Simon Kernick is among the new generation of English writers who have embarked on a writing career at an early age. His novel Siege has created waves in the world of writing.
An adventure novel
Simon Kernick is a British writer. His forte are thrillers and crime fiction. Born in 1966, Kernick has been writing detective novels since he was a boy. Kernick earned a Bachelor of Arts in 1991 and after graduation worked for some time in odd jobs. Kernick had his education at Gillotts School, Oxfordshire. During his student days he did jobs like being a fruit picker and Christmas tree starter.
Enter the world of the writer
Kernick published his first novel “The Business of Death” in September 2001. After the publication of this book, Kernick has not looked back while producing crime thrillers for the next decade. In 2012 he published ‘Siege’, a fast-action crime thriller. The nearly 400-page book became a best-seller. This is a fast and rapid fire action oriented thriller. Reading this book reveals the author’s affinity with the Antiterrorist and Special Police Department.
Kernick was not instantly successful as a writer, and after graduation he worked at his uncle’s company until his book was picked up by a publisher.
The plot of the “siege”
‘Siege’ is a book that does justice to Kernick’s genius. The novel has firmly established Kernick as a writer with a talent for mystery and crime. The hotel is the target of the Pan-Arab Army of God. But to divert attention from its real target, this terrorist group launches attacks on a railway station and a shopping center.
Kernick then treats readers to 400 pages covering five hours of intense action as hotel residents and staff are taken hostage. Kernick brings the human element, and in a way, this story can be compared to the movie Die Hard. The hotel itself and its guests are a very plausible lot. Some of the residents have their own reasons for staying at the hotel, which they would like to keep secret.
Secrets in the Hotel
Among the hotel guests are a diabetic mother with her young son and a mysterious soldier who is disillusioned with life. There is also a woman who has come to meet her lover, a married man. Among the hotel staff is the manager Elena Serenko, who has just hired and has decided to quit her job and emigrate to Australia to start a new life. The characters created by Kernick have a tone of reality.
There is also a dangerous assassin who is hiding in the top floor attic while waiting to kill a man who has eluded him. They are real people who are caught up in the siege and suddenly come face to face with terror. None of the neighbors know that a group of terrorists will arrive at the hotel at 4 in the afternoon and that everyone’s life is in danger.
Kernick’s style
Kernick has a racy writing style that is sure to appeal to her fans. It features a thriller in the James Hadley Chase genre and the reader is stuck with the book to the end.
The police operation is in charge of Arley Dale, who is outside the hotel. She has her own problems. The Siege is a very realistic scenario that could be duplicated anywhere in the world.
Personal life
Kernick currently lives in Oxfordshire with his wife and two daughters. His novel ‘Relentless’ was the eighth best-selling paperback and the best-selling thriller of the year. His book was recommended to the Richard & Judy Summer Book Club in 2007. Kernick remains a terrific thriller writer and has a huge following.
List of books published by Kernick
The Business of Dying (2002) The Murder Exchange (2003) The Crime Trade (2004) A Good Day to Die (2005) Relentless (2006) Severed (2007) Deadline (2008) Target (2009) The Last 10 Seconds (2010) The Recovery (2011) Siege (2012) Ultimatum (2013)
Last word
The world of action thrillers is vast in English literature. Since Charles Dickens wrote ‘The Edwin Drood Mystery’, many writers have appeared on the writing scene. The thriller genre has received encouragement from many writers and Simon Kernick holds an important position among modern writers.