False Witness By Karin Slaughter

Heart-wrenching, gut-punching, anxiety-inducing and mentally-draining, False Witness is one hell of an intense psychological thriller that grabs hold of you from the start and beats you into an emotional bloody pulp by the end.  This may have been my first Karin Slaughter book, but it certainly won’t be my last after this powerful reading experience that delivered a page-turning story filled with thought provoking social issues.  

Leigh Collier has bucked the odds, working hard to escape an impoverished childhood to earn a law degree from Northwestern followed by a successful career in Atlanta.  Her younger sister Callie has not been as fortunate, stuck in a vicious cycle of addiction that has her daily life revolve around finding her next fix of heroin.  Despite these different circumstances at present, the two share a dark secret from their childhood that impacts them tremendously.  And when Leigh is specifically requested by an accused rapist to handle his defense, the past comes back to haunt the sisters with unfathomable consequences.  Now Leigh is faced with a choice:  play ball and risk her career to keep the secret from seeing the light of day…or find a way to turn the tables on this despicable man who seemingly controls her and her sister’s future, breaking the blackmail hold he has on them.  

There are two things that make False Witness a remarkable thriller.  First, the writing is superb.  Karin Slaughter masterfully crafts an unputdownable story that propels the reader forward without mercy.  The intensity starts out at a 10/10 and doesn’t let up for a second, which fills the reader with suspense, fear and a thousand other emotions as events play out.  Second, the book deep dives into the incredibly grueling topics of sexual abuse and drug addiction.   These issues are expertly woven into the storyline, remaining front and center throughout, in a way that really hits the reader hard with an overflow of emotions that is hard to describe.  One thing’s for sure, you don’t simply read this book.  You feel it and survive it, thinking about it well after you read the last word.

If you pick up this book, and I highly recommend you do, be warned that it is violent and includes graphic descriptions of rape, assault and hardcore drug use.  But none of it is gratuitous.  It’s all integral to the plot and the key aspect that makes the book so potent.  Just be ready for an emotional roller coaster that sinks its claws into you and won’t let go.

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Black Ice By Brad Thor

Brad Thor brings the thunder with Black Ice, a lightning quick read filled with international intrigue, ass kickings and blossoming love. What more can you ask for?

Black Ice finds our hero Scot Harvath hanging out in Norway on a much-deserved vacation with his new paramour, Solvi.  While wrestling with the convergence of his professional obligations and his personal desires, Harvath thinks he sees a man he killed years ago walking around Oslo.  Not one to let things go, he starts an investigation that leads to bigger concerns involving Russia and China.  In Harvath’s world, no good can come from those two countries commingling.  Summoning his team for support, Harvath must stop at nothing to uncover the truth and risk everything to prevent the joint Chinese/Russian operation from being successful.

In Black Ice, Harvath’s operation is more investigative in nature versus the high-octane action fans are used to seeing from him.  However, it fits perfectly with where Harvath is at this point in his life.  His days of constant door kicking are over, replaced with leveraging his vast knowledge and expertise to unravel nefarious plots and lead his capable team to thwart evildoers.  Though as we see in Black Ice, Harvath’s still quite the badass and more than capable of stepping in to dole out the occasional ass whooping to the bad guys when the situation warrants. 

One of the best parts of Black Ice is seeing Harvath undergo deep personal introspection.  Not something you typically expect a world class operator to do, but it’s a critical and relatable part of the story.  Harvath comes to understand and accept that protecting the United States is more than a job or a sense of duty and honor.  It’s a passion that flows through his blood like hot lava, continuously igniting the fire to defend the country he so deeply loves.  It’s unapologetically who he is, and he will never give it up.  At the same time, he’s realizing that he has space in his life to love something other than the job.  And the beautiful, intelligent Solvi is that something.  She completes Harvath, makes him feel worthy of her adoration and helps him recognize that he’s fully deserving of being happy despite all the tragedy in his past.  For a character we’ve witnessed go through hell and back for twenty novels, it’s amazing that there’s more depth to explore with Harvath while he transitions between phases of his professional and personal life.

In addition to Harvath’s soul searching, Thor does a wonderful job of character development overall.  We learn more about Solvi’s personality and her capabilities as an intelligence operative, both of which are completely badass. We see Harvath’s team in action, witnessing their talents in action as well as their good-natured ribbing that gives us a glimpse into who they are and how they mesh as a team.  And we meet some new characters along the way that add tremendously to the story, specifically with Phillip Mercer.  Mercer provides two stimulating aspects to Black Ice.  First, he provides a fascinating glimpse into the past via a deep dive into Harvath’s mentor Reed Carlton’s days as an operator.  Second, he acts as a blueprint for Harvath’s future – dedicate your life to your country, hang it up when it’s time, then marry a Norwegian woman and live happily ever after.

The result is an intriguing, fast paced novel with depth that both entertains the reader and facilitates Harvath’s transition to the next phase of his life.  Highly enjoyable, Black Ice is another winner by Brad Thor that’s sure to top the New York Times bestseller list.  

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The Cellist By Daniel Silva

Equal parts brilliant and provocative, The Cellist is a dramatic tale pitting the forces of evil – corruption, greed and power –against the forces for good – virtue, justice and integrity.  

Gabriel Allon gets the band back together in The Cellist after exiled Russian Victor Orlov is found dead in his London home of an apparent assassination via nerve agent.  Allon, who owes his life to Victor, knows there’s more than meets the eye and kicks off an elaborate international operation to take down a corrupt Swiss banking outfit and a Russian oligarch who’s childhood and lifelong comrade is none other than the Russian President.  The stakes are astronomically high and Allon must rely on his team, colleagues and allies from other intelligence services, and a few blasts from the past to deceive the Russians and deal a mortal blow to their finances and ambitions to change the world order.

As usual, Daniel Silva’s exquisite writing and storytelling are at a world class level.  He’s unrivaled with the pen, crafting stunning prose and enchanting stories at a level unattainable by most.  He yet again pinpoints some of the biggest issues facing our society and uses his love for the arts and his treasured characters to explore global ramifications while showing a path to vanquish those threats.  And as an added benefit, in The Cellist we are reunited with many names from the past.  A veritable trip down memory lane that is more functional and critical to the plot than it is a special Gabriel Allon episode of This is Your Life.  The result is another exceedingly satisfying reading experience at the hands of one of the greatest writers of all time.

And yet I find myself somewhat disappointed to write another review for an otherwise outstanding book that dives down the Covid and divisive politics rabbit hole.  To be fair to Mr. Silva, the inclusion of Covid in The Cellist is almost completely setting rather than social or political commentary, having Allon and team operate in a hand sanitizing, socially distant, travel restricted environment.  However, there’s no getting around the political aspect of the book with the inclusion of the 2020 election, Russian disinformation campaigns, QAnon, the January 6 Capitol insurrection, and more.  I understand that each author is faced with a choice to make on how to approach the events of the last 18 months and it’s their book so they can write whatever they want.  However, I continue to have little desire to read fiction that includes these things, regardless of which side of the aisle an author’s political leanings reside.  I want to enjoy an escape from reality, not relive the most frustrating parts.  

You won’t find a bigger Gabriel Allon/Daniel Silva fan than me.  Mr. Silva is on my Thriller author Mount Rushmore and I will continue to wholeheartedly support the author and the series.  And the fact remains that if you strip out the parts mentioned above, we’re talking about a superbly written novel with a tremendous plot about an audacious international mission fraught with danger.  I just wish Mr. Silva had made a different choice so that The Cellist could receive the universal high praise it deserves for the core of the story, rather than fuel polarization among thriller fans based on individual political viewpoints.

Putting that aside, the big open question is what’s next for Gabriel Allon? He’s getting up there in age and the last two books in the series have included many not-so-subtle hints that retirement is on the horizon. Could the next book or two be the last we see of him or can Mr. Silva leverage his genius to prolong this beloved character’s shelf life? Maybe evolving Allon into an Ari Shamron Godfather-like figure that directs The Office from the background? We’ll just have to wait – always the waiting – and pray that there’s many more stories to tell in the Gabriel Allon universe. Thriller fans will be quite lucky if that’s the case.

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Steel Fear By Brandon Webb - John David Mann

Twisting, suspenseful, edge-of-your seat stuff with more than a few “oh shit” moments, Steel Fear is a high-octane thriller delivered by the superb writing team of Brandon Webb and John David Mann.

Finn, an active duty Navy SEAL, is being sent back to the United States from Yemen after an operation went sideways.  He’s put aboard the Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier for the trip home where he’s to be debriefed.  However, while on the ship he can’t help but put his world-class, sniper-trained observation skills to work, which leads him to conclude that several suspicious deaths aboard the vessel are more than meets the eye.  These deaths coincided with Finn’s arrival on the ship and cast growing suspicion that he’s a murderer.  Complicating matters is that he has gaps in his memory, making it entirely possible that he is the killer without actually knowing it.  Compelled to get involved, Finn uses his powers of observation and persuasion to manipulate the investigation in an attempt to find the killer and in the process hopefully clear his own name and conscious in the process.

You would expect a novel set on a nuclear aircraft carrier, featuring a cross-functional and diverse set of characters reflective of today’s US Navy, to be a hardcore military thriller.  But you’d be wrong.  Steel Fear does probe into the operational lives of Knighthawk helicopter pilots, F/A-18 Hornet pilots, rescue swimmers, and anyone from the ship’s captain to the enlisted men/women doing the dirty jobs belowdecks.  However this book is a psychological thriller through and through, focusing less on military operations and more on the profiling and frantic hunting of a serial killer on board, as well as what the situation does to the morale of everyone on board the ship.  It’s an unusual way to use of the military in a thriller and a unique spin on a murder mystery book, which aren’t typically set on a 100,000-ton warship in the middle of the ocean.  Making this more than your typical serial killer story.

Webb and Mann, who have teamed up to write powerful military non-fiction in the past, deliver a strong effort with their first foray into fiction writing.  Steel Fear is a well-written, gripping, character-driven thriller that’s hard to put down.  And thanks to strong character development, readers will draw strong feelings about each individual’s nature and moral fiber, hoping to be proven right on the ones we support and really hoping the others get what’s coming to them.  It’s this connection to the individuals in the book that propels the story forward, urging the reader to guess who the killer is and to keep reading to find out what happens next.  But know this going in…no one, not a single one of the ~6,000 folks on board, are safe.  Which makes for a fascinating read.

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Falling By T.J. Newman

I nearly started reading Falling on a flight from Chicago to Portland, before coming to my senses and starting a different book.  Good call on my part.  Falling is terrifying enough to read with both feet securely on solid ground.  Reading it while on an airplane would be an unnerving, paranoia-inducing, blood pressure raising experience. So I can’t stress this enough.  Do. Not. Read. This. Book. While. Flying.  

The premise of Falling is as simple as it is scary.  Terrorists are holding the pilot’s family hostage and present a binary choice.  Crash the plane and the family will live.  Land the plane and the family will die.  A more frightening proposition than being in a Turkish prison.  Which option will the pilot choose?  

The brilliance of Falling, beyond the high stakes plot and breakneck speed pacing, is causing readers to feel the terror from multiple perspectives while simultaneously exploring the choices available to each constituency.  The pilot, the pilot’s family, the flight attendants, the passengers, law enforcement, the president, the terrorists and more – every set of characters, ordinary people thrust into an extraordinary situation, is inserted into a nightmare and forced to make difficult, life altering and seemingly fatal decisions. It’s a horror show at 35,000 feet.  Looks like I picked the wrong week to quit sniffing glue.  

After reading this book, it’ll be hard to get on another flight without being just a little bit frightened about what’s happening in the cockpit and what the flight attendants are talking about when huddled together.  Thanks a lot TJ Newman!

Surely Falling will be among the best debut thrillers of 2021. Yes it will, and don’t call me Shirley.

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Razorblade Tears By S.A. Cosby

There is no possible way to write a review worthy enough of Razorblade Tears by S.A. Cosby.  Astonishing.  Stunning.  Breathtaking.  Sensational.  Phenomenal.  Extraordinary.  Mind-blowingly spectacular.  None of these words do justice to the brilliance of this novel and this author.  I am in complete awe, dumbfounded by the greatness of Razorblade Tears and S.A. Cosby’s talent as a writer.

Taking it one step further, Blacktop Wasteland and Razorblade Tears are the best back-to-back releases from a single author that I have ever read.  In fact, these books are the best two thriller novels I’ve ever had the pleasure of experiencing.  And that’s what sets Cosby apart from other fantastic authors.  You don’t read Cosby’s books, you experience them. You immerse yourself in the world he creates.  You visualize everything without even knowing you’re doing it.  You feel, deep in your bones, every emotion the characters are feeling.  Everything is real – pain, desperation, shame, hopelessness, anger as well as devotion, confidence, hope, redemption, and love.  And when it’s over you sit there in silence with your mouth agape, emotions swirling, looking around the room wondering what the hell you’re supposed to do next. 

The premise for Razorblade Tears is remarkably powerful.  An interracial same-sex couple is murdered and their fathers, two ex-cons who never accepted their sons for who they were, commence a pursuit for retribution to avenge their offspring while hoping it’ll provide them the redemption they desperately seek.  It’s an absorbing story, simultaneously brutal and tender, containing incredible depth and numerous layers – black vs. white, gay vs. straight, transgender vs. cisgender, rich vs. poor, ex-cons vs. law enforcement. But at its essence, this book is about love conquering hate.  A beautiful concept.

It all comes to life through Cosby’s world class prose that’s so descriptive it creates incredibly vivid pictures in your mind.  It seems every page has a line that makes you wish you were as good at anything as Cosby is at writing.  Lines like, “The wound on his cheek was weeping like a broken-hearted bride.” Holy crap that’s f*#%ing impressive.  It’s just one example – Razorblade Tears is bursting with tremendous similes, metaphors and imagery that transform this from a book into a work of art.

I implore you to read this novel and find out for yourself. Razorblade Tears is guaranteed to stick with you well after you read the final beautiful sentence.  It’s perfect and needs to win all the awards.  

ALL.  THE.  AWARDS.

S.A. Cosby is now my favorite author. 

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Sleeping Bear By Connor Sullivan

If Jack Carr’s Savage Son, Marc Cameron’s Stone Cross and Nelson DeMille’s The Charm School had a Ménage à Trois on the set of Yellowstone, the result would be a love child named Sleeping Bear.  Quite the image, right?  Sorry not sorry.  Because while this book is fantastic on its own, the reading experience is enhanced via incorporation of elements from classic and modern thrillers that many fans of the genre will have read.  This results in Sleeping Bear providing a fresh and creative storyline that simultaneously brings up familiar memories from past novels.  That’s one hell of a trick for an author to pull off, let alone one who is just emerging on the scene.  But more on that later.

Sleeping Bear follows Cassie Gale as she goes off the grid in Alaska to clear her mind and attempt to deal with traumatic events of her past.  But when she disappears under suspicious circumstances, it kicks off a search and rescue mission the likes of which rural Alaska doesn’t usually experience.  This is in part to Jim Gale, Cassie’s father, who will stop at nothing to find his daughter.  However, as the investigation progresses, danger lurks around every corner and pulls Jim deeper and deeper into the secret life of his past.  Meanwhile, Cassie is fighting for survival. Not in the Alaskan wilderness, but from a dangerous game she’s been dropped into among the Russian hinterlands.  And it will take every skill the Gales possess to outwit and survive their powerful opponent’s will for revenge.

Sleeping Bear is a story about many things.  It’s about trauma, human darkness, power, and revenge.  It’s about old adversaries – Russia and the USA – facing off once again.  It’s about trying to outrun your past to live a worthy life.  It’s about resilience and good triumphing over evil…or at least attempting to do so.  But more than anything, this book is about family and the lengths you would go to in order to save the ones you love from those who would do them harm.

This book moves at a breakneck speed akin to a F-22 hitting the afterburners in pursuit to intercept a MiG-35.  It thrusts you forward with desperation to see what happens next, like finding out the next development will provide you with the oxygen you need to survive, yet finding you are still gasping for more breath.  Why does this happen?  Because you become emotionally invested to this character-driven story.  The author masterfully develops the characters throughout the book, giving the reader intense feelings towards what they want to see transpire for each one while knowing that no one is safe.  

Lastly, can we please talk about how this is a DEBUT NOVEL?  How is that even possible?  Sleeping Bear is implausibly phenomenal!  Connor Sullivan crushed it!  If this is what he has to offer the first time out, then it’s easy to predict he will be the next big star of the genre. I cannot wait to see what Connor has in store for thriller fans going forward.

I highly recommend you pre-order Sleeping Bear.  It’s a must read for thriller fans.  And be warned – once you start it’ll be near impossible to put down. So plan accordingly.  If you can, it would be wise to take the day off, turn off the electronics, and be ready to immerse yourself completely in this thrill ride.

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Survive The Night By Riley Sager

Survive The Night is a psychological mind fuck wrapped inside a horror flick.  It twists your brain in knots, blurring the lines between reality and fantasy while you alternate between gasping “holy shit” and yelling “run away!”  Riley Sager has outdone himself with this one.  I devoured it in no time.  Unable to put it down, I lost sleep due to a relentless need to uncover what happens next.  No regrets.  It’s fantastic!

Charlie Jordan is hitching a ride from her college in New Jersey to her home in Ohio.  An hour into the six hour drive she starts to believe that the man driving the car, a stranger she met at the ride share board on campus, is the serial killer responsible for murdering Charlie’s roommate and best friend.  However, Charlie has a unique quirk of taking real life events and enhancing them in her brain as if they are movies on the silver screen.  This is her unique way of coping with stress and trauma, stemming from watching movies with her grandma in the immediate aftermath of her parent’s death via automobile accident.  So…is this man really a cold-blooded killer about to strike or is he innocently giving her a ride on his way to care for his ill father and Charlie’s overactive imagination is getting the best of her?  What ensues is a high-stakes chess match in which Charlie has one simple, primal goal – Survive The Night.

It’s an understatement to say Survive The Night keeps you guessing from start to finish.  Charlie’s brilliant character trait of seeing movies in her mind along with the diabolically manipulative nature of her ride share driver combine to eliminate the possibility of predicting the outcome with any level of certainty.  In fact, anytime you think you have it figured out, a big twist smacks you upside the head and you find out in no uncertain terms that you have no clue how the story is going to end.  And it stays that way up until the last paragraph.  It’s truly messed up…in a good way.

I can’t say enough good things about this book.  The pacing is warp speed, the characters are unique, the twists are blindsiding, the plot is horrifying, the suspense anxiety inducing, and choosing 1991 as the time period is perfect to eliminate technology that would change the essence of the story.  Riley Sager knocked it out of the park with Survive The Night.  I absolutely loved it and wholeheartedly recommend it to psychological/horror thriller fans or anyone who likes to be kept in breathless, nervous suspense for a few hours.  

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Sirens Of Memory By Puja Guha

Sirens of Memory is an intense psychological thriller with tensions constantly increasing until your anxiety is off the charts, causing you to pray hard for a happy and just ending.  Puja Guha has crafted a novel that feels incredibly realistic, filled in equal measure with hope, fear, love, hatred and looking to the future versus running from your past.  

Mariam is the victim of domestic violence from her abusive husband Tareq, but when she finds out she’s pregnant she finally decides to leave him.  Complicating matters, Iraq has just invaded Kuwait to kick off the Gulf War.  As a result, she hides out in an Indian refugee camp before posing as another man’s wife to leave the country.  Fast forward 25 years and Mariam has a daughter in college and is happily married to Raj, the man who helped her flee Kuwait. Believing Tareq is dead, she’s made a nice life for herself in the United States and is in therapy to work through her PTSD.  However, her past is not dead and buried as she has thought, kicking off a fervent cat-and-mouse game that threatens everything Mariam holds dear.  Can she summon the necessary courage one more time to overcome her traumatic past?  Or is she destined to return to the hellish existence she experienced in Kuwait?

It’s important to note that Sirens of Memory focuses on the triggering topic of domestic violence and has several scenes that are very difficult to read.  But if you can handle the experience of witnessing the violence Mariam endures, you will be rewarded with a powerful novel that will stick with you for a while.  The pacing is fantastic with the intensity constantly growing.  The characters are well developed and realistic, each playing a critical part in the story’s advancement.  The violence is balanced out with love and affection between family and friends, providing hope to counteract fear.  And the story has enough near misses and twists to keep it from being easily predictable.  Put together, it results in a novel that forces you to keep reading to find out what happens next. 

Because of the spousal abuse I can’t say it’s a completely enjoyable reading experience.  But it’s compelling, excellent, gripping and impressive.  It’s difficult to put down, easily finished in a single day and hard to forget.  Which tells you all you need to know.  It’s a first-rate thriller.

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Stealth Attack By John Gilstrap

Stealth Attack is the 14th and latest publication of the high-octane Jonathan Grave series…and this time it’s personal!  The son of Venice Alexander, aka Mother Hen and the technical wizard of Grave’s clandestine operation, is abducted by a Mexican drug cartel.  Thinking the kidnapping is in retaliation to prior operations in Latin America, Grave and team deploy all resources at their disposal to locate and retrieve Mother Hen’s son.  However, the situation is more complex than they originally understood, forcing the team to toe the line between legal and illegal actions, crossing it as necessary to save one of their own family.  It’s a race against the clock with brutal dismemberment of a teenager the price of failure.

John Gilstrap’s specialty is turning the action “up to 11” early on and never taking his foot off the gas, building suspense like watching a balloon expand to the brink of popping before being satisfyingly tied off at the exact right moment.  Stealth Attack is no exception.  You feel the building tension and anxiety throughout the story as it progresses at breakneck speed, wondering if this innocent kid will be saved or brutally murdered at the hands of a psychopath.  And as you witness the lengths Digger, Boxers, Slinger, Thor and Mother Hen will go to, you are forced to grapple with how you’d respond and behave, consequences be damned, if faced with the same horrible situation.

Stealth Attack is another strong entry into a wholly underrated series that thriller fans need to be reading. You won’t find many series that can go toe to toe with this one on pacing, pure enjoyment and badassery.

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Suburban Dicks By Fabian Nicieza

Suburban Dicks.  What a title!  And written by the co-creator of Deadpool?  Yes please!  

A gas station attendant is murdered in West Windsor, New Jersey and the police seem to be bungling the investigation before the yellow crime scene tape has even been strung around the scene.  Enter a disgraced journalist looking for a big story to achieve redemption and an again-pregnant mother of 4 who gave up a potential career as an FBI profiler to raise her family and spare the fragile ego of her ungrateful and less intelligent husband.  These former acquaintances team up and obsessively start digging – literally – to get to the bottom of what turns out to be a decades long conspiracy to cover up a racially motivated murder.  The unlikely heroes, these amateur Suburban Dicks, unearth the evidence needed to shine a light on the racist dicks in their midst, bringing long awaited justice to one family as well as the entire diverse community of this small Jersey township that has been mistreated for too long.

Suburban Dicks is entertaining and contains a decent amount of sarcasm and humor, but I expected more outright hilarity from the co-creator of Deadpool.  I was hoping it would be laugh out loud, side splitting funny from start to finish.  And while Suburban Dicks has its share of humorous moments, they’re more subtle and scattered throughout.  However, to me this book is about way more than how much it makes you laugh.  Fabian Nicieza focuses on developing a solid plot that explores racism through intriguing characters, some you root for and others you want to drop kick in the head.  The author has a story to tell that seems ripped from the headlines from the past year filled with social injustice and systemic racism.  It highlights the lengths to which the establishment will go to hold down people of other races, and that it takes everyone banding together to root it out and force change.  That is what I will take away from this book.  Not at all what I expected from a book called Suburban Dicks, though in hindsight it’s now clear the title is intended to have double meaning.

All told, Suburban Dicks is a story about redemption, overcoming adversity, the power of community, how any single determined person can make a difference and how much racism blows.  Mix in a bit of humor and absurdity and this book is a worthy debut entry into the thriller genre.  My hope is that it will be read by a wide audience who looks beyond the laughs to appreciate, internalize and reflect on the social commentary contained within.  And I hope we get a sequel because I want to see more of these amateur sleuths!

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Bath Haus By PJ Vernon

Thanks to a tweet/recommendation by S.A. Cosby, the amazing author of Blacktop Wasteland and Razorblade Tears, I was made aware of Bath Haus by PJ Vernon and decided to pick it up to read during Pride Month.  And I’m glad I did.  This book is raw and chock full of suspense, keeping me on the edge of my seat from cover to cover.

Oliver Park has overcome addiction to build an envious life with his wealthy surgeon partner Nathan.  But things aren’t as they might seem, leading Oliver to visit a gay bathhouse with the intention of cheating on Nathan.  Once inside, Oliver picks up the wrong guy and is lucky to leave Haus upright and still breathing.  Desperate to keep this from Nathan, Oliver’s fear leads him to lie and invent a story about a mugging that he hopes will keep his indiscretion a secret.  But lies beget lies and like quicksand, the more Oliver struggles to keep the truth hidden, the further he is pulled down into the dark pit of deceit.  Fighting to save his relationship and with his life at risk, Oliver must choose between continuing to lie or coming clean and risking everything he has built since getting clean.

Gripping and unsettling, Bath Haus is an emotional roller coaster you feel in your gut regardless of your sexual orientation.  No character is what they seem, each having their own secrets and hidden agenda.  Vivid portrayals of terror, domineering actions, and invasive stalking hit hard throughout, keeping the outcome in doubt as events spiral faster and faster and out of control until the brutal conclusion.  A fantastic domestic thriller that is ready-made for the silver screen.

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Shadow Target By David Ricciardi

Shadow Target is cleared hot right from the start, jammed packed with violence and explosive action from the first sentence to the last.  

In this fourth installment of the series, David Ricciardi delivers another strong, well-written, fast-paced story about intelligence analyst turned CIA operative Jake Keller attempting to figure out who’s trying to kill him.  Along the way, Jake gets entangled in a plot to kill a world leader, a mole hunt, and maybe the most dangerous mission of all…reconciling with a scorned ex-lover.

While the action is unrelenting and highly entertaining, maybe the best part of Shadow Target is the character development. Ricciardi does a marvelous job of adding depth and clarity to Jake’s personality and motivations.  He nails the Russian oligarch’s disposition and behavior.  He also brilliantly crafts the state of mind of a French woman who simultaneously carries a grudge and a torch for Jake.  But what I really loved was the inclusion of two distinguished senior Brits, Lady Celia Parker and Sir James Houghton.  They add wisdom and intrigue inside the unexpected package of grandparent-like figures.  Put it all together and this is a character-driven story that engages the reader throughout.

That’s not to say the book is all about the characters.  The plot is well-crafted, taking the reader from a French ski enclave to the streets of Paris and London and the Washington DC Metro area.  The spy craft is excellent.  The action sequences are fierce.  And the operational details are spot on.  In other words, this book is a well-executed thriller sure to be a hit with fans of the genre.

Once again, David Ricciardi proves he deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as the big thriller authors.  Fans of Mark Greaney, Brad Thor and Ward Larsen will find this book and the entire series to be an enjoyable and satisfying reading experience. 

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Target Acquired By Don Bentley

Don Bentley delivers the goods in a big way bringing his trademark unapologetic ludicrous speed pacing and relentless brawling action sequences to Target Acquired, his first foray into Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan universe.  It’s an all-out, pedal to the metal, full tilt sprint from beginning to end, propelled forward with 40,000 pounds of thrust from the afterburners of a F-35. 

Breathing new life into the iconic series, Don focuses Target Acquired almost entirely on Jack Ryan Jr with minimal cameos from the team at The Campus.  Jack is in Israel for what should be a milk run observational operation with the CIA, but as you might expect the proceedings go sideways and Jack gets swept into the middle of a multi-faceted operation that threatens the security of Israel, the world, and an American scientist and her innocent son.  Not one to back down from doing what is right, Jack throws caution to the wind – and throws more than a handful of haymakers – in a bloody attempt to rescue the Americans from the clutches of evil.

The brilliance in this book is concentrating the story on Jack Ryan Jr to give us a glimpse into his growth as an operator.  Jack exhibits ceaseless Energizer Bunny persistence with savage close quarters hand-to-hand fighting the likes we haven’t seen from him before, further evolving his character into a bona fide badass and putting more distance between his conflicting personas of clandestine operator and being the President’s son.  He still has a lot to learn before he’s at the level of John Clark and Ding Chavez, but he makes a quantum leap in that direction in Target Acquired.

The Jack Ryan Jr. series is in amazing hands with Don Bentley, a tremendous writer who by all accounts is a fantastic dude to boot.  He promises to continue bringing a fresh take to the Tom Clancy realm that is sure to delight long time Clancy fans as well as bring a new generation into the fold.  I can’t wait to see what he has in store for the next installment.  But if Target Acquired is any indication, you better start strapping in now because it’ll blow your socks clean off.

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Sons Of Valor By Andrews & Wilson

When you think of the best all-time dynamic duos, your mind probably goes right to Batman & Robin, Holmes & Watson, Bert & Ernie, Han Solo & Chewbacca or even Thelma & Louise. But when it comes to military thrillers, Brian Andrews & Jeffrey Wilson are the gold standard. They have been churning out hit after hit with their Tier One novels, a series you need to be reading if you call yourself a fan of the genre. Now after six books featuring John Dempsey, Andrews & Wilson have expanded the Tier One universe with Sons of Valor featuring Keith “Chunk” Redman. Chunk is familiar to Tier One fans as the leader of a SEAL Team who have provided door kicking support to John Dempsey and Team Ember in the past. But now Chunk is the featured character and I’m happy to report he is more than capable of carrying a book/series on his own. In fact, Sons of Valor blew me away and exceeded my incredibly high expectations. This book is incredible!

The storyline of Sons of Valor follows Chunk as he’s tapped to rebuild the Tier One element from scratch after they had been previously ambushed and wiped out. This is the dream opportunity he’s been waiting for and he jumps in with both feet, bringing along familiar SEAL Team Four members along with other accomplished operators and a highly recommended National Counterterrorism Center analyst named Whitney Watts. This team will have the autonomy to develop their own intelligence and select their own missions, circumnavigating the “bang your head against the wall” government bureaucracy that left them frustrated and unfulfilled. As the team passes their operational tests and is given the approval to proceed, Whitney unilaterally uncovers a terrorist plot that sends the new Tier One team to Afghanistan and Pakistan on an urgent mission to stop an Al-Qaeda splinter group from using Chinese drone technology to target US military forces. Finding themselves in a modern-day shell game with deadly implications, Chunk, Whitney and the team must rapidly unravel the knots and take out the terrorists before more damage is done.

Sons of Valor has the amazing military action sequences, weaponry and terminology you expect from an Andrews & Wilson novel. But for me the greatness of the book goes beyond that by exhibiting what good leadership looks like. Chunk might be an apex predator/elite operator with a gruff exterior, but he has heart and demonstrates his ability to modulate leadership styles from coaching others, to showing tough love, to admitting when he is wrong. Chunk is not perfect, but he cares deeply for his team and strives for continuous improvement. He understands what will make the team great and takes intentional actions to bring people along, helping them to be greater than they previously thought possible. Building a great, highly functioning team takes hard work and Andrews & Wilson do a fantastic job highlighting this through Chunk vs. taking the easy path of having everything automatically and magically come together. For me, this approach makes Chunk incredibly likeable and you root for him to successfully navigate the adversity he and the team face throughout the book.

As this series offshoot progresses, I believe two reasonable debates will occur. First, who’s the better character – John Dempsey or Keith “Chunk” Redman? And second, which series is better – Dempsey’s Tier One or Chunk’s Tier One? But here’s the great news…we win no matter the answer because Andrews & Wilson are spectacular authors who continue to churn out winner after winner for readers to enjoy.

Lastly, I want to share that when I read a great book, I always visualize the characters and locations. For Sons of Valor, I visualized the characters as the actors from CBS’s SEAL Team. Wasn’t intentional, it just happened. Maybe it’s because there were a lot of similar terms, maybe it’s because there’s a character named Spence (close to Spence), or maybe it’s because both the show and the book are awesome stories about SEALs. A mystery that might never be solved. Regardless, felt like sharing this revelation. Curious to hear from other readers how they visualize Chunk and team.

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The Spy Devils By Joe Goldberg

Overflowing with graphic action sequences and dripping with hilarious sarcasm, The Spy Devils is a unique and inspired entry into the spy-thriller genre.  It’s an entertaining, playful, zigzagging tale devised for the modern world.  

The Spy Devils are an outfit of wiseass, highly skilled covert operatives with the technical chops to not only go kinetic against their targets, but deploy social media tactics to embarrass and ruin the enemy financially and in the court of public opinion.  Led by Bridger, this eclectic team of spies, operators, tech geeks and even a make-up/special effects artist are caught in the web of a complicated mission to recover stolen technology.  Nothing is as it seems in this story containing corporate espionage, Ukrainian oligarchs, Chinese MSS operatives, double agents, and kompromat.  In fact, it’s a good idea for everyone involved to keep their heads on a swivel and beware the double cross because you can’t trust anyone, even family, when the stakes are this high.

The most-creative aspect of The Spy Devils is how it embraces social media in the plot.  It’s the first novel I’ve read where a covert espionage organization has a visible, thriving online presence.  That seems counterintuitive for a group of individuals for whom anonymity is literally life or death.  And while the operators themselves do remain in the shadows, it’s fascinating to see how an organization can not only manipulate the news cycle to their benefit but also leverage “going viral” to do immense damage to the bad guys by sharing intimate details of their misdeeds.  Fascinating addition to an already amusing cast of characters that make this book one hell of a fun read.

Joe Goldberg has put the genre on notice that he’s bringing a fresh take on spy thrillers and we’re all the beneficiaries.  The Spy Devils comes out of the gates hot, initiating a (hopefully) long series with an inventive and explosive plot featuring outlandish characters.  Pick up a copy so you don’t miss out!

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Arctic Storm Rising By Dale Brown

Arctic Storm Rising represents the start of a new series for acclaimed thriller writer Dale Brown.  It’s a departure from the world of futuristic techno-thrillers featuring the McLanahans and Iron Wolf Squadron taking on their Russian enemies in a battle of advanced military technology.  In their place is Air Force Special Ops Captain Nick Flynn leading a ragtag army of banished malcontents, insubordinates, and scapegoats taking on …well…a Russian enemy with advanced military technology.  But in this book, technology isn’t the stuff of science fiction.  It’s quite realistic and the central aspect of a scary plot that has the US and Russia on the verge of mutually assured nuclear destruction.

This is a story that harkens back to the days of the Cold War with a modern twist.  The Russians have a broken arrow event when one of their pilots, with nothing to lose, absconds with a new stealth bomber prototype loaded for bear with 12 nuclear-armed cruise missiles.  A desperate race ensues between the Russians and Americans as each country tries to get their hands on the bomber at all costs and by any means necessary.  Storms batter the area of operations and sleeper agents engage in sabotage, making it near impossible for the US to respond to Russian aggressions and attempts to recover their bomber.  However, the US is fortunate to have an island of misfit soldiers close to the action who they must rely on to save the day.  They’re not the A-team.  Hell they’re not even the B,C, D or E team.  But they’re the team of underdogs America needs in this very moment to thwart all-out nuclear war.  Will they be successful?  You’ll just have to pick up a copy of Arctic Storm Rising to find out for yourself.

As much as I enjoyed the McClanahan universe Dale Brown has written about for many years, I believe Arctic Storm Rising is a nice change of direction that will garner him more traditional-minded military thriller fans. The book still has the great character development and geopolitical plotlines that the author is known for, he just replaces sci-fi weaponry and battles in the dark vacuum of space with traditional soldiers wielding modern-day weapons while fighting on the frozen Alaskan arctic tundra.

As a result, Dale Brown delivers yet another captivating tale pitting Americans vs. Russians with the whole world facing dire consequences.  He takes the time to set the stage and develop the characters before sprinting for the finish line with astonishingly intense action sequences. Consequently, Arctic Storm Rising is a fun thrill ride that is guaranteed to be enjoyed by fans of Mr. Brown’s prior work as well as fans of military thrillers by authors such as Brad Taylor, Ben Coes and Ward Larsen to name a few.  Preorder a copy now and get ready to meet Nick Flynn, the genre’s newest hero. 

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Treason Flight By T.R. Matson

An enthralling, fast-paced, suspenseful look into the thrilling highs and challenging lows of a Navy Pilot on combat deployment.  T.R. Matson’s extensive real-world knowledge serving as a naval aviator brings authenticity to the gripping pages of Treason Flight, putting the reader in the cockpit to feel the exhilaration of flying alongside the best pilots in the world.

Jack "Rattler" Owen is an elite E-2C Hawkeye Navy pilot on deployment aboard the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier. He’s the best of the best, flying critical missions supporting Naval operations.  While struggling to come to terms with his imminent divorce, he must maintain deep focus on the job at hand because he’s already pulled several rabbits out of his hat to survive multiple catastrophic mid-air events that put the lives of his crew in mortal danger.  Is it just his “luck bucket” being emptied or is someone from his squadron out to get him?  Rattler must decide who he can trust and if it’s worth pursuing possible saboteurs in his mist, putting his career and life on the line to protect and defend the United States of America from all enemies foreign…and domestic.  

Treason Flight has depth that goes way beyond the cool aviation action sequences.  Yes, it gives readers a peek behind the curtain at the life of a naval aviator aboard an aircraft carrier while flying combat missions.  But it’s so much more, exploring the topicsof relationships in a way that applies to anyone whether they have served in the military or not – family dynamics, buddies you would do anything to support, co-workers from subordinates to peers to supervisors, and sexy Australian flight attendants.  Well…we don’t all have relationships with that last one, but dare to dream.

Additionally, Treason Flight delves into leadership, showcasing the impact that good and bad leaders have on the people around them.  Everyone has experienced both good and bad leadership and can relate to toxic office politics that bad leaders cultivate.  This understanding connects the reader to the story because while most of us haven’t flown military aircraft, we absolutely have encountered people we would follow through the gates of hell and others who we wish would get what’s coming to them.  Though to be fair it’s usually without the life and death consequences that Rattler faces.  

Well written, suspenseful and realistic, Treason Flight is a highly relatable and engaging book that flies by with the speed of a F/A-18C Hornet catapulted off the deck of an aircraft carrier.  A highly enjoyable and recommended reading experience for fans of military and/or conspiracy thrillers.  

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Manistique By Craig Terlson

Manistique is a well-crafted old school detective noir tale featuring greed, firepower, organized crime and familial bonds, all contained behind an eye-catching cover that is a gorgeous work of fine art.

What starts as a favor to a friend evolves into a quest across the country to find the truth about what led to a shootout at a poker game inside a New Mexican bar.  Despite constantly insisting he’s not a detective, Luke Fischer certainly acts like one on this mission that he can’t seem to let go despite no apparent reason to continue other than intellectual curiosity and maybe a taste for danger.  His dogged pursuit leads him to Michigan where he teams up with a small-town sheriff and discovers an age-old truth: Follow the money.  As Luke and the sheriff hit the road to find the money and some answers, hitmen come out of the woodwork and bodies start dropping like flies.  Not one to let things go, Luke will stop at nothing to see this case through to the end…even if it costs him his life.

There’s a lot to like about Manistique.  It’s well written and contains intriguing characters that span a spectrum of simple “what you see is what you get” folks to complex individuals with wisdom and depth.  The mysterious circumstances surrounding the case keeps the reader engaged and moves at a good pace that is neither slow nor in a hurry to get to the final destination.  And there is a plethora of action that keeps you on the edge of your seat.

But perhaps the star of the book is the unique settings.  From the middle of nowhere hole in the wall dives of New Mexico to the small towns, lakes and wilderness of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, Craig Terlson paints such vivid illustrations of each locale that they become as important to the plot as the individuals and action sequences featured throughout.  Which makes these places way more than just background ambiance.  In fact, they serve as critical characters that add contextual depth and beauty to the story.

All told, Manistique is an entertaining thriller that should be paired with a Pacifico while watching the pinks and purples of a beautiful southwestern sunset to ensure maximum enjoyment.  But even without the cold beer and colorful skies, Manistique holds its own as a perilous whodunit saga with an old-time aura.  

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Basil's War By Stephen Hunter

Basil’s War is a classic spy vs. spy story with old school James Bond vibes. Taking it one step further, Stephen Hunter has channeled John le Carré and combined it with Ted Bell’s character Alexander Hawke to create an alluring WWII tale pitting the British against the Germans in occupied France.  This book has all the hallmarks of a timeless spy thriller – a debonair gentleman spy who’s got financial means and a deft touch with the ladies, a dangerous mission requiring impeccable spy craft to survive in enemy territory, a cat and mouse game with the players trying to guess the other side’s motivations in order to outwit them, and a few twists in the tail to keep the reader guessing.

Known for the Bob Lee Swagger series, this book reminds readers that Stephen Hunter is a talented writer who has range beyond the fictional sniper.  Basil’s War feels like it could be real, dipping its toe into the historical fiction waters without actually diving into that genre.  Hunter vividly paints the picture of the environment surrounding the war and puts the reader in the middle of the action.  It might not contain flashy action with guns blazing all over the place and explosions left and right, but it does have plenty of suspense, tension and intrigue via a tête-à-tête between adversaries.  Like I said, more of a classic spy novel where each side attempts to read the intentions of their enemy, focusing on the chessboard to see several moves ahead in an effort to best their opponent without them even knowing they’ve been had.  

As a result, Basil’s War is an enjoyable book by a fantastic author that will appeal to a broad range of thriller fans.  If you are into historical fiction and/or WWII, this is a book you should definitely check out.  But even if those aren’t your genres, I encourage you to read this book and enjoy a well crafted story.

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