Friday, June 16, 2023

BOOK REVIEW- Second Shot (A Helen Warwick Thriller# 1)by Cindy Dees

https://www.bookbub.com/reviews/2452093123

General Fiction (Adult) | Mystery & Thrillers | Women's Fiction 
 

Description

In this exhilaratingly sharp thriller by New York Times bestselling author and former spy Cindy Dees, a recently retired CIA wet work specialist (aka a highly skilled assassin) is trying to reconnect with her family and settle into normal life. . . in the midst of mortal combat.

“A pitch-perfect adventure, filled with nuance and dire exploits. Take a breath, hang on, and enjoy the ride with this smart and clever heroine.” —Steve Berry, New York Times bestselling author

Retirement isn’t easy for a former CIA assassin. For fifty-five-year-old Helen Warwick, it may be impossible. Even Helen’s family doesn’t know the true nature of the work she’s done for decades—the secret black ops, the sanctioned executions. But her plan to spend time reconnecting with her grown children has just been blown up—along with her son’s house—by hired killers. Why is she being targeted now—and by whom?

Years of eliminating the nation’s enemies one sniper bullet at a time have earned Helen powerful adversaries. Then there are mysterious new foes, including a psychopath dubbed The DaVinci Killer, who wages a twisted war with a rival serial killer to turn murder into art. And when he sets his sights on Helen, she may very well become his next exhibit.

From homegrown spies to Russian mafia hitmen, Helen’s ghosts don’t just haunt—they kill. And staying alive long enough to make up for the past, and protect those closest to her, will take every ounce of skill she possesses . . .

AMAZON LINK 

5+ STARS

Everything starts out nice and easy and then suddenly Kaboom ! everything suddenly explodes.  What a GREAT start!  I loved that!  And it was my hope that this would continue because I was liking Helen really quickly.  I wanted to see her open a can of whoop a$$ on the people targeting her and her family.  I also loved her thought at the end of the second chapter.  "Somebody was going to pay for making Gray and the kids wait  And they'd scared her grand-dog half to death."  What's not to like about that kind of determination?

This story kept me involved every step of the explosive way.  I can hardly put into words how much I loved it but I'll try.  The more I got involved with Helen the more I loved her and the struggles that she encounters.  Especially with the price she has paid with her loss of time with her family.  She was protecting them but they couldn't know that. Her husband, Grayson spent most of the time raising the children but even so I didn't really like or respect him much. 

Someone that I did like and respect was the friendship between Helen and her handler, Yosef Mizrah.  There were hints of some attraction but they were both married and didn't cross that line. 

I was left with the feeling that the story was so well written with just the right tensions, clever actions during dangers, and such interesting depth to all of the people in the story. It was so easy to believe that Helen was a skilled assassin, who gets out of some pretty tricky spots.  She's not weak in us seeing her emotions either. 

All in all, like I said I loved it and I stand by that. I wish that I could rate this book higher.  The last thing that I want to say is Give me More of Helen.

“I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

 

(NETGALLEY)

 

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