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·康威的第四篇小说以华盛顿的一大片绿色植物命名。警方程序和政治惊悚的融合，扣人心弦并类型化，带读者进入这样一个故事：开发军事生物工程阴谋中的谋杀与背叛。
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.
康威先生的上本书，《一个忠诚的间谍》，以阿富汗为背景，用热情和知情人的秘密写就。作为一名前英国军官和地雷行动主管，他即知道黑暗的军火贸易，也知道很多阴暗。他冒险采用双主角。哈莉特 "哈里" 阿姆斯特朗是一名前英国警方保卫官员，当她的新闻工作者丈夫漫游世界时，她在美国首都陷入孤立无援境地。迈克尔 弗里曼是个黑人侦探，娶了个对政治有极大抱负，被这座城市的权势和魔力吸引的人。康威先生保持快节奏，本书的双视角有技巧地凸显所涉及黑暗势力的范围和能力。
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.
当阿姆斯特朗在一个有势力的参议员家外，发现一个年轻美貌女人的尸体，这个案子被交给弗里曼。死去女人的手臂纹着条形码，脸被毁。他的上司们立即下基层：他们想让他在不形成任何政治影响的情况下结案。这个参议员的朋友们很有影响力——特别是在五角大楼。但是死亡人数迅速累积，弗里曼的生活被颠覆。
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.
同时，英国情报部门在对阿姆斯特朗示好。军情六处对马卡洛夫博士，一个做猴子实验，令人毛骨悚然的俄国科学家极度感兴趣。阿姆斯特朗开始对他那奇怪的、引人注目的侄女，爱娃的保护工作。爱娃，美丽、强壮、敏捷的青少年，不能说话。代之，她用黑莓手机写信息联络。
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内部知识，细节的重要性偶尔让叙述放缓。但情节令人信服地从华盛顿跳到高加索山偏僻部分，构成爆发性的高潮。读者翻过最后一页后，这个故事，和年轻的爱娃提出的问题，久久徘徊。