Risk » (First Edition)

COLIN HARRISON is the author of six novels. He lives in Brooklyn, New York.

An honest lawyer, a Czech hand model, and a box of mysterious Christmas ornaments—each plays a part in Colin Harrison's compelling new intrigue

George Young never thought of himself as a detective, but that’s pretty much his vocation—an attorney at a top insurance firm, it’s his job to pin down suspicious claims. But Mrs. Corbett, the rich, eccentric wife of the firm’s founder, has it in mind to put George’s skills to a peculiar assignment. With only a few months left to live, her one desire is to know the true circumstance of her son Roger’s violent death. George’s investigation leads him to Roger’s mistress, a cagey Czech hand model named Eliska, who can cast a seductive spell simply by removing her gloves.

Did Eliska's motives for latching on to Roger get him killed? Or did some of her shadowy and dangerous little friends take care of the job? And why were there boxes and boxes of Christmas ornaments in the dead man’s apartment? George will have to take a few chances of his own if he wants to get to the bottom of Roger’s death for Mrs. Corbett.

Set against a volatile and vividly drawn Manhattan, Risk is prime Colin Harrison.

The Barnes & Noble Review

If you missed Harrison's delightful thriller when it ran as a serial in The New York Times Magazine, forget about it. This paperback edition is sharper, longer, and much more fun to read. Harrison is a master of imperfect central characters. George Young is an attorney for a top insurance firm. It s his long-running job to expose suspicious claims. But Mrs. Corbett, the rich, eccentric wife of the firm's founder, wants to put George s skills to a special, non-insurance assignment. With only a few months to live, her one desire is to know the true circumstance of her son Roger's violent death -- he was hit by a truck as he walked out of a bar. George's investigation leads him to Roger's mistress, an elusive Czech hand model named Eliska Sedlacek, whose motives for latching on to Mrs. Corbett's son may have gotten him killed.

George Young is a perfect Harrison hero. The work can be exciting, and a little nasty, he says about his job. Which I confess is interesting. His wife, Carol, also a lawyer, works in the compliance division of a huge New York bank... Being a naturally suspicious person, Carol has done well at her job. The Youngs turn out to be a formidable pair of detectives ( Now and then I am reminded that my wife is smarter than I am. This was one of those times, George tells us when Carol spots an important clue.) Aided by a shrewd bartender and a friendly gangster, they uncover a tangled plot involving valuable metals hidden in cheap Christmas decorations. But not even such shrewd investigators can imagine what old Mrs. Corbett is really looking for. --Dick Adler