THE ATROPOS MAKER

A military thriller about the travails of a secret soldier who attempts to put her family first.

At the heart of Lujan’s debut novel is Norma Veurr, who helped found Atropos, a top-secret, black-ops government agency, many years ago. Despite vowing never to come back to the espionage game, she agrees to do so in 2009 after two decades away; however, she has a sense of impending doom after her solo mission, and she reflects back over how she got to this point. First, her mind travels back three days to her visit to her small hometown of Martinsburg, West Virginia. LeRoy, the town sheriff, still suspects her in the murder of her father, Mackenzie, who forged Norma into the weapon she became. Then her mind drifts back further to meeting her husband, Alex, who was part of a team that rescued her from a mission gone awry. Next, she recalls the dramatic birth of her son, Alexander—the reason she left Atropos 20 years ago. Lastly, she thinks about a fateful night when Alexander visited his grandfather, which led to Norma’s return to Atropos. Later, Alexander joins Atropos and rapidly ascends to leadership; when his team is captured, he must rely on an unexpected rescuer. In this volume, Lujan colorfully tells Norma’s story from her miserable childhood onward. She’s a well-developed character, as are the most important people in her life. The author elaborates on why Norma makes the choices she does, which is often to protect her loved ones. Atropos is certainly an important element in the book but not as much as readers may expect; Lujan writes more about what led Norma to and away from Atropos and less about its actual missions. The narrative, which slips back and forth through time, can be a bit confusing, as can the fact that Norma’s husband and son share similar names. However, Norma’s exhilarating tale is worth the effort.

An engaging read that offers a novel spin on the notion that you can’t go home again.