Shot: A Novel - Hardcover

Siler, Jenny

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0805072039 ISBN 13: 9780805072037

Publisher: Henry Holt and Co., 2002

Synopsis

Trying to find out the truth about her husband's death, headstrong Lucy Greene stumbles on dangerous secrets about a government-sponsored biological warfare program that has maimed her past and threatens her future

The story is that Lucy Greene's husband, Carl, died in a car accident. But why did Carl contact Lucy's high-school sweetheart Kevin, a recently discredited TV journalist, just a few days before he died with promises of a big story? Why does an intruder break into Carl's home office after the funeral? And what does any of this have to do with a rash of prison TB, their baby's encephalocele, or Lucy's brother's post-Gulf War illness?

Lucy wants some answers, and before she knows it she's careening across the western landscape with a hired killer on her trail, warned that she's messing with some very big players. She's not alone-in helping her, Kevin wants to resuscitate his career and ex-con Darcy wants to protect her junkie sister who's still on the inside. But with her loved ones dead and a Glock for a new best friend, Lucy is the one who will do whatever it takes to uncover the real story behind her husband's death.

About this title

About the Author

The critically acclaimed author of Easy Money (0-312-97686-0) and Iced (0-312-97952-5), Jenny Siler has worked as a forklift driver, furniture mover, sketch model, and bartender. She lives in Missoula, Montana.

Reviews

Silers third novel continues in the vein of Iced, a kind of light feminista mystery. Lucy Greene, living in the small Colorado town in which she grew up, knows that she is unhappy (despite the pool, the cars, the house), but is unable to break free of the suburban mold. After husband Carls accidental death, she is mired in depression. A not-so-random break-in and the strange demands of Bioflux, Carls biotech employers, lead Lucy to the burning question asked by so many amateur sleuths: What if it wasnt an accident? Aiding in her search for the truth are Kevin Burns, disgraced journalist and Lucys old flame, and Darcy Williams, an ex-con protecting her junkie sister. This task force of three ferrets out a secret that (as the novels version of Deep Throat says) is bad shit. Deep and high. Youre gonna make some powerful enemies if youre not careful. Bioflux is responsible in some way for several biological phenomena dating from 1970 (when U.S. germ warfare was officially banned), among them the neural tube disorders that killed Lucys child, Gulf War syndrome and a strange and fatal illness that ravaged the Colorado prison system in the 1990s. Equipped with quirky characters, a quicksilver plot and chase scenes aplenty (especially when the government becomes involved), this novel makes up in spunk what it lacks in credibility. The biological weapons angle is patently unbelievable, as is the survival of this shaky triumvirate as they simultaneously challenge big business and government. In the real world theyd be dead in ditches or rotting in prison, but in Silers dirty but redeemable universe, everyone ends up on higher ground.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Three years ago, Siler burst onto the scene with her first novel, the thriller Easy Money, which was followed in 2001 with Iced. Readers who have waited anxiously for her latest will not be disappointed. After Lucy Greene's husband, Carl, dies in a car accident while on a business trip, someone breaks into their house, turning Carl's study upside down and causing her to question the cause of his death. Lucy also discovers that a few days before his death Carl had contacted Kevin, her old high-school sweetheart and a recently disgraced reporter. Lucy's quest to piece together the puzzle results in a frantic, nail-biting journey. Accompanied by Kevin and an ex-convict named Darcy, she is chased by someone hired to kill her before she discovers the truth. Like Siler's previous heroines, Allie Kerry and Meg Gardner, Lucy is a smart, strong, easily likeable character. This tightly woven suspense novel is recommended for all popular fiction collections. - Nanci Milone Hil, Lucius Beebe Memorial Lib., Wakefield, MA
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Siler's latest crime novel features not one but two of the strong female characters that have become her trademark. Lucy Greene is newly widowed, her husband having apparently met with a car accident on a business trip for his biotech company. When someone breaks into Lucy's house looking only for Carl's files, however, she starts to wonder. Darcy Williams is an ex-con forced to do favors for the local prison warden in exchange for the safety of her still-incarcerated sister. This time the warden wants Carl's files, but even a gun to Lucy's head yields no useful information about their location. Lucy wants the truth, Darcy wants the files, and they recognize in each other the sheer determination that comes of having nothing to lose. The path they take from drawn weapons to uneasy alliance against secretive and powerful foes makes this a substantial and suspenseful thriller, as do their discoveries about the biological research that Carl's company has been hiding for years. Carrie Bissey
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Edition details

• Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.
• Publication date: 2002
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0805072039
• ISBN 13: 9780805072037
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 256