Book Log 2008 #19: The Overseer by Jonathan Rabb

Very disappointing conspiracy thriller, whose premise - a 16th century text that provides a blueprint for world domination is being implemented by a trio of powerful men under the direction of the titular figure - is interesting. Its execution, however, is not.

The Overseer is one of those thrillers where everything happens or is described in some sort of superlative fashion, hoping that a litany of things that happen at the last second or involve the best or worst of something will provide a sense of motion or energy that aren't actually there. The characters are pretty standard - evil old men and young, relatively attractive protagonists who develop the required romantic interest in each other - and not particularly interesting. The sinister plot itself is never fully explained, which isn't necessary but would have helped given the fragmented and vague references to parts of it (though I was amused by the repeated referenced to the first trial, thanks to it being constantly put in italics).

It's never a good sign when you consider giving up on a book when you're three-quarters or more of the way through. I fought the impulse to do so expecting a payoff that never came, and really wasn't likely given the several hundred pages that came previously. Save yourself the trouble and don't bother picking this one up.