The Good Son: A Novel

From Publishers Weekly Starred Review. Bestseller Gruber ( Forgery of Venus ) explores America's political involvement in South Asia and the bloody religious and ethnic fanaticism associated with the region in his superb seventh novel. Sonia Laghari, a Pakistani-American writer and psychologist, sets up a conference on peace in Kashmir, the most terrorist-infested place on earth, only to have her and her small group of pacifists abducted and held captive by terrorists, who may or may not be manufacturing nuclear weapons. All but doomed to a public beheading, Sonia uses her familiarity with Islamic doctrine as well as her knowledge of Jungian psychology in an attempt to enlighten her deeply conflicted captors. Though the numerous bombshells at the end may strain credulity, the brilliant character development and labyrinthine plot line, not to mention the absorbing history of modern jihadism and the U.S. war on terrorism, make this a provocative thriller that readers won't soon forget. (May) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From Booklist *Starred Review* Gruber’s last two novels were about a forged Velázquez painting and an undiscovered Shakespeare play. Readers considering this one may wonder how well an author of art-historical thrillers will handle collisions between East and West, faith and unbelief, and Islam and Christianity. Those who have read it will ask a different question: Is there anything Gruber can’t write about? In this richly layered tale, Sonia Laghari’s attempt to convene a conference in Pakistan called “Conflict Resolution on the Subcontinent: A Therapeutic Approach” goes awry when the conferees are abducted by jihadis and told that one of them will be beheaded after each fresh infidel outrage. In the U.S., Sonia’s commando son, Theo, instigates a plot to bring about a military-backed rescue. But Sonia, with her wiles and her understanding of her captors, just might rescue herself. That’s the simple outline, but one of many pleasures in The Good Son is the way Gruber confounds simple explanations. Sonia, for example, is a Catholic Pole who converted to Islam before writing books that scandalized the Islamic world. She practices both religions without compunction and is a Jungian psychologist, to boot. And, before he became a shooter for the U.S. Intelligence Support Detachment, Theo was a mujahedeen hero in Afghanistan. (Trust us, it works.) The pace here isn’t as rapid as usual, and much of the story is told in flashback or as discourse. But there are twists and tension aplenty—ideas, too. If only governments were half as interested in the psychology of violence, maybe war itself might become a work of fiction. --Keir Graff “… The brilliant character development and the labyrinthine plot line, not to mention the absorbing history of modern jihadism and the U.S. war on terrorism, make this a provocative thriller that readers won’t soon forget.”— PW (Starred) “Is there anything Gruber can’t write about? In this richly layered tale,… there are twists and tension aplenty—ideas, too. If only governments were half as interested in the psychology of violence, maybe war itself might become a work of fiction.”— Booklist (Starred) “Gruber… weaves threads together masterfully while successfully exploring themes of family, duty, loyalty, cultural identity and more, without ever slowing the momentum. Smart, tense and vastly entertaining.”— Kirkus " The Good Son , by Michael Gruber, is one of those few and far between complex, intelligent, and insightful thrillers.xa0 The main character, Theo Bailey, is a Special Operations soldier who decides to take a more-or-less unauthorized leave from the Army to locate his mother, Jungian psychotherapist Sonia Bailey Laghari, who’s disappeared near Kashmir.xa0 Sonia, who’d become a practicing Muslim when she married a Pakistani, was in South Asia to convene a symposium on "Conflict Resolution on the Subcontinent: A Therapeutic Approach" with a group of fellow pacifists.xa0 Ironically—given the title of the symposium—she and her fellow participants, who include an American billionaire, a Jesuit priest, and a Quaker couple, are kidnapped by terrorists, who may or may not have nuclear weapons at their disposal. Unless Theo can figure out what’s going on and how to foil the terrorists’ plans, his mother is doomed. At worst, the terrorists will use the nuclear devices; at best, Sonia and the rest will die by beheading. xa0Because you’re immediately sucked into the intricate and page-turning plot, this is a good novel for a long plane flight; but readers who are looking for a thriller with a strong philosophical subtext—the sort of novel that makes you think about families, loyalty, religion, and politics—will find just what they’re looking for in Gruber’s finest novel to date." —Nancy Pearl, Booklust Michael Gruber, New York Times bestselling author of The Book of Air and Shadows , The Forgery of Venus , Night of the Jaguar , Tropic of Night , and Valley of Bones , has a PhD in marine sciences and began freelance writing while working in Washington, D.C., as a policy analyst and speech writer. Since 1990, he has been a full-time writer. He lives in Seattle, Washington. Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. Read more