David Thayer

THE BETRAYED is David Hosp’s second novel, a follow up to last year’s DARK HARBOR. He sets his new book in Pelecanos country, Washington DC, and one of the principal characters is Detective Darius Train, an African-American cop from the streets. But Hosp and Pelecanos have different agendas; THE BETRAYED is a thriller although it blurs the lines at times between thriller and procedural. The story is set off by the murder of a Washington Post reporter as seen through the eyes of her fourteen year old daughter Amanda. The victim is from one of the wealthiest families in the country, which establishes the intrigue of DC power politics.

Detectives Train and Cassian are assigned the case. The victim’s sister arrives from California, and becomes the novel’s central character. Sydney Chapin is determined to learn the truth about her sister’s murder, and as the story progresses becomes involved with Cassian. Hosp brings the romantic element into the story with skill and plausibility, no mean feat in the thriller game. He avoids the pitfalls of bestowing superpowers on his characters, forcing them to work toward resolution, making them believable throughout the story.

He’s equally adept at using the setting to good effect and ups the ante with a powerful senator as a possible suspect in the murder. The rough spots occur in the opening chapters where the cops are introduced, complete with a screaming boss. It takes a while for the thriller to emerge from the procedural where the author hits his stride. The story takes root in the science of eugenics and Hosp weaves this aspect of the plot into the climax and resolution.

David Hosp deserves kudos for avoiding the hyberpole that render many thrillers nonsensical. There are many reasons to turn the pages, and the story has complexity and character development in lieu of obvious plot points. THE BETRAYED exhibits fine intelligence, characters to care about, and a strong backstory, a welcome addition to the thriller genre.

This entry was posted on Monday, July 17th, 2006 at 8:01 am and is filed under Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.