The Chase
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4.1 • 264 Ratings
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- $4.99
Publisher Description
Candice Fox has been described by the Sydney Morning Herald as 'one of Australia’s finest new gen crime writers' and her latest novel is another thrilling ride, as a mass prison breakout lets loose 650 of the country's most dangerous prisoners.
‘Are you listening, Warden?’
‘What do you want?’
‘I want you to let them out.’
‘Which inmates are we talking about?’
‘All of them.’
When more than 600 of the world’s most violent human beings pour out from Pronghorn Correctional Facility into the Nevada Desert, the biggest manhunt in US history begins.
But for John Kradle, this is his one chance to prove his innocence, five years after the murder of his wife and child.
He just needs to stay one step ahead of the teams of law enforcement officers he knows will be chasing down the escapees.
Death row supervisor turned fugitive-hunter Celine Osbourne is single-minded in her mission to catch Kradle. She has very personal reasons for hating him – and she knows exactly where he’s heading . . .
'Candice Fox's new book further cements her position as one of the world's most original thriller writers . . . I was blown away by the clever twists and quirky characters, all overlaid with Fox's characteristic dark humour.' Reader's Digest
'Her most assured solo crime novel to date and it is masterful.' Sydney Morning Herald
'An action-packed, constantly surprising, suspenseful read and this reviewer found it hard to put down.' Herald Sun
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
When family members of the staff at Pronghorn Correctional Facility are held hostage from afar, the prison is forced to release 650 inmates into the Nevada Desert. While The Chase kicks off with this compelling premise, the high-stakes thrills only escalate from there. The book follows John Kradle, wrongly jailed for murder. Pursued by prison supervisor Celine Osbourne, who harbours a personal grudge, Kradle must flee while clearing his name in the process. Australian author Candice Fox has mastered the fast-paced crime thriller, and brings uncommon empathy to the genre’s pulse-spiking rhythms.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
A mass breakout from the Pronghorn Correctional Facility in Nevada, orchestrated by someone with inside connections, drives this uneven thriller from Fox (Crimson Lake). The desert quickly fills with hundreds of convicts heading to Vegas and surrounding communities for their first taste of freedom in a long time. Meanwhile, U.S. Marshal Trinity Parker is particularly concerned about one fugitive, Burke David Schmitz (aka the Mardi Gras Shooter), and death row supervisor Celine Osbourne is obsessed with recapturing John Kradle, who "came home from work one day and blew his wife and kid away." The main story line involving the purpose of the breakout and its primary beneficiary is soon overshadowed by the subplot featuring Celine and Kradle, the book's best-developed character. Trinity is a caricature of a lawman, Schmitz is a stock mass murderer/domestic terrorist, and chapters featuring other assorted convicts come across as little more than filler. The backstory chapter in which Celine visits her grandfather in prison, however, is superbly written. As a whole, this novel reads like an underdone pie—tasty morsels in a bland filling, surrounded by a doughy and undercooked crust.
Customer Reviews
Better with each outing
Author
Accomplished Australian crime writer who established herself on the world stage by collaborating with James Patterson. This is the second US-based thriller she's written solo.
In brief
Mass breakout from Nevada prison orchestrated by taking hostage many family members of staff. Death row inmates are the most wanted. The female Captain in charge of death row has a bee in her bonnet about one in particular, based on her own family history and the nature of his crime. He claims he was wrongly convicted. The female US marshal in charge is more worried about the multiple other bad dudes on the run, especially a domestic terrorist, and a white supremacist cult leader/mass murderer. We meet sundry other murderers, grifters, malcontents as well. Ms Fox sprinkles the pursuit of multiple bad guys though a central narrative involving the obsessed Death Row Captain and her chief irritant. Justice is served, sort of, and the former nemeses reconcile.
Writing
Ms Fox had mastered the police procedural prior to her collaboration with Mr Patterson, but has broadened and strengthened her plotting abilities considerably under his influence. She writes in the afterword that this novel contains her one-millionth published word. Let's hope for many more. She gets better with each outing.
Bottom line
High octane genre fiction tempered with wry humour. What's not to like?
Boring
Boring