Gate 76 by Andrew Diamond is a riveting tale filled with adventure and strong characters. The main character, Freddy, is a tough customer. He used to make his living fighting and now lends his talents to his work as a private investigator. While waiting for a flight at the airport, his powers of perception alert him to the suspicious activities of a female passenger. His curiosity leads him to follow this woman and his suspicions are confirmed. She is up to something, but what? After the plane that she was supposed to board crashes, killing one hundred and eighty-eight people, Freddy knows his suspicions about the blonde woman could be worse than he imagined.

Andrew Diamond does a great job of describing the scenes and the physical features of the characters in rich detail. The story starts off strong and draws the reader in within the first two chapters. The story slows down in chapter three, but picks up again in chapter four and evolves into a real page-turner with some interesting twists. Readers will find themselves sleuthing their way through the story, trying to piece together the evidence right along with Freddy. The outcome of the story does not disappoint and is executed brilliantly. Overall, it was a good read and will please fans of crime thrillers and murder mysteries.

How often do you feel that immediate interest/attraction to a complete stranger? Do you go out of your way to assess the person’s state of mind, state of life, state of well being? A chance encounter at an airport leaves Private Investigator Freddy Ferguson wondering if there is something more to the mysterious, good looking woman. The one with multiple bruises on her arm. The one who gives the appearance of boarding a plane, then doesn’t. The one who just missed being blown to bits on the same plane she almost boarded. Too much coincidence and, when the airline hires his boss to look into the matter, Freddy finds himself on a mission to find this woman and understand why she changed her mind, her appearance and, quite literally, disappeared.

Andrew Diamond’s mystery/suspense novel, Gate 76, is full of all the excitement and drama one would expect in a page-turning thriller. His main character, Freddy, has his own story, which unravels as the plot thickens. The woman he seeks has a complex tale of her own to share, one that will shatter both politics and the law. But will anyone believe her? That’s the big question that hangs over the mysterious woman as she struggles to come to terms with her precarious situation, and wonders how much she can trust Freddy. However, Freddy is a good sleuth, among other things, and he manages to put the pieces together. This is an intense story with lots of unexpected twists and turns, contemporary in its use of the element of terrorism, corrupt politicians and law enforcers. A great read.