The Veteran
Penzler Pick,September 2001:Frederick Forsyth is known as the  bestselling author of classic thrillers such asThe Day of the JackalandThe Odessa File, among others.  He is far less known as one of our premier short story writers (even though he  won an Edgar for "There Are No Snakes in Ireland"), so it is a pleasure to have  a new book from this superb storyteller."The Veteran" tells the story of an incident in one of the seedier parts of  London. A Ugandan shopkeeper witnesses the mugging of a middle-aged man by two  thugs. The shopkeeper has a perfect view of the crime so, when the man dies of  his injuries, it would appear that the two thugs, now up on a murder charge,  will be convicted. But justice does not always come easily, and it comes in many  guises."The Art of the Matter" recounts an ingenious and deliciously satisfying art  scam. The twists and turns are breathlessly entertaining and just when you think  it's over, there's one more way for the bad guys to get their comeuppance. "The  Miracle" tells the story of an American couple in Siena on their way to a  festival. They are stopped when a stranger tells them the story of the courtyard  in which they stand. Some very wonderful things happened right there during the  Second World War. Will the couple get to the festival? Will they care?"The Citizen" is a heart-stopping suspense story set on board a flight from  Bangkok to London. We get to know the flight crew and some of the passengers  very well, and they are not all who they might appear to be. And "Whispering  Wind," the longest story in the book, is a very ambitious piece about the Battle  of Little Big Horn and what came later for several of the participants.Each of the stories in this volume is Forsyth in top form. The writing exceeds  expectations, the stories are never less than compelling, and the suspense in  each of them is nonstop.--Otto Penzler