The meeting place was carefully chosen: an abandoned church in rural Ireland just after dark. For Jonathan Quinn — a freelance operative and professional cleaner — the job was only to observe. If his cleanup skills were needed, it would mean things had gone horribly wrong. But an assassin hidden in a tree assured just that. And suddenly Quinn had four dead bodies to dispose of and one astounding clue — to a mystery that is about to spin wildly out of control.

Three jobs, no questions. That was the deal Quinn had struck with his client at the Office. Unfortunately for him, Ireland was just the first. Now Quinn, along with his colleague and girlfriend — the lethal Orlando — has a new assignment touched off by the killings in Ireland. Their quarry is a U.N. aide worker named Marion Dupuis who has suddenly disappeared from her assignment in war-torn Africa. When Quinn finally catches a glimpse of her, she quickly flees, frantic and scared. And not alone.

For Quinn the assignment has now changed. Find Marion Dupuis, and the child she is protecting, and keep them from harm. If it were only that easy.

Soon Quinn and Orlando find themselves in a bunker in the California hills, where Quinn will unearth a horrifying plot that is about to reach stage critical for a gathering of world leaders — and an act of terror more cunning, and more insidious, than anyone can guess.

Fast, smart, sleek, and stunning, Shadow of Betrayal is vintage Brett Battles: a gritty, gripping masterpiece of suspense, a thriller that makes the pulse pound — and stirs the heart as well.

"Ludlum fans will enjoy Battles's third thriller to feature Jonathan Quinn, though it falls short of the standard set by The Cleaner (2007) and The Deceived (2008). A botched information exchange near Cork, Ireland, results in a number of dead bodies, but Quinn, an operative-for-hire who specializes in resolving messy situations, manages to retrieve an envelope with the vital data for his client, Peter, head of a shadowy agency known simply as 'the Office.' Peter dispatches Quinn to deal with another botched operation, this time in New York City, where Quinn stumbles on the murdered corpse of Christopher Jackson, the deputy director of National Intelligence. Predictably, Quinn ends up framed for Jackson's murder. In his effort to clear his name and track down the true culprits, he encounters a sinister group called LP, which was behind the market manipulations that led to the recent worldwide financial meltdown. LP aims not only to control the U.S. 'but also nearly twenty percent of the rest of the world.' Action junkies not expecting surprises will be satisfied." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

"[N]ot your ordinary thriller — its premise will keeps readers guessing till the end." Mystery Reader

Brett Battles lives in Los Angeles and is the author of two acclaimed novels in the Jonathan Quinn series: The Cleaner,which was nominated for a Barry Award for Best Thriller and a Shamus Award for Best First Novel, and The Deceived. He is at work on the fourth book in the series, and his website is www.brettbattles.com.