I received a review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley for my honest review. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

An action mystery with a pretty good cast of characters. If you like Lee Child and similar authors, this is one to check out.

A well-crafted story and character line-up, this mystery kept me guessing until the very end.

In City of Windows, we find Page, a retired FBI agent who was harmed in the line of duty swept back into a case when an active agent is killed from what everyone considers an impossible sniper shot. The more he digs into the case the more he realizes the additional deaths all are connected through law enforcement.

Great story and I can't wait to read more by this author in the future.

This is the second book I’ve read by Robert Pobi and he’s definitely a great story teller.

This is the first book in a series starring Lucas Page.

The one thing that knocks a star off for me is his seemingly unnecessary use of profanity and some vulgar talk of sex acts. Which also seem to be in passing and do nothing to further the story.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

4 stars
This was unique and very well done. It took me on a ride and I was all in. The way the characters developed was done extremely well and I would want to read the next books.

I lost interest in this one early on, though it came around in the end. It had a gripping opening chapter that set up the character quite well, but then it started to fall flat and never really pick back up for me, though I trudged through to the end.

Extraordinary spatial cognizance

There is a sniper in New York City and the FBI is on the job. Lucas Page is a mathematics savant who was an astrophysicist working for the FBI before he was blown up. Now he is a university professor. His old boss at the FBI asks him to take a look at the crime scene and, quite unwillingly, he is drawn into the drama.

This book came to me in 2020 at the same time as the follow-on "Under Pressure", and I will say the same thing. Dr. Page's skills are formidable and interesting and I enjoyed the book. I would ask Mr. Pobi to consider, though, how it is that Lucas is an abrasive asshole with everyone around him but is a warm and loving father and husband to his wife and clutch of foster children. The front door of a house is not a switch that turns empathy on and off.

I particularly like the title.

5★
“We have a dead federal agent in that car and a civilian stapled to a lamppost. I won’t accept can’t.”

A sniper in New York City. Nobody knows who, where, why, but the what and the when are grimly obvious. Lucas Page is an astrophysicist who teaches at Columbia University. Christmas break is just starting, and he’s looking forward to time with his wife, Erin, and their assorted foster kids.

But as it does, the news worms its way into their evening as they see the live cross to the sniper story. Lucas recognises one of the officers, Erin sees this, and realises his past as a federal agent is going to catch up with him again.

It’s New York City, winter, blisteringly cold, and Lucas is a bionic man, with many mechanical parts. We think it’s rough when we get cold, but at least we (mostly) keep functioning. Imagine “hopping” in icy conditions.

“His ankle always stiffened up in low temperatures. The prosthetic itself was mostly aluminum, but the joint pins were stainless steel and some of the other hardware was titanium or carbon fiber, and each alloy contracted at a different rate, which hampered mobility. To compensate, he added a hop to his good leg, giving his gait an idiosyncratic signature in the cold.”

I mention this because I'm giving you a trigger warning for cold. This story starts out in the cold . . . and then gets even colder, as it moves to a place I have been when it was minus 38 degrees, and that, dear reader, is almost exactly the same in Fahrenheit and Celsius. Unbelievably chilly.

But I digress – a bit. The weather does play an important part in the hunt for the sniper. We eventually learn little Lucas’s childhood background and how he became both an astrophysicist and a cop, an unusual combination.

It wasn’t his love of the stars that took him into law enforcement, but his uncanny ability to visualise geometry and understand the relationship of things in the scene around him without needing rulers and maps. You know, like where a sniper might have been positioned to make a shot. I’d say it’s unusual, but not impossible.

[Personal note: When I used to play Tetris for too long, I found myself looking around the room and seeing patterns everywhere of long rectangles and upside-down Ls and big blocks of space. I knew why that was happening, but I never found a use for it, other than to remind myself to stop.]

Obviously, he’s called back on the job by the FBI, who don’t seem to take No for an answer, and we’re on the hunt. There’s politics and possible international involvement, but Lucas is determined to follow his own instincts. When he first saw agent Whitaker, he described her as “a black chick who moved with the slow, deliberate patience of a badass.”

He asked that she be the one to pick him up (“Send Whitaker—she doesn’t talk too much.”) to drive him back to the FBI offices where he would make a decision and be briefed.

“For the next few minutes, she expertly negotiated the sometimes-plowed, sometimes-not roadways of the city. She drove well, using third and even second gear to best harness the laws of physics. Lucas began to wonder where she had learned to drive in the snow like this.

Whitaker said, ‘Illinois.’

Illinois what?’ He glanced over at her.

‘You were wondering where I learned to drive like this.’

Whitaker’s speech pattern was compact, with a slow, deliberate delivery. Lucas knew there was no such thing as mind reading, telepathy, or clairvoyance, but he found her response a little weird.

‘If you say so.’

‘It’s something I do. It helps with interrogations.’”

This adds another layer to the story without dipping into fantasy. He’s not a magician and she’s not a mind-reader, but they do have different abilities which the author uses sparingly. I have to admit I enjoyed her knowing how to drive on icy roads, since I grew up learning that way, too, and find it horrifying to see people skidding everywhere because they don’t know what to do.

But I digress again. It’s enough to say that this was terrific, exciting, and had enough human interest to keep me caring about the people and enough sniping to make me worried for them. Did I mention the cold? Mm, yeah, think so.

“Not only did his nostrils close up, but the cold was so aggressive that when he blinked his lashes froze together, only to come apart like crazy-glued zippers. He couldn’t understand how anyone could take this weather.”

Loved it! This was published in August 2019, and #2 is due out in August 2020. Thanks to the publisher for copies of both to read and review. Moving right along now!

Fast paced, suspenseful, gripping novel! Enjoyed every minute of it. It's a page Turner, for sure Absolutely recommend.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for this advanced reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

One of my favorite books of the summer, City of Winders was a quick, thrilling reader feature an FBI agent who is cerebral in his approach to solving the crime of a serial sniper. Page turning suspense, fascinating science, and believable characters make this a book I will be more than happy to hand sell!

Dr. Lucas Page is the man! What happened in his past to bring him to where he is now? We don’t know. However, this book is a thriller from start to finish. The characters are well developed, and the storyline captures you and keeps you engaged. Although Lucas is missing a few original parts, he is more than good to go with his bionic parts, and this does not stand in the way of him doing his job. Are the shootings random or are law enforcement officers being targeted? There are a lot of variables relating to the sniper, especially the fact that he or she is using a special ammunition which allows for penetration through thick metal. Just one of the many things that Lucas must decipher and close the case, too. The writing is good. If you enjoy thrillers, this is the book for you. Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for allowing me to review this book.

I loved this book from the start and Dr. Page is a great character. He is a bit rough but it fits him perfectly. I loved the science used in solving the mystery of the shooter. The plot, characters and smooth read made for a great reading experience. I'm excited to see a second book listed and set for release in 2020.

This was an intense, roller coaster of a ride! I was flipping pages quickly as I rode along to find the sniper. Lucas Page is an awesome ex FBI agent and I hope he makes another appearance!
Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

The story is about Lucas Page who has a unique gift for analyzing crime scenes. He is called out of retirement to help police track down a sniper lose in New York City. The killer leaves no evidence and is deadly even in blizzard conditions. Can Lucas Page help find the murderer before too many people are killed?

While the story includes some complex writing topics (about ballistics and astrophysics etc.) I found that the chapters were short and crisp so I could stay on top of everything well. This also means the plot moves along at a quick pace. Just when I thought I’d be getting too comfortable, a new chapter would start in a different part of New York and I’d have to wonder if this newly introduced character was going to get sniped!

CITY OF WINDOWS
Robert Pobi
Minotaur Books
978-1250293947
Hardcover
Mystery/Thriller

Just when one thinks that there cannot possibly be a new configuration of the thriller literary genre, along comes Robert Pobi and CITY OF WINDOWS. Pobi, a journeyman author whose previous efforts have been underappreciated, introduces in CITY OF WINDOWS a memorable and unique protagonist who is as mesmerizing as he is unique.

CITY OF WINDOWS begins with a memorable --- make that never to be forgotten --- vignette that haunts the reader throughout the entire book. The setting is New York City, in the middle of a blizzard less than a week before Christmas. An FBI agent in an SUV is murdered by an all-but-impossible sniper shot. Brett Kehoe, the prickly agent in charge of the investigation, attempts to bring former FBI agent Lucas Page back into the fold to assist. Page, who is happily retired, married, a father and gainfully employed as a college professor, wants no part of Kehoe or the FBI, having been extremely happy to leave the Bureau and its internal politics in the rearview mirror after an incident which left Page still functional but forever maimed. What ultimately draws Page in is that the victim, in this case, is his former FBI partner. Page has the unique ability to read a crime scene and an uncanny talent for mentally figuring out angles and trajectories. It is the latter that is particularly needed in this case, given that the FBI has no clue as to where the sniper was located, let alone how the shot was carried out. Page calculates the spot in short order, but the investigation is still left floundering, given that there is no evidence left behind. Things go from very, very bad to worse when it becomes clear that the assassination is merely the first in a series of seemingly unconnected killings carried out by a shooter who is capable of making impossible shots that can neither be predicted nor, apparently, prevented. Page brings his multifactored skill set into the investigation and eventually establishes a motive for the killings, drawing ever closer to the sniper, who in turn targets Page’s family while saving him for last. As CITY OF WINDOWS races toward a confrontation and conclusion, it is all but impossible to accurately predict what will occur. After all, we can’t all be Lucas Page.

CITY OF WINDOWS is full to the brim with interesting and complex characters, some of whom nicely counterbalance the brilliant, quirky, and occasionally irritating Page, who intermittently demonstrates without meaning to that while the science of mathematics does not lie, statistics certainly can. That said, CITY OF WINDOWS is perfectly and exquisitely paced and plotted. Pobi is merciless. There is simply no good place to stop reading and catch a breath. The quality of plot and characterization is on a level of that of Jeffery Deaver’s, and if you are familiar with Lincoln Rhyme you know what a compliment that is. Pobi also brings a cinematic viewpoint to the page which causes his story to unreel --- can we use that term anymore? Or should I say stream? --- through the mind in a wonderfully seamless fashion. You will want more, and soon, but in the meanwhile obtain and read Pobi’s previous works, each of which is more than worthwhile.

Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub
© Copyright 2019, The Book Report, Inc. All rights reserved.

The harrowing, breakneck pace of this book made me a nervous wreck the whole way through, and I’m pretty sure I’m still breathing oddly half an hour after turning the last page...but I loved every minute of it.

This story—a complex puzzle of a mystery/thriller—keeps you thinking while at the same time giving you a nerve-wracking, wild ride.

It reminded me slightly of I Am Pilgrim, which is probably the highest compliment I could give to a book.

I love books that are loads of fun AND make you think, and this one gave me both of those things in spades. Whether you read it as a puzzle and a paean to sensible gun control or as a seat-of-the-pants action thriller, City of Windows delivers magnificently.

With a fascinating cast of characters, a sense of atmosphere not common to the genre, and a deeply satisfying ending, Robert Pobi has written a near-flawless, rip-roaring masterpiece.

Published by St. Martin's Press/Minotaur Books on August 6, 2019

Snipers are apparently the thriller flavor of the month. On the heels of Tzer Island’s review of Game of Snipers comes Tzer Island’s review of City of Windows, another thriller in which the villain is a sniper who shoots with amazing accuracy. While Game of Snipers will appeal to fans of gun porn and thrillers that feature terrorists from the Middle East, City of Windows recognizes that ill-named “patriot militias,” consisting of poorly educated white men, pose “the greatest threat that exists to American security.” As I was reading City of Windows, the accuracy of that observation was driven home by the white supremacist who killed 20 people in El Paso because of his irrational hatred of their national heritage. The recognition that the number of mass shootings in America committed by white American Christians dwarfs the number committed by Islamic extremists sets City of Windows apart from mainstream thrillers. Gun porn fans are likely to hate it.

Lucas Page is a math whiz. He goes into a place in his head that lets him see everything as data. He no longer works for the FBI, but when his former partner is killed by a sniper in New York City, Lucas is called upon to close his eyes and figure out the location from which the shot was fired. That isn’t easy in a city of windows.

Lucas is missing an arm, a leg, and an eye, the result of his former law enforcement career. Now he is a professor with a wife and five children who were adopted from shattered homes. He has no desire to work for the FBI again, so of course he will, notwithstanding the wife who initially complains about his misplaced priorities. All of that is standard thriller fare.

Lucas has an impatient attitude that makes him an interesting character, although you might not want him to be your co-worker. He tells a prison guard who insists on being called a corrections officer that air conditioner installers should not expect to be called refrigeration engineers. He has no patience for the dumbing down of America, which he blames on fact-challenged opinion makers of all political persuasions. He lambasts both the propaganda-disguised-as-news served up by Fox and the focus on talking heads rather than facts served up by CNN.

The administration wants the killing blamed on a Muslim terrorist. They have one in mind and the FBI has been ordered to find him. That seems sadly plausible in today’s political world. The agent in charge wants Lucas to focus his skills on finding the real killer while the rest of the Bureau is chasing wild geese for the administration.

A series of shootings follow, all seemingly impossible shots, mostly made in bad weather. Rightwing militias (described as dimwitted and emotionally unstable bullies who have been irradiated by rightwing media) eventually enter the investigative radar. The story illustrates the madness that ensues when individuals who refuse to submit to society’s laws clash with law enforcement officers who enforce laws blindly. As in Waco, where both cops and outlaws want to prove that they are the baddest men on the block, confrontations that could be managed nonviolently instead explode.

The novel becomes a bit preachy at times, but its timely condemnation of white supremacists and their gun culture is a message that needs to be preached. An ironic “live by the sword” moment involving an NRA leader might be criticized as heavy-handed. Still, the novel is a welcome change from all the thrillers that depict armed white men as saviors who protect America from Muslim terrorists.

City of Windows earns a recommendation not because of its politics (I recommended Game of Snipers despite its politics), but because it is a smart, engaging thriller. Lucas assembles all the clues in a Sherlockian effort to identify the killer. The plot takes a clever twist at the end when Lucas comes to a new understanding of the killer’s choice of targets. Lucas’ disability and gift with spatial reasoning might be a bit gimmicky, but he is an admirable character because he solves problems by using his intellect, not by being bigger and tougher than everyone else. The story moves quickly, and the ending is no less plausible than is typical in thrillers. If Robert Pobi continues to write at this level, the Lucas Page series will be attract a large following, even if gun porn enthusiasts are not likely to embrace the unarmed Lucas as a hero.

RECOMMENDED

A fantastic story from the beginning to the end. You are going through turning every page wondering what will happen next or who Dr. Page will not make friends with next. Dr. Page used to work for the FBI many years ago and is asked to come back when his old partner is killed by a sniper during a snowstorm in New York. The way the shot happened and because of the conditions, the FBI does not have a clue where the shot came from. Just after minutes on the scene and asking a few questions his mind goes back into the mode it did many years ago and he calculates where the shot originated. Not wanting to go back to work for the FBI promising his wife during the Christmas vacation he would spend time home with their five children. Especially their new foster child who is having problems adjusting. He is called away again when an ATF agent is shot on a train. Agent Whitaker who is assigned to drive Page around arrives at his house and slowly their banter in the SUV comes back and they are going to the scene. This is the way it goes. There is a conflict between Page and an old FBI agent that neither got along when he used to work for them years ago. The FBI and all of the other agencies are looking at a French group that he does not agree with. The author also makes some reverences of changes that happened after 9-11 that most people really don’t know about which actually added to the story. Overall I found this to be a very good book that will keep you interested until the last page.

Watch out Lincoln Rhyme and Amos Decker, there is a new crime-fighter in town! In a City of Windows, how do you determine where a sniper shot from? Ask Lucas Page, a damaged but extraordinarily gifted crime solver in New York City.

When university professor Lucas Page is called on to assist his old employer, the FBI, with finding a sniper, he hesitates to comply. His career there was over years ago when he lost a leg, an arm, and an eye in the line of duty. However, when they say that the victim was his former partner, Lucas agrees. He uses his genius-level math skills to hunt down the sniper. Unfortunately, before he can find him, the killer strikes again. When the sniper threatens his family, Lucas must act quick and decisively to save them from death.

I just loved this (hold on why I pick up my Thesaurus) praiseworthy, spine-tingling thriller. It is everything you want (and need) in a thriller. Compelling plot, surprising twists, well thought-out characters, and an excellent ending are all here. Seriously, you can’t go wrong selecting this book. It’s great! 5 stars!

Thanks to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

Retired FBI special agent / math genius / astrophysicist Dr. Lucas Page doesn't technically work for the FBI anymore. But one quiet, stormy evening while he's trying to settle in with his wife and kids, Page receives an unexpected visit and request for help. A sniper is on the loose in NYC.

Ushered through the case by Page, we get to experience his brilliant yet sarcastic mind, his relationships with colleagues, his kids and wife, friends, and family.

This books tackles a series of important issues including terrorism, gun control, radicalism, and adoption, in a way that isn't heavy-handed or preachy.

I struggled through the first 1/3 of the book, but then had a hard time putting it down. I wish this were a movie!

A big thank you to Netgalley, St. Martin's Press and Minotaur Books for the ARC!