The Darkest Hour
By Tony Schumacher
William Morrow. $25.99
In this “what if?” thriller the Nazis have conquered and now occupy England. It is 1946 and the Third Reich has instituted a reign of terror and John Henry Rossett, a former police sergeant and war hero, is now working for the feared SS.
Assigned to the Office of Jewish Affairs, Rossett must now round up people he has known and herd them onto trains that will take them to an unspeakable fate.
With his wife and son dead, Rossett is little more than a burned out shell and cares little for those around him or what he has been assigned to do. This all changes when the former cop meets Jacob. He finds the eight year old in a house he raids and suddenly the child touches a part of the man he thought was dead.
Determined to save the boy, Rossett and Jacob embark on a struggle to survive and soon the pair are not only fleeing the Nazis but also the Royalist Resistance and the Communists. It seems everyone is interested in the child and has their own reasons for wanting to capture him
Highly imaginative and offering a number of surprising twists, this thriller marks the debut of Tony Schumacher. You won’t quickly forget the ending of this novel or the man who created it. Schumacher is just getting started!
Murder 101: A Decker/Lazarus Novel
By Faye Kellerman
William Morrow. $26.99
Peter Decker and his wife Rina Lazarus have moved closer to their adult children and foster son in upstate New York. Peter’s new job with the Greenbury Police Department is a bit of a drag after Los Angeles. Also his new partner, a former Harvard student with plenty of attitude, has made the transition even more onerous.
Just when he’s seriously questioning the wisdom of the move Peter is given a case that begins with a cemetery break-in but escalates quickly into something far more sinister.
A mausoleum featuring Tiffany panels has been broken into and fakes substituted for the valuable originals. Next a female student at a posh local college is murdered. Suddenly Decker is no longer bored with his new job. In fact as he and his partner begin checking out the academic set to find the killer they stumble upon dark secrets, international intrigue involving Russia and a group of ruthless individuals who will destroy anyone or anything that stands in the way of allowing them to achieve their sinister ends.
Rina and Peter will have to call upon all their past experience as the collaborate on this convoluted but fascinating case that involves much more than just homicide.
Of the more recent novels in this long running series, “Murder 101” is at the top of the list and ranks way up there with the best Faye Kellerman has written to date.
Personal: A Jack Reacher Novel
By Lee Child
Delacorte Press. $28
Retired military cop Jack Reacher is enlisted by the State Department and the CIA to discover who has attempted to kill the French president. The suspect is an American Reacher helped send to prison but now he is out.
John Knott is an exceptional marksman who can hit his target from as far away as three quarters of a mile and the G8 summit gathering offers plenty of opportunities to shake up the world order with a well-placed bullet.
Paired with Casey Nice (her last name is a bit of a misnomer), a rookie analyst with “issues”, Reacher is going to have his hands full dealing with an eclectic range of villains who are bent ton seeing he doesn’t accomplish his current assignment. Ms. Nice doesn’t make it easier either.
Eighteen novels and over 100 million copies in print make Lee Child one of the most prolific and most read popular authors working today. This latest installment with its international setting illustrates why so many readers around the globe can’t get enough of Jack Reacher and his action packed adventures.
Bones Never Lie
By Kathy Reichs
Bantam. $27
Psychological suspense coupled with cutting-edge science and plausible characters make this latest novel featuring forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan a page turning delight.
Anique Pomerleau is responsible for a series of murders in Canada. The serial killer kidnapped and killed a number of girls but managed to elude capture. Now the psychopath has surfaced in the United States and has started a new reign of terror. With victims spread far apart in Vermont and North Carolina, Pomerleau is going to be a difficult killer to bring to justice.
Brennan and police detective Andrew Ryan will join forces to hopefully stop this deadly predator once and for all because if they a lot more little girls are going to die.
A forensic anthropologist and professor at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Dr. Kathy Reichs writes from first hand experience. Her life and work is the basis for the TV show “Bones” and she’s written 16 thrillers featuring Temperance Brennan.
One of Us
By Tawni O’Dell
Gallery Books. $25
Dr. Sheridan Doyle is the go-to guy in Philadelphia’s District Attorney’s office when there’s a situation that the forensic psychologist’s expertise can deal with. A local celebrity of sorts, Doyle’s public image is at odds with the real man beneath the slick veneer.
Raised in a blue-collar mining town, Danny Doyle was a bookish child plagued by panic attacks, bullying and a family history he’s never been able to completely put behind him.
Now Doyle is back in his hometown and the trip turns into a busman’s holiday when he discovers a dead body on a walk one day. The corpse is by the infamous gallows where long ago a band of rebellious Irish miners was executed.
Ironically, the dead man is related to the wealthy mining family responsible for the miners’ deaths a century ago. Helping out the local law enforcement officials, Doyle uses his skills to create a profile of the killer but in doing so he comes precariously close to revealing some hidden truths about his own family and his youthful past.
A gripping tale that offers plenty of surprises “One of Us” is a quick read but don’t be surprised if you discover the story lingers long after you’ve finished the final chapter.