Cold Shot

'Cold Shot', the 2nd in Mark Henshaw's Stryker & Burke series, is easily the best of a very good group. In this installment, 2 bad actor states on the international stage conspire to bring a nuke into our neck of the woods. We're fortunate, though, to have Kara & Jon on our side.The plot seems very believable, as unfortunately does the political machinations in the middle of an international crisis. The writing is again very crisp and propulsive, which is a good match for the overall breakneck pace of the novel. The dialogue is fine, and we're beginning to learn a bit more about the characters, especially Jonathan Burke. The conclusion is exciting and very believable. The action sequences leading to it are very well done- it's difficult for a writer to keep the tension and action at a high level when writing a multi-page sequence like the one that leads to the ending of 'Cold Shot' but Mr. Henshaw succeeds in doing so. As with the other books in the series, I'm very impressed with the author's knowledge of the procedures and capabilities of our clandestine and military services. The Red Cell series is a fine entry to the spy/thriller genre and I look forward to future additions to it!

Another solid entry in the series, this one featuring much more action than the previous book. A bit too much coincidence, but I can live with that when the story remains solid. Some of the political infighting left me a bit cold, but those details mostly worked themselves out. The minor criticisms that I mentioned in my review of Red Cell remain and one really odd new mistake crept in (unless I'm mistaken, the name of a character that played a roll in the first book [the former station chief in Caracas], changed to that of a different character when mentioned in this book ... and changed back when mentioned later or in the third book).

An American Naval ship finds the body of a man who was in a life raft. The body shows severe beating and possible radiation exposure.The CIA comes into the action and Jonathan Burke is sent to investigate. This reads like a story from NCIS with Jonathan Burke as Jethro Gibbs and Burke's assistant, Kyra Stryker (Ellie Bishop).The agents go to Venezuela and discover a nuclear device. The CIA director meets with the president to take action.Very good story with fast moving action and a believable plot.I received this book for my honest review.