The Third Option

by E.A. Briginshaw

Henry Shaw is faced with a very difficult decision. The FBI have claimed that his son, David, has been radicalized and become part of a terrorist group involved in planning an attack against the President.

Henry is told he only has two options. Option one is to reveal David’s location to the authorities so the attack can be thwarted, but this would mean his son would face life in prison. Option two is to keep is son’s location a secret, but the police are getting close to finding him and have “shoot to kill” instructions.

Surely, there must be a third option.

251 pages, Paperback

Published April 1, 2018

About the author

E.A. Briginshaw is a Canadian author who has written twelve books. His first mystery novel, "Goliath", was published in January 2014 and the sequel, "The Second Shooter", was published in February 2015. The third book in the series, "The Third Option", was published in April 2018.

Mr. Briginshaw also wrote "The Legacy", a kidnapping story told against the backdrop of the Rio Olympic Games, which was published in June 2014.

In 2016, he released "The Back Nine", a story about life after fifty, which has become his best-selling novel.

In 2017, Mr. Briginshaw tackled the humor genre with the release of a romantic comedy novella titled "Women 101: A Father's Humorous Guide To His Son". The book has also been adapted into a stage play.

In 2020, Mr. Briginshaw released two novellas. "Choices" is a story about an older man who re-lives the choices he has made in his life while attending the 50th anniversary of his university graduating class. "Life-Changing Events" is a story about Frank Taylor and Katy Sanchez, who shared one of these events many years ago when Frank was a hard-working, middle-aged plumber and Katy was a troubled, eleven-year-old school girl. Both of them have been dealing with the fallout ever since.

In 2022, Mr. Briginshaw released "The Journey", a story about Ryan Beam, an astronaut candidate hoping to be one of the crew members selected for a future mission to Mars. Ryan's parents and girlfriend want to support him in his quest, but are facing their own challenges in getting where they want to go.

In 2023, Mr. Briginshaw released "Passenger 14C". Investigative journalist Andrew McKenzie is jolted awake when his trans-Atlantic flight from Qatar makes an emergency landing in Gander, Newfoundland, where he discovers that he is one of the few people onboard who is still alive. During the subsequent investigation by the authorities, he realizes he is no longer being treated as a lucky survivor, but has become the prime suspect.

In 2024, Mr. Briginshaw released "Secrets", the sequel to "Passenger 14C". Investigative journalist Andrew McKenzie heads to the Middle East to uncover the secrets surrounding the 2022 World Cup held in Qatar. Using the information provided to him by Sarah Khan about the corruption within FIFA, he plans to confront Sarah’s husband about his role in the under-the-table deals and the disaster that happened onboard flight 059. But Andrew also has a secret, one that he shares with Sarah and RCMP Superintendent Simon Powell. And like the old saying goes, the only way three people can keep a secret is if two of them are dead.

In 2025, Mr. Briginshaw released "The Guilty", the third book in the Andrew McKenzie Trilogy. The journalist continues his search to track down Sarah Khan, one of the key people involved in the tragedy that happened onboard Flight 059. He discovers that some of the guilty parties will pay with their lives, some through the legal system, and some through other ways.

Mr. Briginshaw lives in the beautiful Shuswap area of British Columbia, Canada.

Reviews

[Cy Wyss · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Third Option by Ernie Briginshaw is a timely story of U.S. paranoia in this age of political partisanship. Basically, someone is making possibly credible threats against an unnamed and unpopular president and a young Canadian soccer player gets blamed after overzealous paramilitaries extract a fictitious confession of his involvement. The multitude of characters was well-drawn, each compelling in their own right. Some of the myriad FBI personnel seemed indistinguishable, but all the major characters stood out like lightning rods.

I really liked The Third Option. It was a smooth read with an inventive and satisfying plot and a sympathetic protagonist. I especially enjoyed the settings, from NYC to Washington, to Ontario. Briginshaw has a way of bringing a place to life through little details. The characters also really stood out for me, and I felt every interaction and quirk was immersive and believable. I was never taken out of the story with jarring editing errors or non-sequiturs. An easy, enjoyable read.

[Shirley DeKelver · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed the Third Option, it was well written and face paced. The interaction between the Canadian and US authorities adds a nice twist to the story. I would recommend this book to readers, as well as the first two novels in this series.