From Publishers WeeklyOnly a few people know who Charlie Monk really is. Is he, as Monk himself believes, a highly trained government hit man? Or is he merely the laboratory fodder of scientists conducting mind control experiments? Ambrose, who has previously dabbled in such reality benders (Coincidence, etc.), handles this one with confidence, twisting the plot gently at first, then with a hard, satisfying crank toward the end. In between government hits, Monk leads a casual life in Los Angeles, partaking in the usual pleasures sought by virile young men. Meanwhile, in Washington, D.C., Dr. Susan Flemyng toils away on the leading edge of her specialty: replacing visual memory in the minds of amnesia victims. She is doing so, however, under duress. A secret government organization has kidnapped her son and won't give him back unless she oversees several experiments. Monk, it turns out, is one of them. Ambrose has several surprises in store, including government planners who want to create a fighting force of warriors with human intelligence and simian brawn. Monk figures out much of what's going on, and he doesn't drag his knuckles in seeking vengeance. Featuring an intriguing cast of characters who never turn out to be quite what they seem, this latest from Ambrose provides several hours of exhilarating diversion and a scary glimpse of scientific possibilities.Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. FromStarred Review Ambrose's sixth novel, published in Europe in 2000, gives new meaning to the phrase "living a rich fantasy life." Readers will leave the novel knowing less about what's going on than they did when they began it, and they won't mind a bit. This book, about a man who might be a superspy, or perhaps he's a clinic-bound mental patient, is a dazzling performance, a story that seems to be one thing, then turns into something else, then doubles back on itself, then stampedes off in an entirely unexpected, and bizarre, direction. At its center is Charlie Monk, a government agent whose life seems to be a series of life-and-death episodes--unless, as Charlie discovers, he's only imagining his life. This novel is mind-grabbingly elegant, a symphony of ideas that never, ever does what we expect it to. Propelled by its cast of characters, including Dr. Susan Flemyng (who is either Charlie's friend or his enemy, depending on what scene you're reading) and Latimer West (who may, or may not, be a supervillain), and by Ambrose's immense storytelling skills, the novel starts fast, gets faster, and soon has us holding on for dear life. And when the story comes to its crashing finale, we sit there, blinking, wondering what just happened here. And who the heck is Charlie Monk? David PittCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

From the critically acclaimed author of The Man Who Turned Into Himself and Superstition comes a truly bizarre and mind-twisting tale of murder, suspense, and coincidence. Isn't it odd how you can just be thinking about someone and they happen to call you on the phone that very moment? Or when you come across a picture of a friend you haven't seen in years and she suddenly bumps into you on the street the next day? That type of thing happened to George all the time, which is why he started investigating the fascinating world of coincidences and synchronicities. In fact, it's while writing a book on the subject that the most remarkable experience of his life occurs: he runs into Larry Hart, the identical twin brother he never knew he had. Or so he believes. As George gets to know this newfound twin brother, stranger and stranger things begin happening, until George realizes that Larry is not really his identical twin, but someone else entirely. While trying to get to the bottom of the identity of his mysterious twin, George discovers the real reason for coincidences and synchronicities-and why they're not nearly as innocent as they seem.Based on the real metaphysics of synchronicities, COINCIDENCE is a chilling and suspenseful novel about one man's search for the reason behind coincidences-and the shocking and murderous truths he uncovers.From Publishers WeeklyAmbrose (Superstition; The Man Who Turned into Himself) weaves a tale of duplicitous doppelgengers in this supernatural thriller. George is a quiet academic writing pseudoscience books for fun, supported by his rich, gallery-hopping wife, Sara. But his father's death triggers an avalanche of coincidental events from the appearance of old photographs of him with people he doesn't remember to an encounter with his own double, Larry, a crook on the run who has no qualms setting "jerk-off George" up for the hit men Larry is evading. Of course Larry, after assuming George's identity and faking amnesia, could have no idea that the female detective he's been sleeping with in exchange for information on "himself" would also have had an affair with rising lawyer-turned-politician Steve, who's having an affair with Sara. And no one, including the reader who by now will be wondering why the author has further complicated his narrative with references to Jung, Koestler and the I Ching could foresee the massive metaphysical conspiracy Larry and George are literally yanked into. It simultaneously explains their interrelated problems while confronting them both with an altogether more dangerous one. Ambrose clearly enjoys drawing twisty plots from inexplicable events, and he throws in just enough scientific explorations of synchronicity to justify the otherwise mystical explanations with which readers must content themselves. There is a surprisingly (or perhaps coincidentally) predictable ending to this unpredictable thriller, which undermines some of its punch, though not its author's cleverness. National advertising. Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.About the AuthorDavid Ambrose spent years investigating the scientific basis for synchronicities and coincidences and infuses the novel with the hard science behind these fascinating phenomena. He lives in Switzerland.

Based on the "many worlds" theory of quantum physics-which posits the existence of parallel universes-The Man Who Turned Into Himself is a suspenseful, intellectually intriguing debut.In the middle of an important meeting, businessman Rick Hamilton experiences a terrible premonition: His wife is about to die. Racing to save her, he finds her dying in the road, her car crushed by a truck. The light dwindles from her eyes...and then she is alive again, begging for help, and Rick Hamilton no longer is himself, but another man with another life, a different history.David Ambrose has written a twisting psychological thriller that addresses our deepest questions about reality, death, identity, and the mind.