories, as Joe’s past has little bearing on his world-saving adventure. Walters keeps the energy high for the entire narrative, however, with snappy dialogue (“She thinks I’m an idiot.”…“Maybe. But you’re a fun idiot.”) and action-oriented prose throughout.

A clever, rousing novel that combines two stories that could each stand alone.