The Runner
A Novel
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4.7 • 3 Ratings
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- $6.99
Publisher Description
Christopher Reich dazzled readers and defied expectations with his New York Times bestseller, Numbered Account, a breathtaking classic of modern suspense. Now Reich returns to the world of international thrillers with a no-holds-barred powerhouse of a novel set against the seething backdrop of post—World War II Germany. . . .
July 1945. U.S. attorney Devlin Judge has come to Europe as part of an international tribunal to try Nazi war criminals. But Judge has his own personal agenda: to find Erich Siegfried Seyss, the man responsible for his brother’s death.
An SS officer and former Olympic sprinter, Seyss has just escaped from a POW camp, leaving a trail of bodies in his wake. But he won’t escape Devlin Judge.
Between the two men are miles of German countryside ... and the beautiful daughter of one of Nazi Germany’s most powerful families — a woman loved by them both.
But as Judge hunts his prey across a devastated nation, he finds himself caught up in a staggering conspiracy. Because Erich Seyss is no rogue SS killer. He is a man running a final race to make one last, unforgettable contribution to the Fatherland. And he is acting on orders from the last person anyone would ever suspect.
BONUS: This edition includes an excerpt from Christopher Reich's The Prince of Risk.
Praise for The Runner
“A wonderful novel of conspiracy, treachery and political intrigue . . . Reich evokes the fascinating world that existed between the hot war and the cold war—he is a master of atmosphere and detail.”—Nelson DeMille, author of The Lion’s Game
“Irresistible.”—The Wall Street Journal
“This is thriller-writing on the grand scale.”—The Denver Post
“Fast-moving . . . briskly paced . . . The Runner confirms all the promise Reich showed in Numbered Account.”—Chicago Tribune
“Move over, Jack Higgins and Robert Ludlum, Reich has grabbed hold of your genre and made it sing. The Runner is an intriguingly crafted cat-and-mouse hunt.”—San Francisco Examiner
“Reich skillfully keeps us guessing.”—Chicago Sun-Times
“Reich is good news for insomniacs who need an excuse to stay up till the wee hours.”—Daily News (New York)
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Reich's first novel, Numbered Account, did remarkably well for a debut. Unfortunately, Reich has hit upon a stale notion for his follow-up, and although the book moves along smartly, it feels mechanical in both plot and characters. Set in Germany just after the WWII surrender, it stars ace Nazi Olympic runner Erich Seyss, who as an SS man has performed untold atrocities--including the murder, in a massacre of unarmed American soldiers, of hero Devlin Judge's brother. That motivates Judge, a lawyer who is supposed to be prosecuting G ring at the War Crimes Tribunal, to drop everything and set off in hot pursuit of Seyss when he escapes from a POW camp. Seyss is no ordinary escapee, but is being groomed by a band of German arms industrialists who want to revive their shattered country by turning the Americans against the Russians. How better to do it than by having an apparent Russian assassinate Churchill, Truman and possibly Eisenhower as well at Potsdam? Seyss throws himself into the role with vigor, energy and an amazing number of hairbreadth escapes. Meanwhile, Judge's pursuit is hampered by devious OSS operatives who want just what the Nazis want, for their own reasons; even General George Patton is involved, with apparent tacit support from Field Marshal Montgomery. Seyss's beautiful former lover, Ingrid, further complicates matters. The only remotely believable part of all this is the despairing postwar atmosphere of Germany in smoking ruins, which Reich brings to life with many sharply observant touches. But there's more to bestsellerdom than swift action and a long man-on-man chase against the clock, and most of The Runner is likely to strike fans of Ludlum and Forsyth as overly familiar.
