Veena’s review of Vendetta by Iris Johansen
Romantic Thriller published by St. Martin’s Press 23 Oct 18
A master terrorist wants to change the landscape of the California coast as a tribute to his dead father. Carl Venable of the CIA died trying to prevent this tragedy. Get ready for a spine-tingling ride as his daughter Rachael picks up the reins and forges full speed ahead to complete her father’s mission.
Rachel is a healer, a student to the legendary Hu Chang. She is an expert apothecary learning how to use and blend natural ingredients to save lives, as well as take them when necessary. The same Rachael who once stepped away from her father because he used one of her potions to take an evil life now steps forward to do what must be done to eradicate evil from the world.
Along with her friends, the legendary CIA agent Catherine Ling and her Jude Brandon, Rachael picks up her father’s baton to take an active role in searching for Nemesis, the informant who lured her father to his death and the principals of the Red Star terrorist organization. Let’s not forget the mysterious Richard Cameron, who makes his own cameo appearance in this book to help on the side of good. I just couldn’t put the book down once the chase is begun and the dots start to connect. Be prepared for some really big surprises along the way, especially the end.
The bomb explosion at the luxury island off the coast of San Francisco, the radical jihadi, and the oil tanker captain with the apparently pristine record are all great side trips on the way to the main event that helped to ratchet the tension and suspense. All in all, another winner for Ms. Johansen.
Grade: A
Summary:
With his dying breath, Carl Venable, head of the CIA task force on terrorism and Jude Brandon’s final link to terrorist ringleader Max Huber, gives Brandon a mandate: keep his daughter, Rachel, safe at any cost. But Rachel Venable has a shocking, twisted past of her own, one that comes rushing back after her medical clinic in Guyana is attacked by Huber―the same man who murdered her father and kept her imprisoned for months.
Brandon and Catherine Ling, Rachel’s longtime ally and fierce protector, are determined to keep Rachel out of danger, but she knows that it’s impossible to stay hidden when Max Huber wants you dead.
As Rachel and Brandon race against the clock to bring Huber down before he can orchestrate a disaster that will lay waste to half the country, they also fight a growing attraction to each other – an attraction that could prove just as dangerous as Huber himself.
In this gripping, fast-paced novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Iris Johansen, one thing is clear: everyone has a vendetta, and no one will rest until they get their revenge.
