Helpful Score: 1
Truly excellent...a real white knuckle ride. I don't know how Lynne Heitman got into my house but I'm glad she did. Visit the sorid underbelly of scavengers and chop shops, where profits are valued over the lives of a planeload of passengers - and murder is not too far to go when millions are at stake.
An intricate and explosive thriller involving money laundering, murder, drug trafficking and used parts fraud, Heitman's second novel (Hard Landing) finds gutsy airline manager Alex Shanahan in peril and embroiled in a mystery once again. Despite her lack of any formal investigative skills, and only days before beginning a new job in Detroit, Alex heads to Miami following the inexplicable murder of her friend and former coworker, John McTavish. Her only leads are a charred aircraft logbook and a diamond ring, both confiscated from an Ecuadorian plane crash and sent to her by John prior to his death. When she unwisely decides to follow a suspect to a remote salvage yard, she meets and teams up with retired FBI agent Jack Dolan, who is coincidentally there to investigate the deaths of two police officers. Together they discover what John had stumbled upon a black market for used aircraft parts masterminded by a notorious drug lord and a bloodthirsty Vietnam veteran. Heitman pilots this mystery with a sure hand, her airline experience and in-depth knowledge of the multi-million dollar "used parts" business lending it a chilling reality. Her diverse cast of supporting characters including a beautiful money laundress, a power-hungry FBI rookie and a young computer whiz round out this tightly woven, compelling read. (Feb.)Forecast: Heitman's star is poised to take off, but her latest may encounter some turbulence on the way to the bestseller lists due to its timing and sensitive subject matter. Although some readers will be put off by a book involving plane crashes and illegal parts scams, others will be drawn in by John J. Nance's cover quote and become hooked by the author's evocative prose.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY REVIEW
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY REVIEW
Not at all like her first book, Hard Landing, which I enjoyed. This book was so bad I couldn't finish it.
Alex Shanahan is on her way to a new job with a Detroit start-up airline when the death of her friend John McTavish takes her on a detour to Miami. The trip turns deadly when Alex connects John's murder to the lucrative world of black-market airplane parts-used parts that are illegally reworked, repainted, retagged and sold as new.
Alex Shanahan is on her way to a new job with a Detroit stawrtup airline when the death of her friend John McTavish takes her on a detour t6o Miami. The trip turns deadly when Alex connects John's murder to the lucrative world of black market airplane parts unsed parts that are illegally reworked repainted, retagged and sold as new. Now Alex must walk into the darkest corner of the airline business, a world where one faulty part can bring down an airliner and catastrphe is an acceptable rish, Alex must tread carefully because every step she takes could be her last.
An intricate and explosive thriller involving money laundering, murder, drug trafficking and used parts fraud, Heitman's second novel (Hard Landing) finds gutsy airline manager Alex Shanahan in peril and embroiled in a mystery once again. Despite her lack of any formal investigative skills, and only days before beginning a new job in Detroit, Alex heads to Miami following the inexplicable murder of her friend and former coworker, John McTavish. Her only leads are a charred aircraft logbook and a diamond ring, both confiscated from an Ecuadorian plane crash and sent to her by John prior to his death. When she unwisely decides to follow a suspect to a remote salvage yard, she meets and teams up with retired FBI agent Jack Dolan, who is coincidentally there to investigate the deaths of two police officers. Together they discover what John had stumbled upon a black market for used aircraft parts masterminded by a notorious drug lord and a bloodthirsty Vietnam veteran. Heitman pilots this mystery with a sure hand, her airline experience and in-depth knowledge of the multi-million dollar "used parts" business lending it a chilling reality. Her diverse cast of supporting characters including a beautiful money laundress, a power-hungry FBI rookie and a young computer whiz round out this tightly woven, compelling read
