Mission Critical: A Grey Man Novel (Series #8) by Mark Greaney

Mission Critical: A Grey Man Novel. (Grey Man Series #8). Mark Greaney. Penguin Publishing Group.  February 2019. 528 pp. hb.; ISBN: 9780451488947.

Courtland Gentry, the Grey Man, is back in action but not the way he planned.  Returning to Washington by orders of his CIA boss, Suzanne Brewer, he’s relaxing in his seat on a plane landing in Luxembourg when some obvious-looking goons drag a man onto the plane, a man whose head is covered by a black bag.  It turns out the plane heads to England but not with the prisoner. Upon landing in the U.K., a heavy gun battle ensues, shooting up the plane and killing several of the prisoner’s guards.  Court of course gets involved and attempts to follow the van holding the escaped prisoner. There the business begins.  It turns out the prisoner knows pivotal information about a mole in Langley.

Meanwhile a Soviet woman, Zoya Zakharvoa, who has turned to become an American spy is being held in a safe house while she is being prepped to be an agent in a top-secret program run by the CIA.  One night the safe house is attacked by assassins, with many deaths occurring; but Zoya manages to escape.  She’s definitely a force to be reckoned with and no one in possession of sanity would attempt to capture or mess with her in any conceivable way. 

On another note, another plot is moving forward, directed by Zoya’s father, the former head of the Soviet GRU but now operating under an anonymous name.  His plan is motivated by personal reasons and has nothing to do with Russian affairs or Russian authority. The plan involves a North Korean scientist with her own fanatical agenda which she plans to carry out with a biological event. 

The plot about the “mole” at CIA gets quite complex and riveting.  It turns out several characters are being obviously followed.  But the real question is “Who is the mole?”  Too bad these characters are innocent or have personal matters they fear exposing. 

The violence of this novel is ongoing and intense beyond words.  Court or Gentry is very good at his job but unfortunately gets physically hammered by a Godzilla-sized character – several times.  Add to the fact that there are many surprises in these pages that aren’t mentioned in this review.

Eventually, Court and Zoya meet, with some interesting chemistry developing between them.  Court is a highly skilled and objective guy who has more heart in this novel in the series.  He’s a good guy in a very bad world!

It doesn’t take too much imagination to see this story scripted into a thriller/espionage movie.  Mark Greaney is a talented writer who knows how delineate a multi-layered plot with interesting characters that keeps readers glued to the page and at the end wanting more!

Nicely crafted, Mark Greaney – a novel to satisfy crime thriller and international spy fans galore!

Killer Choice: A Thriller by Tom Hunt

Killer Choice: A Thriller.  Tom Hunt. Penguin Publishing Group. January 2018. 352 pp.  ISBN#: 9780399586408.

The premise of this unusual novel is simple but oh so complex at the same time.  What if you had the opportunity to save the life of a loved one by earning the money you needed to make that happen?  What if you had to kill to make that happen?  Posing these questions out loud makes the writer and reader feel the tension and indescribable difficulty inherent in making such a decision.

This is the story of Gary and Beth.  Beth has just been diagnosed with a brain tumor, a glioblastoma, that defies usual treatment.  However, she gets the opportunity to travel to try an experimental treatment that shows great promise in saving her life, not just giving her a few years of borrowed time.  The cost, however, is $200,000.  Who has that kind of money laying around?  Gary is willing to do anything or is he…?

Enter a drug dealer who is unable to pay off money he owes on a large-scale drug deal.  He’s told he’ll be torn up by a chain saw if he doesn’t deliver what he owes.  He then decides to get rid of the muscle always threatening him for payment.  This part of the story is depicted in a way that truly elicits the repulsion and dislike of the reader.  There’s also a hole in the plot here that this reviewer won’t expose that has to do with money that is one minute totally unavailable and then there for killing.  A puzzle for your pleasure!

Gary makes a decision and the remainder of the novel obviously focuses on that decision as well as its multiple unexpected outcomes.  The cost of the offer is immense!

Tom Hunt has written a nightmarish plot that one hopes will never happen.  Is the plot too contrived?  You decide.  A heart-wrenching debacle that hopefully will remain as outlandish as it seems!

The Deep Dark Descending by Allen Eskens

The Deep Dark Descending. Allen Eskens. Prometheus Books. October 2017. 272 pp. ISBN #: 9781633883550. 

Max Rupert is a detective tormented by the death of his wife and child she was carrying.  After a certain amount of time passes, Max is not allowed to have anything to do with the investigation of his wife’s passing.  However, Max discovers that she didn’t die in an accident but was deliberately murdered!  It doesn’t take much to imagine his fury and resultant reaction! 

Max has it on tape, a voice clearly indicating his wife was deliberately murdered.  Now he has to figure out who the Planner, the Henchman  and the Boss are!  The remainder of the story proceeds with Max figuring out the identity of the men responsible for Jenni’s death.  Somehow she discovered facts that could materially indict certain people over a crime involving Russian woman brought to America to serve as prostitutes.

This novel is harrowing as Max confronts the chief perpetrator and plans to kill him.  This is the essence of this story.  It raises questions of moral integrity.  When is it okay to wreak revenge on a killer?  Why should the law be the one to punish a murderer or murderers?  The laying out of these questions becomes clear when we see how Max begins to distance himself from everyone he knows, including a partner Niki, who cares for Max more than she should

The reader will be shocked by the end of this story and will certainly wonder what lies ahead in Max’s future.  This reader has the feeling that this will become clear in future novels.  For now, The Deep Dark Descending is nail-biting, tension-filled reading that lovers of crime thrillers, adventure tales and mysteries will thoroughly enjoy! Well done, Allen Eskens!

Snow by Mike Bond

Snow. Mike Bond. Mandevilla Press. September 2017. 250 pp. ISBN#: 9781627040372.

Meet three successful men who are off in the Montana wilderness, free to hunt, drink and bond. They have no cares other than their high-stress lives, a stress none would give up except Curt, a half-Cheyenne mountain guide anxious to save his ranch from a takeover by a well-known energy company. Zack used to be an NFL football star and is now a TV sports newscaster. He loves his job but knows his football years have taken their toll on his body and even his mind. He owes a couple of million dollars to some high rollers in Las Vegas. Steve is a rabid Wall Street investor/broker whose confidence in investing money has gone much too far and he is now faced with the fact that he has lost not only his own money but also Zack’s money – millions! The “high life” is a capricious creature that can turn on a dime, making one bankrupt in seconds.

Miraculously or not, depending on one’s point of view, Zack and Steve find a crashed airplane inside of which they find a load of cocaine. Steve wants to turn “most” of it over to the police, but Zack’s having none of that. Curt really doesn’t know what’s happened until it’s too late.

For Maria Christina, a brilliant businesswoman, runs a cocaine cartel and has not taken well to her stolen cargo. She sets the executioner Diego onto the trio and at the same time the Feds get involved. It’s not very long before everyone knows where everyone else is and the race is on for very high stakes! There’s much more to this frenetic tale, including that Curt must make a choice to play criminal or snitcher!

“Lady Cocaine” is a costly habit as Steve and Zack discover but that doesn’t stop them from being enamored by her physical embrace. Readers won’t be able to put this book down as Mike Bond again makes them embrace the plot to the point it’s as if they were involved in the hunt of all hunts.

The plot is rather simple but Bond’s talent is as a Master of Suspense for sure!

Fast-paced mystery, adventure, and frenetic crime thriller!

The Scarred Woman: A Department Q Novel Series #7 by Jussie Adler Olsen

The Scarred Woman: A Department Q Novel Series #7. Jussie Adler Olsen. Penguin Random House Publishing Group. September 2017. ISBN #: 9781524702489.  

Get ready for a thriller rollercoaster ride!  Carl Marck, the head of Copenhagen’s Department Q dealing with cold cases, becomes interested in parallel details of two cases, one the murder of an elder woman years ago and a similar present murder.  Department Q is in trouble and in competition with upstairs Divisions, as the politicians and police brass are interested in the number of cases completed and reported on and those begun but never finished. The outcome could be financial cuts. That is until Carl enters the scene.

In a Social Services office in Copenhagen, a social worker, Anneli, is sick and tired of young woman dressed quite fashionably who show up for their unemployment benefits. They can’t or won’t get jobs.  Anneli wishes she could do something about it but doesn’t do anything.  But then disaster strikes when she is diagnosed with breast cancer and decides to not only fight for her life but to make her job meaningful by taking care of these leeches on Dutch society.  From that decisive moment, her portion of the story becomes non-stop riveting, pulse-pushing horror!  Denise, Michelle and Jazmine, predators on society, love their lives but are now the hunted rather than hunters.

Rose, the main character in this novel, starts the ball rolling by being yelled out in Department Q for not completing her reports.  There’s something about one of these cases that completely unravels Rose’s sanity, and the eventual involvement of Carl and Assad turns up Rose’s nightmare past, including twists and turns with murders and familial hatred beyond one’s imagination.

These stories eventually coalesce, with a balanced amount of humor and serious investigation, that is pleasing.  Although many of the actions in these scenes are quite wrong, this author makes the reader root for all the characters involved herein.

This reviewer hasn’t read the other novels in this series but intends to do so soon.  Fans of Stieg Larsson will love this novel as the desire for revenge wreaks its path across the city of Copenhagen.  The Scarred Woman is a remarkable crime thriller highly recommended for all readers!

Shadow Girl: An Afton Tangler Thriller No. 2 by Gerry Schmitt

Shadow Girl: An Afton Tangler Thriller No. 2. Gerry Schmitt. Penguin Publishing Group. August 2017. 320 pp. ISBN #: 9780425281789.  

This old-fashioned mystery opens with the reader discovering that a woman packs a long-range missile and proceeds to calmly shoot down a helicopter, an act that not only obviously kills the pilot and his assistant but also causes numerous injuries when the pieces fall on the streets of Minneapolis.  What’s more important, however, is that the helicopter was carrying a brand-new heart that was supposed to be put into Leland Odin, the magnate owner of a home shopping network. Without it, Leland’s hours to live are dwindling rapidly!

Afton Tangler is the family liaison officer for the Minneapolis Police Department.  She and her partner proceed to investigate what starts as a crash and then evolves into a murder.  The pace is quick and the number of suspects grows with each turned page.   Is it the wife who seems normally concerned about this event but whose responses occasionally seem contrived?  Is it the strangely unconcerned daughter whose middle name could be “Frosty?’ Perhaps Leland’s partner, Bart, who is courting a buy-out of another home shopping network, has bigger plans that just might not include Leland?

While we discover who is the perpetrator half-way through the novel, that doesn’t spoil anything as more murders and a truly exciting search and find mission keep the reader’s adrenaline pumping.  Add to that we want to know the why of the crime as well as how it will all evolve! 

There’s an international espionage component to this story and it turns out that Afton Tangler is one hell of a great investigator, a fact that just might wind up with her being moved officially into the Police Department, that is if she survives being a target as she and her partner get closer to the enemy!!!

Fine, fine mystery that is a great read!!!! Highly recommended!

Cast the First Stone: An Ellie Stone Mystery by James W. Ziskin

Cast the First Stone: An Ellie Stone Mystery #5.  James W. Ziskin. Prometheus Books. June 2017. 290 pp. ISBN #: 9781633882812.

Ellie Stone, a newspaper journalist from the unknown town of New Holland, gets the chance to travel to Hollywood, California to interview Tony Eberle, formerly also of New Holland, who is about to star in his first movie.  Anyone who has met Tony admits he is definite “eye candy” who, if he has the goods on acting, is about to become a big Hollywood star. The problem is – he never showed up the first day of rehearsals.  The fury of both actors and staff is chaotic and Ellie Stone wonders if she’s got a bigger story here than she first thought. 

Ellie is definitely a tireless reporter as she sets about finding the MIA actor, only to find that his producer is also missing and a few days later is found dead.  No spoilers here!  The remainder of the novel focuses on the people who knew Tony and his producer.  At first they’re not willing to help Ellie one iota until she lies and says she knows where he is.  Then they’re all over her to cooperate and Ellie plays this little lie for all it’s worth.

The bottom line is that Hollywood is full of panderers in the 1960s, willing to do anything for a “moment in the sun” of stardom, be it top actor or extra.  There are rare people in this novel who do have good intentions and act with integrity, but they are the exception and not the norm.  The characters of the norm are too busy having a good, no – great time drinking, drugging and having sex with adults and – Oh No!

Ellie makes a clever sleuth and she’s got a wacky, always entertaining sense of humor that at times saves this story from its repetitive cycles of discovery, where Ellie often as to repeat former trips and conversations to get ahead one step at a time.

As an aside, film buffs will love the references and recommendations of actors, actresses, and films from the 1950s and 1960s.

The outcome is not what you expect but does differ from the normal Hollywood story ending!  Nicely crafted mystery, James W. Ziskin!

Lost and Gone Forever: A Novel of Scotland Yard's Murder Squad by Alex Grecian

Lost and Gone Forever: A Novel of Scotland Yard’s Murder Squad.  Alex Grecian. Penguin Publishing Group (USA). May 2016. 384 pp.  ISBN#: 9780399176104.

Inspector Walter Day was kidnapped and held for one year by a man named “Jack.”  Whatever the latter inflicted upon Day, he no longer has any memory of his previous life.  Now he manages to escape, although he does so with great trepidation as he fears Jack is just around every corner waiting to grab Day and return him to his imprisonment.  Little by little, he inches his way back into society, shaping and selling old cigarette and cigar butts he has reformed into new products.  He even manages to enlist homeless urchins to assist him and pays them for their efforts. 

Day’s old friend, Nevil Hammersmith, a former Sergeant who lost his job over a case that also involved the disappearance of Day, has formed a private investigation agency with two female assistants.  Although he takes on new cases, his obsession is finding Day.  He even hires two bounty hunters to find and eliminate Jack, believing if he is removed Day will reappear.  However, the two chilling bounty hunters are about much more than heeding Hammersmith.  The reader wonders if this “Saucy” Jack is really Jack the Ripper, the killer who was feared by every decent British citizen. 

Even Hattie, Hammersmith’s assistant, gets involved in the missing persons search.  The owner of a brand new, gaudy and innovative department store (new for that time period of the late 1800s) is also involved accidentally and undergoes a dramatic transformation. 

The mystery will be solved but one must journey through several harrowing scenes and a very handy, albeit somewhat contrived, resolution for all characters that should greatly please lovers of the crime/thriller genre.  This reviewer has not read the previous books in the series, but that doesn’t matter as this is a fine stand-alone mystery that will probably draw readers to read the other novels as well.  Nicely crafted, Alex Grecian!

Between Black and White: McMurtrie and Dale Thrillers 2 by Robert Bailey

Between Black and White: McMurtrie and Dale Thrillers 2.  Robert Bailey. Thomas and Mercer. March 2016. 399 pp.  ASIN#: B013FS57KG. 

Pulaski, Tennessee was the birthplace of the Ku Klux Klan between 1865 and 1866.  Bocephus Haynes saw his father murdered by the Klan one hundred years later, in 1966, in the most gruesome way one could imagine, a way that scarred Bo forever.  For years he returned to the place where his father died on every anniversary of the horrendous death.  For years he swore he would have revenge. 

Pulaski is a town that had a certain pride in the Ku Klux Klan but also a definite contemporary embarrassment about it all.  So on the night when Bo gets viciously drunk and goes to the infamous place for the awful anniversary visit, Andy Walton is found murdered.  Bo had believed Andy was the person whose voice Bo recognized the night his father was killed.  Now, after Bo has been heard raging about an “eye for an eye…”, he is accused of murdering Andy and  the prosecution is aiming for the death penalty.

But a crack lawyer, Rick McMurtrie, is determined to defend Bo, also a former successful lawyer, and sets about to prove Andy’s death was a framed killing.  The reader will be amazed at the facts that bit by bit are revealed, some that are utterly astonishing as to who was actually at Bo’s father’s death.  It also emerges that there’s a lot of pocket-to-pocket support and crime happening in Pulaski and those who get in the way are judged to be quickly and easily dispensable.

To say more would spoil a lot of twists and turns that keep this crime thriller dynamically vibrant and skillfully moving.  The reader is never sure as to how it will all, or if it will, be resolved on the final page.  McMurtrie is a skilled investigator whose inquiries make him a target as well from the involved ne’er-do-wells of Pulaski, Tennessee.  Hope lies in the few decent human beings who still believe in justice by legal means and not by individual action.  Fine novel that is a terrific read!

Rain Dogs: A Detective Sean Duffy Novel by Adrian McKinty

Rain Dogs: A Detective Sean Duffy Novel. Adrian McKinty. Seventh Street Books/Prometheus Books. March 2016. 315 pp.  ISBN#: 9781633881303.

Sean Duffy has nothing going right these days.  He’s just been dumped by his girlfriend, Beth, who is ten years younger than he is.  He’s just been assigned to the protective unit for a Muhammed Ali visit to Ireland. 

The story takes place in Carrickfergus which is close to Belfast.  It’s the time of the Irish Troubles when the IRA is dropping bombs left and right as a protest method to gain Irish independence.  It’s a bit of a far stretch to imagine how these bombs could be an asset in their goal but for now it is what it is.  So for now Detectives like Duffy check under their cars for bombs every time they set out to travel somewhere.  Ali during his tour actually turns around and confronts protestors, winning them over with his charm and panache.

But the day isn’t done before there are two problems, one minor and one major.  A Finnish delegation has come to the area to check it out as a potential site for a large new business and of course the town officials want and English government want everything to proceed ultra-smoothly.  However, one of the Finnish delegation member’s wallet is declared missing and a young woman is found dead from a possible suicide in Carrickfergus Castle. The first is a joke; the second turns out to be a complex mystery.  Why did this young journalist kill herself?  Why did the night guard not know she was still in the Castle after closing hours? 

The plot becomes quite complex when it turns out that the Finnish delegation was not as innocent as it appeared to the public.  Add to that another policeman is killed from a bomb under the car and of course everyone assumes it’s just another IRA plot, nothing new.  It turns out that’s not so either.

Duffy for a long time keeps receiving false leads but if it’s one thing Duffy has a reputation for, it’s persistence, relentless.

Rain Dogs… has many other twists and turns that keep the reader flipping the pages and rapidly reading.  This is my first Sean Duffy mystery, and I am looking forward to read the other novels in which he is the sleuth solving crimes in tumultuous Ireland!  Very nicely done, Adrian McKinty and recommended reading for all who love a good mystery!

Deadly Alliance by Kathleen Rowland

Deadly Alliance. Kathleen Rowland. Tirgearr Publishing/Smashwords. February 2016. 180 pp. ISBN# 9781310588310.  

Amy Kintyre has a chance to design her own clothes, has interviewed with someone to carry her label but needs time to finish her full presentation.  So she’s planning on quitting her taxi cab job and applies as a bookkeeper for Finbar Donahue, ex-Army Ranger.  Amy’s not in the hunt for a date these days as she’s got enough on her plate; but when she meets with Finn, all bets are off and it’s instant hot zone trying to tone down.  It won’t be long until both are doing the same and more.

Finn’s got a huge problem, however.  His partner has been killed but it seems his partner or someone else was siphoning funds out of the business.  It’s not so easy to track which makes it all smell like some very shady money laundering. So Finn’s asked for some police help and the case becomes a larger nightmare when it appears that the local Irish Mafia is tangled up with some ISIS fundraisers assisted by some ragtag Mexican hoods.  When Finn’s account is frozen, all hell breaks out!

Deadly Alliance is a crime thriller and serious hot and heavy romance novel.  Rowland’s plot is complex enough to keep the reader engaged with wondering how it will all end. At the same time, the sparks are flying between Finn and Amy and Finn’s former skittishness around women appears to be undergoing a very gradual transformation.  Amy, a woman who knows her own mind and has no need for a dependent relationship, is a feisty character who may ramp up Finn’s testosterone but knows how to cool his fiery temper and Army Ranger force that doesn’t want to wait for someone else to handle what he clearly sees is family betrayal.

Very good read and highly recommended for romance and thriller fans!

Back Blast: A Gray Man Novel by Mark Greany

Back Blast: A Gray Man Novel.  Mark Greany. Penguin Group (USA). February 2016. 528 pp.  ISBN#: 9780425282793.

CIA Operative Court Gentry has been running around the world, trying to evade those who follow him in order to kill him.  Court can’t understand why these people are those whom he used to work with.  Throughout the beginning of the novel, Court replays past cases in his mind, trying to figure out what he did that deserved a termination order. 

Now Court decides to turn it around and pursue those would-be killers, as he’d had to kill those who almost caught him.  Every death has added to his enemy’s determination to finish what they believe is a former agent gone rogue. So imagine their shock when they discover that Court has invaded a drug den in order to obtain the money and weapons he needs for his mission.  The bloody aftermath has the earmarks of his work all over it but in particular a number 6 etched in the dust, a symbol of the agent known as Sierra Six, Six, the Gray Man, or the most commonly used name, Violator.  Now he’s determined to discover his former superiors and colleagues to try to get out of them the reason for this hunt.

On the other side of the coin, we have Denny Carmichael, head of the National Clandestine Services.  He’s on top of the game and only one man is slotted for his job eventually.  Other men know Carmichael controls every agent and circumstances and fear crossing him.  But not one of them knows the real reason Carmichael is determined to end the life of Court.

In the pursuit of his hunt, Court winds up being responsible for killing more agents or former agents, but it also happens that a hidden sniper kills one of them and the news manipulates the account so that Court is blamed.  Court is wounded seriously but manages to patch himself together as he relentless pursues what he now realizes is more about Carmichael than it is Court.  Back Blast was the beginning of a game that stretched all the way to the Middle East and back to Washington, D.C.

Greany, the writer who co-authored many Tom Clancy novels, knows how to spin a riveting, pulse-racing plot that reads much like spy thriller novels of old, like those of Robert Ludlum.  For those who love crime novels or political thrillers, you certainly will be thrilled with this intense, fast-paced thriller fiction!  Good read for sure!

The Newsmakers by Lis Wiehl with Sebastian Stuart

The Newsmakers.  Lis Wiehl with Sebastian Stuart. Thomas Nelson, Inc.  January 2016. 352 pp.  ISBN#: 9780718037673.

Jettisoned!  That’s how Erika Sparks’ news anchor job is progressing!  She’s finally made it to the big time at a cable news network that is also working its way upward.  Her background is wounded and her daughter has become a stranger to her; Erika’s goal is to establish herself financially so that her daughter can become a meaningful part of life again.  She knows that fame can be disastrous if one forgets from where one began, and she’s determined to grow into her position but keep her head on straight in more ways than one.  However, circumstances will test her resolutions in several ways!

To begin with, Erika happens to be in place when a disastrous ferry accident causes numerous deaths and injuries.  She attempts to save the life of one of the victims and the pictures of her desperately working over this woman plus her own coverage propel her to be covered on every news channel, including CNN.  She becomes famous almost overnight. 

Then a potential Presidential hopeful nominee, Kay Barrish, has a heart attack and Erika again attempt CPR to save the life of this brilliant and well-respected woman. All of a sudden, the previously scornful owner of Erika’s news program is promoting her, although someone else had attempted to steal the limelight from Erika.  Add to that her supervisor, Greg Underwood, is showing romantic interest in Erika.

It’s all rather overwhelming, but Erika is still holding on to her level presence and is even planning on her daughter’s first visit.  However, something strange comes to her attention, the possibility that the ferry accident was caused deliberately.  Her independent investigation reveals something startling and frightening, something that gradually reveals a horrific connection.

The Newsmakers is a nail-biting crime novel with a very credible plot that promises fame and success to several people, Erika included, but which should not happen because of its unnatural evolution.  Erika is a skilled, spunky character who deserves every ounce of her success but who is humble enough to know that the nefarious plans of a certain person must be stymied now before it runs out of control and causes more tragedies at the expense of innocent victims.  Highly recommended reading and kudos to the authors for a mystery, criminal story that says a great deal about integrity and injustice – all for a goal that is highly questionable!

Rhode Island Red: The Nanette Hayes Mystery Book 1 by Charlotte Carter

Rhode Island Red: The Nanette Hayes Mystery Book 1.  Charlotte Carter. Open Road Media Mystery & Thriller.  January 2015. 179 pp. e-book. ASIN #: B00QN352W4.

One can picture Nanette playing sultry jazz tunes outside of anywhere she can park in Manhattan, New York.  Although she’s a French major, she knows she’s not a very good jazz musician but she worships the music of the greats, especially Thelonious Monk and others of his ilk.  Her life is difficult as people leave little change in her sax case but is about to become terrifying after she decides to let a fellow sax player named Sig come home with her.  He tells her he’ll help her find all the hot spots where she can earn a great living and maybe they can even jam together for the public.  Whatever is she doing taking a white man home to her apartment, a stranger at that?

The next morning, Nanette awakens to find Sig dead on the floor of her living room.  A rough, tough black cop verbally works over Nanette believing she is the murderer but having no proof.  He leaves but promises to return and so he does many times in the course of this mystery.  After he leaves the first time, Nanette finds $60,000 socked up in Sig’s sax case.  In the pages that follow with Nanette attempting to decide whether to turn over the money to the police, keep the money, give it to acquaintances in need, she begins to unravel the twisted connections of those connected to Sig.  Nanette gets a bit battered up in the process of her journey.

These scenes involving Sig’s girlfriend, other musicians, etc. are very moving and work very well in drawing the reader into total immersion in this all too brief story.  In fact, even though Nanette is a ball of fear-filled nervousness, her determination to continue to the source of this crime causes many tension-ridden moments right up to the dramatic solution of this horrific crime!

The term “Rhode Island Red” is the heart of this well-crafted thriller, a story that is intriguing and highly recommended reading for readers who love a story in which to lose one’s self.

Murder in the Queen’s Wardrobe: An Elizabeth Spy Thriller and Jmistress Jaffrey Mystery by Kathy Lynn Emerson

Murder in the Queen’s Wardrobe: An Elizabeth Spy Thriller. Jmistress Jaffrey Mystery. Kathy Lynn Emerson. Severn House. March 2015. 256 pp.  ISBN#: 9780727884596.

Mistress Rosamond Jaffrey is married but separated from her husband and living independently.  She is wealthy, educated and intelligent as well.  While she has no problem filling her days, she is now drawn into the service of Queen Elizabeth’s cousin, Lady Mary, in London in the year 1582.  However, she’s not there to be a semi-servant to Lady Mary but to be a spy for the Queen’s chief spymaster, Sir Frances Walsingham, a man who knows everyone’s business and shares his knowledge sparingly if at all.  Now Rosamond is to be his ears and listen to the gossip of Lady Mary and her ladies in waiting,  Rosamond is not sure what she is to hear, but it doesn’t take long to realize that it seems someone is trying to arrange the marriage of Lady Mary to the Tsar of Russia, Ivan the Terrible, a tyrant whom all fear and few trust.

The mystery deepens when several murderous attempts fall on first Lady Mary and then on Rosamond herself.  Lady Mary is believed to have succumbed to a dreaded disease when in fact she is the victim of poison.  On it goes with events conspiring against Rosamond that look like accidents but occur too frequently to be coincidence.

In the meantime, Rosamond’s husband, who is living in Russia supposedly doing busy with a Muscovy merchant company, has been distracted by the widow of an Englishman who was executed as a traitor.  The Tsar will not let this woman return to England and so she lives in dire poverty and miserable conditions.  Soon Rosamond’s husband is feeling more than pity for this young, attractive woman and he will bear some very harsh consequences for his attendance upon this woman and his plan to free her to return to England.

Rosamond at first has to mentally explore who could be responsible for attempting to harm Lady Mary and why they are trying to make sure a marriage and alliance with the Tsar never comes to pass. As in any well-thought out mystery, each character has some flaw, weakness or political connection that could provide a motive for a plot to harm the Queen’s cousin.  Rosamond herself is betrayed a few times and has to come up with some very rapid reasons for explaining her presence as a lady-in-waiting to Lady Mary.

All in all, Rosamond is a clever, ingenious sleuth who keeps the reader guessing on every page and flipping the pages to relish each engaging misunderstanding, attack, clue-ridden occasional dialogue, and violent scenes occurring to Rosamond and her husband Rob.  A splendid read that is highly recommended for all lovers of well-crafted mystery fiction.

The Job: Fox and O'Hare Series #3 by Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg

The Job: Fox and O’Hare Series #3.  Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg. Bantam Books. November 2014. 320 pp.  ISBN#: 9780804179898.  

FBI Agent Kate O’Hare conned a major con, Nicolas Fox, in order to capture him.  But the criminal con was so good the FBI released him to help catch other criminals they couldn’t catch without his help.  Oh, by the way, no one is supposed to know that later bit about releasing him!

Kate supposedly despises Fox but she has to admit with humorous reluctance of course, that he is good at what he does, very, very good!!!

In this latest Fox and O’Hare series, Kate O’Hare and Fox travel through America, Europe and elsewhere in order to figure out two things.  The first is what con is posing as Fox in order to steal famous art works and the second is the major drug cartel leader who yearns for more and more treasure and has the means and ways to make that happen with ease!

The story involves a hidden treasure (duh, or something like that), a female bodyguard who’s almost pathological, a Portuguese enforcer, a pirate, a special effects creator and director, and a retired Special Forces father, and more crazy, fun, chaotic characters who are part of this lunatic plot to capture or con the major con master!

The plot is simple but what makes this latest Evanovich novel delightful is the way cons con other cons and the humor and delight they get in discussing and carrying out these events.  It’s even better than Bonnie and Clyde! It’s a MUST read!

Terminal City: A Novel by Linda Fairstein

Terminal City: A Novel.  Linda Fairstein. Dutton Adult. June 2014. 384 pp. pbk. ISBN #: 9780525953884.

Assistant District Attorney Alex Cooper is called to the scene of another horrific murder.  This time the victim is a young woman who was obviously raped and knifed by a vicious killer.  One odd piece of evidence remains; a carving on the woman’s body that looks like a precisely carved ladder.  Add to this that the murder took place in the famous Waldorf Astoria, the notable hotel in which the President of the United States is to be a resident in a few days. 

Hundreds of videos need to be screened, dozens and dozens need to be interviewed, and of course relatives need to be notified.  Mercer and Mike are among others required to find the killer before POTUS arrives in three days.

Meanwhile, what seemed to be a unique crime is followed by other murders, each with the singular carving of what appears to be a ladder. A few days later while searching for anyone who would have seen someone carrying a large case into the hotel, the mystery becomes more complex.  An underground city exists with residents who are homeless but who feel safe in this putrid, filthy place with its caves and rules and regulations.

So the search continues. A mystery also concerns Mike who had taken a three month leave of absence and is now lying to Coop (Alex Cooper) for her own safety, supposedly. She’s not quite buying it!

Terminal City: A Novel is a fast-moving, intriguing criminal mystery that will satisfy readers who like this genre as well as new readers.  Linda Fairstein knows how to pace the tension and clues, while adding many funny moments to deflect the horror of the crimes that rear their heads during the investigation.  Nicely done, Linda Fairstein! 

Eden in Winter by Richard North Patterson

Eden in Winter.  Richard North Patterson. Quercus Publishing PLC. July 2014. 620 pp.  ISBN#: 9781623651473.

Richard North Patterson concludes his trilogy in Eden in Winter, preceded by Fall From Grace and Loss of Innocence. Adam Blaine is on leave from his CIA job after the death of his father, Ben.  There was no love lost between the two but Adam takes on the task of making sure that the real murderer of his father is cleared from guilt at the inquest into his father’s death.  In reality, almost everyone in the family wanted Ben dead, so acrimonious were their relationships to the family patriarch.

 

This is the story of Adam’s illegal activities to clear a family member, a connection to his father’s mistress who is now carrying his father’s child, and some very long conversations with a family friend/psychotherapist who attempts to help Adam purge his memories of the repression that has turned him into an emotionless man who steers clear of all feelings and emotional connection with family and friends.  It goes back many years and Adam tells it all one session at a time, prodded by his therapist and told in a strange way devoid of all emotional expression.  This is the only part of the novel that lacks credibility to some extent, not the telling but the inanimate manner of verbalizing the long-withheld poisons that leave Adam in a perilous condition most of the time in his job as well as with his family.

Adam returns to Afghanistan and the reader gets to travel with him in his ever-changing missions, one in particular ironically involving the American POW who has just been released after being kept a prisoner for five years, Bergdahl.  Adam is very, very good at his job but now his formerly clear-headed focus is thwarted by his experiences during his recent home leave.  That makes it risky business and vulnerable to being wounded or even killed!

Over the years, Patterson has changed the style of his writing to include more of a psychological bent to his novels.  This adds depth to the stories and throws in some contemporary issues that should make for interesting reading for today’s audience.  Relationships are variable certainly, but Patterson knows how to plumb the depths of those connections with the sordid as well as the sublime.

There’s something in this novel to appeal to men and women of any age. Nicely done indeed!

Shape of My Heart: The Irish Pride Series - Book 3 by Kemberlee Shortland

Shape of My Heart: The Irish Pride Series – Book 3.  Kemberlee Shortland. Tirgearr Publishing. April 2014. pp.  ISBN#: 9781910234044.

Grainne has a huge secret with some honest motives, all of which are going to get her into some very, very serious trouble!  She’s moved back to Dublin and is determined to earn enough money to go to college.  So she works in her brother Kieran’s bar and moonlights as an exotic dancer at the Klub, a seedy dump that draws both innocent and not so innocent men out for a wild night of fantasy and lustful, oh so lustful thoughts…and more!  Grainne earns her money and goes home and is quite happy with this routine, given her past troubled history!

Now one particular night, Grainne notices a leering man in the audience who captures her attention and just won’t let it go.  This is JD, John Desmond, who finally tracks down Grainne after work and actually follows her home.  While he’s phenomenally attracted, obsessed actually, with hot Grainne, he’s got a larger mission which is to catch criminal elements who are really the backbone behind the Klub!  In one sense, he actually forces Grainne to cooperate with his plans.  While his aggressiveness annoys her to no end, she is also electrified by his hot presence and for quite a war; these opposite elements are warring with each other in every scene when they are both together and apart! 

Obviously, passion and some very, very steamy, sexy scenes will follow but there’s also a good plot behind the lightning bolts.  Danger looms for both characters, life and death terrorizing scenes, with plenty of fights to fill the gaps until the final clash that will determine who is really the power and how that will shape the future!

Some lovely legends are interspersed throughout this novel that explains the origins of our protagonists’ names along with some Irish history and language sure to intrigue the reader.  Yes, characters in Dublin and some other minor towns are a force to be reckoned with and the reckoning is both sweet and fierce!

This reviewer has been following the writing of Kemberlee Shortland for years, and I’m delighted to say her creative skills in crafting this romance novel have substantially increased and promise the reader a grand read to enjoy and will compel the same to dive into the other books in this notable, recommended Irish Pride series!  Keep the stories coming, Kemberlee Shortland – nice job indeed!

North of Boston: A Novel by Elisabeth Elo

North of Boston: A Novel.  Elisabeth Elo. Pamela Dormer Books. January 2014. 400 pp. pbk and e-book. ISBN #: 9780670015658.

A terrible boating accident leaves one dead man and one woman who barely survived beyond human comprehension!  Working in a lobster boat with a friend, Ned Rizzo, Pirio Kasparov spends four hours in frigid waters, a feat that not even the renowned Navy Seals can accomplish without special equipment.  At first Pirio and Ned’s friends show the expected comfort; but when Pirio realizes she’s not getting any answers about how a very, large ship came careening out of the dark and fog to totally wipe out Ned’s lobster boat.  So she decides she will investigate what is clearly emerging as more of a possibility toward murder rather than just an unfortunate accident!

At first she is distrustful of everyone until she realizes that journalist Russell Parnell is onto something important and they begin to work together to solve this complex mystery!  Plenty of risk, violence and literal death threats fill these pages and keep the reader riveted to the story.

There’s another story within the story that’s just as fascinating, a mysterious world where Pirio’s mother once lived in the Canadian village of Baffin Bay.  Pirio’s parents are not your usual Mom and Dad.  Intensely interested in the perfume business, she wasn’t always there for Pirio and her father treated her more like a troubled child than a loved one!

Several topics are also discussed within this novel that involve environmentalism, the perfume business, the business and legal aspects of fishing, conservation of whales and more.  Elisabeth Elo has penned a fine novel that is both quaint and vividly adventurous.  The plot is past-faced and characters rather unique – it’s definitely a new generation looking to save almost extinct levels of certain marine animals and fish – and they are just as passionate to make justice happen for both man and beast!  Very nicely done, Ms. Elo!