Good Reads - Fiction

Page Turners: The Sequel

F/ALTEN
Alten, Steve - Meg - 1997, 278p.
Thought to be extinct, the sixty-foot prehistoric predator Carcharodon megalodon has surfaced from the abyss seven miles beneath the surface of the ocean, and the giant relative of the great white shark is wreaking havoc on the citizenry as well as the local wildlife. Noted paleontologist Jonas Taylor and the U.S. Navy must stop the terror before marine migration patterns change, devastating the world's fisheries, and more people die a horrible death in the meg's massive maw.

F/ANDERSON
Anderson, Kevin J. and Doug Beason - Ignition - 1997, 320p.
Terrorists are holding the space shuttle Atlantis, her astronauts, and the entire launch control center staff for ransom. Having secured Kennedy Space Center, the terrorists have no compunction about eliminating anyone who gets in their way. Only Colonel "Iceberg" Friese, former shuttle commander, can stop the terrorists. Hampered by a broken foot, Iceberg takes out the heavily armed terrorists one-by-one to save his crew and the woman he loves.

F/BROWN
Brown, Sandra - The Witness - 1995, 422p.
Luckily John, Kendall Deaton's traveling companion, is suffering from amnesia, caused by the accident that sent their car crashing down a ravine. Kendall and her young son Kevin are on the run, trying to escape the horrible event from Kendall's past that threatens her life and any future Kevin might have. John must not recover his memory until they are safe. The story unfolds at a breakneck pace, with numerous plot twists, as Kendall, hunted and unable to trust anyone, fights to protect her son.

F/CASE
Case, John F. - The Genesis Code - 1997, 435p.
Dr. Baresi's confession so horrifies Father Azetti that the priest travels to the Vatican to consult the Cardinal. Meanwhile, Joe Lassiter, owner of his own investigation firm, puts his business on hold to solve the savage murders of his sister and nephew. With no easy motive and the probable suspect in custody, the police are ready to close the case. However, Joe wants to know why they were murdered, and he travels to Italy and Czechoslovakia to find the answer. There he encounters Dr. Baresi's secret—a secret that has worldwide ramifications and could shake the foundation of the Catholic church.

F/EIDSON
Eidson, Bill - The Guardian - 1996, 286p.
Eleven-year-old Janine Stearns is kidnapped from a convenience store during an armed robbery. The kidnappers warn her parents not to call the authorities; but her father's attempt to exchange the ransom money for Janine goes horribly wrong, and she remains with the kidnappers. Action builds as Janine's Uncle Ross, an ex-con, uses his underworld connections to find his beloved niece and secure her release.

F/FAIRSTEIN
Fairstein, Linda - Final Jeopardy - 1996, 400p.
Actress Isabella Lascar is brutally murdered while driving to Assistant D.A. Alexandra Cooper's beach house. Was Isabella the intended victim, or was Alexandra, the prosecutor who has jailed numerous sex offenders, the target? Alex, bodyguard in tow, puts her own life in jeopardy to cooperate with the local police and the F.B.I. while trying to keep the publicity away from her high profile job as Chief of the Sex Crimes Prosecution Unit.

F/GILSTRAP
Gilstrap, John - Nathan's Run - 1996, 293p.
Twelve-year-old Nathan Bailey kills a guard in self-defense at the juvenile facility where he is being held for auto theft. On the run, with no family or friends, Nathan hides from the police who are hunting the boy who killed one of their own. Befriended by shock disc jockey Denise "The Bitch" Carpenter, Nathan heads north toward freedom, stealing cars and breaking and entering, but always telling his side of the story on the radio to Denise as this scared, resourceful little boy tries to outwit the adults who have failed him.

F/JOHANSEN
Johansen, Iris - Long After Midnight - 1997, 371p.
Kate Denby and her son leave Oklahoma one step ahead of the man who wants to kill her. Linked to research scientist Noah Smith who has developed a new drug RU2 that will revolutionize the pharmaceutical industry, Kate has angered powerful business interests who will stop at nothing to prevent RU2 from being released to the public. Kate and Noah's only hope is to finish the research and introduce RU2 to the world; then public opinion will protect them. Racing against time and the killer who has developed a personal vendetta against her, Kate fights to protect those she loves while guarding a secret from her past.

F/KENNEDY
Kennedy, Douglas - The Big Picture - 1997, 374p.
Attorney Ben Bradford's perfect life is crumbling around him. Rich, but dissatisfied with his career, regretting his inability to be a professional photographer, on the verge of divorce and losing his two sons, Ben makes a irrevocable, split-second mistake and a decision that will put him on the run, changing his life forever.

F/KERR
Kerr, Philip - Esau - 1997, 372p.
After miraculously surviving an avalanche, mountaineer Jack Furness discovers a fossil hominid skull he brings to his lover, paleoanthropologist Dr. Stella Swift. Believing the unique skull will make her scientific reputation, she and Jack lead an expedition to Nepal's brutal, unforgiving Mt. Machhapuchhare not in search of fossils, but in search of the mythical yeti or abominable snowman. There, faced with the hardships of working in the icy heights, as well as a spy in their midst, they discover a lost world and must choose its fate.

F/LAND
Land, Jon - The Walls of Jericho - 1997, 304p.|
The serial killer Al-Diib, "The Wolf," is stalking, mutilating, and killing Palestinian collaborators. Because of previous experience in the U.S., Palestinian-American Ben Kamal of the new West Bank police force is assigned the task of finding the killer. He is paired with Israeli Shin Bet agent Danielle Barnea because both the Israelis and the Palestinians are afraid the serial killer will undermine the coming peace talks. Ben and Danielle, suspicious of one another at first, forge a friendship laced with respect as they work to solve the case, finding it more complex than they ever imagined. Will they discover all the ramifications before the final peace talks are held, or will sinister forces eliminate them first?

F/LOVETT
Lovett, Sarah - Acquired Motives - 1996, 290p.
A vigilante is meting out justice by torturing and murdering rapists/murderers who are free because of technicalities. A rapist, freed when forensic psychologist Sylvia Strange testifies he was not mentally fit when he confessed to the crime, is killed; and the vigilante killers target Sylvia for her role in the dismissal of the charges. Tension mounts as State Policeman Matt England and Sylvia work together to find the killer before he can punish Sylvia and kill again.

F/PEARSON
Pearson, Ridley - Beyond Recognition - 1997, 480p.
A Seattle house ignites into an inferno, immolating the woman within and burning so hotly all the evidence is destroyed; later other homes burn following this same pattern. Homicide detective Lou Boldt, along with police psychologist Daphne Matthews, race to stop the serial arsonist by trying to find the link between the victims in order to save the next woman from the coming horror.

F/SCOTTOLINE
Scottoline, Lisa - Legal Tender - 1996, 288p.
Lawyer Bennie Rosato has lost her boyfriend and business partner Mark Biscardi to a young law associate. Then she learns Mark wants to dissolve their law firm. While Bennie is out rowing to relieve her frustration and anger, Mark is killed and she is the only suspect—especially since Mark's will leaves her the practice and millions of dollars. Represented by associate Grady Wells, a lawyer Bennie doesn't quite trust, the wisecracking Bennie goes on the run to solve Mark's murder. As additional bodies pile up, she's wanted for multiple homicide by a police force she has angered by representing clients in excessive force and brutality cases.

F/SHELBY
Shelby, Philip - Days of Drums - 1996, 318p.
Through carelessness, rookie secret service agent Holland Tylo allows the death of Senator Charles Westbourne on her watch. Next Holland's boyfriend is killed, and she is attacked by her own branch of the service. She goes into hiding to protect herself, not knowing whom to trust—her longtime mentor and boss Arliss Johnson or a powerful senator who promises to protect her. Holland's only card in this high stakes game is the explosive information on the computer diskette Westbourne gave her before his death. Complicating matters, a former secret service agent turned violent serial killer stalks Arliss and Holland as she tries to get to the bottom of the conspiracy to save her life as well as her career.

F/WILSON
Wilson, F. Paul - Deep as the Marrow - 1997, 352p.
In a speech to the American people, U. S. President Thomas Winston has just advocated legalizing drugs. Loathe to lose their billion dollar industry, Colombian drug lords order the kidnapping of Katie VanDuyne, daughter of the president's personal physician, Dr. John VanDuyne. To see Katie again, John must perform a service for the kidnappers, leaving him in a terrible dilemma. Will he allow Katie to die or will he assassinate his best friend, the President of the United States?

Prepared by Sue O'Brien, September 1997