Review: Killer Instinct

Author: Joseph Finder

ISBN: 0312347472

The following review was contributed by:  NORM GOLDMAN: Editor of Bookpleasures. CLICK TO VIEW Norm Goldman's Reviews       

To read Norm's Interview With Joseph FinderCLICK HERE

Killer Instinct,  the 6th work of fiction from Joseph Finder tells a chilling story about a young sales executive trapped in the rat race of the corporate world where to survive you must have the killer instinct.

As the novel opens, we find Jason Stedman, who works for an electronics company in Framingham, Ma., conversing on his cellular phone with his wife Kate. Unfortunately, his car runs off the highway, nearly killing him, however, luckily, he only suffers a few bruises and cuts. His car is in another story and is in want of considerable repairs.

Along comes Kurt Simko, the driver of the tow-truck that hauls Jason's car to an auto repair garage owned by a friend of Kurt. Jason hops a ride with Kurt and learns that he was in the special forces of the US military, however, he had been dishonorably discharged. This, however, does not deter Jason from befriending Kurt, and eventually recommending him for employment with his company's security department.

When Kurt tells Jason “I owe you one. You don't know me very well, but one thing you'll learn is, I never forget a favor,” Jason has no idea how his life is about to dramatically change.

What subsequently follows is a series of incidents that have a tremendous impact in boosting Jason's career up the corporate ladder. At first Jason is unaware that it was Kurt who is making things happen through a variety of devious shenanigans involving Jason's co-workers and competitors. However, eventually he realizes what is taking place and that Kurt is not such a nice guy. In fact, he is out of control, as he does not give a damn about ethical and legal behavior.

Throughout the novel, Finder moves his tightly woven plot effortlessly from the larger to the smaller picture, bringing us a fascinating perspective of corporate America with all of its intrigue, hypocrisy, deception, paranoia, back stabbing and incompetence. Principal characters are very well developed with the supporting cast all given sufficient detail to make them interesting and relevant.

Joseph Finder has done it again. Killer Instinct displays all the hallmarks of a superior cracking thriller with an absorbing tale with excellent pacing. This is an excellent airport/beach/rainy week-end book that can easily be read in one or two sittings, and you will never feel rushed.