Angels of Wrath is the second in Larry Bond and Jim DeFelice's First Team series. Once it again it follows the activities of the CIA's 'First Team', a covert action group who are not as cheesy as their name would imply. Lead as always by the sarcastic, pragmatic and highly effective Bob Ferguson, the team is tasked with monitoring a group of US based fundamentalists. This mission eventually takes them to Israel, Turkey, Syria, Lebanon and Iraq a events spiral out of control.Which is the beauty of both this book and its predecessor in the series. Whatever complaints you make about First Team (and that name has to be one of them) you cannot include predictable plotting. Events in the team's world evolve organically and often in surprising directions. Unseen connections are identified, dead ends are pursued, plots evolve and unforseen events send the story off in completely new directions. It gives the whole book a ring of truthfulness that is lacking from other, more linear thrillers, although it does demand the reader's concentration. With new characters constantly being introduced, new places being visited and the team being divided into different groups with different tasks it would be easy to become confused if your weren't paying attention.
If you do keep up however, then you're rewarded with a story that is both exciting and believable, with just the right mixture of action and intrigue.
With this being a second novel featuring a recurring cast, there is also a feeling of characters developing. How much this would come across to someone who hadn't read the first book in the series is questionable, but for someone familiar with Ferg, Rankin, Corrine and the others its good to see them grow and become more interesting and complex.
Not that characterisation is necessarily the book's strong point in every case. Whilst the members of the team benefit from being given more time to breath and having appeared in the first novel, some of the supporting players come across as nothing more than cliches or ciphers, there to drive the plot on.
This lack of depth is a consequence of the speed at which the book moves. Written in short, punchy chapters and multiple acts, the action never ceases, with people constantly working or on the move. Some readers might find this sense of restlessness frustrating. It also, like the first book in the series, gives it the feel of a TV or movie script in book form, with lots of short scenes and multiple cuts. At times it feels like the literary equivalent of TV's 24.
These are minor quibbles however, and should not spoil readers enjoyment of what is an entertaining, fresh take on the contemporary thriller. If Bond and DeFelice produce further books up to the same high standard this series should run and run.
