The Hunger of Crows
A Novel
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3.7 • 3 Ratings
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- $14.99
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
For fans of Dana Stabenow and The Frozen Ground, Richard Chiappone's debut novel is a chilling chase through rural Alaska, in which a woman running from her past must outwit the deadly assassins on her tail.
Thirty-something Carla Merino finds herself living in her camper shell in Homer, Alaska, waitressing to stay afloat and hiding from ruthless billionaire military contractor Gordon McKint, who has a secretive personal army and eyes on the presidency. McKint is determined to recover a memento Carla acquired on a one-night-stand that went terribly wrong—an item that could bring his whole world down. When McKint’s men track her to Homer she leaves for another hideout by boat, unprepared and unaware of the dangerous Alaskan weather headed her way.
Cosmo D'Angelo (a former CIA gunslinger) is a man grieving his daughter, living with the sins of his past, and in search of a certain woman (and a good meal) in small-town Alaska. In the era of political secrets and deep fake technology, he was foolish to let Carla take a memento of their tryst. Now, he needs to get it back before McKint’s men find her.
Scott Crockett is a stand-up guy, nursing a broken heart, out fishing alone. But when he finds an overturned boat and a nearly-drowned woman in the rough water, his life will get infinitely more complicated—and dangerous. Together he and Carla must outwit the professional killers sent to recover the deadly memento that threatens both McKint's political career and her life.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Short story writer Chiappone (Water of an Undetermined Depth) hits the ground running with his assured first novel, a thriller. Carla Merino, a Phoenix waitress, enjoys one-night stands. One evening, toward the end of her shift, Cosmo D'Angelo walks in. They flirt, and she agrees to go home with him. After sex, she surreptitiously steals a photo of Cosmo from his nightstand drawer as a memento. Closer examination of the photo shows, alongside a much younger Cosmo, a man in military uniform, and Gordon McKint, "military contractor and billionaire asshole of the highest order, now running for president." A reporter friend Carla consults tells her the photo could ruin McKint's bid for president, because it shows McKint with a Colombian army colonel who stole millions in American foreign aid money, and McKint once testified to Congress he'd never met the man. According to the reporter, Cosmo is an operative in the Phoenix office of Sidewinder Security, McKint's company. Realizing she's in danger, Carla winds up hiding in Homer, Alaska, where her pursuers track her down. The complex, well-developed Carla winds up facing avenging killers and the unpredictable Alaskan weather amid loads of heart-stopping action. Only a limp, ambiguous ending disappoints. Readers will want to see more from this talented author.
