ROUGH JUSTICE

In this thriller, a spirited hero being hunted by a criminal organization seeks help outside the law.

At the age of 25, Sara Cambert—an attractive Algerian French woman who grew up in an orphanage, speaks four languages, and adores classic American movies—finally achieves her dream of immigrating to the United States. Shy but gutsy, she arrives in Seattle eager to begin her new life working as a translator for an international trading firm. Instead, she narrowly escapes a murder attempt. With no ties in her new country and no one she can trust, her only chance of rescue is to track down the man she believes is the father she never knew: Cash Logan. As soon as he hears Sara’s story, Cash, a former smuggler, realizes that her employer’s business is actually a front for a ruthless multimillion-dollar criminal operation that launders money and identities and will stop at nothing to eliminate her. He and Callie James, a restaurant owner and Cash’s girlfriend, enlist the help of several colorful friends who cook up an imaginative, complicated plan to protect Sara and take down the powerful criminal gang. Plenty of action ensues, with violent encounters, kidnappings, ambushes, shootings, professional hit men, hijacking, and more. Weissbourd’s sequel takes Sara, Cash, Callie, and their crew from Seattle to New York City; South Beach and Key Largo, Florida; Port-au-Prince, Haiti; and finally, Havana. The author’s vivid descriptions of these destinations sometimes read like tourism guidebooks (Havana is “a world unto itself—painted in bright colors, beautiful old architecture, wonderful vintage classic cars, the rich Spanish heritage touching everything from art to music to architecture to the cuisine”). The writing in general is direct and descriptive with touches of humor. Unusually for a thriller, the narrative switches points of view between the protagonists and the crooks, which adds to the suspense by giving readers previews of the surprises in store for Sara, Cash, and their friends. But some elements of the plot seem far-fetched. And with Callie and Cash madly in love, a budding romance for Sara, and a “we’re all family” vibe among the whole group, some scenes seem more suited to the Hallmark Channel than an international thriller.

A rousing mashup of high-stakes intrigue and violence with Hallmark-style sentimentality.