Freed from the shadow of Ludlum

Regrettably few writers today produce the kind of suspenseful,action-packed international thrillers made famous by Robert Ludlumand Frederick Forsyth. Fortunately, two of the best have publishednew books and they're both tremendously entertaining.

Gayle Lynds not only grew up reading Ludlum but also collaboratedwith him on three novels before his death in 2001. Now Lynds hasstepped out of the master's shadow with a rousing new work that willearn a prominent place on every thriller lover's bookshelf.

The Coil (St. Martin's, $24.95) features the return of LizSansborough (who first appeared in Masquerade in 1995), a former CIAcovert operative whose hatred of violence …