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by Bryan Christy
In this intricate and propulsive thriller--from National Geographic's founder of Special Investigations--Tom Klay an investigative reporter leading a double life as a CIA spy, discovers that he has been weaponized in a global game of espionage pitting him against one of the world's most ruthless men.
Tom Klay is a celebrated investigative wildlife reporter for the esteemed magazine The Sovereign. But Klay is not just a journalist. His reporting is cover for an even more dangerous job: CIA agent. Klay's press credentials make him a perfect spy--able to travel the globe, engage both politicians and warlords, and openly record what he sees. When he needs help, the Agency provides it to him, and asks little in return. But while on assignment in Kenya, Klay is attacked and his closest friend is murdered. Soon Klay's carefully constructed double life unravels as his ambition turns to revenge.
The CIA has an answer. Klay is offered a devil's bargain to capture the man who killed his friend by infiltrating the offices of the woman he once loved, South Africa's special prosecutor, Hungry Khoza. But Klay soon discovers that he and Hungry are part of a larger, more lethal game--one that involves a ruthless mercenary and a global superpower. The deeper he digs, the more Klay realizes that everything he thought he knew about his work may have been a lie, and his sworn enemy may be his only ally. In this riveting, timely thriller, the lines between good and evil blur, and absolutely nothing is as it seems.
"A riveting plot, complex characters, deep backstory, and an engrossing setting enhance this finely written novel about justice, personal responsibility, and saving the environment. Readers will come away eager for whatever Christy, the founder of Special Investigations at National Geographic, turns his hand to next." - Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"The author's experience as a special investigator for National Geographic informs this fast-moving debut novel. High marks for this one. Let's hope it's the beginning of a long series." - Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"Fans of both espionage and global crime thrillers will find a gem here: Klay is an introspective, flawed survivor who bends operative stereotypes, and the intersection of corporate greed, media, technology, and crime is chillingly current." - Booklist (starred review)
"It is uncommon for a first novel to earn a starred review in the hallowed halls of this column, but Bryan Christy's In the Company of Killers ticks all the right boxes…You will not want to put it down." - BookPage (starred review)
"In the Company of Killers is a special kind of thriller: crisp, fast, wise, intelligent, world-weary, violent, and propulsive. Bryan Christy provides an indispensable inside-view to a world we only thought we knew." - C.J. Box, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Long Range and Dark Sky
"I loved Bryan Christy's In the Company of Killers, an exotic, riveting thriller unlike any other. In his fiction debut, Christy, himself a champion of endangered animals and an expert in wildlife trafficking around the world, uses every detail from his stellar career to inform the story of protagonist Tom Klay, a flinty, fascinating investigative journalist with a secret identity. When Klay's best friend is murdered, he travels the globe to hunt down the killer, jeopardizing himself by revealing his double life and pitting himself against a ruthless and lethal adversary more powerful than he ever imagined. In the Company of Killers depicts locales like Kenya, Manila, and South Africa with authenticity and realism, and at the same time, brings to life the world of espionage, with neither borders nor laws." - Lisa Scottoline, #1 bestselling author of Eternal
This information about In the Company of Killers was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Bryan Christy is the former head of Special Investigations at National Geographic and the 2014 National Geographic Society "Rolex Explorer of the Year." His criminal investigations have been the subject of two award-winning National Geographic documentaries and his crime writing has been anthologized in The Best American Science and Nature Writing. He is author of the non-fiction book The Lizard King. His education includes Penn State, Cornell's FALCON Program, University of Michigan Law School, Tokyo University Law School, and time at the Iowa Writers' Workshop.
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