BEYOND HONOR

A complex thriller by a husband-and-wife writing team.

It’s 2011, and Kevin Rhoads, a skilled bear hunter from Homer, Alaska, is part of a paramilitary team that successfully hunts down Syrian terrorist Al-Muwassil. “Great work today. Some real Jason Bourne shit,” a colleague compliments Rhoads. Meanwhile, CIA agent Daniel Komoroff is missing in Russia. God help him if the Russians find him, an official says. “God can’t help him,” says Cynthia King, director of Special Situations. “That’s why I’m here.” They learn he’s “rotting in some Russian hellhole, and we have a chance here that we can bring him home alive.” The new president, Phil Kemp, hopes he might benefit politically from Komoroff’s safe return. But Kemp can’t keep his mouth shut, and he doesn’t know that the Russians are listening to him in the White House and worming their way into his administration. King and CIA Director Jessica Somers worry deeply about Kemp, but respect their constitutional limitations. Soon they are “balancing on the razor’s edge of patriotism and treason.” The action focuses primarily on Rhoads and his heroism and extraordinary resourcefulness. He returns briefly to Alaska when his father has a heart attack. While he’s away, Putin orders the downing of a U.S. helicopter, which kills Rhoads’ entire team. Consumed by rage, Rhoads says, “Right now, all I want is to kill the bastards who did this.” Rhoads has a loyal friend and an appealing love interest who gives him encouragement, but he must work alone. His entrance into vast Siberia is intriguing and believable, and his Alaskan hunting background makes him perfect for the mission. Readers will like him for his guts and his character—he’s only as vicious as he needs to be.

This is the authors’ debut, and they nailed it.