Rick Mofina’s thriller, “One Second Away,” is a classic mystery/suspense novel, a story of murders, kidnapping, power grabs, and the horror of looking directly into the face of evil and having the evil glare right back at you with menacing intent. The major plot concerns the kidnapping of a nine-year-old boy, his mother’s search for him, and the seemingly impossible task not only of finding him, but also finding the reasons for the kidnap, the persons or organization which planned it, and the reason that that particular boy was the target of the perpetrators.

There’s a sub-plot which is almost as significant as the primary one. This one involves mystifying murderous train crashes which are caused by a virtually unidentifiable source. Those two seemingly unrelated plots merge gradually as the novel progresses, and the suspense builds until the two of them crash together in a stunning climax.

The primary plot begins in Los Angeles when protagonist Jessie Ward puts her son Dylan on a plane to visit his his father, Vaughn, in New York. Vaughn and Jessie are in the middle of divorce proceedings that have been quite vitriolic, as each threatens the other in a struggle involving custody issues. Both of them are brilliant and strong-willed. She is the founder and head of a classified advanced network security company that does much secretive work for and with the U.S. government. He is a globally admired journalist who often works on technology issues and associated international fraud schemes and companies that should, in his opinion, be investigated. So both are tech experts. And both are suspects in the complex kidnapping plot, a plot which, as the investigation develops, clearly indicates that intricate technology expertise must have been required.

Dylan was supposed to be picked up at his arrival in New York by Vaughn’s parents, but he is picked up and taken instead by two older people who pretend to be his grandparents. So the search for Dylan commences. And Jessie’s heartaches also begin as she feels terrible guilt for having allowed Dylan to take the trip alone, all the while desperately wondering if he will be or has already been killed or is the victim of a hostage scheme which will eventually lead to demands for payment in order to free him. In either case, of course, his life is in dire danger.

There are other likely suspects, too, including his grandparents, Jessie’s co-workers and close friends, and several others who have known of Jessie’s and Vaughn’s conflicts. Meanwhile, though, the parallel topic of uncontrollable deadly train crashes is also being investigated. The first episode is initially blamed primarily on the engineer. Perhaps he fell asleep and failed to recognize the stopped train directly in front of him, or perhaps he simply ignored the red light that should have warned him to stop immediately. He is killed in the crash. But then, the newly installed control system is considered as a possible cause. Maybe it somehow failed.

Finally, there is a possibility that the very carefully constructed system may have been invaded and attacked at a vulnerable point. In other words, a criminal entity might have intentionally shut off the entire system. As the novel’s plot unfolds, it becomes clear that the crash, plus later crashes that are occurring all over the world, are, indeed, the work of an evil entity. But why would anyone want to cause such violence? And who or what might that entity be? Mofina adds effectively to the suspense and the novel’s emotional appeal by providing short but touching biographical information about several passengers on each of the crashing trains, including those who are killed in the crashes. That technique involves us even more in the lives of the characters and our recognition of the fragility of the human condition. And it works as an emphasis on the simple and cruel truth that the train crashes are acts of murder.

The suspense built into both of the novel’s plots is brilliantly executed. The exciting and heart-stopping climax hits us right between the eyes. I don’t think you’d be able to find a more tightly and effectively conceived mystery novel plot anywhere. Mofina’s techniques are masterful. This is a fast read because, like those crashing trains, we simply can’t stop — reading. Don’t miss it.

Please note: This review is based on the final paperback book provided by Doubleday, the publisher, for review purposes.

Review by JACK KRAMER.