Suspense Magazine July 2013

THE TOWER
By Simon Toyne
The third and final book in the Sanctus Trilogy, “The Tower” wraps up everything for the
reader in a nice little package after a high-speed adventure they will never forget.
The director of the NASA Control Center in Maryland goes missing. The Hubbel Space
Telescope is disabled; and even odder, the computers at the Control Center shut down. Only
the director’s machine is working; the screen offering an ominous message stating: MANKIND
MUST LOOK NO FURTHER.
Enter FBI Agent J.J. Shepherd. Called by his FBI bosses to help in the investigation, Shepherd is more than
a bit wary considering he will have to work alongside his immediate superior, Agent Benjamin Franklin. This
is one man he wishes to avoid because he has been hiding secrets from Franklin for a good long time. Having
no choice, Shepherd must answer the call of Assistant Director O’Halloran who believes his background in
science will be the ultimate asset to uncovering the truth.
Discovering a note written in the missing director’s handwriting, Shepherd believes that there may just be
a world of pain being brought about by cyber-attack. What follows is a myriad of violence: an explosion at an
ancient monastery in Turkey; a deadly outbreak of a virus; and the disappearances of American reporter, Liv
Adamsen, and ex-special forces operative, Gabriel Mann.
Shepherd and Franklin’s investigation takes them into a web of secrets and lies. When strange things begin
to happen with climate change and animals, weather and more, the two men must try and figure out the cause
before Earth is destroyed.
This book is so action-packed with so many revelations, locations, etc., that the reader will be thrown this
way and that—from dark alley to brilliant stars—as they stick by Shepherd’s side to see how it all works out.
Readers will become absolutely engaged by this brilliant tale, wondering if the hero can win before the clock
strikes zero. Enjoy!
Reviewed by Amy Lignor, author of “The Sapphire Storm: Tallent & Lowery Book Two” published by Suspense
Publishing, an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■
TELL ME
By Lisa Jackson
This book is absolutely tension-filled. Jackson is on top of her game with “Tell Me.” Nikki Gillette wants to
know what happened twenty years ago to her murdered friend Amity and wants someone to tell her. Amity’s
mother Blondell was imprisoned twenty years ago based on the testimony of her son, Amity’s brother, that his
mother is the one who shot them and killed Amity.
A true crime author and writer for the Savannah Sentinel, Nikki goes on the hunt, investigating when she
should leave it up to her fiancé, Detective Pierce Reed. But that’s not in her nature. She gets more than just
information for her articles and book however, when she runs into some nerve-wracking—both for the reader
and the character—situations. During her and Reed’s investigation, Nikki finds out she has a stalker and figures
it has to do with the case. Is someone warning her to back off She’s threatened on more than one occasion,
but doesn’t give up.
This romantic suspense will have you up all night reading, paging your way through the romance between
Nikki and Reed and the at-times very dangerous circumstances Nikki gets herself into. To say ‘I didn’t see it
coming’ may be cliché, but it’s very true. You will be astounded with the ending!
Reviewed by Starr Gardinier Reina, author of “The Other Side: Melinda’s Story” published by Suspense
Publishing, an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■
TOPPED CHEF
By Lucy Burdette
Most of us love those television
food shows. I know I do. But “Topped
Chef ” puts a fatal spin on lime cupcakes,
shrimp and grits, chefs, judges, and the
idea of a reality show and its winner when
a judge—Sam Rizzoli—is murdered and
the other critics begin to worry about their safety.
Hayley Snow works for Key West’s Key Zest—a
magazine of which Hayley is a food critic. She is
assigned to be one of the judges for “Topped Chef ” and
it could end up being her last assignment. Choosing
the right dish, eliminating cooks from the show, and
commentating on film what she likes and doesn’t like
are the easy duties of this competition for Hayley. The
hard parts for her are staying alive and trying to find
out who murdered Rizzoli, while balancing a sort-of
relationship with one of the detectives investigating
Rizzoli’s murder.
A delightful read filled with yummy recipes at the
end with tangy suspects sprinkled throughout.
Reviewed by Starr Gardinier Reina, author of “The
Other Side: Melinda’s Story” published by Suspense
Publishing, an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■
THE COLD COLD GROUND
By Adrian McKinty
Sergeant Sean Duffy is a Catholic police
detective on a protestant police force. In 1980s
North Ireland, that isn’t the ideal place, but he is
determined to be the best at his job as he can possibly
be. Protestants are suspicious of Catholics and many
have bounties on their heads. The hunger strikes,
riots, deaths, and mayhem endanger everyone.
With all the trouble brewing and bubbling
through the land, a man’s body being found isn’t
surprising. It is thought to be a simple murder, but
when Duffy investigates, he finds it could be a serial
killer targeting homosexuals. All investigations are
complicated because of the political climate and
everything is questioned.
Duffy investigates in his unique manner. He is
determined to unearth the truth and is willing to step
into harms way to find it.
A history-filled police procedural and mystery
that keeps you interested and informed from start to
finish.
Reviewed by Ashley Dawn, author of “Shadows of
Pain” published by Suspense Publishing an imprint
of Suspense Magazine ■
THE NEVER
LIST
By Koethi Zhan
As young
girls, from middle
school to the
preliminary years
in college, Sarah and Jennifer were
inseparable. Afraid of everything
from earthquakes to rapists, they
made up a series of rules. They
called it the Never List. Until
they unfortunately violated a
basic rule, “never get in a car with
strangers,” their lives were pretty
straightforward.
When they realized that
something about the cab ride
was out of the ordinary, it was
too late. For the next three years
they, and two other girls, where
imprisoned in the basement of a
house, brutally tortured, raped,
beaten, and starved. The opening
lines of this novel sound chillingly
real: “There were four of us down
there…and then, very suddenly
and without warning, there were
three.”
With the three girls released
and their captor, a former college
professor, sitting in a jail cell, their
lives could go on, but for Sarah it
could never end there. Jennifer’s
body was never found and she
can’t move on until she brings
closure to her situation. With the
reluctant help from the other two
girls that survived with her, they
build a trail, going back into the
past to move into the future. Their
journey becomes a cross-country
chase involving religious cults
and BDSM dungeons, all leading
back provokingly to her past jailer,
a man who is about to be set free
on probation unless the secret
location of the missing body can
be unraveled.
As witnesses step forward,
you wonder how the police could
have missed these clues in their
original investigation. The three
girls once again find themselves
trapped in their original torture
chamber and all the pieces fall into
place, leaving the reader twisting
in the wind as the startling ending
jumps out from the darkest place
with a loud BOO!
A fast-paced, don’t-dareput-the-book-down
read that will
leave you cringing as your darkest
fears emerge from the shadows as
Zhan takes you to the places you
never wanted to go.
Reviewed by Mark Sadler, author
of “Blood on his Hands” published
by Suspense Publishing, an
imprint of Suspense Magazine ■
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