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Your child is missing, whisked away to the other side of the globe by a former spouse. The most precious thing in your life has been reduced to a helpless pawn by someone who can’t see beyond the rage they feel toward you. The government will not help you. The courts cannot help you. You’re alone, running out of money and hope. Now you learn your child is in a country rife with child slavery and prostitution and could forever vanish without a trace. In his fictional novel Chasing the Cyclone Peter Thomas Senese details a frightening odyssey closely inspired by his own personal story.

Paul Francesco’s ex-wife goes rogue, violates the law, and abducts their young child. The drama begins with a series of court sessions where all the ugliness of a child custody case is laid bare. Soon, Francesco’s ex is permitted by an indifferent judicial system to take the child to New Zealand. Once there, her and the child vanish in the company of an international human trafficker. The story repeatedly lifts the reader with hope Francisco will recover his boy, only to deliver crushing disappointment with another false lead, another missed opportunity, another legal roadblock. Senese takes us to the brink of hopelessness as Francesco plunges into the sordid underbelly of Macau desperately searching for his boy.

Chasing the Cyclone is well-written, but starts slowly in a series of snap-shot moments strung together into a stiff narrative. Initially, it feels like the author rushed to get critical elements on paper. Some of the characters surrounding Francesco are a little hard to follow as the author only paints them with cursory strokes before moving on. What kept me reading was the sense I was only a page turn away from the storm. Senese did not disappoint. About a quarter of the way into the book the prose and narrative warm up and Cyclone becomes an emotional rollercoaster.  

Even though it was inspired by true events Senese makes it clear this novel is a work of fiction. However, it reads so much like a personal account I had a very difficult time keeping this in mind. I was somewhat uncomfortable by the vivid detail of the court scenes and was concerned the novel might devolve into a loosely veiled personal vendetta. Thankfully, it didn’t. Senese doesn’t name the fictional female antagonist and never makes her the center of this story. She is described frankly, but never maliciously and I couldn’t help but pity her at the end. In the epilogue, the author discusses the importance of reconciliation and the role of both parents in a child’s life following the trauma of parental abduction. For me, this enhanced the novel’s credibility.

It’s clear Peter Thomas Senese is a crusader, a man on a mission to never let this happen to another child. Chasing is more than a fictional drama, it’s part textbook and part compilation of personal lessons learned. Every so often a character monologues important facts regarding parental child abduction. The final section is a compilation of resources for what Senese calls ‘Chasing Parents.’ Cyclone reaches out to Chasing Parents with critical information to guide them through the coming maelstrom.  

More than anything else, Chasing the Cyclone is about one father’s relentless love for his child. While slow to build speed, it is a powerful story and earns 85 out of 99 cents.

99 Cents Worth of Peter Thomas Senese Links:
www.peterthomassenese.com
www.chasingthecyclone.com
www.thedenoftheassassin.info
www.peterthomassenese.blog.com
www.chasingthecyclonebook.blogspot.com



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Carson's Love.



 
 
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Title:  The Expats
Author:  Chris Pavone
Publisher:  Crown Publishers
Pages:  326
Genre:  Thriller

Summary:  When Dexter Moore tells his wife of an opportunity to  redesign a bank’s electronic security system in Luxemburg, Kate has mixed emotions on moving to a foreign country.  After all, she's been a  CIA agent in Washington DC for the past 15 years and her life has been exciting and totally unpredictable. Besides that, her computer geek husband doesn't have a clue what Kate does for a living. 
Dexter's new position will be lucrative enough that Kate can now be the stay-at-home mom she has often dreamed about.  The Moore's pack up their belongings,  their 4 and 5 year old sons, and begin their new lives as expats.

It isn’t long before Kate becomes bored with the role of housewife and mother.  She tries to play the part, even joins the Luxemburg Women’s Club, but living life on the edge and is much different than the hum-drum luncheons and  spending time with other expat wives. It's  just not enough for Kate Moore.   The real plot begins when Kate becomes obsessed with her husband. Why is he gone so much?  Why is he so elusive about what it is he does?  And who is this expat couple Bill and Julia Maclean that seem to ‘show up’ wherever Kate and Dexter are? 

Something is wrong. Dexter is lying about what he does and Kate is bound and determined to use her CIA experience to find out the truth; no matter the risk or how the Maclean’s try to deter her.

Opinion: There is little doubt that Mr. Pavone is a writer.  A master of description, Pavone’s plot becomes lost in translation with vivid, long-winded descriptions of people, places and things that camouflage what I would describe as an  ‘okay’ plot. The Expats cannot be regarded as espionage fiction as there are no related international consequences to Kate’s discoveries.  It’s all about Kate and Dexter Moore with the Maclean’s playing the mysterious side-kicks.  

I found the characters to have no real connection to each other which makes it difficult for readers to connect to them. Who is Kate?  I kept hoping I’d find out.  Does she like flowers – does she like sex – does she enjoy murdering people? All I know is that Kate is afraid the past will catch up to her.

I want thrills when I read a thriller.  Somebody has to die, maybe a bloody massacre, someone looking over a shoulder waiting to catch another character off guard. The Expats is a predictable cat-and-mouse game that never quite spreads its wings.

Recommendation: I would not recommend The Expats for your next read, however I would definitely stay tuned for Pavone’s second book.

Rating:  3 stars

The Expats on Amazon

 
 
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Book:  Running
Pages: 321
Author:  Patrice Fitzgerald
Publisher:  eFitzgerald Publishing
Genre:  Fiction

Summary: 
Move over James Patterson, Patrice Fitgerald has arrived!  Step aside Clinton, Obama, and Newt -- it’s time to vote and the nominees for Presidency are Vice President Catherine MacGuire-Young and the beautiful southern bell Jersha Hutchins.

A widow with two grown children, Vice President Catherine Young has worked herself up the ladder; from the school board, to the Maryland Legislature, to Congress to Vice President of the United States.  Representing the right wing is socialite Jersha Hutchins, a former flight attendant and married to the devout Reverend Quigley Hutchins.  The Hutchins have eight God-loving, squeaky clean children. 

When President Tom Drummond is taken to the hospital for an emergency operation, Vice President Catherine Young is sworn into office.  And when she receives a note telling her to pay $250,000 or someone will tell her secret, all hell breaks loose in the White House.  

Catherine’s good looking, but cocaine addicted Campaign Manager Zane Zarillo is romantically involved with the sweet, naïve twenty-nine year old Brazilian beauty Maria Flores-Jenkins.  Zane sees a golden opportunity to pay off the drug lords who threaten his life when he discovers Maria is the Vice President’s illegitimate daughter.  Maria was conceived when Catherine was serving in the Peace Corp and fell in love with a married black man.  Think of all the voters Catherine risks losing if her secret happens to slip out.  The Vice President now faces a decision.
  
Halfway through the novel, Running takes an even darker turn.

Quote:  President Tom Drummond talking to Vice President Young.
“Because you're the first from our party, you will be remembered.  And the next time the Democrats consider a woman for the top spot, they'll shake their heads and say, 'Don't forget what happened with Catherine Young.  Let's not make that mistake again.'“  Drummond pointed his finger at her.  “You don't deserve this burden, Catherine.  To be the standard bearer for your gender.  But that's the way it worked out.  If you walk away from this – admitting that what you did was so wrong that you don't deserve to be president, the next female candidate will have to be a nun.  I mean, where does it stop?  Everyone is entitled to a life, a history...a youth.  What was your mistake?  That you had sex before marriage?  Yes.  You and nearly everybody.  And most of them don't think it's such a terrible thing.”

Reaction:  Running is definitely one of the top two books I have reviewed so far.  The cat-and-mouse twists and turns that will leave you on the edge of your seat are well worth the ride.  Ms. Fitzgerald’s words flow easily from word-to-word and sentence-to- sentence allowing the reader to read quickly -- which is what you have to do to find out what happens next.  

Take a little Hitchcock, mix in a some James Patterson, sprinkle a touch of Grisham, and then add a whole lot of Fitzgerald and Running is what you get.
 
Recommendation:  Make no mistake, this novel is NOT just for women.  It is for the sophisticated reader who will be taken behind the scenes to feel the emotions and experience the struggles a candidate faces when running for the highest position in the country.

Rating:  Five and a half out of Five Stars – Top Pick.


You can find Running and other eFitzgerald books here:

Running on Amazon 

Looking for Lance: Amazon eBook

How David Met Sara: Amazon eBook 

Dreamboat: The Frisky Chronicles 



You can also follow Patrice Fitzgerald on Facebook.


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