The Wreckage

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY 2 MAY 2011

In Robotham's high-octane fifth thriller to be published in the U.S. (after Shatter), foreign correspondent Luca Terracini is covering a series of bank heists in Baghdad that have resulted in the loss of half a billion U.S. dollars over four years. Luca thinks he's hit on a big story, especially when he meets a fellow American hired by the U.N. to conduct an audit of Iraq's questionable financial structure. Meanwhile in London, ex-cop Vincent Ruiz is robbed by a young woman, Holly Knight, and her boyfriend after he intervenes in a staged domestic dispute. But when Holly's boyfriend turns up dead, the killers turn to Ruiz and Holly, certain that she's stolen whatever they're after. Using his old connections on the force, Ruiz tries to piece together the increasingly complex puzzle, which soon points him to Richard North, a wealthy financier whose bank, Ruiz discovers with Luca's help, has ties to Iraq. Robotham, a former investigative journalist, weaves current events and white-knuckle suspense with a practiced hand.