All He Saw Was The Girl by Peter Leonard

All He Saw Was The Girl. Peter Leonard. The Story Plant. May 2012. 290 Pages. In Paperback and E-Book Formats. ISBN #: 9781611880424.

Two college students, McCabe and Chip, are students out on the town who've had a wee bit too much to drink. Chip gets the bright idea to steal an Italian taxi and enjoy a joy ride. But things don't turn out so well for McCabe. Chip's very wealthy and powerful father saves the day by rescuing his son and giving him one tongue lashing. He does succeed, however, in infuriating some mob characters in prison over a pack of stolen cigarettes. McCabe, meanwhile, is warned by the College Dean that he will be dismissed if there are anymore unruly and troubling antics, a threat that would mean the end of his scholarship.

It seems the mob characters have bad memories and decide that kidnapping Chip, getting some knocks back, and demanding ransom money will even the scales of justice. The only problem is that they mistake McCabe for Chip and kidnap the wrong victim. Now the hunt is on to save McCabe (and his scholarship), who has been sucked into the scheme by a very sexy lady.

The scene just as quickly shifts to Detroit, the home of the mob characters holding McCabe. It seems the husband of our sexy gal has quit the Secret Service and is looking for his absent wife. He's got some competition, though, from the mob boss. To say more would ruin the story but it's non-stop action, truth, lies, battles, death threats, and high-stake scenes that keep one flipping the pages (or buttons in e-book form) and unable to figure out how it will all come down in the end.

Peter Leonard definitely knows how to craft and pace an international and domestic crime thriller. This second novel read by this reviewer is just as thrilling as the first. Readers who want to get engrossed in a fast-paced, unpredictable story will love this novel!!!

Voices of the Dead by Peter Leonard

Voices of the Dead. Peter Leonard. Introduction by Elmore Leonard. The Story Plant. January 2012. 320 pages. ISBN #: 9781611880328.

Harry Levin, is a scrap metal dealer who has become successful businessman. His life is turned upside down when his daughter is killed in a car crash. He travels to Washington D.C. and then Germany to find the man who callously killed his daughter and received no penalty for this horrific murder. But when he finally figures out who the man actually is, he tries to approach him and is attacked by the man's bodyguard. Fortunately, Harry has no problem handling the attacker but he is horrified by the callous treatment of the man who killed his daughter, a casual offer to pay for the funeral. This simple, poignant tale, in which Harry himself barely displays any emotion other than anger and some mention of tears, becomes even more terrible when Harry discovers that this man is the notorious Ernst Hess, now a German diplomat still carrying out unbelievably awful deeds!

The reader learns that Harry Levin is a Holocaust survivor who escaped being shot to death by playing dead and then crawling out of a hole filled with other dead bodies during World War II. After following Hess, he discovers Hess is still doing something to Jews that absolutely must stop. The story of the chase between the two, with Hess realizing who Harry is and determined to stop him from pursuing his course and Harry looking for proof to finally get some justice on many levels, is tautly plotted and gripping on every page.

This is a story that must be told, even if it is in fiction form, for it is still occurring in some parts of the world today. No spoilers here - there is so much more that will hold the reader in awe and horror, but one can't stop reading...and hoping that justice must be accomplished. What a story - fine, fine writing Peter Leonard!