Grove Press
The Mysterious Press
The Mysterious Press
The toppling of a Middle Eastern government suddenly makes a decades-old case a priority for American military intelligence in this new high-wire act from New York Times bestselling author Thomas Perry. Now an original series from FX starring Jeff Bridges, John Lithgow, and Amy Brenneman
From Edgar Award–winning author Thomas Perry, comes a whip-smart and lethally paced stand-alone novel, The Old Man.
To all appearances, Dan Chase is a harmless retiree in Vermont with two big mutts and a grown daughter he keeps in touch with by phone. But most sixty-year-old widowers don’t have multiple driver’s licenses, savings stockpiled in banks across the country, and a bugout kit with two Beretta Nanos stashed in the spare bedroom closet. Most have not spent decades on the run. Thirty-five years ago, as a young hotshot in army intelligence, Chase was sent to Libya to covertly assist a rebel army. When the plan turned sour, Chase reacted according to his own ideas of right and wrong, triggering consequences he never could have anticipated. And someone still wants him dead because of his actions. Just as he had begun to think himself finally safe, Chase must reawaken his survival instincts to contend with the history he has spent his adult life trying to escape.
Armed mercenaries, spectacularly crashed cars, a precarious love interest, and an unforgettable chase scene through the snow—this is lethal plotting from one of the best in crime fiction.
“[A] harrowing hunt-and-hide adventure . . . Nobody writes chase scenes like Perry, who devises intricate itineraries, multiple identities and frequent costume changes . . . It takes a lot of ingenuity to get these fugitives across the country and into Canada without being plugged by hired killers or caught by one of the smart government agents who are all ‘too strong, too young and too strong,’ not to mention adept at the kind of procedural ‘tricks and traps’ that didn’t exist when Chase gave up the game—if anyone ever really gives up the game for good.” —Marilyn Stasio, New York Times Book Review
“Perry steers this cat-and-mouse adventure across the United States and, eventually, back to Libya, with verve, including just enough verisimilitude to keep intact the willing suspension of disbelief.” —Christian Science Monitor
“Save space already on your Thriller-of-the-Year ballot for Thomas Perry’s The Old Man. It’ll rivet you . . . Author Perry has won praise for his earlier thrillers—and deserves yet another helping for this tasty tale.” —Harry Levins, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
“This is hardly the first time that Perry has written about a seeming Everyman with a hidden wealth of special training and ratiocinative ability, but the Old Man, who has many names on call and changes them as situations dictate, is surely one of the most appealing . . . This one’s all about suspense and narrative propulsion, but the Old Man will remind Perry devotees of Chinese Gordon, the wacky hero of Metzger’s Dog, Perry’s Edgar-winning comic caper novel. Both men are crazy good thinkers and planners and improvisers, and it’s pure pleasure to watch them at work. Another delight from a writer who never disappoints.” —Bill Ott, Booklist (starred review)
“Perry drives deep into Jack Reacher territory in this stand-alone about a long-ago Army intelligence officer whose less-than-grateful nation just won’t let him be . . . Swift, unsentimental, and deeply satisfying. Liam Neeson would be perfect in the title role.” —Kirkus Reviews
“Engrossing . . . Readers will eagerly keep turning the pages.” —Publishers Weekly
“Thriller junkies will relish the smart and slippery plotting of this baby boomer hero. Fit, strong, a dog lover, and a family man, Chase outthinks and outfights his enemies . . . Revered as a master of suspense with many bestsellers and an Edgar Award, Perry plays his plot with virtuosic deftness, thrilling readers to the core.” —Barbara Conaty, Falls Church, VA, Library Journal
“There are few better ways to begin a new year than with a Thomas Perry novel . . . The Old Man is certainly one of Perry’s better books, which is high praise, considering that he has yet to write a bad one . . . It’s a sign of Perry’s talent that he makes the manner in which Chase is discovered, after seemingly rendering himself invisible, as interesting and chilling as the rest of the book. This is a perfect read to raise your pulse and, yes, your paranoia level.” —Joe Hartlaub, Bookreporter
“Since his Edgar Award-winning debut novel, The Butcher’s Boy . . . Thomas Perry has put together a rewarding string of suspense novels with as much cool competence as some of his best protagonists bring to their work . . . Perry’s pacing is impeccable. The Old Man rips along with plenty of typical tradecraft details, wet work and disguises, but also takes a breather with interludes in Chicago for the old man to find romance . . . Then it’s back to dodging and killing with enough plot twists to keep the train rolling down the track. Perry’s a real pro . . . A smart, well-paced thriller.” —Bruce Jacobs, Watermark Books & Café, Wichita, KS, Shelf Awareness
“Riveting . . . Dan’s story takes us on a tense, often chilling ride across the United States and all the way to hostile regions of Libya. The most compelling thrillers effectively explore how old missteps and a violent past can shatter the life of an apparently ordinary person, and The Old Man certainly accomplishes that, at the same time keeping the reader turning the pages.” —Robert Rotstein, Big Thrill
An Indie Next pick for January 2017
A finalist for the Barry Award for Best Thriller
Once a man has stolen something he is a thief. If what he stole is big enough, then always and forever, no matter what else he’s done, he will always be a thief.
Again, for the ten thousandth time, he remembered standing in the North African sun, on the powdery dust of the road that ran along the desert’s edge. He had just seen the car go by on its way from the office in the city to the place he had designated as the spot for the meeting he had demanded. At that moment, he could still have walked away. But if he kept going toward the meeting, he would die. He knew it would be a quiet death, not disturbing things on the surface. It would be so quiet it would seem civilized.
As Chase looked back on the day now, he could see it in its sun-bleached clarity. His first sin came right then. It was anger. He had risked his life bringing the shipment of money to Libya from the bank in Luxembourg.
In order to preserve deniability he had been discharged from the army months earlier and moved into a civilian special ops status that left no records, and he carried a false passport. The military intelligence officers had ordered him to do everything the way a criminal would do it.
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