Mystery/Thriller Book Reviews
Page Five of FiveThe Seventh Sense by T.J. MacGregor
Kensington, April 1999.Hardcover, 262 pages.
ISBN: 1575664119.
Ordering information:
Amazon.com.
Attorney Frank Benedict
has been working
on landing wealthy
Jerome MacClean as a client for
months. But MacClean is on a
power trip, just leading Benedict on
for the thrill of it. He has no intention of
hiring Frank at all. When Benedict thinks he
has been invited over to be finally
given the deal, MacClean tells him
he needs more time. Benedict
pretends to take it well, but
drinks too much. Inside, he
is boiling with anger -- he knows that MacClean will never
sign on as a client, and has been leading him on as a sick joke.
On the
way home he sees a car in his path, which he easily could
have avoided. But
instead he
accelerates and rams the
car. He sees a woman stagger out of
the car asking for help, but flees the
scene anyway. Unfortunately
for Benedict, the injured woman was FBI agent Charlie Calloway,
who lost her unborn child and
husband in the "accident,"
leaving her desperate for
revenge. Calloway was pronounced clinically dead herself for
a short period of time after the accident and, as a result,
she has developed some psychic
abilities. The pursuit of
her husband's killer also
involves another psychic,
Doug Logan, who helps them track
down Benedict, who is doing
everything possible, including
murder, to keep
the road rage incident a
mystery.
The Seventh Sense is an incredibly thrilling and shocking story of a stressed out professional man whose morals and sanity are slowly deteriorating. The plot is chilling, especially in light of similar road rage incidents which are reported everyday in the local papers. An engrossing and fast-paced page turner. Highly Recommended.
Smoke Screen by Vincent Patrick
William Morrow, Jan., 1999.Hardcover, 376 pages.
ISBN: 0688155367.
Ordering information:
Amazon.com.
Fidel Castro is threatening the U.S.
with a powerful and
deadly virus capable of wreaking
death and chaos on the
nation. Castro wants an end
to the economic embargo on
Cuba, in exchange for keeping
the virus out of the U.S.
However, Castro has secretly
sent Ernesto Rivera, a
medical doctor who smuggled the
deadly virus out of the African
jungle, to test the virus on an
isolated portion of the U.S. population.
However, Rivera doesn't think
a simple test will do and is secretly
planning a much larger display of the
deadly virus. Fortunately, U.S.
intelligence knows Rivera and
the virus are coming. CIA Director Linwood
Cutshaw has called on a retired cop,
Teddy Tedesco, to stage a robbery
in the hotel where Rivera will
be staying, so they can get Rivera
and the virus and make it look
like an accident at the same time.
However, everything does not go
as planned and the crazy Cuban
doctor escapes with the loot from
the robbery and with his knowledge
of where the virus is being kept.
Tedesco must track down the
doctor before he is able to release
the virus into the unsuspecting
population.
Smoke Screen is an exciting thriller full of plot twists, espionage and humorous escapades. The writing is crisp and funny. The thoughts of the Cuban doctor as he witnesses our culture for the first time are especially entertaining. Another winner from the author of The Pope of Greenwich Village and Family Business.
The President's Astrologer by Barbara Shafferman
Llewellyn Publications, December 1998.Trade Paperback, 374 pages.
ISBN: 0345412451.
Ordering information:
Amazon.com.
In Washington D.C., in the year 2006, 37 year old Addie Price
is happy with her life. She's making a good living
as an astrologer, when she gets summoned to the White
House. The president asks her to give up her practice to
become his personal astrologer. Of course, she has to
keep the relationship top secret. After doing readings for
the President and some of his top aides and opponents,
it becomes obvious to Addie that someone wants the
President dead, and that the conspiracy is broader than
anyone suspects. It is up to Addie to find out the source
and details of the conspiracy against the President and convince
the people that matter of the danger at hand.
First-time novelist Barbara Shafferman, an accredited astrologer herself, weaves a spellbinding tale of action, romance and a touch of science fiction with The President's Astrologer. Addie is a likeable and unusual heroine put in a situation which calls to mind the revelations that former First Lady Nancy Reagan consulted an astrologer about important decisions during her time in the White House. Although the plot veers off towards the fantastic toward the end of the book, it remains a lighthearted, quick read which lovers of romantic suspense and of astrology are sure to enjoy.
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