A review by riverdogbookco
The Escape Artist by Brad Meltzer

2.0

Clever and accurate title. Well-written thriller, plot-wise. But it's entirely a book written by a man that is supposed to be about a woman but is actually about a man instead. The marketing is well-done but inaccurate. This book is about Zig, and tangentially about Nola Brown. It would be nice to actually read a book about Nola who sounds like she would be a fascinating character if she was ever described in a manner that was not in relation to another male. Perhaps we could see her thought process and development as a fully-realized human being and character, instead of how it relates solely to Zig's understanding or in relation to her adoptive father's moods.

Also, in a book that addresses Nola's complexion almost purely through the racial slurs aimed at her by her adoptive father, I'm also not okay with how the assassin is described as Native American (though the author did deign to specify a tribe in there, once - again, accompanied by stereotypical circumstances). If you're truly going to give voice to or raise up an indigenous person as a character, refer to them as their tribe, not the catch-all. Why make mention of a race at all, if that's the case? What depth did it add to the character? I despise writing peppered with characters of color simply to seem inclusive while actually singling that out as an exotic trait and perpetuating clichéd stereotypes.

The plot holds up, though is predictable by the end. The rest does not.