Sleeper

"Sleeper" is the second novel, and second spy thriller by Gene Riehl, a former FBI agent involved in foreign counterintelligence and espionage, and he certainly makes good use of his background here. It concerns one Puller Monk, an FBI agent with personal problems, and one Sung Kim, an American-born, Korean-trained spy/assassin on a collision course, involving the highest and the mightiest in the land, as well as some of the most famous paintings. It's a highly professional, commercial job of work. It's an exciting book if you don't look too closely at the two-dimensional characters, opens hard, moves fast, and piles up what appears to be three corpses by page 10; I've been known to tell friends that if a mystery doesn't open on at least one corpse by page 10, I won't read further. The plot's a mite unlikely-- aren't they all-- but Riehl treats it realistically. He tells the reader several more times than he ever needed to that his characters shampoo their hair and brush their teeth, and he leans on that same-old, same-old plot device of the agent unwillingly dragged into the action. But he's very strong on his weaponry and tradecraft. Also on the ambiance of our nation's capital, Washington, D.C. and its surrounding areas; in fact I think you could use this book instead of a map. He's come up with an interesting plot device, too. Sung Kim was born Samantha WIlliamson in an American hospital, kidnapped by the North Koreans as an infant, to be raised according to their design. The North Koreans are, in fact, known to have kidnapped Japanese,and to be still hanging on to American Korean War veterans, for whatever their reasons. Of course, we can all readily see that this means life has been really unfair to this blond assassin, but we do have a former president who once noted that life can be unfair. With a word of warning to the sensitive: this book contains one each of totally gratuitous sex, and torture scenes. But it's a good quick read. You could maybe polish it off in a sitting.

I read this book without reading the first one, I just happened to pick it up at a book store and didn't know there was a first book (I'm a sucker for spy novels). The book is fresh, easy to read, paced well and fun but no real surprises. The characters are developed enough for you to care about but not too much (again, I never read the first installment). For example I never cared about the hero's girlfriend, but found the villainess of the story much more fascinating. Actually I would wish Mr. Riehl could write a book about the villainess and her training / recruitment. My predecessors mentioned the FBI procedures, I don't know if all they are accurate or not and would not even dare to guess, but they seem logical and make sense.

I thoroughly enjoyed the characters, the story line and the real, true to life portrayals of the FBI innerworkings. A great and exciting read. I look forward to the next Puller Monk novel.

Gene Riehl's continuing drama of Puller Monk is awesome! There is no disappointment from QUANTICO RULES, as a matter of fact, SLEEPER is bigger and better. The character development and storyline are very compelling. This book leaves you wanting another sequel. Congratulations, Gene, on another great piece of work!

In 1992 Paris, sixteen years old Samantha Williamson of Asian descent watches the Americans kill her adopted parents. The North Korans "adopt" her following the tragedy insisting she is one of them and renaming her Sung Kim. They train and brainwash her to be the ultimate spy-terrorist causing havoc in the United States. NSA Director Philip Carter learns that an Asiatic woman stole the Madonna, valued at $15 million, from the home of Lyman Davidson. Philip believes the deadly Sung Kim is the culprit and fears she is escalating her campaign to devastate those in power. He assigns FBI Special Agent Puller Monk to stop her. Besides a gambling problem, Puller believes he inherited from his recently deceased father, Alzheimer's and that he is already in the second perhaps third phase. Now the games begin. SLEEPER is an intriguing sequel in which the fascinating character is the villainess though Sung Kim is more comic book than flesh and blood. Puller in spite of his concerns and his addiction lacks fullness (unless you read his previous appearance in QUANTICO RULES). Still although the key combatants seem two dimensional, espionage thriller fans will appreciate their spy vs. spy war in which both will do anything necessary to triumph. Harriet Klausner