Lee Goldberg, True Fiction

TV writer and novelist Ian Ludlow is in Seattle plugging his latest Clint Straker thriller when he discovers that a terrorism plot he once conjured up has been turned into horrific reality, an attack on American soil that leaves hundreds dead.

Ian soon realizes that he's a target, since he knows who's behind the attack, and that he has in fact been one for some time: he's dodged a few bullets already out of sheer dumb luck.

The story that follows is a fun one, with Ian teaming up with his publisher's book tour guide, Margo, in an attempt to survive further attempts on his life. But can our everyman protagonist summon his inner Clint Straker and prevail against the professional assassins his nemesis throws at him?

A few months ago, I described Lee Goldberg and Janet Evanovich's novel The Heist as "a fun mix of light comedy and crime and likeable protagonists. It's the literary equivalent of watching a feel-good TV crime show." The same can be said of True Fiction.

I enjoy Goldberg's style, his nods to classic TV, his light, entertaining plots. He's got, I don't know, maybe a zillion novels under his belt in addition to TV writing credits, and that competence shows on the page.

I'm just glad we're going to be seeing Ian Ludlow again. Book two in the series, Killer Thriller, is coming in 2019.