lilysreviews

Book Blurb (from Amazon.com): Lucy's back! In a story ripped from the headlines, the violence is the worst she's ever seen, the stakes are higher than ever...and things get personal.

It's a vicious, horrific crime: The brutal killing of a teenaged girl. When Pittsburgh detectives call FBI Supervisory Special Agent Lucy Guardino to the scene, their focus is on who and why?

Was it the girl's Afghan father striving to regain his honor after she became too Westernized? Her Jewish boyfriend? Someone from Afghanistan settling an old grudge? Or one of the many drug cartels the father helped the DEA bring down seeking revenge?

Former Marine Sergeant Andre Stone has been home a month, but he has yet to leave the safe haven of his grandmother's house -- other than to go to his appointments at the VA's burn clinic. Andre's disfiguring physical scars are the least of his worries. The emotional wounds of seeing his men massacred in a DEA raid gone horribly wrong have left him a walking dead man, numb to anything.

All he can think of is revenge. On Rashid Raziq, the man behind the raid. When Andre is offered the chance at vengeance, the only question left is:  How far will he go to get it?

The answers seem clear when Pittsburgh becomes engulfed in flames as a violent narcoterrorist turns the city into a kill zone...But in the dark of night, surrounded by men intent on destroying the truth, Lucy and Andre learn that secrets hide in shadows.

Review:  When I first read via Ms. Lyons' newsletter that a new Lucy Guardino book was coming out, I was quite excited. The titles may be off-putting to some readers, but they make perfect sense in context of the stories and the stories are excellent.

What I really love about this story (about all of her books really) is that it's of the edge reading. There is violence, yes, but it isn't gratuitous violence. There is, from my viewpoint, just the right amount to make the story realistic -- if there was either more or less something would be lost.  There is mystery, action, and jurisdictional squabbling.

The characters also make the story. They are ordinary people you might know.  They think, they are tempted, they must choose their paths, and their choices are ones that the reader could -- conceivably IF in the circumstances with that personality -- choose for themselves.

Looking forward to the next installment in the series!

Review for Snake Skin (Book 1) can be found by clicking here.

(Cross-posted to Amazon.com, Librarything, Goodreads, B&N)