Book Review: ‘Trap The Devil’ Is An Exciting Thrill Ride

There’s nothing I like better then a good political thriller. Trap The Devil by Ben Coes (St. Martin’s Press; in stores Tuesday June 20) is just that. I can usually tell within the first few chapters if I am going to like a book. This one I could not put down. I usually complain when books are almost 500 pages but this one flew by. Short chapters that got right to the point with no excess story or useless information.

In 1979 Charlie Bruner was in Madrid with his wife and little girl when an explosion hit and she was killed. It has haunted him since it happened. Two years later in 1981 the director of The CIA and US Secretary of State are having a meeting putting together a plan of secret agents to use to protect the President and other top officials. It would be off the books and hidden in the government it was called Order 6. Charlie Bruner was about to quit his job when he was offered the position of running it.

Now years later Bruner is hatching a plan to form a shadow government to take over and to destroy the Muslin countries (he blames them for his daughter’s death). His plan is to have the President, Vice President and Speaker of the House killed (he is in league with the potential new Speaker who would become President). After successful operations that are taking the resources of the FBI, the plan is in full go mode. Problem is one of their hired killer’s (Kyrie) wife Romy has overheard the plan. She’s put in a sanitarium but manages to escape. She tries to go underground but they are on to her. She tells a close friend (who gets killed). She manages to get to the Secretary of State (who’s in Paris) but he ends up being killed.

Which brings us to our hero Dewey (a great character) who is helping to guard the Secretary. He’s framed for the murder. Romy meanwhile is on the run again with Kyrie after her. Dewey manages to escape and get help. Soon the chase is on to find Romy and see what she knows. It involves a train, with killers looking for Dewey due to a past kill he made, jumping out of trains and skiing and exciting showdowns.

The more digging the government people do soon exposes the plot. When the VP is killed and the last act to get to the President is uncovered it leads to stunning, final showdown.

I am huge fan of the Jack Ryan, Stone Barrington, Cotton Malone, Pike Logan type books and this one fits right in with them. It’s an exciting,high octane thrill ride a minute. This is the seventh book in the series and my first time reading one. I can only hope I can find time to read the previous six. And there’s no need to worry about not having read any previous one. It reads like a standalone story!