The Striker by Clive Cussler

"The Striker" by Clive Cussler with Justin Scott. This book is published by Penguin in 2014 and has 384 pages. This is a Isaac Bell mystery, but it's a prequel. This is Isaac Bell's first individual case in year 1902.

There is an accident of a train carrying coal out of the mine. Isaac Bell, disguised as a miner, tries to unsuccessfully stop it. Someone has sabotaged the train. Someone tries to incite a mob to kill Isaac and others. Someone is trying to pitch the miners against mine owners. It's not just the saboteur at work, it's a provocateur.

Can Isaac Bell crack his first independent case? Can he convince his boss Joseph Van Dorn that there is a provocateur?

Isaac Bell mysteries are period mysteries. They revolve around locomotives (rail and road). Coal and mining are essential ingredients in this book. Creating trouble between miners and owners, letting coal production come to stand still and buying mines cheap is an elaborate plot. However this plot had similarities with plot of his previous book 'The wrecker'.

The provocateur has the advantage of knowing the Van Dorns and monitoring their movements but Isaac Bell is disadvantaged as he does not know the identity and motivation of the provocateur (Well! That's why the game's on, isn't it?).

It's a classic case of a protégé gone bad, in this case it's the first protégé of Joseph Van Dorn. As you may have guessed he is pursued by latest protégé, Isaac Bell.

As usual Cussler has created atmosphere of  old time very convincingly and easily. Readers are transported in 1902 (a different world all together) and feel at home. There is also a time leap of 10 years in epilogue.

Narration is fast, dynamic and exciting. There is a right mix of action and emotion. The story has deception, sabotage, romance, chases, fights and detective work. In short all ingredients that make the book enjoyable are present.

Read it, it's different.