Undone
A drive in the evening puts an elderly couple in a rural area when the husband hits something. Thinking of a wild animal, the stop the car to check. A naked body is what they find and the damage from them hitting her is the least of her problems. Will Trent, the troubled Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) finds himself attracted to the case much to the dismay of the local police. The novel is laced with friction between GBI and the local police to the point where it should be criminal. When another woman goes missing things heat up. Is she the next victim?
I’ll start this review off with a note about the author; Nelson DeMille. I yet to read one of his novels that was not top rate. I haven’t read all of his books (I’m getting close), but this man can write. Thanks a lot Mr. DeMille!
“Then I drew Serpent-Breath and I saw that Hild had looked after the blade well. It shone with a light coating of lard or lanolin that had prevented the patterned steel from rusting. I raised the sword to my lips and kissed her long blade. “You have men to kill,†I told her, “and revenge to take.â€
In biological warfare parlance there is a substance known as “Red Mercury”. It is a weapon, much like the old neutron bomb that will kill humans, but leave infrastructure in place for the victors. In this case the virus is very short-lived, killing those exposed only to die itself shortly there after. What will happen if a country like Syria or North Korea acquires such a weapon?
“Aaron steeled himself, knowing he would have to trade in order to be rescued, and the currency in question was pain. He had to force them to hunt in Israel. The man in front of him had no idea of what he was threatening when he mentioned Aaron’s partner. He thought he understood pain. Understood death. And he probably did, on an earthly plane. But Shoshana was made of something entirely different. She was a supernatural predator who caused fear even in Aaron. Going after her would guarantee a response, if he could remain alive long enough to see it. Shoshana would unleash her skills only if she deemed the reason worthy, and, unfortunately for these men, harming him would trigger a reaction unlike anything they had ever seen. Because he had the honor of being deemed worthy.”
“She scrambled to pick up her mess, and glanced at the large round clock behind the counter. It was the type of clock that might be seen in a railroad station: sturdy iron hands, a beautiful green patina, and large numbers that could be read from a great distance. It gave Siobhán a jolt of unexpected excitement whenever she glanced at it, but this day all she felt was dread. It was half one in the morning. Whoever was at her door at this ungodly hour would not be bearing good news, and her heart began to dance in her chest. She should be in bed, fast asleep. What was she thinking?”
I remember many many years ago while my wife was working on her masters degree with an emphasis on neurology. She really wasn’t a very quick typist so I used to type her papers for her. One subject that I still remember to this day was Locked In Syndrome. I believe that the syndrome started with a stroke (not really sure there) and the affected couldn’t move anything but their eyes. The almost appeared to be in a coma, but they were aware of everything around them.
After a rogue Taskforce member causes trouble (
“I’m not going to have this conversation with you.†So they were back to him being the boss again. Faith bit her lip, trying not to let her sarcasm escalate the situation. He could live in fairyland all he wanted, but Faith was fairly certain that there would not be a happy ending to this story. Will pressed the point. “I can’t believe she’s dead, Faith. Emma’s a fighter. She’s out there somewhere waiting for us to find her.†The passion in his voice was unmistakable, and instead of feeling irritated, she now felt sorry for him. He said, “I should’ve gotten more from Bernard. He was so smug, so sure that he was in control. I feel like I played right into his hands.â€
I’ve been addicted lately to the Pike Logan thrillers by Brad Taylor. In Ring of Fire (#11 in the series) Pike and his team must first find the terrorists who are different in that they are content to stay under the radar and inflict damage with their “ring of fire”, then must stop the plot. In their quest they come across a man much like themselves except his killing expertise is for hire. Can he be trusted?