Galley Talk

Carol Schneck, Schuler Books and Music, Okemos, Mich.

by Staff -- Publishers Weekly, 6/12/2006

Few protagonists shoot themselves and live to tell the tale; fewer still do it on the first page. The Zero (Regan Books, Sept. 1), Jess Walter's exquisitely written suspense novel, stands out in many other ways as well. New York City cop Brian Remy wakes up shortly after September 11 with a self-inflicted gunshot wound and no memory of the shooting. Working at Ground Zero, he suffers ongoing gaps in his memory, and his job and his life become increasingly complicated and ominous. He finds himself in situations with people he doesn't remember—including a beautiful girlfriend—and forces he doesn't understand. When he tries to tell the truth about his condition, no one believes him. While others project their own agendas onto his blankness, evidence mounts that he is involved in a sinister and dangerous undertaking. Like a paranoid Being There, The Zero is suspenseful, satisfying and unforgettable. Walter's Citizen Vince won the 2006 Edgar Award for Best Novel.