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Ward Larson has created one of the more interesting protagonists in fiction in the person of David Slaton. Slaton is an assassin; a very proficient one doing the bidding of his employers who were at first the Mosad; Israeli secret service and currently the CIA, He was granted political asylum in the U.S. with the help of one of the top managers of the Central Intelligence Agency who suggested when doing so that they might ask certain professional favors from Slaton which he would be free to either accept or reject.

During a secret meeting between the presidents of Russia and Iran held in Syria certain information is exchanged between these men which only they and the two translators working the meeting are aware of. Ludmilla Kravchuk, the translator for Russia witnesses her Iranian counterpart killed after the meeting between the two presidents finishes. She realizes that the two translators have heard an exchange that must remain secret and makes the obvious decision that she must flee and via local contacts she had when in Syria previously gets the United States interested in getting her into the U.S. and hearing her story. Slaton’s supervisor thinks of him as the ideal individual to send into Syria to bring Ludmilla out. No problem in his accepting the job as the action is what he craves and goes after.

The story of David Slaton’s work in trying to effect Ludmilla’s escape brings to bear Ward Larson’s talent in creating bated breath action and another book by him that keeps the reader glued to the pages. In addition to bringing Ludmilla out of Syria Slaton must become involved in the situation described in the talks between the two presidents and attempt to rectify the problem. Events in the book move rapidly between Syria, Iraq, Israel, and Saudi Arabia. We can certainly look forward to more action-packed novels featuring David Slaton and the probability of all night glued to the books when they are published.

This is the second book featuring Dr. Lucas Page and while certain events from book one are important to the story, they are brought out by the author and allow the reader to understand those that are germane to the present novel. Dr. Page was working as an agent for the FBI when he became involved in a horrific accident. He lost the sight of one eye and required a prosthetic for his leg. But the accident did not rob him of a very peculiar talent that he had and retains. He can visualize a crime scene as if he were a bystander and break down any set of data at a glance.

Due to his disability, he no longer works full time for the FBI but apparently, he will become available if needed to help with certain crimes. The opening of the novel finds Lucas, his wife, and children enjoying the seashore at a location far out on Long Island. The famed Guggenheim museum becomes the site of a bomb placed which does major damage to the building and kills a large number of people. The museum had been closed to the public while hosting a leading tech company’s private gala hosting a large group celebrating a forthcoming issue of stock. Other explosions also go off, and the FBI launches a full-court investigation. In addition, Lucas Page is called to come in and help in the investigation using his special skills.

The action is structured like any normal detective story, although featuring descriptions of the enormous amount of fatalities coupled with gruesome looks at victims literally blown apart with their bodies in many areas. Lucas is shown using his not inconsiderable talents to solve the case with the help of a female agent. He also calls on students he teaches at the university to help his efforts.

It is probable that Pobi plans additional novels undoubtedly centered on more horrific crimes with Page leading the charge of his own small group of assistants. The novel is entertaining, although possibly more than a little difficult to take with the vivid descriptions of horrible deaths as part and parcel of the action.

Roland Ford is a private detective that has appeared previously in Parker novels. In the current book, he has been asked by a fellow ex-Marine to find his wife who has disappeared and feared kidnapped. Dalton Strait the man whose wife has vanished is currently in the midst of a political campaign and indicates that he does not have the time to properly dedicate to searching for his wife. Concurrently happening at the same time as Dalton’s wife’s disappearance is a series of bombings and threats by a radical group calling themselves The Chaos Committee. The group makes public announcements calling for an overthrow of all current government agencies and supporting their demands with shooting and killings of police officers in California: the locale of the story.

Appearing with the Chaos Committee’s demands are various glimpses of Natalie, Dalton’s wife in which she could either be a prisoner or could also be allied with the Committee. And to complicate matters even more, Ford begins to doubt that he can trust Dalton. The novel goes into the search for Natalie and also the activities of the Chaos Committee which seems to have relevance to the kidnapping. And, oh yes, looks like Roland Ford has found himself a love interest along the way. Busy man.

The problems I found with this novel are the constant conversations and descriptions of everything and everybody that really do get somewhat tedious to go through in reaching the conclusion. The action is noted rapidly and is over when more descriptions are thrown in taking the story from a five-star read which is the author’s norm, to one that is not at his level.