Ocean of Fear
by Helen Hanson
(Taken from Goodreads)
Paperback, 292 pages
Published August 26th 2013 by Domino INK
Meet Baxter Cruise. Gifted robotics student. Spammer for hire. His cozy world of lattes and free wi-fi explodes when a hippie professor disappears, and Baxter discovers a lady professor’s warm corpse on campus.With his secretive lifestyle, he hasn’t cultivated any real friends. When a student asks for help with a class assignment, Baxter figures it’ll throttle his funk. But the guy blackmails Baxter into programming narcotics delivery vehicles for a notorious cartel. Working for drug lords rattles the needle on Baxter’s errant moral compass, but it’s better than a bullet in the head.
Beautiful FBI agent Claudia Seagal tracks the professor’s brutal assassin, but every angle of her investigation leads to Baxter. He’s hiding something and in far too deep to cooperate with the law.
Baxter ignores the cartel’s depravity until he watches an innocent woman die. When he wakes up on a plane, it’s too late for remorse. In bed with dangerous allies, the cartel requires Baxter’s talent until the robots are complete. Then, he and thousands of others face certain death unless Baxter can find a way to escape.
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My REVIEW:
Lets start with what I love. The Cover! This cover left me
really wondering, “What the heck is this going to be about?” A helicopter
traveling over the water. The sky a bit grey, like a storm is brewing, but
further past is brighter skies. Was this a metaphor? Is the ‘c’ in ocean an
Arabian Saber? What does that symbolize? And to literally put the cherry on
top, the word “FEAR” is in read.. I was ready for the tackle. When I entered my
kindle version of the book and saw 78 chapters, I almost ran scared. But
realized the book was only 292 pages.. whew.
We meet the Baxter Cruise. He is a handsome student that
makes the lady’s head turn. He is super smart, a robotics engineering student.
He has a business that is very lucrative, although very sketchy. In his mind life is good. Then in a matter of
days, his assumption of life really takes a nose dive.
His mentoring professor is missing, which really upsets
Baxter. But then Baxter finds a dead professor, with this find he gets an unexpected
introduction to the beautiful FBI agent, Claudia Seagal with questions about
his recent discovery. Did I mention that Baxter is in the line of work of
sketchy? Ok, it is technically illegal, but its so small of a thing, right? And to add more to Baxter's plate, he now has gotten involved with a drug cartel!!!
Illegal job + dead professor + missing professor + FBI Agent + Drug Cartel = Baxter Cruise nose deep into some mess with only a spoon to shovel out!
For Baxter this is where life changes everything he knows
and thinks he knows. Dramatically! And where on earth is his mentor at?
Author Helen Hanson gives the reader an action packed book
with several different points of view, this I love. I think the helicopter on the cover is a great
metaphor for the up, down and bumpy ride Hanson gives her readers. She makes
her readers need to eagerly turn each page to find answers AND then when the
reader thinks its figured out, Hanson throws a curve ball.
That’s what a thriller is about. The unknown, the “what the
heck?” questions, the sit on the edge of your seat with your eyes bulging, not
believing what’s going on moments.
This book is without a doubt, a HOT - Page Turner
(The Hotties are on a 4 flame rating scale. Click the link to learn more of the rating scale)
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THE AUTHOR
Bestselling Kindle author Helen Hanson writes thrillers about desperate people with a high-tech bent. Hackers. The CIA. Industry titans. Guys on sailboats. Mobsters. Their personal maelstroms pit them against unrelenting forces willing to kill. Throughout the journey, they try to find some truth, a little humor, and their humanity — from either end of the trigger.While Helen writes about the power hungry, she genuinely mistrusts anyone who wants to rule the world.
Helen directed operations for high-tech manufacturers of semiconductors, video games, software, and computers. Her reluctant education behind the redwood curtain culminated in a B.S. in Business Administration with concentrated studies in Computer Science. She also learned to play a mean game of hacky sack.
She is a licensed private pilot with a ticket for single-engine aircraft. Helen and her husband spent their first anniversary with their flight instructor studying for the FAA practical. If you were a passenger on a 737 trying to land at SJC in 1995, she sends her most sincere apologies. Really.
Born in fly-over country, Helen has lived on both coasts, near both borders, and at several locations in between. She lettered in tennis, worked as a machinist, and saw the Clash at the San Francisco Civic Auditorium sometime in the eighties. She currently lives amid the bricks of Texas with her husband, son, and a dog that composes music with squeaky toys.
If you enjoy her books, please consider writing a review. If you don’t, please be kind.
Want to learn more about Helen? Click away...
Thanks for the flames, Syreeta!
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