Book Review: Stay Alive by Simon Kernick – High speed blockbuster action with no shortage of violence

Kernick’s books are all fast paced, action based thrillers.  With Stay Alive, Kernick has paused his political thriller series (Siege and Ultimatum) and instead delivered a standalone novel.

This book has a number of threads, starting with Amanda Rowan’s escape from a brutal sadistic murder, dubbed The Disciple.  Her husband and his mistress weren’t so lucky.  Kernick builds the story introducing a wide cast of characters; Detectives Mike Bolt and Mo Khan; Policeman turned rogue Frank Keogh plus nasty men Mehdi, Sayenko and Maclean.

Having then thought that Rowan is going to be the focus of the action, we meet Joss Granger and her little sister Casey, who with their step parents Tim and Jean are out for an idyllic day trip canoeing.  A shocking reality strikes when Keogh and Maclean burst onto the scene pursuing Rowan and within minutes Jean and Tim are dead.

The chase is now on, but at this point what’s not clear is why.  Keogh has been instructed to bring Rowan alive to his mysterious boss.  We’re told she has information, but this adds further to the reader’s confusion as to what this might be.  Confusion deepens as Bolt’s investigation into the Disciple murders takes an odd turn into a blind alley when the prime suspect flees from the arrest team, is found murdered and then DNA evidence shows the dead man wasn’t The Disciple after all! Meanwhile, as the pursuit of Rowan develops we see some more characters added – Maclean’s mother (bad!) and Glenn Scopeland (Scope) last seen in the book Siege – a good guy at last!  

I won’t go into more detail and give the game away, but be prepared for action that zips along, brutality, violence and some just desserts. Stay Alive is a fast moving book with lost of threads and just as you second guess what’s happening, Kernick anticipates your thinking and trips you up with new information.  The characters are strong and Kernick cleverly adds some from previous work Siege and his short story Wrong Time, Wrong Place, although you don’t miss out on anything if you haven’t read those books.  

Don’t expect to be able to just pick up this book up for an occasional read and to put down again.  It’s not a “start/stop” novel that you nibble at, but one to be devoured voraciously in large chunks, which is a big reason why I found this book to be a fast and exciting read.  I have only one comment for the author – please can your next novel be the follow on from Ultimatum, as I really want to know what happens next!

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