J. C. Fields

The Cold Trail. Book Four of the Sean Kruger Series. J. C. Fields. 2018. Ex-FBI agent Kruger retunes to the Bureau when he learns of the disappearance of a co-ed. The circumstances around the case are just like a cold case he worked on years ago. He reassembles his old team that includes a super-human ex-Seal and a computer genius. Working together they uncover a complicated web that includes the sick son of a dishonest businessman, a human trafficking ring run by Russian thugs, and corrupt policeman. The plot is more involved that I expected and more interesting. This is a good but not great series that includes graphic violence.… (meer)

Thought it might be a spy novel but even though the novel is littered with CIA, NSA, Mossad, and KGB current and former agents, no one is doing much spying except on themselves. Nadia and Michael, following an abortive mission in Barcelona, realize that someone is targeting them and they set out to determine who is targeting them and why. It then evolves into getting the bad guys in assorted clever ways.

I'm sure the title is intended as a pun although the Michael Wolfe is about as far from a lone wolf as one could get. He has help not only from Nadia, but Joseph, JR, the hacker, and numerous other people both inside and outside of government. I'm sure the ending is supposed to be some kind of twist, but I saw it coming from the moment the character was introduced. Those kinds of "twists" just seem to be emulated all the time.

While I enjoyed the book, I am very troubled by the world portrayed by the author, one in which rogue elements, ostensibly operating in the interests of national security (which often have more to do with their own security than the nation's) operate with relative impunity and send secret operatives off around the world assassinating people they do not like. It seems the antithesis of responsible democratic government and, I hope, represents merely a simplistic fantasy world.

It's certainly very readable, hence the 4 stars even though I hated the world it creates.… (meer)