The fifth book in Coulter and Ellison’s series is set in Britain, flipping the usual script which shows Nicholas Drummond — the former Scotland Yard chief inspector — trying to adapt to life in America, working as part of the FBI’s elite Covert Eyes team.
While relaxing at Drummond’s family estate in England, Drummond and Caine see their vacation cut short when several prominent political figures are killed, including the German Vice-Chancellor, who is assassinated on the steps of 10 Downing Street. Their only lead is that a drone was seen hovering over the scene, giving them precious little to go on. However, after toxicology reports show that the Vice-Chancellor was poisoned, Drummond and Caine realize that the drone had been weaponized and is capable of shooting poisonous darts.
As the investigation unfolds, multiple storylines emerge. The main plot thread follows the duo’s quest to track down Roman Ardelean, a rich computer genius who specializes in cybersecurity. Eventually, it’s revealed that Ardelean — whose company provides software to governments and companies around the world — is a descendant of Vlad the Impaler, aka Vlad Dracula, and that he has a twin brother dying from an extremely rare blood disease. Securing the help of Dr. Isabella Marin, an expert on the Voynich Manuscript, Drummond and Caine believe that Ardelean’s end game is to secure the early 15th-century document, which he believes to contain a cure for his brother’s disease.
Ardelean has already proven that he’s willing to kill anyone and everyone who stands in his way. . . but when whispers of a planned large-scale attack emerge behind the scenes, Drummond and Caine find themselves with very little time to crack the case and stop the madman before it’s game over for London.
There’s a lot going on this book. Like, a lot. And yet, Coulter and Ellison manage to weave it all together into a cohesive, fast-paced, and helplessly engaging story that has a little something for everyone. The Sixth Day falls somewhere between Matthew Rielly’s Jack West Jr. books and James Rollins’ Sigma Force series, with shades of Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code. There’s definitely a sci-fi element, but (assuming you’re willing to suspend your disbelief a little bit for the sake of enjoying a good story) it’s all presented in a believable way.
Overall, the latest Drummond and Caine thriller is a ton of fun. Separate, Catherine Coulter and J.T. Ellison are both hugely popular, bestselling authors with dedicated fan bases. . . together, they’re absolutely lights-out, and The Sixth Day is everything you’d expect from one of the best writing tandems working today.
Book Details
Author: Catherine Coulter and J.T. Ellison
Series: A Brit in the FBI #5
Pages: 528 (Hardcover)
ISBN: 1501138170
Publisher: Gallery Books
Release Date: April 10, 2018
Book Spy Rating: 8.0/10
Praised as “one of today’s finest book reviewers” by New York Times bestselling author Gayle Lynds, Ryan Steck (“The Godfather of the thriller genre” — Ben Coes) has “quickly established himself as the authority on mysteries and thrillers” (Author A.J. Tata). He currently lives in Southwest Michigan with his wife and their six children.