Cold Fire by Dustin Stevens

Cold Fire by Dustin Stevens
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Working as a tour guide in the Montana wilderness Jeremiah Tate, known as Hawk, Is abruptly dragged back to his past as a DEA agent. Hired to track down a missing brother hiking the wilderness, the client attacks the brother. Narrowly escaping with his life Hawk starts to work with his old colleagues to find the killers and uncovers information on the death of his family. Dustin Stevens does little to disguise what happens next, and is fairly predictable detracting from the enjoyment of what is a fairly good book. I personally struggled to complete this read as it did not capture my attention fully early on. It would have been much better if I had read it on holiday with less distractions.

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Trident Code by Thomas Waite

Trident Code by Thomas Waite
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

What is the worst thing that can happen? Ask Lana Elkins it all happens to her, first time out the U.S. Held to ransom by disrupting the national power grid, this time it is even worse. Cyber hackers penetrate a U.S. nuclear submarine intending to melt the ice caps, for who and for what. The author, Thomas Waite has the knack of describing catastrophe that to you and I is unimaginable, it is as good as going to the movies to see a disaster film. We follow Lana as she works with a mysterious hacker to try and stop the madmen destroying the world by flooding it. If this is not enough her daughter is again, unwittingly drawn into danger putting even more pressure on Lana to get a quick result. This is another great book from Thomas Waite entertaining and thrilling from start to finish.

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Mariner's Ark by Peter Tonkin

Mariner's Ark: A Richard Mariner Nautical Adventure by Peter Tonkin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

There is a long series of Richard Mariner books however this is my first and was pleasantly surprised at how entertaining it was. After a slow start which included unnecessary meal descriptions and other fillers, and the author started on the main subject of the storyline, things got measurably better. As an adventure story excluding the start it is full of exciting action and written in a way that makes it easy to visualise the experience. Mariner is in Long Beach with his wife when warnings are issued for an Arkstorm that would be bigger and more destructive than all the recent storms and tsunami. As he heads into the storm with emergency supplies aboard his container ship he is unsure of his wife's location or condition. Will she be safe in the luxury yacht Maxima as they go south following a high tech competition yacht?

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Wrongful Death by LJ Sellers

Wrongful Death by L.J. Sellers
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This my second LJ Sellers book and got a little less than I expected on the excitement side, however as a regular cop murder mystery it was fairly good. Detective Wade Jackson is given the task of solving the murder of a cop, who in his spare time worked to help the homeless. During the first cold night in Eugene, Officer Dan Thomson is murdered immediately after handing out blankets he had collected to the residents of a homeless camp. The investigation is difficult enough due lack of witnesses, but with the complication of his partner being related to the victim nothing is easy. He is given a sex attack case to keep him out of the way to keep emotions in check. The investigation follows the normal steps you would imagine, obvious clues are red herrings and the press are involved. It takes a while but don't give up the story does take some unexpected turns and livens up towards the end of the investigation and identification of the murderer. A good story but my preference is the Agent Dallas series.

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Relentless Savage by Dave Edlund

Relentless Savage by Dave Edlund
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The synopsis says fast paced, action driven adventure and that's exactly what you get. Peter Savage's son volunteering in Sudan, is kidnapped with his friends by the Janjaweed for no apparent reason. As the story progresses we find what the real horrors are surrounding the kidnappings and other local dissapearances. The Chinese have set up a lab to conduct experiments on the locals, but what and why? Peter with his friends and assistance from a special forces team attempt a rescue unaware of the real purpose of the lab. This is a really exciting book, with great action and a fantastic story line.

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Blood of a Stone by Jeanne Lyet Gassman

Blood of a Stone by Jeanne Lyet Gassman
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Demetrios the lead character, a young man violently abused by his father, is sold into slavery in Palestine during the time of Jesus and his movement. Initiated by a horrific assault by his Roman master, Demetrois escapes slavery with his friend and companion Elazar to start a new life as a trader and caravan driver. It is during this time that he struggles with his past life and is tormented by nightmares and visions. This journey is main theme of the book and is more of a moral lesson than a thriller/ mystery. It is not really my type of book and purely coincidental that I read it just before Easter. I would like to award it half marks at two and half stars but unfortunately that is not possible. It covers quite a range of moral issues from the slavery to religion but in the end there are no miracles only an okay book.

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The Dead Key by DM Pulley

The Dead Key by D.M. Pulley
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Newly qualified engineer Iris Latch is assigned a job working in an old disused tower block, the old home of a now defunct bank. Intrigued by the abandoned items in the bank, Iris begins to discover interesting and compelling history of the bank. This history is detailed in alternating storylines past and present, and introduces the main character from the past, Beatrice. The deeper Iris digs the deeper she falls into trouble as does Beatrice in the past. It is an interesting story of greed power and corruption which ends in a fairly predictable outcome, but this does not spoil your enjoyment as you read on to confirm your predictions. It is not a big thriller but does provide most of the element of a good mystery story, not bad.

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