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The Gatekeeper

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From the author of Days of Drums and Last Rights comes a new heartpounding thriller that’s destined to be an international bestseller. His name is the Handyman. For fifteen years he’s been in hiding, living under an assumed name in a small foreign country, waiting to be called. Now, the call has come. Like Lazarus, he is coming back from the dead. The Handyman has a job to do… Hollis Fremont works for the American Embassy in Paris. Beautiful, young, idealistic, she is still scarred from the assassination of her diplomat father when she was eight. Now, in the diplomatic corps herself, she is determined to put her tragic history behind her. And things look to get better when she’s taken under the wing of Paul McGann – one of the most powerful men at the embassy. Handsome and debonair, Paul takes a personal interest in Holly’s progress, and in Holly herself. But all is not what it seems. When Paul asks Holly to run a simple diplomatic errand for him to New York, she sees no reason to refuse. But with that small consent starts a chain of events that will threaten the chain of command right up to the President himself, and Holly’s own life is the smallest of bargaining chips. Racing against time, Holly must learn who she can trust, from her past as well as her future. The only person who seems on her side is Agent Sam Crawford, member of the mysterious Omega group, a renegade agency that hunts international assassins and answers only to the President. Together, they must find away to frustrate the Handyman in the biggest assignment of his bloody career… Gripping, complex and absolutely riveting, this new international political thriller from the author of Days of Drums and Last Rights is guaranteed to please old fans and win Philip Shelby the thousands of new fans he deserves.

338 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

82 people want to read

About the author

Philip Shelby

18 books9 followers

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5 stars
23 (20%)
4 stars
42 (38%)
3 stars
34 (30%)
2 stars
9 (8%)
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2 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
Profile Image for Megan Daniel.
7 reviews
January 5, 2019
I loved everything about this book. It had me on my toes the entire time and I think I stopped breathing a few times in anticipation of what was to come next. I have found a new author I can’t get enough of and I’m excited to continue the journey Philip Shelby has laid out for us.
Profile Image for Sara.
250 reviews6 followers
May 16, 2018
Entertaining but dated adventure/espionage story.
Profile Image for Nathan Woll.
598 reviews7 followers
March 13, 2022
It was ok. The ending was anticlimactic and prolonged. The magic rituals were way out of place in a modern book.
Profile Image for stefaans coetzee.
2 reviews1 follower
August 24, 2024
As good as Evelyn Anthony's 1970 bestseller, The Assassin. Also read Snow Wolf by Glenn Meade!
39 reviews
August 14, 2025
I give it 3 1/2 stars. It had a lot of action, secret agencies, assassins, politics, etc.
35 reviews1 follower
August 27, 2007
It was a fun read. I had read too many serious books lately and needed something fun. It's in the same mold as Tom Clancey, etc.
8 reviews
February 11, 2013
I liked this book. It was fast paced without being dizzying. There was enough "black ops/cover these" without completely losing me.
Profile Image for Krissa33.
113 reviews3 followers
March 19, 2016
Der Klappentext kann in die Irre führen: die Geschichte ist besser!
Etwas langatmig am Anfang, anschließend sehr gut und flott geschrieben
Gibt es einen zweiten Teil?
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews

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