娛樂資訊:新驚險小說環城快道戲劇

SIMON CONWAY'S fourth novel is named after a stretch of greenery in Washington, DC. A gripping, genre-bending fusion of police procedural and political thriller, it pulls the reader into a story of murder and betrayal amid a conspiracy to develop military bio-engineering.

西蒙·康威的第四篇小說以華盛頓的一大片綠色植物命名。警方程序和政治驚悚的融合，扣人心絃並類型化，帶讀者進入這樣一個故事：開發軍事生物工程陰謀中的謀殺與背叛。

Mr Conway, whose previous book, "A Loyal Spy", was set in Afghanistan, writes with verve and an insider's confidence. A former British army officer and director of Landmine Action, he knows both the murky arms trade and the world of shadows. He takes a gamble by having two protagonists. Harriet "Harry" Armstrong is a British former police protection officer marooned in the American capital while her journalist husband roams the world. Michael Freeman is a black detective married to an ultra-aspirational political wannabe who is seduced by the city's power and glamour. Mr Conway maintains a fast pace, and the book's double point of view skilfully highlights the reach and power of the dark forces involved.

康威先生的上本書，《一個忠誠的間諜》，以阿富汗爲背景，用熱情和知情人的祕密寫就。作爲一名前英國軍官和地雷行動主管，他即知道黑暗的軍火貿易，也知道很多陰暗。他冒險採用雙主角。哈莉特 "哈里" 阿姆斯特朗是一名前英國警方保衛官員，當她的新聞工作者丈夫漫遊世界時，她在美國首都陷入孤立無援境地。邁克爾 弗里曼是個黑人偵探，娶了個對政治有極大抱負，被這座城市的權勢和魔力吸引的人。康威先生保持快節奏，本書的雙視角有技巧地凸顯所涉及黑暗勢力的範圍和能力。

When Armstrong finds the body of a beautiful young woman outside the house of an influential senator, the case is handed to Freeman. The dead woman has a bar code tattooed on her arm, and her face has been smashed in. His bosses come down hard: they want him to close the case without any political fallout. The senator has very powerful friends-especially in the Pentagon. But the body count soon piles up and Freeman's life is turned inside out.

當阿姆斯特朗在一個有勢力的參議員家外，發現一個年輕美貌女人的屍體，這個案子被交給弗里曼。死去女人的手臂紋着條形碼，臉被毀。他的上司們立即下基層：他們想讓他在不形成任何政治影響的情況下結案。這個參議員的朋友們很有影響力——特別是在五角大樓。但是死亡人數迅速累積，弗里曼的生活被顛覆。

Meanwhile, the British intelligence service is courting Armstrong. MI6 is extremely interested in Dr Markoff, a creepy Russian scientist who is experimenting on monkeys. Armstrong starts work guarding his strangely compelling niece, Eva. A beautiful, strong and agile teenager, Eva cannot speak. Instead, she communicates by writing messages on her BlackBerry.

同時，英國情報部門在對阿姆斯特朗示好。軍情六處對馬卡洛夫博士，一個做猴子實驗，令人毛骨悚然的俄國科學家極度感興趣。阿姆斯特朗開始對他那奇怪的、引人注目的侄女，愛娃的保護工作。愛娃，美麗、強壯、敏捷的青少年，不能說話。代之，她用黑莓手機寫信息聯絡。

Mr Conway is keen to show off his insider knowledge, and the weight of detail occasionally slows the narrative. But the action jumps convincingly from Washington, DC, to a remote part of the Caucasus Mountains and builds to an explosive crescendo. The questions raised by the story, and by the fate of young Eva, linger long after the reader turns the last page.

康威先生迫切想炫耀他的內部知識，細節的重要性偶爾讓敘述放緩。但情節令人信服地從華盛頓跳到高加索山偏僻部分，構成爆發性的高潮。讀者翻過最後一頁後，這個故事，和年輕的愛娃提出的問題，久久徘徊。