Patrick Carlton 01 - The Diamond Conspiracy

Read Patrick Carlton 01 - The Diamond Conspiracy Storyline:

Using the monopolistic practices of the diamond industry as his blueprint, Kublicki builds an impressively complex plot in this well-crafted, exciting political thriller. It begins innocuously enough when a suave billionaire named Max MacLean buys the site of a former diamond mine in Arkansas. His attempt to develop the old mine triggers a series of threats from various governmental groups; then MacLean’s lawyer is murdered after completing the transaction. Patrick Carlton, a hard-nosed attorney from the Justice Department, takes on the case, and he and his attractive younger colleague, Erika Wassenaar, soon find themselves being chased by a series of would-be assassins. The investigative trail eventually leads to a powerful, corrupt South African diamond conglomerate, Waterboer, which is trying to purchase a reserve of Russian diamonds in an attempt to maintain control of the world supply. Assisted by MacLean and a CIA agent named Pink, Carlton and Wassenaar head off to Murmansk to try to get to the stash first in an adventurous subplot that features plenty of unexpected twists and turns. Kublicki’s background as a Justice Department attorney helps him authenticate the details of a conspiracy that stretches to the highest levels of the White House, and he keeps the tight, riveting plot clipping along despite several characters who are one-dimensional and cartoonish. The pace slows toward the end, as Carlton journeys to Italy to enlist the aid of the Vatican and then a Mafioso to try to bring down the diamond cartel, but Kublicki shows more than enough of the right stuff to make this a readable, engaging debut. --PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.