Nance,
John J. Headwind. Putnam. April 2001. c400 p. ISBN 0-399-14713-6.
$24.95. Fiction.
Fans of suspense fiction and aeronautical thrillers in
particular will find much to like in Nance’s latest, including the requisite white-knuckle flying
sequences, which take place in a variety of aircraft from a Boeing 737 to a Cessna
172; authentic technical details (as one would expect from the aviation analyst
for ABC’s World News Tonight); sparkling dialogue; a relentless pace; and
an exciting courtroom drama in Ireland, where the legal jousting reaches its
climax. An ex-U.S. President, traveling in Europe, faces arrest under an international
warrant for crimes supposedly committed by CIA-hired operatives in Peru, and
it’s up to an outgunned lawyer from Wyoming—a former judge, thrown
off the bench in a messy scandal—and two daring pilots in a commandeered
aircraft to save him. After the first 100 pages, which crackle with tension,
the reader is hit with another jolt that lasts just as long, with more thrills
yet to come. Highly recommended for all public libraries.