Left to Die by Blake Pierce (Adele Sharp #1)

FBI Special Agent is on the hunt for a serial killer. When the killer strikes again in Paris, France, the French government requests her help. Having grown up in Germany and France before moving to the States, Adele is familiar with the languages and the police tactics. But what she hadn’t considered was dealing with past ghosts. 

Dealing with a bored partner who treats her with contempt, and former associate that will do anything to hurt her, Adele must forge ahead to find clues to help her track down this killer. With all the twists and turns expected of a great hunting story, Adele must keep her eyes on the prize, or she’ll lose the trail and her life.

 

The Silent Wife by Karen Slaughter

 Note: I am reviewing the audio format for this novel. One issue I had with this audio format was that it did not offer time related information at the chapter headings. The story jumps back and forth between two different times, eight years apart. It was confusing until I figured this out.

A serial rapist and murder has been operating throughout Georgia for over eight years and no one has recognized this until the prisoner that had been arrested for the crime, convinces police to investigate this further. Thus, starts a time-jumping mystery spanning eight years and follows the investigation by medical examiner Sara Linton and her former husband, Jeffery Tolliver, as the first victims are found and continues eight years later with Sara and her boyfriend, Will Trent.

The story is incredibly fast-paced, with more twists and turns then the Atlanta Freeway. There is as much forensic science to shame CIS (Wherever). The abuse against women is highly detailed and not for the faint of heart, but in a comment by the author, she admits that she strives to bring a realistic depiction of what women go through at the hands of rapists, to bring light to the issue.

Highly recommended.

Daylight Atlee Pine #3 by David Baldacci

 Reader’s Note: To better appreciate this story, it is suggested that you read the first two books in the series, A Long Road to Mercy and A Minute to Midnight, first. The search for Atlee’s long-lost sister begins in the first book and continues in the others.

Thirty years ago, a stranger kidnapped Mercy Pine and left Atlee Pine with life-threatening injuries. Now Atlee is a driven FBI agent who uses her skills to find out what happened to her sister and why. As she follows the long dead trail, Atlee finds more danger and criminal activity that reaches to the Country’s elite. With the help of surprise character from Baldacci’s other series, Atlee charges straight at the new threat, because nothing will stop her hunt for her sister.

With more suspense, danger, action, and surprises, Baldacci shows why he is a best-selling thriller author.

The Evening and the Morning - Kingsbridge #4 by Ken Follett

 Following the phenomenally successful Pillars of the Earth series, Follett returns with a prequel to the series. Right from the beginning, Follett proves his mastery at story telling.

After a devastating attack by Vikings, a young boatbuilder and his family must start again after losing their father. In Normandy, a young noblewoman falls for a dashing Englishman but finds that there is a huge difference in customs. During a lawless period of time, events try the most loyal against tyrants and swindlers, and only their ingenuity and bravery stand a chance at salvation.

This story is like a time capsule that brings early English history alive and allows us a glimpse of that brutal, yet innocent time.

The Charlemagne Pursuit Cotton Malone #4 by Steve Berry

 Cotton is getting busy again. This time he is on the hunt for the mystery that surrounds the fate of his own father. His father died when he was ten-years-old during a top secret mission on an experimental submarine. Cotton has many unsolved issues growing up without a father. This is personal. But he has a mysterious German family, assassins and double-crossing people from his own government that are trying to stop him from finding the truth.

Fast-paced twists and suspense are hidden in an ancient past will excite any thriller fan.

The Russian House by John LeCarre

 When a soviet scientist reaches out with a secret manuscript to an English publisher, Barley Blair, he hopes to shed light on the Russian incompetence in military and scientific accomplishments. Forced by British Intelligence, Blair must act as an intermediary in hope of find more secrets. But when he meets the beautiful Katya, all thoughts of East-West espionage are all but forgotten. He must find a way to extract both him and Katya out of the gun sights of both governments.

This was a BBC enactment of the book rather than a regular audio version, and I thank my Public Library. I must admit, I enjoyed the version as the sound effects made the story more entertaining. It was a bit of nostalgia of the old radio shows of years gone by.

This is my first, LeCarre story, and although I am aware that he is considered the master of espionage, I was, frankly, disappointed. I found it slow and unexciting compared to others of his era like Robert Ludlum. It might have been this story and I will try another in the future, but I have to admit, I was happy when it was over.

The Unwilling by John Hart

 Gibby lost his oldest brother to Vietnam. His other brother, Jason, seems to have been lost there too. Hardened, violent and dangerous, Jason is released from prison and the two try to find their way back to who they were before. But when a woman that who is seeing Jason is savagely murdered, Jason is back in prison and at the mercy of a psychopath. When a second woman goes missing, the police feel the violence runs in the family and set their sights on Gibby.

With the tragedy of the Vietnam conflict and the harm it did to an entire generation as the background, this story is rooted in pain, sacrifice, and redemption. Family dynamics make this page-turner much more than just a regular thriller.

Hart is on top of his game.