The Echo Of Violence [Mass Market Paperback]

A red-hot mixture of fiery characters and volatile conflicts are an easy indicator of Dane's continued success as she introduces the world to the third installment of her Sweet Justice series, "The Echo of Violence". Circling storylines and hints of hidden agendas keep a remarkable pace with fascinating and heart-breaking results. As the layers of secrets are carefully peeled away, each smartly crafted character becomes more than words on a page.

Jackson Kinkaid is a broken and private man with a long list of skeletons in his closet that he keeps closely guarded. Kincaid recognizes one gentle soul as his salvation in life and when her life is threatened--at the hands of terrorists--he will stop at nothing to save her, even if it means allowing a painful aspect of his past to resurface. With limited options, Kincaid is going to have to place his safety and trust in the hands of people he hasn't worked with in much too long.

Facing the paralyzing fear of failure--and fighting a gunshot wound and raging infection--Kincaid leans on agent Alexa Marlowe, his counterpart in this impossible rescue mission as the game takes an even more dangerous turn. No longer is this less than simple extraction about saving one life, but now has deadly consequences for many.

Small victories pepper this well-written thriller, but don't be fooled by what initially appears to be a `cookie-cutter' ending. "The Echo of Violence" isn't quite so predictable.
Reviewed by Suspense Magazine
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Jackson Kinkaid met Sister Mary Katherine four years ago. The Catholic nun helped him through the most difficult time of his life. This is why Jackson finds himself attending a fundraiser for children in Port de Paix, Haiti. Only for Katherine would he be at the missionary school function. So when terrorists attack, Jackson witnesses the raid and sees Katherine taken hostage with the other survivors. Videos of the senseless slaughter are posted online, time is running out. Only Jackson can track the killers, while dealing with a gunshot wound. Knowing he needs help, Jackson contacts Joe LaClaire, his number one man, and has him begin calling in favors to mount an urgent rescue mission. The only reliable contact is the Sentinels in NYC. Though Jackson has something against Garrett Wheeler, who is over the Sentinels, Joe makes the call for aid.

Sentinels' agent Alexa Marlowe is forced into an unlikely alliance with Jackson who is no longer the man she once knew. Now the relentless mercenary is rumored to be selling his services to the highest bidder. Alexa can only hope that whatever secrets Jackson is holding back will not end up killing everybody. Jackson cares only about rescuing Kate, but Alexa's orders are to take the terrorist leader alive, even if it means the deaths of Kate and the other hostages.

***** FIVE STARS! I thought Jordan Dane's stories were terrific before, but now I believe they are freaking brilliant! This story only covers a very short period of time, yet the entire thing is non-stop action and suspense. As I said, freaking brilliant! *****

Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.

Jackson Kincaid is spending the rare night off from his dangerous and illegal occupation to spend the evening with Sister Kate at her charity function for a struggling school in Haiti. Jackson's attendance is warranted because he is the mysterious American donor that everyone has been dying to meet. Suddenly, a terrorist group blazes in killing innocent bystanders and taking over a dozen attendees hostage. One of those hostages is Sister Kate. Jackson share a secret past with Kate and will stop at nothing to rescue his dear friend from these horrible men. When Jackson is suddenly wounded, he's forced to call for help to the last organization he would ever dream of asking.

This is where Alexia comes in. She is part of a secret organization known as the Sentinels and has a history with Jackson, but has to put it all aside in order to focus on the real issue - taking out the bad guys and rescuing the hostages. This mission brings up old memories and bad feelings for Alexia and Jackson. Both of them have to decide if they've changed too much to still have a chance together or if they must both go their own ways once the dust has settled.

Echo of Violence is a novel that shakes up the action right out of the gate. You are immediately thrown into this world of violence and terror and have little time for character introduction. Jackson remains the mysterious rouge, but as the book progresses, you see Jackson as a very emotional character. He's a dark angel that is private, quiet and keeps to himself. Alexia is somewhat similar to Jackson's personality. She seems very distant, emotionally shut off and cold. She is all business and rarely lets anyone see past her rough exterior.

Dane's book uses a great amount of knowledge and description of the inner workings for this terrorist group. While the novel is surprising smart in describing it's villain, it certainly isn't for the faint of heart. The violence isn't heavily described, but you still know a great deal about the torture these hostages are facing. Their ordeal is always uncertain and makes for a more intriguing novel by the fact that you have no idea what these mad men will do next. If you don't like any form of cruelty of violence described in any way shape or form in your books, I would strongly suggest you skip this novel.

The book is very suspenseful throughout along with a well built plot line. The only thing that was missing was the romance. Normally this wouldn't be an issue, but it is classified as a romantic suspense so my expectation going into this novel were a little different. The potential romance between Jackson and Alexia was non-existent. Really, they spend a large portion of the book apart. The novel mentions the couple share a history, but the details of that history are never fully exposed. And it's hard to create any kind of attraction between two characters when one of them is near death. Jackson is gravely injured in the beginning and pushes himself to continue on until the end of the rescue mission. The scenario is somewhat unbelievable because the injury is very serious and infection is a high danger. You go through one chapter where he is near death and the next he is hiking his way through the jungle to rescue Sister Kate.

There is a charming secondary romance between two characters from earlier novels in this series. It's terribly short, but charming all the same. That is about the extent of the romance department. You will find a great suspenseful and action packed story with Echo of Violence. But romance? Not so likely. Hopefully knowing what to expect when you go into this novel will make for a more enjoyable reading experience.

Overall Rating: 3/5
Heat Level: n/a

Lisa @ Once Upon A Chapter

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 7 reviews  4.3 out of 5 stars