She was one of the best at what she did, and almost no one knew. With her help, the country had been saved several times over; yet there were no thanks or accolades sent her way. The U.S. government used her and when they decided she was a liability they went after her.

Never staying in one place for long, she has learned not to trust any one.

When her former handler offers a way out, she realizes this could be her only chance to finally be free. It means taking one last job for them; doing the one thing she resolved never to do again one more time.

The job itself is not that difficult. It is what she learns however, that turns her already precarious existence from bad to worse.

I admit, dear reader, to being pleasantly surprised by Stephenie Meyer’s The Chemist. My first introduction to her writing was with the Twilight novels – books I alas, did not enjoy reading. So when I saw she had come out with a new book, I was a bit hesitant. However, when I started this blog I read that a good reviewer reads nearly everything they can. Good books, bad books, it makes no difference. So I picked up the book at my local library and began to read.

Dear reader, I am quite glad I did. The Chemist is an amazing book; one that is a far cry from Meyer’s first forays in to writing. Several time I had to remind myself that this was the same author. Her writing style has changed and grown and become much better.

If there was one complaint I had about The Chemist, it would be how easily the main male and female characters fall in love with one another. It could almost be considered a kind of Stockholm Syndrome – a point one of the characters actually made in the book and one I agree with. It seems to be a recurring theme in Meyer’s books, having occurred in the Twilight novels, The Host, and now The Chemist.

Aside from that one small quibble, The Chemist is an excellent book. Well written and full of action, it kept me enthralled from the first page to the last. Readers who enjoy a densely packed thriller are likely to enjoy this one.