January 20, 2003
Readers of Krueger's Cork O'Connor mystery series (Iron Lake; Boundary Waters; etc.) will have to postpone the pleasures of the much-anticipated fourth volume, but the wait will be well spent with this fast-paced stand-alone political thriller. President Clay Dixon, campaigning for reelection, is falling behind in the polls. Worse, the popular first lady, Kate Jorgenson Dixon, disappointed by Clay's lost idealism, resolves to abandon their marriage—a disaster for his faltering campaign, not to mention his emotional stability. Kate flies back to her native rural Minnesota when she hears that her father, ex-senator Tom Jorgenson, has suffered a farming accident that has nearly killed him. The police declare it an unfortunate mishap, but it isn't—an escaped mental patient has initiated a long-planned vendetta that includes not only Tom but Kate as well. Chilling, mesmerizing lunatic David "Nightmare" Moses, who was once in love with Kate, steals the page each time he makes an appearance. Secret Service agent Bo Thorsen, who protects the first lady, contends with Moses as well as with backstabbing colleagues, scheming Washington politicians and minions of a sinister, secret government agency that appears to have some tie to Moses. Occasional clunky writing and an over-the-top patriotic coda mar the novel, but this will hardly matter to most readers. Nonstop action, abundant romantic complications and a wealth of mayhem keep Krueger's plot speeding toward its suspenseful, blood-soaked climax.
February 15, 2003
In his latest thriller, Krueger (Purgatory Ridge) offers an intriguing premise, but the execution is pedestrian. President Clay Dixon is running for reelection and is currently behind in the polls. His wife, Kate, is contemplating leaving him, which would essentially end any hopes of a second term. When Kate's father is injured in what appears to be an accident, she rushes to his bedside. This accident, however, is just the first step in an elaborate scheme to kill her and her father. The mastermind is an escaped mental patient named David Moses, who was in love with Kate when they were younger. Assigned to protect Kate, Secret Service agent Bo Thorson is on to Moses and in his race to stop him stumbles onto an even bigger conspiracy that could cost him his career-and his life. While this novel is compelling enough to finish, all of the situations and plot twists are cliches; it doesn't even offer an insightful look into the Secret Service. Chalk this up as average; for larger fiction collections.-Jeff Ayers, Seattle P.L.
Copyright 2003 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.