Twisted Prey by John Sandford

Twisted Prey: A Lucas Davenport Novel by John Sandford - 387 pages

 In this 28th Lucas Davenport novel, our hero, now a member of the federal Marshal Service, has developed a reputation in certain circles for discreetly handling politically sensitive cases. So when Minnesota Senator Porter Smalls is convinced that his recent automobile accident was no accident but an attempted assassination that resulted in the death of his good friend Cecily Whitehead, he puts in a call for Davenport.

The problem is there doesn't seem to be any physical evidence to support Smalls' claim that a truck tried to run his vehicle off the road. Smalls is certain that the person who wants him dead is the junior Senator from Minnesota, Taryn Grant, with whom he has a long and sordid political feud. Smalls also knows that Lucas is convinced Taryn has killed at least three times before and gotten away with it (Silken Prey, 2013).

Lucas flies to D.C. to take a a closer look at the evidence. He discovers that the accident was very carefully orchestrated by professionals. Only Cecily’s skillful driving saved Smalls' life, but at the cost of her own. As Lucas delves deeper into the case, he encounters a shadow world of mercenaries and profiteers that spans the globe, and finds tantalizing hints of a connection to Senator Taryn Grant and her Presidential ambitions.

Sandford dives into this murky world, examining the intersections of power and greed.  U.S. Marshals Rae Givens and Bob Matees show up to assist Davenport and provide a little comic relief with their wise-cracking repartee. The sardonic humor - a Sandford trademark - provides a balance for the more violent elements in this deadly game of cat-and-mouse.

Sandford knows how to engage his readers from the first page to the final paragraph. 

Click HERE to read the review from Kirkus Reviews.

Click HERE to read the review from Publishers Weekly.

Click HERE to read the review from the New York Times.

Never Go Back by Lee Child

Never Go Back: A Jack Reacher Novel by Lee Child --- 400 pages

A new Jack Reacher adventure is a guaranteed adrenaline high, and Never Go Back does not fail to deliver the patented Reacher goods.

After several books worth of adventure along the way, Reacher has finally made it back from South Dakota to Virginia and his long-anticipated rendezvous with Major Susan Turner, the intriguing voice on the phone who is the current commander of Reacher's old Army MP unit, the 110th. But when Reacher arrives, Major Turner is not there; she's locked up on a bogus charge of taking a bribe, which Reacher considers totally improbable. And the guy who's taken over the unit in her place raises every hackle Reacher owns. But there's worse to come, when Reacher himself is accused of a sixteen-year-old crime he didn't commit and then hit with a paternity suit involving a woman he doesn't remember and the teenage girl she claims is Reacher's daughter, allegedly living on the streets in Los Angeles. Then a couple of young toughs show up claiming Reacher is a disgrace to his old unit and threatening grievous bodily harm if he doesn't get out of town and never come back.

When threatened you have two choices: you can run or you can fight. And Reacher will ALWAYS choose to fight. Which is something his unknown antagonists should have found out before they made a very bad decision to target a man who never, ever backs down.

This is Child's eighteenth book about Jack Reacher. Will he continue to write more Reacher adventures? Child says as long as people keep on reading, he'll keep on writing. And when people stop reading, he'll stop writing and go live on the beach and never work again.

Check out this interview with author Lee Child.