Comeback (Francis Thriller) - Gripping Suspense Novel for Mystery Lovers | Perfect for Book Clubs & Late-Night Reading

This work differs somewhat from Francis other efforts. No real agonizing threat, no deep physical test, no overwhelming drama. This is keen, interesting character studies. Quick, clear, enjoyable and captivating!For example. . .“So just take care.”“You scare me, you know.”“Good.”He studied my face. “I didn’t expect you to be like this.”“Like what?”“So . . . so penetrating.”I smiled lopsidedly.“Like a carpet needle! But no one remembers everything all the time. No one sees the significance of things all at once. Understanding what you’ve seen comes in fits and starts and sometimes when you don’t expect it. So if you remember anything else that you haven’t told me about the dead horses, well, tell me.”“Yes,” he said soberly, “I will.”This acute insight drives the story. The hero sees what others miss. How did he learn this? So his childhood and parental influence are related in explanation. His step father, a professional diplomat, teaches -“Always expect a lie, my stepfather had said right back at the beginning of my enlightenment into what his job entailed. Politicians and diplomats, he’d said, are liars until proved different.“You too?” I asked, dismayed, and he’d smiled his civilized smile and educated me.“I don’t lie to you or your mother. You will not lie to us. If you hear me tell an untruth in public you will remain calm and keep your mouth shut and work out why I said it.”We got on fine from the start. I couldn’t remember my natural father, who had died when I was a baby, and I had no hangups about anyone taking his place. I’d longed to have a father like other boys, and then suddenly there was this big stranger, full of jokes, who’d swept like a gale into our single-parent-only-child existence and carried us off to the equator before we could gasp. It was only gradually, afterwards, that I realized how irrevocably he’d changed me, and how fortunate I had been.’’Peter received another lesson. . .“I abruptly recalled a conversation I’d had long ago in Madrid, with my father.“A child who calls its mother ‘Mother,’ wants to dominate her,” he said.“You will never call your mother ‘Mother.’ ”“No, Dad.”“You can call her Mum, Darling, Mater, Popsie or even silly old cow, as I heard you saying under your breath last week, but never Mother. Understood?”Neat!The focus on the good gives this book a refreshing, positive feel. Peter comments. . .“I’d always found goodness more interesting then evil, though I was aware this wasn’t the most general view. To my mind, it took more work and more courage to be good, an opinion continually reinforced by my own shortcomings.’’What? ‘Courage to be good’! What a thought!Of course, Francis sees the bad too. . .“In the depths of the psyche, logic foundered, caution dissolved, obsession swept all decency away.’’So true.If you enjoy Francis’ characters from his other books, you will be happy with this one.