An exciting crime drama with well-developed characters.
King weaves a tangled web of aspiration and avarice in this crime novel.
After an 18-wheeler strikes a utility pole in Louisiana, dispersing five kilos of hidden cocaine into the air, FBI agents Pete Cortez and Teri Barnhart find themselves enmeshed in the investigation of a lifetime. As they pursue the case in the quietly charming East Texas town of Madisonville, they come face to face with unlikely crime kingpins Ralph LeBlanc and Randi Tormohlen—two siblings who effectively sit atop a mountain of laundered money and drugs, fueling the regional economy through ill-gotten gains. Their criminal enterprise is empowered by a dangerous relationship with a Mexican drug cartel. But although this international influence plays a role in their power, King makes clear that all-American avarice is central to their success. Among their accomplices in crime are the president and athletic director of the local college, whose students die from using the very substance whose sale fuels their scholarship programs; and another FBI agent who enables the very criminals he’s sworn to apprehend. But just when the trail grows cold for Cortez and Barnhart, the walls around the LeBlanc/Tormohlen empire begin to crumble as people turn against one another for personal gain. Over the course of King’s novel, not all the bad guys are brought to justice, but the author effectively makes clear that the criminal kingdom is a castle built on sand that’s fated to fall. It’s a must-read for fans of true crime as well as crime fiction, as King offers a cast of characters that’s thoroughly believable. Although the work has scenes of violence, the author deftly avoids graphic descriptions of it, presenting a work that’s gritty but not gratuitous. The result is a novel that’s very appealing, with a perfect blend of suspense and realism to keep readers engaged.
An exciting crime drama with well-developed characters.Pub Date: Nov. 23, 2021
ISBN: 979-8759122340
Page Count: 367
Publisher: Independently Published
Review Posted Online: Dec. 20, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
As usual, Evanovich handles the funny stuff better (much better) than the mystery stuff.
Stephanie Plum’s 31st adventure shows that Trenton’s preeminent fugitive-apprehension agent still has plenty of tricks up her sleeve, and needs every one of them.
The current caseload for Stephanie and Lula—the ex-prostitute file clerk at her cousin Vincent Plum’s bail bonds company, who serves as her unflappable sidekick—begins with two “failures to appear.” Eugene Fleck is suspected of being Robin Hoodie, who robs from the rich and, yes, distributes the proceeds to the poor. Racketeer Bruno Jug, who’s missed his court date on charges of tax evasion, is also suspected of drugging and raping a 14-year-old. But neither of these fugitives can hold a candle to Zoran Djordjevic, aka Fang, a self-proclaimed vampire wanted in connection with the gruesome fate of his late wife and three other missing women. As usual, Stephanie’s personal life is just as helter-skelter as her professional life as a bounty hunter. She’s managed to get herself engaged both to Det. Joe Morelli, of the Trenton PD, and Ranger, a former Special Forces agent who runs a private security firm; she thinks she may be pregnant; and she’s willing to marry the father, whichever of her fiances that turns out to be. On top of it all, her nothingburger schoolmate Herbert Slovinski suddenly pops up at one of the funerals she ferries her Grandma Mazur to, hitting on her relentlessly and gilding his importunities by cleaning and painting her shabby apartment and laying new carpet. Luckily, Lula’s on hand to offer cupcakes that stave off the worst disasters, and whenever this hodgepodge threatens to slow down, another FTA appears, or fails to appear.
As usual, Evanovich handles the funny stuff better (much better) than the mystery stuff.Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2024
ISBN: 9781668003138
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2024
Plenty of excitement for Clancy fans.
Chinese president Li Jian Jun plans a sneak attack on Taiwan, and it’s up to the Jack Ryan administration to stop him without going to war.
President Li announces a naval exercise, but his real plan is Operation Sea Serpent, the lightning reunification of Taiwan. His minister of defense, Admiral Qin Hâiyû, thinks the idea is crazy because a great number of people would die, but he can’t say so. Li is not a man to be challenged, and he’s already had one of his ministers executed. But Qin wants to stop the war before it begins. Perhaps he can get word to the Americans so they can cut off the mad scheme, and he’s troubled by whether his actions will make him a traitor or a patriot. A Western asset nicknamed the Spider helps facilitate his dangerous disappearance as he attempts to leave China, and authorities in Beijing don’t know if he’s been kidnapped or has defected. Meanwhile, the Ryan administration wants to get him safely extracted from mainland China. President Ryan orders that an American naval vessel will transit through the Strait of Taiwan, which the People’s Republic has blockaded. Will there be a bloody showdown that triggers a major war? So much can go wrong, and there are series regulars like John Clark and Ding Chavez at the tip of the spear. And there’s also Katie Ryan, a lieutenant commander with the Office of Naval Intelligence who’s deployed to Taiwan because she’s “one hell of an intelligence analyst” who “thinks outside the box.” She’s a “rising star” who refuses to trade on her relationship with her father, President Ryan. There’s not much violence, although there’s enough to call it a military thriller. One brave American is fading fast from a round to his chest, but he has time to smile about that “hot” Katie Ryan. (Yes, yes, we all like the Ryans.) The novel’s big question is not which nation wins, but whether they fight. Bravery and clear thinking will have to come from both sides. By the way, Jack Junior isn’t in this one—it’s Katie’s time to shine.
Plenty of excitement for Clancy fans.Pub Date: Dec. 3, 2024
ISBN: 9780593717974
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: Oct. 10, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2024
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