by Jack Higgins

Putnam, April, 2002.
Hardcover, 288 pages.
ISBN: 0399148337

Sean Dillon is a British spy who works for an ultra-secret agency which reports directly to the prime minister. In his last mission, he defeated the powerful, wealthy and corrupt Arab/English Rashid family who were determined to assassinate the American president (See, Edge of Danger). The three Rashid brothers are now dead. But their sister, the beautiful and wealthy Lady Kate Rashid, countess of Loch Dhu and head of the Rashid Bedu tribe of Hazar, has sworn revenge on her brother's killers -- in spite of the fact that her brothers were criminal psychopaths who brought about their own demise. But Kate is more smarter and more successful than her brothers and plans to hit America where it hurts most: by crippling America's oil supplies, even if it means destroying her own massive oil fields. When American Senator and former war hero Daniel Quinn learns of his beloved daughter's death in England, president Jake Cazalet agrees to send Quinn to investigate the death and its relation to Kate Rashid's threats against the U.S. Joining Quinn are former IRA enforcer Sean Dillon, his boss, General Charles Ferguson, and Harry and Billy Salter, Sean's ex-gangster friends who are always up for a good fight. When Kate joins forces with her American cousin, Chauncey, things go from bad to worse, especially when the Rashid cousins head to the Arab country of Hazar to begin their operation to cripple America's oil supplies.

Always dependable, Jack Higgins knows how to craft a taut thriller, with enough action, plot twists and interesting characters to fill several books. Sean Dillon and crew are up against a formidable adversary this time; Lady Kate is equally at home in a bedu tent, a fabulous country home, or the most expensive of gourmet restaurants. The ending seems to leave room for more adventures, and that's nothing but good news for Higgins fans.

Midnight Runner is available for purchase on Amazon.com

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This review was published in the July-August, 2002 of The Internet Writing Journal.

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