Two Very Intense Thrillers

May 30, 2012

For our June discussion, we are reading two very intense thrillers. The first one involves Chicago gangs. The second one is a frantic race from Washington, D.C. to Napa Valley, to Vegas to catch a serial killer. Join us at the Antioch Branch on June 25 at 7:00 p.m. to express your views on both.

At the City’s Edge by Marcus Sakey 
Jason Palmer loved being a soldier. But after returning home from the war in Iraq with an "other than honorable" discharge, he finds rebuilding his life the toughest battle yet. Elena Cruz is a talented policewoman, the first woman to make Chicago's prestigious Gang Intelligence Unit. She's ready for anything that the job can throw at her. When Jason's brother, a prominent community activist, is murdered in front of his own son, Jason and Elena must unite and unravel a conspiracy that stretches from the darkest alleys of the ghetto to the manicured lawns of the city's power brokers. In a world where corruption and violence are simply the cost of doing business, Jason and Elena are all that stands between an innocent child and the killers who will stop at nothing to find him.

Velocity by Alan Jacobson 
Renowned FBI profiler Karen Vail returns in this explosive thriller. Her boyfriend, Detective Robby Hernandez, vanishes into the dense air of a Napa Valley evening. There are no clues to his whereabouts, other than blood stains and a vicious serial killer who is operating in wine country.  As evidence collected by her team suggests that the serial killer is connected to Robby’s disappearance, the FBI orders Karen to return to Quantico to handle a case of vital importance. Back in Washington, she engages convert government operative Hector DeSantos to determine what happened to Robby. This move ultimately leads them into unforeseen dangers and forces Karen to face off against powerful foes unlike any she’s ever encountered, threatening her life, her career, and all that she holds dear.