THE SILENT SISTERS (Charles Jenkins Book #3) by Robert Dugoni is the non-stop high-octane conclusion of the Seven Sisters trilogy featuring ex-CIA agent Charles Jenkins. I believe this trilogy should be read in order to really enjoy it.
Having barely escaped Russia on his last mission, Charles is once again approached by the CIA when the two remaining Seven Sisters have gone silent. This time if he returns, he is on the Russia kill list, but he feels a sense of duty to assist in the efforts to find out if the two remaining sisters are still alive and need to be extracted.
When he gets to Moscow, he involves himself in saving a young prostitute being abused by a man in the bar where he stops to eat. His moral code will not allow him to just walk away. The man ends up being killed and Jenkins is blamed. To make matters worse it is the only son of the leader of the Moscow mafia. Now he is being chased by a matriarch out for revenge, a Moscow police investigator, a high-level assassin and the FSB as he attempts to helps the two sisters escape. This time though, he may have run out of luck.
This book was impossible to put down with everything that happens from the moment Charles returns to Russia. I did feel a few times you have to suspend belief, but no more than other spy/espionage fictional thrillers. Even when the stakes are high and the danger a step behind, the author was still able to intersperse a few moments of humor. Some of the Russian government leaders’ discussions felt very realistic and could have been right from current headlines. There are old friends from the previous book included and just the hint that they all may meet again.
I have really loved this entire trilogy and highly recommend it!
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About the Author
Robert Dugoni is the critically acclaimed New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post and #1 Amazon bestselling author of the Tracy Crosswhite police series set in Seattle, which has sold more than 8 million books worldwide. He is also the author of The Charles Jenkins espionage series, the David Sloane legal thriller series, and several stand-alone novels including The 7th Canon, Damage Control, and the literary novels, The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell – Suspense Magazine’s 2018 Book of the Year, for which Dugoni’s narration won an AudioFile Earphones Award and the critically acclaimed, The World Played Chess; as well as the nonfiction exposé The Cyanide Canary, a Washington Post Best Book of the Year. Several of his novels have been optioned for movies and television series. Dugoni is the recipient of the Nancy Pearl Award for Fiction and a three-time winner of the Friends of Mystery Spotted Owl Award for best novel set in the Pacific Northwest. He has also been a finalist for many other awards including the International Thriller Award, the Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction, the Silver Falchion Award for mystery, and the Mystery Writers of America Edgar Award.
Robert Dugoni’s books are sold in more than twenty-five countries and have been translated into more than thirty languages.
THE LAST AGENT (Charles Jenkins Book #2) by Robert Dugoni is the second book in this action-packed, edge-of-your-seat trilogy featuring a retired CIA agent. I feel these books are best read in order.
In the first book Charles Jenkins survived an operation gone wrong in Russia only to return to be tried for treason. After being exonerated, he learns that the woman who helped him escape Russia and gave her life for his, may be alive and being tortured in the notorious Lefortovo Prison.
To find out if Paulina Ponomayova is still alive and imprisoned, Charles must return to Russia and once again deal with former FSB officer, Viktor Fedorov. From the moment the Russian government finds out Charles is back in Russia, they assign an assassin to take care of the problem. The chase is on to find Paulina and get her out of Russia all while not knowing who they can really trust.
This book moves at the speed of light from one twist to another. The author’s writing makes you feel as though you are right there in the middle of the action with all the main characters. Charles is a fully fleshed, idealistic protagonist and that makes Efimov a perfect foil. An intriguing plot, twist and turns that do not stop and a surprise revelation make this a wonderful spy espionage read.
I am looking forward to the next book and to finding out more about the Seven Sisters. This is a trilogy that will keep you turning the pages.
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About the Author
Robert Dugoni is the critically acclaimed New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post and #1 Amazon bestselling author of the Tracy Crosswhite police series set in Seattle, which has sold more than 8 million books worldwide. He is also the author of The Charles Jenkins espionage series, the David Sloane legal thriller series, and several stand-alone novels including The 7th Canon, Damage Control, and the literary novels, The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell – Suspense Magazine’s 2018 Book of the Year, for which Dugoni’s narration won an AudioFile Earphones Award and the critically acclaimed, The World Played Chess; as well as the nonfiction exposé The Cyanide Canary, a Washington Post Best Book of the Year. Several of his novels have been optioned for movies and television series. Dugoni is the recipient of the Nancy Pearl Award for Fiction and a three-time winner of the Friends of Mystery Spotted Owl Award for best novel set in the Pacific Northwest. He has also been a finalist for many other awards including the International Thriller Award, the Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction, the Silver Falchion Award for mystery, and the Mystery Writers of America Edgar Award.
Robert Dugoni’s books are sold in more than twenty-five countries and have been translated into more than thirty languages.
Today is my turn on this new blog tour and I am sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for THE FAILSAFE QUERY (A Sean Richardson Thriller Book #1) by Michael Jenkins. This is the first book in an exciting, action packed spy trilogy.
Below you will find a book blurb, my book review, an about the author section and the author’s social media links. Enjoy!
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Book Blurb:
‘Some secrets were meant to be buried forever. Until now.’
Sean Richardson, a disgraced former intelligence agent, is tasked to lead a team to search for a British intelligence officer on the cusp of exposing thousands of secrets to the media. It includes a long lost list of Russian moles embedded since the Cold War, one of whom remains a public favourite in the British parliamentary system.
The action moves with absorbing pace and intrigue across Central Asia and Europe as the puzzle begins to unfold through a deep hidden legacy. As Sean gets closer to the truth, senior figures are left to nurse their anxiety knowing that if the secret is revealed, it will destroy their lives.
On the verge of success, his eye is taken off the ball, and the Russians step forward ready to pounce.
Tense, fast paced, and insightful, The Failsafe Query twists and turns to a satisfyingly dramatic finale.
The first in a set of spy thrillers that have been expertly crafted with stunning plot lines, magnificent locations, and twists that leave you gasping for air. Perfect for fans of Frederick Forsyth, Robert Ludlum, Tom Clancy, and Scott Mariani.
THE FAILSAFE QUERY (A Sean Richardson Thriller Book #1) by Michael Jenkins is the first book in a trilogy of contemporary British spy thrillers.
Post 9/11, the British government wants proof of the weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Sean is an agent in Central Asia and everything his informants show him points to the Iranians buying black market radioactive materials, not the Iraqis. Sean’s informant is killed and his mission compromised so he is recalled to Britain.
Eleven years later, Sean is rescued from an Afghanistan prison after months of incarceration. He was on a civilian contract job after leaving the service and was turned on when they found out he was digging into their real business, heroin. He is rescued for a reason. With his extensive knowledge of the Middle East and the mountains of Central Asia, he is tasked with finding an intelligence officer that has gone rogue. The rogue has secret information that could make him Britain’s biggest whistle-blower.
The story takes off from this point and Sean and his team travel around Europe and Central Asia in a fast-paced action spy thriller full of plot twists, modern day espionage and military precision. Sean is a complex protagonist. He is realistically flawed, believable and a professional. All the secondary characters are fully fleshed and believable, also. Since this is the first book in the trilogy, the first few chapters are more backstory and explanatory, but once Sean is on the job, the pace increases exponentially to the climax.
I recommend this exciting spy thriller and am looking forward to reading the other two in the trilogy!
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Aboutthe Author
I started climbing at 13, survived being lost in Snowdonia at 14, nearly drowned at 15, and then joined the Army at 16. Risk and adventure was built into my DNA and I feel very fortunate to have served the majority of my working career as an intelligence officer within Defence Intelligence, and as an explosive ordnance disposal officer and military surveyor within the Corps of Royal Engineers.
I was privileged to serve for twenty-eight years in the British Army as a soldier and officer, rising through the ranks to complete my service as a major. I served across the globe on numerous military operations as well as extensive travel and adventure on many major mountaineering and exploration expeditions that I led or was involved in.
I was awarded the Geographic Medal by the Royal Geographical Society for mountain exploration in 2003 and served on the screening committee of the Mount Everest Foundation charity for many years. It was humbling after so many years of service when I was awarded the MBE for services to counter-terrorism in 2007.
Today I am sharing my Feature Post and Book Review on the Partners In Crime Virtual Book Tour for Colleen Coble’s TWO REASONS TO RUN (Pelican Harbor Book #2). This is the second book in the Pelican Harbor trilogy. The mystery/suspense in each book is unique to that book, but the characters’ personal lives progress and carry over from each previous book. I feel these books are best read in order.
Below you will find a book synopsis, my book review, an excerpt from the book, the author bio and social media links and a Rafflecopter giveaway. Enjoy!
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Book Synopsis
A lie changed her world.
Police Chief Jane Hardy is still reeling from the scandal that rocked her small-town department just as she took over for her retired father—the man who wrecked her life with one little lie. Now she’s finally been reunited with her presumed-dead fifteen-year-old son, Will, and his father, documentarian Reid Bechtol.
A crisis looms.
When a murder aboard the oil platform Zeus exposes an environmental terrorist’s plot to flood Mobile Bay with crude oil, Jane and Reid must put their feelings for each other behind them and work together to prevent the rig from being sabotaged.
A killer targets her son.
Then the terrorist puts her son Will’s life on the line. Protecting him could be the common ground they need . . . but then ghosts from the past threaten to ruin Jane and Reid for good. She’s got plenty of reasons to run. But what if she stays?
Genre: Christian Romantic Suspense Published by: Thomas Nelson Publication Date: September 8, 2020 Number of Pages: 352 ISBN: 0785228489 (ISBN13: 9780785228486) Series: Pelican Harbor #2 Purchase Links:Amazon | Barnes & Noble | ChristianBook.com | Goodreads
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My Book Review
RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars
TWO REASONS TO RUN (Pelican Harbor Book #2) by Colleen Coble is the second action packed Christian romantic suspense/mystery in this trilogy series. The small coastal town of Pelican Bay’s Chief of Police Jane Hardy is a 5’2” strong, determined and justice driven spitfire who also happens to be a survivor of a cult. While the suspense/mystery is unique and solved in each book, Jane and all the main characters’ personal stories carry over and are a large part of the story. I feel the books in this trilogy should be read in order.
Chief of Police Jane Hardy is now firmly in control of her small-town police department after taking over from her retired father and surviving the scandal from “One Little Lie”. While she has been happily reunited with her fifteen-year-old son Will, who she believed dead, she is still coming to terms with the betrayal she feels from his father, Reid.
A local mother has reported her son missing when he does not return from the giant oil rig in the bay. She gives Jane an email from her son that suggests there is a terrorist plot against the oil rig and he believes he is in danger. But with no other leads and no body, Homeland Security drops the case.
Reid uses his job as a journalist/documentarian to gain access to the rig. He and Jane find the missing man dead and tied under the oil rig. As Jane and Will move forward in the investigation, they receive threats that if they continue, their son Will’s life in on the line.
I loved this book as much as the first which of course makes me anxious for the third. I believe this author does a great job of balancing an intriguing investigation, building suspense and dealing with all the characters’ personal lives in this small town which comes to life in her worldbuilding. Jane is a complex character dealing with her past in the cult, her development of her current spiritual beliefs and her relationship with Reid. All the secondary characters are fully fleshed and realistic. Though there is faith-based dialogue, it never felt out of character or like you are being preached at.
I highly recommend this Christian romantic suspense/mystery and author.
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Excerpt
Was anyone watching?
Keith McDonald sat at the computer and glanced around the oil platform’s rec room, but the dozen or so workers were engrossed in watching the final game of a Ping-Pong match. He hesitated,
then hovered his cursor over the Send button. Clenching his teeth, he sent the emails. Maybe it was nothing, but if anyone could decipher the recording, it was Reid Dixon.
The back of his neck prickled, and Keith looked around again. The room felt stifling even with the AC cooling it from the May heat. He jumped up and headed for the door. He exited and darted into the shadows as two men strolled past. One was his suspect.
Keith stood on a grating suspended three thousand feet over the water and strained to hear past the noise of machinery. The scent of the sea enveloped him, and the stars glimmered on the water surrounding the oil platform that had been his home for two years now.
“Scheduled for late May—”
A clanging bell drowned out the rest of the man’s words.
“Devastation—”
The other fragment of conversation pumped up Keith’s heart rate. Were they talking about the sabotage he feared, or was he reading more into the words than were there? He couldn’t believe someone could be callous enough to sabotage the oil platform and destroy the coast on purpose. He’d seen firsthand the devastating effects from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe. And what about the people living on the platform? Deepwater Horizon had killed eleven people and injured another seventeen.
He had to sound a warning and stop this, but he had no real evidence. If Reid Dixon blew him off, who would even listen? Maybe Homeland Security would pay attention, but who did he even call there? He could tell them about the pictures threatening Bonnie, but what did that prove? They might just say she had a stalker and he was chasing shadows.
He couldn’t say they were wrong.
He sidled along the railing, and the breeze lifted his hair. A boat bobbed in the waves far below, and in the moonlight, he spotted a diver aboard. Must be night diving the artificial reef created by the concrete supports below the platform. He’d done a bit of it himself over the years.
For an instant he wished he were gliding carefree through the waves without this crushing weight of conscience on his shoulders. When he was sixteen, life was so simple. School, girls, football, and good times. He’d gone to work at the platform when he was nineteen, after he’d decided college wasn’t for him.
It had been a safe place, a good place to work with fun companions and interesting work.
Until a few weeks ago when everything turned sinister and strange. He’d wanted to uncover more before he reported it, but every second he delayed could mean a stronger chance of an attack.
If an attack was coming. He still wasn’t sure, and he wanted a name or to identify the organization behind the threat. If there was a threat. Waffling back and forth had held him in place. Was this real, or was he reading something dangerous into something innocent?
Though he didn’t think he was overreacting.
He turned to head to his quarters. A bulky figure rushed him from the shadows and plowed into his chest, driving him back against the railing. The man grabbed Keith’s legs and tried to tip him over the edge.
***
Author Bio
Colleen Coble is a USA TODAY bestselling author and RITA finalist best known for her coastal romantic suspense novels, including The Inn at Ocean’s Edge, Twilight at Blueberry Barrens, and the Lavender Tides, Sunset Cove, Hope Beach, and Rock Harbor series.
ANYONE BUT NICK (Anyone But… Book #3) by Penelope
Bloom is the third book in the King Brothers contemporary romance trilogy. This
one is an enemies-to-lovers romance that can be read as a standalone, but I
preferred to read them in order to see each of the brothers fall and keep all
of the connections and timelines straight between characters.
In high school. Miranda always felt a special connection to
Nick King. When she finally built up the courage to slip a poem into his locker
to let him know, she does not sign it and it is the cause of a seven-year misunderstanding
and her hatred of Nick King.
Miranda has her life all planned out in steps to get her to
the top of the corporate ladder with the perfect mate. But it has all fallen
apart. She broke up with her perfect boyfriend and was fired from her perfect
job. When she goes to apply for a new VP position, she can not believe Nick
King just bought the business.
Nick is impressed by Miranda’s resume, but he wants more. He
never understood what happened to their friendship in high school and he has
never been truly satisfied with any other woman. Nick gives Miranda the job.
Will he be able to work with Miranda on a strictly professional level or will
they be able to give their friendship a second chance and turn it into more?
I enjoyed Nick trying to find the right way to deal with
Miranda, while not treading all over her feelings, but I had a difficult time warming
up to Miranda. I did not understand why she was so set on her professional
persona when her best friends and family were all fine with the real Miranda.
It took her too long to figure that out. Once Cade got involved, I enjoyed the
story more and Miranda started to loosen up. The sex scenes are explicit, but
not gratuitous.
This is a good close to the trilogy, but not my favorite of the three books. I loved reading the epilogue that showed the families all happy in the near future. This is a fun and entertaining trilogy to read.
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Author
Biography
Penelope
Bloom is a USA Today, Amazon, and Washington Post bestselling
author whose books have been translated into seven languages. Her popular
romances include His Banana, Her Cherry, Savage, and Punished.
Her writing
career started when she left her job as a high school teacher to pursue her
dream. She loves taking her imagination for a spin and writing romances she’d
want to live. She likes a man with a mind as dirty as sin and a heart of gold
he keeps hidden away. Her favorite things include getting to wear socks all
day—pants optional—and being a positive example for her girls. Showing her
daughters that no dream is too big, no matter what anyone tells them, is worth
all the late nights, doubts, and fears that come with being a writer.
ANYONE BUT CADE (Anyone But… Book #2) by Penelope Bloom is
the second contemporary romance in the King Brothers trilogy. These books are an
enjoyable mix of romance, laughter and smokin’ hot sex.
Cade King is the other twin, who is never serious unless it
comes to negotiations for work. Seven years ago, he cost his girlfriend her
soccer scholarship with a stupid prank that went wrong. Since then he has never
been in a serious relationship and hides behind his money and success. He can’t
be hurt, if no one really knows him, right?
Iris swore seven years ago with her two best friends to
never again date a King brother. But they are back in town and already one of
her friends has fallen. Iris values the success she worked hard for to become a
law enforcement officer, but something is missing. Cade is still a temptation
hard to resist.
Cade receives the news that he is the father of a five-year-old
son that he never knew was out there. He asks Iris for her help and even though
she knows she shouldn’t, she cannot resist Bear. Can Iris forgive Cade and can
the two work together for Bear?
I really enjoyed this book. The dialogue was laugh out loud
funny at times and ridiculously funny at others. As much as Cade and Iris were
great for each other, Bear made them even better. I loved when Bear would be a
mini-Cade and the action between the two throughout shows the difference, I
felt realistically between how a man or a woman play with a child. Even when it
seemed as though all the secondary characters were against them, Iris and Cade
stayed positive and worked things out. The sex scenes were explicit, but not
gratuitous. I love when I finish a romance and have a smile on my face.
I love all the brothers and I am looking forward to Nick and
Miranda’s story!
***
Author
Biography
Penelope
Bloom is a USA Today, Amazon, and Washington Post bestselling
author whose books have been translated into seven languages. Her popular
romances include His Banana, Her Cherry, Savage, and Punished.
Her writing
career started when she left her job as a high school teacher to pursue her
dream. She loves taking her imagination for a spin and writing romances she’d
want to live. She likes a man with a mind as dirty as sin and a heart of gold
he keeps hidden away. Her favorite things include getting to wear socks all
day—pants optional—and being a positive example for her girls. Showing her
daughters that no dream is too big, no matter what anyone tells them, is worth
all the late nights, doubts, and fears that come with being a writer.
