Scimitar

A killer masked in a golden-boy exterior is assigned to hunt down a series of people bound by a small green scimitar tattooed on their chests, while at the same time dodging the advances of an obsessed woman. 75,000 first printing. Major ad/promo. Lit Guild Alt.

A razor-sharp beginning soon loses its edge in a thriller that will remind many (too many) readers of Frederick Forsyth's The Day of the Jackal. That crackling yarn concerned a plot to assassinate De Gaulle; Abbott's killer is after George Bush. And while Forsyth's lightning-fast plot rapidly convinced readers to suspend disbelief, first novelist Abbott digresses with plodding secondary characters, often fatuous dialogue and--regarding a deadly chemical concoction--overly complex jargon. When tattoos of green scimitars show up on murder victims in New York City, the trail leads to Sonny Hemkar, a Middle Eastern assassin cum Don Juan, who is bent on nationalistic revenge. Genuine suspense, unfortunately, is in short supply here; generic verbiage abounds (the killer fired "into what was left of her head"); and attempts at wry humor generally fall flat. Abbott's laudable endeavors to humanize his characters merely trivialize them instead (the heroine is particularly slow-witted) and slow down the action. While fans of this genre may discover a modicum of excitement here, they will hope for more exciting future fare from Abbott.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Clever, cartoonish thriller about a deep-cover assassin on the trail of George Bush. Abbott, a pseudonymous first-time novelist, weaves a witty, zigzagging plot that's bolstered with liberal graphics--photos, maps, handwritten notes, etc. The stylish action begins when L.A. medical intern ``Sonny'' Hemkar is telephoned by a woman who alerts him that his day has finally come--for Sonny is really an incognito hit man for an Arab dictator (guessing which one serves as one of the plot's several puzzles). On the train to N.Y.C., Sonny picks up naive UCLA coed Elita Randall, who notes the tiny green scimitar tattooed on his chest; meanwhile, in New York, the woman who phoned Sonny is shot (by whom?), and the cops, finding her British passport, check her i.d. with Geoffrey Turner, a young British consulate hack. Arriving in New York, Sonny dumps Elita, who, heart-stricken, tries to locate him through the British consulate- -and through Geoffrey. At the same time, Sonny learns his targets: George Bush and, if possible, Margaret Thatcher, either at the Plaza Hotel (at a dinner) or the Statue of Liberty (during a speech). In scenes detailed in the assured manner of Frederick Forsyth, Sonny explores both potential killing fields and concocts an exotic poison; he then takes some r&r in the Hamptons, where he unwittingly picks up...Elita's sexy mom. She smells a rat; he dismembers her. Back in the city, Sonny stalks the Plaza dinner but is spotted by Elita, who's been invited by Geoffrey--and so the narrative spirals to a suspenseful climax on Liberty Island, where Sonny, bug-sprayer in hand, takes an end-run at Bush.... Lack of a proper foe to supervillain Sonny (Geoffrey et al. add up to fleabites) comprises the only big flaw in an otherwise swift, crafty, and roundly enjoyable--if far-fetched-- entertainment. -- Copyright ©1992, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.