Michael Harvey
Borzoi Books
ISBN: 9780307272508
285 Pages
The Third Rail by Michael Harvey was my first time reading this author. He has also authored The Chicago Way and The Fifth Floor. I'm going to assume that the first two are just as riveting and will be on my TBR list soon...besides Michael Connelly has recommended him and I always pay attention to those who get praise from this favorite author of mine...
Individual acts of terrorism are just a little bit scarier these days, so plan early to hate Robles, the man who nobody notices as he walks on the platform as people wait for the train, then leisurely decides that a woman, putting on her lipstick, will be the one, shooting her in the temple. He then calmly walks away and onto the streets, not too fast, for he wants a man to follow...
And he was! And Robles could have killed him right there on the streets. That he didn't was his mistake.
Robles next chose a rifle and watched through the scope as the train went by, he found a young Latino woman with her head bend, reading. She looked up right at him, at that last moment...
Michael Kelly is our hero--a former cop turned PI.
And he is also the ultimate victim for the killer!
In fact, he even calls Kelly so that the cat and mouse game on definitely occur!
Of course the police believe that this is just a "smoke screen" so they politely exclude Kelly from participating in any of the major discussions and planning of the inner circle. It was his thought at his exclusion that he now fully realized the reason why criminals chose their careers!
While more bodies pile up, some found by the police, some not, but found and ignored by Kelly, Michael was close behind, even to the point of seeing the red dot flick and being forced to dive aside... if this guy wasn't out to kill Kelly, he was still doing a great job of trying!
And then Kelly started pulling things together, and it went back 30 years when a train had crashed in the Loop. And finally, others were listening. Michael had been just a boy, 9, as he rode the curve, knowing that something was wrong--just as the train he was riding barrelled into one sitting idle...
Can individual suffering from abuse, loss, anger and frustration ever become justification for acts of terrorism? When those who are in places of trust and respect turn evil actions towards those with no ability to help themselves, should it be forgiven and just forgotten--and is that possible?
Perhaps not, but it does happen and, when it does, it rarely stops unless someone like Michael Kelly takes the role of the cat in the game. I was reminded somewhat of those early novels by James Patterson that provided such exciting drama as we followed the steps needed to have the criminal finally stopped. Michael Harvey, in The Third Rail, sets those harrowing chase scenes in the middle of our cities, highlighting just how easily it all can happen!
Harvey's real-to-life drama is downright scary...until he adds his great hero! The combination makes for exciting up-all-night reading! Thriller lovers - consider this a must-read!
Related articles by Zemanta
No comments:
Post a Comment