Review of "Zero Days: A Thriller" by Ruth Ware

As the story opens, Jacinta Cross (Jack) - with a backpack full of lockpicks and other burglary tools - stealthily breaks into a London building and sneaks around planting tech that will undermine the computer system of the resident business.



Jack is aided by her husband Gabe, who's at home overriding security locks and such from his computer. As all this is happening, Jack and Gabe are flirting and joking, and I thought they were a couple of jolly thieves of some kind. Well I was wrong.



Jack and Gabe are penetration experts who are hired to PURPOSELY launch an attack on a corporation, installation, business or whatever..... to suss out weaknesses. Jack and Gabe then make suggestions to improve the customer's security.

Jack is delayed a bit on her way home, and when she finally gets back, Jack is confronted with a horrible sight. Her husband Gabe has been murdered, his throat has been slit, and there's blood all over.



Jack goes into a kind of shock and collapses, unable to move for some time. Jack finally calls the police about an hour later, and detectives arrive to investigate. After explaining what happened Jack goes to spend the night at the home of her sister Helena Wick, where the siblings talk about what happened.



The next day Jack is called to the police station to make a statement, and while she's there Jack sees a notice on her phone, confirming a life insurance policy on Gabe worth a million dollars. Jack is shocked, since she didn't take out any such policy.



In addition, Jack overhears a conversation among the detectives investigating Gabe's murder, and it's clear that JACK IS THE PRIME SUSPECT. Jack realizes she's being framed for Gabe's murder, and she's not about to sit still for that.



Jack has the skills and the moxie, and she decides to nail Gabe's killer herself. So while an investigator is getting Jack a cup of tea (those Brits are so polite with the tea), Jack quietly walks out of the police station and goes on the run. This launches a chase with Jack on the lam, and the police - with all their myriad resources - trying to catch her.



Of course Jack is at a HUGE disadvantage from the get-go.



Though Jack changes her hair and disguises her appearance, the police hold all the cards.



The investigators can look for Jack on CCTV cameras all over England; track Jack's phone; stake out the homes of everyone Jack knows; tap the phones of Jack's friends and relatives; find out the instant Jack uses a credit card or bank machine; etc. In addition, when Jack climbs over a fence, a nail or something punctures her abdomen. This is a major plot point because Jack gets sicker and sicker day by day as the wound becomes infected and festers....and Jack can't seek medical help.

There's a lot of tech talk in the book, and tech turns out to be the motive for Jack's murder.

The story is exciting from the point of view of a woman on the run, and I enjoyed seeing Jack outsmart and outmaneuver just about everybody. Along the way, Jack 'hears' Gabe's voice in her head, encouraging her, and this pushes Jack to carry on.



The story is told in the first person from Jack's POV, so the reader is well aware of Jack's thinking, movements, pain, suffering, grief, etc. I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Imogen Church, who does an excellent job conveying what's happening, moment by moment.

The novel is exciting and well-written, but I don't much like stories that are one long interminable chase. Therefore the book was just okay for me. Keep in mind though, that lots of people love this book.  

Rating: 3 stars

Review of "Where Are The Children Now: A Novel of Suspense" by Mary Higgins Clark & Alafair Burke

This book, co-authored by Alafair Burke, is a sequel to Mary Higgins Clark's 1975 novel 'Where Are the Children?'. Broadly speaking, 'Where Are The Children' is about a woman named Nancy whose two young children, Mike and Melissa are abducted, abused, and eventually rescued. The sequel provides enough background information to work fine as a standalone.

In 'Where Are The Children Now', Mike and Melissa - who were kidnapped as children - are now adults. Mike has had therapy to deal with the childhood trauma but Melissa couldn't (and still can't) bear to talk about her ordeal and claims she can 'choose to be happy.'



Mike works as a captain on a tourist boat in the Caribbean and Melissa is a lawyer, well-known for securing the release of a woman named Jennifer Duncan, who was accused of killing her abusive husband. Melissa is now also an author and the host of a popular true crime podcast. The current focus of the podcast is a missing boy, which hits close to home for Melissa.

Melissa is also a newlywed, happily married to a widower named Charlie Miller. Charlie has a sweet toddler daughter called Riley, who Melissa adores.





Melissa and Charlie live in the ritzy Long Island Hamptons and Melissa's mother Nancy is relocating to the same area. Melissa and her brother Mike - who's flown in from the Caribbean - are helping their mother pack and move.



Like anyone in the public eye, Melissa expects abusive remarks from trolls, but one particular lowlife has been leaving REALLY nasty comments, and Melissa is twitchy. One day Melissa is at the playground with her stepdaughter Riley, checking her phone and sipping coffee, when she looks up to see a woman speaking to Riley. Melissa rushes over, and the woman hurls insults, saying Melissa is neglecting the toddler, and Melissa is a fraud and a hypocrite.



Melissa is badly shaken and takes Riley home, where they both take a nap. When Melissa's brother Mike comes in a couple of hours later, Riley is gone and Melissa is so sleepy she can hardly be awakened.

To cut to the chase, the police suspect Melissa of harming little Riley. Melissa tries to point the police in a different direction, especially toward the nasty woman in the playground....but the cops don't want to listen.



In the meantime, Melissa's husband Charlie, heeding the advice of his lawyer, distances himself from Melissa, though he claims to believe she's blameless.



There's lots of excitement as the story unfolds, and plenty of twists and surprises. I like the book but wish that Melissa - an intelligent woman - was more perceptive than she is.

Still this is a compelling thriller with a nice array of characters. Recommended to mystery fans.

Rating: 3.5 stars

Review of "Everyone On This Train Is A Suspect: A Novel of Suspense" by Benjamin Stevenson

The premise of these clever mysteries by Benjamin Stevenson is that an author named Ernest Cunningham writes books about real murders he's helped to solve.



Cunningham's first book, 'Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone', is about homicides that occurred during a family reunion at a mountain resort. Ernest subsequently got a contract to write a fictional mystery, but he developed writer's block and could barely pen a word.

Cunningham was then invited to be a featured author at the 50th annual "Australian Mystery Writers' Festival" which took place on the Ghan, the luxury train that travels from Darwin to Adelaide, a distance of 1,850 miles.



As it happens, travelers were murdered during the journey, and Ernest got to write another book. Cunningham relates this tale in 'Everyone On This Train is a Suspect', a narrative of the harrowing trip.

Early in the book, Cunningham introduces the festival's featured writers, who are:

Henry McTavish - the Guest of Honor and author of the popular Detective Morbund series. McTavish likes his tipple and he likes the ladies.



Ernest Cunningham - author of Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone, about a serial killer. Cunningham is our narrator.



Lisa Fulton - author of a legal thriller called The Balance of Justice, published two decades ago. Lisa is just now writing her second novel.



SF Majors - author of gripping thrillers that have been optioned for Netflix and Broadway. Majors is the host of the festival.



Alan Royce - a former forensic pathologist who writes the Dr. Jane Black series. Royce is desperately trying to get a blurb from Henry McTavish, hoping to raise his profile and increase his sales.



Wolfgang - award-winning author of literary fiction who uses only one name. Wolfgang is a snob who looks down on authors who write genre fiction, which includes all the other writers at the festival.



Cunningham also describes other people on the train, including his girlfriend Juliette; his agent Simone; a publisher called Wyatt Lloyd; a McTavish superfan called Brooke; the journey director Aaron; the barista/bartender Cynthia; literary fans Jasper and Harriet Murdoch; several book club ladies; and more. Thus there are plenty of characters who might be either victim(s), killer(s), or just passengers.







Cunningham explains right off that he adheres to the rules of 'Golden Age' mysteries, such as: nothing supernatural; no surprise identical twins; the killer must be introduced early on; the killer must be important to the plot; no obvious truths must be concealed from the reader; and so on. Ernest sticks to the rules, but in a rather tortured fashion.

After crimes start occurring on the Ghan, far from populated areas, with no police nearby, Cunningham decides HE should investigate. So Ernest examines crime scenes; looks for evidence; questions people; develops theories, etc. Ernest is clever and insightful, the story is full of twists and turns, and it's all very entertaining.



It's also fun to follow the journey of the Ghan, with off-train excursions to the Katherine Gorge;



the underground township of Cooper Pedy, where opals are mined;



and the red center of Australia, Alice Springs.



I'm a fan of Golden Age mysteries and I liked the book. My major quibble would be that the plot is over-convoluted and hard to follow in places. Still, if there's a third book in the series, I'd probably read it.

Thanks to Netgalley, Benjamin Stevenson, and Mariner Books for a copy of the book.

Rating: 3.5 stars

Review of "Lone Wolf: An Orphan X Novel" by Gregg Hurwitz

In this 9th book in the 'Orphan X' series, Evan Smoak's search for a lost dog leads him to clash with a skilled female assassin. The book can be read as a standalone, but familiarity with the series is beneficial.

*****

When Evan Smoak was a scrawny twelve-year-old living in an orphanage, he was removed and placed in a black ops program that trained orphans to be highly skilled assassins. Evan was dubbed Orphan X.



After doing his assassin job for many years, Orphan X left the black ops program and set himself up as 'The Nowhere Man', a badass who helps people in trouble. When a person in dire straits is given Evan's number by a former client, the call goes to Evan's uber-encrypted RoamZone phone, which he answers with the phrase "Do you need my help?"



This time, when Evan's RoamZone rings, and he asks 'Do you need my help?' a young girl answers with, 'Yeah. My dog went missing." It turns out the caller is Sofia, the 11-year-old daughter of Evan's half-brother Andre. Evan barely knows Andre and never met Sofia, and 'The Nowhere Man' isn't in the business of finding lost dogs.



However Sofia is crying - and Evan is getting 'the look' from his teenage protégé Josephine (Joey) - so Orphan X agrees to look for Sofia's funny-looking dog Loco.



Joey is a computer whiz who can hack into any computer or CCTV camera anywhere, and with Joey's help, Evan discovers where he might find Loco.



When Evan goes to (hopefully) retrieve Loco, he's ready for action, just in case. So Evan is dressed in his tactical-discreet cargo pants, his shirt that foils face recognition, and his Original S.W.A.T. boots. Orphan X is also armed with his ARES 1911 pistol, extra mags, and a Strider folding knife. In addition, Evan has surveilled the neighborhood, plotted multiple escape routes. and so on.



As it turns out, all this is necessary because Evan comes face to face with a highly trained female assassin named Karissa (aka The Wolf), and this leads to Evan having a confrontation with the Los Angeles police and several SWAT teams.



After this Evan and Karissa get into a kind of cat and mouse game, with the assassins trying to kill each other. (For faithful readers of the series, Karissa reminds of Candy McClure, aka Orphan V).

As Evan pursues Karissa, he learns of a disturbing scheme being perpetrated by an out-of-shape tech billionaire, who sits around all day snacking and scheming.



The billionaire seems to have no scruples, and his plan bodes ill for the human race. Meanwhile, Sofia continues to bug Evan about her pooch Loco, whom she misses terribly.

The book has the elaborately choreographed action scenes that are a signature feature of the series - scenes that are exciting and over the top (in a good way). It's also great to see Joey again, and the Twizzler loving teen - who drinks Red Bull by the case and has a dog named Dog - is growing up.



Joey is attending college and dabbling with joining a sorority. However, Joey is socially challenged and has trouble with pantyhose - a MUST for the sorority she's pledging. Unfortunately, Orphan X knows nothing about pantyhose, but his friend Melinda - an attractive Vietnamese master forger - helps Joey with this problem. 🙂



Evan is changing as well, becoming a bit more involved with his family. At the book's climax, Evan makes a surprising discovery, and it will be interesting to see what happens next.

I had a text copy of the book as well as the audiobook, narrated by Scott Brick, who does an excellent job.

Thanks to Netgalley, Gregg Hurwitz, Minotaur Books, and Macmillan Audio for copies of the book.

Rating: 3.5 stars

Review of "Leader of the Pack: An Andy Carpenter Mystery" by David Rosenfelt

In this 10th book in the humorous 'Andy Carpenter' series, the Paterson, New Jersey defense attorney gets a new trial for a man he thinks was wrongly convicted.

*****

Ever since he inherited a large fortune, defense lawyer Andy Carpenter takes very few cases.



Instead, Andy likes to hang out with his girlfriend Laurie Collins and his golden retriever Tara; watch sports; schmooze with his friends; help run a canine rescue operation called 'The Tara Foundation'; and so on.



Six years ago Andy defended Joey Desimone, who was tried for killing a married couple called Richard and Karen Solarno.



Joey had an affair with Karen, and was angry when she broke it off, but swears he didn't kill the couple. Joey was convicted anyway, and Andy thinks it's because Joey's father is Carmine Desimone, head of the Desimone crime family.....so 'guilt by association.'



Now, new information has emerged about the victim Richard Solarno. It turns out Richard - who worked for mob boss Carmine Desimone - had a side gig selling weapons to right-wing militias. Six years ago, a Montana militia threatened Richard's life because he sold them inferior guns.



Dylan Campbell, the prosecutor in Joey Desimone's case, was informed about these threats, but didn't share the information with the defense. This 'prosecutorial misconduct' opened the door for a new trial, and Andy is now defending Joey again....while Dylan Campbell is fuming.



As Andy prepares his new case, he looks into Richard Solarno's shenanigans six years ago, and identifies people (other than Joey) who might have wanted to kill Richard. This opens a HUGE can of worms because a group of people with VERY evil intentions don't want their activities exposed. For this reason, the greedy cabal is killing off people right and left, and Andy himself is in danger.

Andy is assisted in his trial preparations by the following people:

⦿ Laurie: Andy's girlfriend, a former cop who's now a private investigator.



⦿ Sam: Andy's accountant, a computer genius who can hack into anything and everything. Sam is anxious to be a 'real detective' with 'boots on the ground', but when Sam gets his feet on the ground, things don't go so well.



⦿ Hike: Andy's law partner, who - in Andy's opinion - is the most boring man on earth. Just being in Hike's presence makes Andy sleepy. On the upside, Hike is very good at writing up motions.



⦿ Marcus: a security expert who's so big and tough you'd be better off with him than with a platoon of marines. Laurie often dispatches Marcus to watch Andy's back.



⦿ Edna: Andy's secretary, whose 'work' consists mostly of picking up her paychecks.



The plot is overly contrived and the villains' demonic scheme is too stomach-churning for a cozy mystery. Still, the book has a good dose of humor, and it's always great to visit with Tara, who's (briefly) a therapy dog in this story.



I'll keep reading these books because - though they're formulaic - Andy's sarcastic remarks make me laugh, and these fun cozies are good 'palate cleansers' between darker tomes.

Rating: 3 stars