Trained to Hunt by Simon Gervais

Pierce Hunt has been fired by the DEA (In the previous book). He went off the rails in response to a cartel's kidnapping his daughter and her friend. Despite a successful resolution, his daughter is still seriously shook up. Doesn't help that Hunt was helped out by the daughter of the Garcia cartel's boss.

Hunt and Anna Garcia have since become an item as she makes the steady move to legitimize the Garcia's business. Some underlings, still loyal to daddy Garcia's criminal ways, don't like the direction taken by Anna and are plotting to return things to the way they were. And they have a new product. A heroin-derivative that promises performance enhancing effects. Local Florida high school football players are turning up critically incapacitated or dead. Including the star QB of the high school where Hunt's daughter attends.

Hunt and his team weren't unemployed for long. As soon as the President demanded Hunt's head (previous book), the DEA quietly hired the team as contractors. Tracing that heroin-derivative back to Afghanistan takes Hunt's team to the small villages that is the source of the unique variant of poppy. Anna is dealing with her disloyal younger brother who is trying to kill her. When it turns out that the old Garcia distribution network is where this new drug has hit Florida, the DEA then tells her to stop the subversive network or all previously promised protections will cease immediately.  After Afghanistan, Hunt heads back to the US before being inserted into Venezuela before finally returning back to Tampa to help Anna deal with her brother.

Gervais' reputation is that of a quality thriller/action author whose pre-literary life dealt with the military, intelligence, and law enforcement. He knows of what he writes. Earlier books of his have been reviewed here. What ensues is a highly believable and realistic presentation of the investigation and subsequent battles. Good old testosterone-based thriller. Doubt many women will pick this up. Need a suggestion for a holiday gift for the (male) reader in your life? This would be a good place to start.

Available November 2019.

East Coast Don

The League of Orbis Novus by C.C. Prestel

An alcoholic molecular biologist who does some contract work for the CDC is sent to Central America in response to a puzzling virus. Blood and tissue samples are sent back to Atlanta, but further analysis isn’t fast tracked by the CDC.

 

Struggling actor Sam finally realizes the stage isn’t in his future so he ‘falls back’ on his college major, journalism. He accepts a position at a Las Vegas paper starting out doing mostly fluff pieces. He’s assigned to do some research on the concept of the internet hoax. If the piece pans out, then maybe a bigger assignment on fake news.

It’s autumn in the Nevada desert. In his research, he stumbles across a single item saying that if society fails to address the opioid crises, they will. He tosses it off as a nuisance. A few weeks later, another web threat appears as does what appears to be random billboards in the US and elsewhere around the world. This 2^nd mention also adds a deadline. Do something now or on December 1, The League of Orbis Novus will.

From here, the book is one-part medical mystery and one-part a study in investigative journalism. The FBI takes a bit of an interest assigning a novice agent from the Las Vegas bureau because of the potential terrorist connection. Lots of interviews with computer hackers (to track down the source of the internet posts), media types (those billboards), and medical researchers (the science behind the threats). The investigations are being helped a bit by what they think is an Orbis Novus insider.

December 1 arrives. The stream of addicts showing up at emergency departments begins with a trickle, but the daily rates rise throughout the month and the sense of urgency by the media, medicine, and law enforcement ramps up to high gear to find out how are addicts being targeted, how to treat/save opioid abusers that are affected, and how to find the principles in Orbis Novus behind the focused attacks on users. While the deaths mount up, Big Pharma shuts down production, insurance stops payments, big surgeries are postponed. The scope of the (intended or unintended) consequences keeps expanding.

An interesting concept that requires the reader to accept some leaps in faith regarding practical issues in physiology and medicine. Once Sam takes the bit and runs with the story, this book really flies. Easily read in a single sitting . . . just get past the first 3 to 4 chapters of backstory. All in all, an entertaining, if somewhat implausible, escape from the December crush.

East Coast Don

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The Last Tourist by Olen Steinhauer

#4 in the Milo Weaver/Tourist trilogy. Yes, that’s correct.

The Tourist, The Nearest Exit and An American Spy chronicled Milo Weaver’s career in the blackest of black op departments within the CIA. The Office of Tourism was the sharpest point of America’s clandestine spear. They go in. They kill. They leave.

But a Chinese intelligence officer figured it all out, got his hands on the proverbial roster of Tourists and effectively wiped them all out. All except Milo and his boss. Together, in the aftermath, they have taken over an independent intelligence gathering operation that had been set up by Milo’s father (guess the spy trade runs in his family as Milo’s sister is also involved). This operation is is the subject of The Last Tourist and is called The Library, which provides its clients (selected nation-states that have deep pockets) with high level intelligence that might directly or indirectly affect each country.

The Last Tourist details a vast, complex, and secretive conspiracy and its attempts to wipe out The Library, which is viewed as a threat. Think the Bilderberg Group is something to be feared? They don’t hold a candle to the group dreamed up by Steinhauer.

Steinhauer’s vivid imagination has crafted a conspiracy that is not about geopolitics, nation states, governments, or laws. That’s child’s play. The ultimate source of power and control is simply money. And currency knows no borders or boundaries, no elected officials or tinpot despots. It just is. The primary participants include a former CIA higher-up who stumbled across all the (supposedly) hidden files about their Office of Tourism that dated well back onto the Cold War era. She is (or was) married to the CEO of Northwell (a Halliburtan-ish conglomerate) that has used that information to secretly set up its own Office of Tourism that is now tasked with taking out Milo Weaver, his Librarians (country-specific information magnets) and all the genius programmers that hide, store, and encrypt the Library’s information.   

Other players determined to develop a new world order are MirGaz (Russian natural gas company; world’s largest), IfW (Germany’s massive investment bank), Touzi (middle eastern venture capitalists), Said Logistics (Omani shipping and transportation), and most importantly, Nexus (texting and messaging service with a reach beyond that of Facebook that guarantees anonymity and state of the art encryption). And they all meet each year to recruit clients at the annual World Economic Summit that meets in Davos.

Weaver is driven by two things. One is keeping the Library afloat and the other is protecting his wife and teenage daughter. They put up with and survived Milo’s career so far, but these new Tourists are even more ruthless. He’s not doing too well keeping The Library alive. Librarians and programmers are systematically being taken out even after they've all been told to go dark dark dark. And he's not just trying to stay a step ahead of these new Tourists. He doesn’t know who he can trust. Old friends may be against him and old enemies may be of some assistance - a scorecard would be helpful.

I’ve read (and reviewed here) most everything Steinhauer has written; search his name. you'll see. He is more from the Le Carre end of the espionage spectrum than he is from the Brad Thor or Vince Flynn end. While there is plenty of death and mayhem, the storyline and the exquisite presentation isn’t overwhelmed by violence. Pick this up because you really want it. Lightweight readers will get lost in the plot’s intricate complexity. Wouldn’t hurt to use a bookmark on which you can jot notes so you can keep track of the players and their fluid loyalties.

The challenge of The Last Tourist, if you choose to accept, will be best attacked by reading the Milo Weaver series in order. The Last Tourist will be really confusing for those reading it as a standalone. Having read the previous three, I was rewarded with a deep, thoughtful, multifaceted, layered, and successful conclusion (I think) to the Milo Weaver saga. But based on Steinhauer’s history, one never knows.

BTW, for those who don’t know, Steinhauer is the creative force behind the on-going series, Berlin Station, now on the EPIX Network, (season 1 in available on Amazon Prime). Haven’t watched it, but I will. With any luck, he’ll be able to get this Milo Weaver narrative on video.

East Coast Don

Available March 2020 (Thanx NetGalley). So mark your calendars.

Blue Moon by Lee Child

Jack Reacher #25.

Begins on a bus.

Reacher notices an old guy, mostly asleep, carrying a fat teller's envelope in his jacket pocket. Fat=full of money. Also notices that a skinny low life sees a potential score. Bus stops in a medium sized unnamed city, probably in the midwest. The punk stalks the vic and takes him down. Reacher was following and encourages the chump to seek a score elsewhere. 

The vic is gracious. Invites Reacher to his home for coffee and maybe a bite. The guy and his wife appear one day short of being destitute. Reacher finds out they own money to a loan shark - they've been borrowing money to help pay their adult daughter's medical bills. 

Said daughter worked for a dot.com entrepreneur. A real genius. Lots of startup backing to bring jobs to town. But the genius was skimming off the top, stopped paying the company's health insurance premiums, thus the daughter was caught off guard with a cancer diagnosis. Business is gone. The CEO has disappeared. The hospital wants payment up front. And cancer ain't cheap. Neither are the loan sharks. Reacher's sense of right and wrong sees someone being wronged. 

The town is run by two rival gangs. Ukrainians and Albanians have sort of split the town in half and exist is a shaky truce divided by the main north-south street. Reacher wants to get the debt settled. Problem is he is an unknown. Each side thinks the other is trying to take over. So Reacher just sort of helps things along as only Reacher can. In the background is the failed CEO . . . who just happens to be Ukrainian. Ex-CEO may not be much of a businessman, but he is still a computer genius with skills that some might value.

And that includes a lot of deductive reasoning and a little manipulation, both physical and mental. The physical includes I-lost-count-of-how-many-thugs he maims, tortures, or kills. Remember that Reacher's idea of the best way to enter a building is to knock with a bazooka and then waltz in through the smoking hole.

Problems get solved, bad guys get dead. Reacher ends up back on a bus.

Lee Child has a winning formula and he knows his audience. Reacher is a drifter/Robin Hood who always seems to find someone being wronged and he does whatever is necessary to fix things. And his way of fixing things usually involves hand-to-hand combat, excessive gun play, and the requisite  high body count. I really did try to keep track of the dead, but eventually lost count. I'm guessing 40-50, but could be more.

It's really hard to go wrong with Child. After 25 consecutive hits (all of which have been optioned to Hollywood), it's hard to doubt him. And it makes for some good pre-Christmas reading as Reacher books are released annually in the fall. That makes Child and Reacher uniquely similar. Reliable, predictable, and successful. Reacher fans won't be disappointed.

East Coast Don

Hymns of the Republic

I just finished Hymns of the Republic, a fabulous Civil War history by S. C. Gwynne, the second time the author has been reviewed in this blog. I raved about Empire of the Summer Moon, and I had a similar positive feeling about this one. Although this book is a bit off-genre because it’s nonfiction, the action of the story which focuses on the fourth and final year of the Civil War is incredible. Lincoln’s run for reelection in 1864 was in deep trouble, and until Ulysses Grant arrived on the scene, Lincoln's generals were not making progress in the war against the South despite having significantly favorable population numbers and factory production of weapons. The public was growing tired of the high cost of the war.

In a graphic manner, Gwynne captured the essence of having been a soldier during the pre-antibiotic era, as well as the generally miserable soldier’s life. Gwynne also told the story of Clara Barton, “the Battlefield Angel.” She had a major impact on the treatment of soldiers both during and after the war, and she was a remarkable woman who took care of the injured troops despite significant prejudice against her presence in the war theater. He also captured the horrors of Sherman’s march to the sea in a way that I had not fully grasped before. Both sides had generals who were making big mistakes which costs the lives of thousands of men.

Near the end of the book, Gwynne addressed both the events which led to the war’s end at Appomattox and the assassination of Lincoln. I love American history and I’m thrilled that I got to read this book. Thanks to Simon & Schuster for providing me with a prepublication copy, and I believe that this nonfiction work has only been released for purchase in the last few days. If you are a fan of this period of American history, then reading this book is a must. Gwynne is clearly a master of nonfiction writing.

Land of Wolves by Craig Johnson

Episode #15 in the Walt Longmire series.

(warning: I've reviewed them all here. Safe to assume that if I keep coming back,  I must be a fan)

In Depth of Winter (#14), Walt took a helluva beating when rescuing his kidnapped daughter, Cady, from the home-base of a Mexican drug cartel. He's back in body, but not in spirit. Scars are slowly healing, but being the modern day embodiment of the stoic loner of the old west, he grits his teeth and deals silently with continuing physical and emotional pains. 

He and a couple WY Game officials are investigating the remains of a sheep found near the camp of a seasonal herd shepherded by a Chilean hired to watch over them in the high pastures during the summer. Predators abound in the mountains, but some evidence suggests a wolf. Unusual because the closest wolf population is in far away Yellowstone, according to a representative of the Wolf Conservancy situated in the Rocky Mountains. 

The obvious question is where is the shepherd? A search of the area finds his wagon near a treeline where the shepherd has been hung from a tree limb. There is evidence that some critter has been gnawing at feet of the deceased. The sheep takes a back seat to the death of a human.

Walt has a couple fronts to address. One is the potential public panic about their new 'wolf problem.' This is a problem that an elected sheriff isn't responsible for. That's the purview of the state's Game authority. But for some reason, the citizens think it's up to Walt, meaning that hunters are coming out of the boonies wanted to be contracted to kill the wolf. The other front is the death of the shepherd. Murder or suicide? Got to settle that first.

What he really needs to settle is his post traumatic stress from Mexico. Blackouts. Unexplained outbursts. Uncharacteristic behaviors toward his staff and the public. If this continues, it may affect his ability to serve as sheriff. Something he rarely has time to consider, retirement, becomes an ongoing internal debate. At least Dog is still there to keep him on course.

Based on the contents of the shepherd's wagon, the guy was pretty well-read, especially revolutionary literature. It's possible he took the job to avoid authorities in South America. The shepherd also had a bit of a relationship with the lady from the Wolf Conservancy. And the shepherd's US employer (a 3rd generation Basque expat), his family and his in-laws have all have had some run-ins with Walt. They've also perturbed the Conservancy lady as well. A more complex puzzle that takes Walt well beyond simply trying to decide if this was or wasn't a suicide.

Full disclosure: Craig Johnson is firmly entrenched in my power rotation. I will read everything he puts out and have no doubt that I will like any Longmire story. Period.  'Nuff said. Yep.

The Netflix series 'Longmire' (6 seasons of binge-worthy quality) is based on the Johnson's characters. Normally, any TV show or movie that comes from published books never do the book(s) any justice. But in this case, I say the TV series is pretty dang close (Come on now. 6 seasons for a total of 65-70 episodes? They must've been getting it right. Fans of the show are fans of the books and vice versa. That rarely happens). When asked, I say that the TV series is perhaps the best casting of fictional characters - Walt Longmire in particular. My suggestion is to watch some (all?) of the Netflix series. Get Walt, Vic, Ruby, the Ferg, Henry Standing Bear, Lucian, and Cady firmly entrenched in your mind's eye. As you read the books, you'll see the characters and story played out in your mind using friends from the TV series. Makes for some first rate, entertaining, and satisfying reading of stories dreamed up by an experience storyteller who consistently delivers the goods.

East Coast Don