Synopses & Reviews
National-bestselling author Alan Jacobson brings back renowned FBI profiler Karen Vail in an intelligent thriller that bridges time and space
When an elderly woman is found raped and brutally murdered in San Francisco, Vail heads west to team up with SFPD Inspector Lance Burden and her former task force colleague Detective Roxxann Dixon.
As Vail, Burden, and Dixon follow the killer’s trail in and around San Francisco, the offender continues his rampage, leaving behind clues that ultimately lead them to the most unlikely of places: a mysterious island ripped from city lore whose long-buried, decades-old secrets hold the key to their case. Alcatraz. The Rock.
It’s a case that has more twists and turns than the famed Lombard Street . . . and a novel that Clive Cussler calls “a powerful thriller, brilliantly conceived and written.”
Review
“Inmate 1577 is a grand slam that ranks Alan Jacobson on par with such literary luminaries as Michael Connelly, Nelson DeMille, and James Patterson. This one will be tough to top.” —John Wills, New York Journal of Books
“Jacobson’s latest Vail novel continues his streak of terrific mind-bending thrillers. The story line seems straightforward at first, but when the twists come, even the most hard-core thriller fans will not figure everything out. Jacobson should be mandatory reading for the James Patterson crowd; this is an essential addition to any fiction collection.” —Library Journal
“In my 27 years of working at USP Leavenworth as a Correctional Officer and Institution Historian, no other book has painted the story of what it’s like to survive behind those 40 foot walls better than Inmate 1577. Hats off to Alan Jacobson for his relentless research and desire to bring credibility to an already fascinating story!” —Kenneth M. LaMaster, author and retired Leavenworth historian
“Inmate 1577 is everything you’d come to expect from an Alan Jacobson novel, a page-turning thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat for hours . . . his previous books were gripping thrill rides, but with Inmate 1577 Jacobson has taken it to another level.” —Andrew Gulli, managing editor, The Strand Magazine
“Alan Jacobson has already distinguished himself in the crowded serial killer sub-genre of thrillers. But his smooth and seasoned approach reaches new heights in Inmate 1577, a stunner of a tale that is structurally flawless. Inmate 1577 moves deliberately along a circuitous path lined with secrets, surprises and subterfuge that have been a staple of the genre . . . Jacobson builds the suspense to a pulsating crescendo that will ultimately bring the walls down upon Vail, not quite literally but in immensely satisfying fashion.” —Author Magazine
“Inmate 1577 is another rippin’ good ‘Alan Jacobson read’! Jacobson researches his books like a good newspaper reporter, and then pushes the envelope into reality more thoroughly than the typical crime novel could ever allow.” —Kevin Fagan, San Francisco Chronicle
“A powerful thriller, brilliantly conceived and written.” —Clive Cussler, New York Times–bestselling author
“If you like puzzles and conundrums and the slowly unraveling of clues, you will enjoy Inmate 1577. All the pieces are there for the reader to put together, but watch out . . . there might be a surprise or two. This is an excellent novel . . . a very worthwhile read.” —Stephen L. Brayton, Suspense Magazine
“Alan Jacobson has captured the desolate solitude that distinguished Alcatraz as the toughest US penitentiary that housed the worst of the worst. Inmate 1577 is not only a riveting read with a Hitchcock-type ending I never saw coming, but it possesses an authenticity that brought back memories from my many years on the Rock.” —George DeVincenzi, Alcatraz correctional officer (1950–1957)
Synopsis
An FBI profiler tracks a brutal killer through San Francisco, and the key to the case may lie on Alcatraz Island, in this thriller by a national-bestselling author.
When an elderly woman is found raped and brutally murdered in San Francisco, Vail heads west to team up with SFPD Inspector Lance Burden and her former task force colleague Detective Roxxann Dixon.
As Vail, Burden, and Dixon follow the killer's trail in and around San Francisco, the offender continues his rampage, leaving behind clues that ultimately lead them to the most unlikely of places: a mysterious island ripped from city lore whose long-buried, decades-old secrets hold the key to their case. Alcatraz. The Rock.
It's a case that has more twists and turns than the famed Lombard Street . . . and a novel that Clive Cussler calls "a powerful thriller, brilliantly conceived and written."
Synopsis
FBI profiler Karen Vail tracks a killer through San Francisco in this "powerful thriller, brilliantly conceived and written" by a USA Today-bestselling author (Clive Cussler).
When an elderly woman is found raped and brutally murdered in San Francisco, Vail heads west to team up with SFPD Inspector Lance Burden and her former task force colleague Detective Roxxann Dixon.
As Vail, Burden, and Dixon follow the killer's trail in and around San Francisco, the offender continues his rampage, leaving behind clues that ultimately lead them to the most unlikely of places: a mysterious island ripped from city lore whose long-buried, decades-old secrets hold the key to their case. Alcatraz. The Rock.
It's a case that has more twists and turns than the famed Lombard Street . . . and a novel that Clive Cussler calls "a powerful thriller, brilliantly conceived and written."
About the Author
Alan Jacobson is the national bestselling author of several critically acclaimed novels. In order to take readers behind the scenes to places they might never go, Jacobson has embedded himself in many federal agencies, including spending several years working with two senior profilers at the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s vaunted Behavioral Analysis Unit in Quantico. During that time, Jacobson edited four published FBI research papers on serial offenders, attended numerous FBI training courses, worked with the head firearms instructor at the academy, and received ongoing personalized instruction on serial killers—which continues to this day. He has also worked with high-ranking members of the Drug Enforcement Administration, the US Marshals Service, the New York Police Department, SWAT teams, local bomb squads, branches of the US military, chief superintendents and detective sergeants at Scotland Yard, criminals, armorers, helicopter pilots, chief executive officers, historians, and Special Forces operators. These experiences have helped him to create gripping, realistic stories and characters. His series protagonist, FBI profiler Karen Vail, resonates with both female and male readers, and writers such as Nelson DeMille, James Patterson, and Michael Connelly have called Vail one of the most compelling heroes in suspense fiction.
Jacobson’s books have been published internationally, and several have been optioned for film and television. A number have been named to Best of the Year lists.
Jacobson has been interviewed extensively on television and radio, including on CNN, NPR, and multiple ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox network affiliates.