Author: Jeffery Deaver

Title: Edge

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Many murder-mysteries are constructed around the "who done it?" question with the subsequent tracking down of the killer once his identity has been successfully detected. In Jeffery Deaver's new novel, Edge, the killer is the only known quantity from the beginning of the story. Who exactly is the target of his planned assassination, and what is it they know that is worth killing them for, is what must be figured out.

The story is told by a first-person, one-named narrator, called Corte. He is a "shepherd" for a clandestine branch of the government's Federal Witness Protection program. It is his job to guard his clients until after they can give court testimony and be reassigned to their permanent relocation destinations with new identities.

When the government intercepts a message intended for a known assassin, Corte and his team are called to intervene. Corte is drawn into the drama more than his usual dethatched, professional demeanor would allow. The assassin, Henry Loving, has history with Corte having killed his mentor in the protection program several years before. Not only does Corte want to protect the target, he also desires to mete out some justice of his own. Loving, in stark contrast to his name, is a ruthless killer known as a "lifter," whose expertise is extracting information from his victims before he kills them. Because of this Corte must not just protect the targeted individual, but also those closest to them as Loving is known to torture family members in order to gain "an edge" in motivating the main target to spill their secrets.

The case becomes more complex when Corte goes to collect the Washington D.C. cop Ryan Kessler and his family to deliver them to a safe house. Kessler has no idea why he would be a target and is reluctant to accept protection until the bullets start flying. Corte's mission is not only to be on the lookout for Loving but also discover what Kessler knows so he can go after whoever ordered the hit. As Corte is a passionate collector of board games he uses various strategies he has learned from game play in order to gain his own edge over Loving, the Kesslers, and with other individuals involved with the case.

Deaver, living up to his billing as a sensational thriller writer, fills his story with multiple shocks and game changing surprises, keeping the narrative fresh at every turn. Instead of a deceptive twist at the end of the story, Deaver peppers his tale with shifts throughout. The Kessler family isn't nearly as naïve as they first appear and more than one family member may have attracted an enemy. Corte chooses to keep some of his team in the dark with information of his own. Both villain and hero take turns going on the offensive trying to foil the plans of the other, always attempting to get the decisive edge in this violent game.

While the story takes place over a three day weekend, readers should plan to devote about the same amount of time to this book. Once picked up, it is a hard one to set down.

**This Review First Published 11/23/2010