THEY CALL ME AVENGED
         by Cyndi Lord
      This is Ms. Lord's third book in this series and puts into words and mental pictures what many animal lovers think they would like to see happen to those who mistreat, neglect, or intentionally harm defenseless animals in their care.
      Ms. Lord reveals how trauma in a young child's life can have long lasting, debilitating consequences in the person's adult life.
      Sandy, a determined and sometimes foolhardy detective, searches for two missing children. Intuition and a listening ear leads this young woman into a maze of lies and dangerous contacts.
       This is a powerful book revealing the depth of some people's cruelty to animals and children and the consequences of the mental scars people carry into adulthood.
       This book is available on Amazon  THEY CALL ME AVENGED

The Kill Switch

The Kill Switch is a well written novel as are all of James Rollins works. Tucker, the man hired to spirit one of two scientists out of Russia, is a tough, kick a _ _ , no nonsense man full of  amazing resources. Kane, his faithful four-legged partner, is an outstanding character all by himself. The enemy seems to anticipate each move Tucker and his group make as they move toward the border.  There is a leak of information somewhere, and it is a direct threat to his mission as well as his life. He is understandably suspicious of everyone he comes in contact with but has to trust someone. The cost in life as well as money is high if he makes the wrong choice.

WARNING: The prologue is gruesome, and I was sorely tempted to skip most if not all of it. No matter how stomach turning, however, it is crucial to understanding the end of the novel. This novel is not for the faint of heart but a page turner for those who enjoy detailed blood and guts adventure.

Note: I was interested to learn in the author's notes at the end of the story that Kane is modeled after real war dogs, especially one named Chaser, "a border collie who understood over a thousand words including grammatical structure."

Santa Fe Dead

Santa Fe Dead by Stuart Woods is not a Who Dune It as our mother classified all such books where the reader guesses who the murderer is right up until the last page.  In Santa Fe Dead the reader knows who the murderer is from the first chapter.People are being knocked off all through the novel and the reader knows what will happen beforehand and who pulls the trigger. Even the detectives and the police know who the murders are.  The problem is proving it.  The reader, at lest this reader, frantically turned page after page sure the police or someone would step in and do something. Stuart Woods pulls it all together in a mind boggling climax. Even though Mr. Woods planted a seed several pages back, this reader forgot about it in the final maneuvering of the men hired to take care of the clever killer. This reader could have kicked herself for not anticipating the final killing on the last page. For lovers of fast, action based crime type novels, Santa Fe Dead is a must read.