Review: A World I Never Made by James LePore

Title: A World I Never Made
Author: James LePore
Genre: Suspense, adult
Published: 2009
Source: For review, Pump Up Your Book

Summary: Pat Nolan is called to Paris to identify the body of his daughter, Megan, a suicide. When he gets there, though, the body is not Megan's, and Pat instinctively knows she is still alive somewhere, and that she concocted this whole scheme as a call for help. He keeps this a secret, and leads everyone to believe she is in fact dead, as he knows she is in trouble somewhere. Working with a beautiful French detective, Catherine Laurence, Pat faces grave danger while globe-trekking on a search for his daughter, whom he believes is in some kind of trouble with terrorists.

In alernating chapters, we get the story from Megan's perspective, starting the year previous to Pat's story of his search, of her relationship with a mysterious Saudi businessman and her journey in Morocco, leading her to the trouble she is now in.

My Thoughts: Whew! What a thrill ride of a book this one is! I was a little apprehensive about it at first because I don't typically read books that take place outside of the U.S., but I am so glad I gave this one a chance. Right away, it grabbed me and didn't relent until the very end. It's like this race against the clock all across the world - I felt like I too was running and frantically searching while reading it.

The story line is complex, the characters well drawn out, and the suspense taut, ready to come to a head at any moment. Many aspects come in to play here, including heart pounding suspense and thrills, romance, and past regrets, especially the distant relationship between father and daughter that pushes Pat to find Megan even more. The only real issue I could find with this story was that sometimes I got a bit confused because a lot is going on, but it all comes together eventually, so the frustration was worth it. LePore's writing is nearly flawless - I could perfectly visualize the sights and settings of this book. I felt like I was watching an action movie in my head.

Basically... what a thrill! I can't wait to read James Lepore's next book! Pick it up if you're looking for a great adventure... but prepared to be glued to it all hours of the night!

My Rating: 4/5