cover image Spin

Spin

Bob Judd. Berkley Publishing Group, $4.99 (0pp) ISBN 978-0-425-14179-3

The fifth in his series of Grand Prix novels featuring former race-car driver Forrest Evers ( Formula One ; Indy ; Monza ; and Burn ), Judd's latest smoothly blends racing-contest tension with inside glimpses of high-technology in driving and PR machinations in the celebrity gossip press. Evers finds his ticket back onto the track when a French perfume company asks him to model for their new Formula One cologne in exchange for their sponsorship of a team. What Evers doesn't count on is the arduous work involved in being photographed, filmed and written about in a series of PR-created romances with beautiful but perfunctory models around the globe, culminating in an almost-real romance with Virgin, a billionaire recording goddess clearly modeled on Madonna. As Evers races from one Grand Prix to the next (Monaco, South Africa, Brazil, etc.), he sees first his team manager and then the team's crack aerodynamicist die mysteriously. Evers suspects the head of Emron, a multinational sponsor eager to obtain some high-tech software being developed for the team. With his heartstrings tugged variously by his manager's widow and by Virgin, Evers tries to focus on winning a race before the murderer gets to him. (Apr.)