Perseverance
Non-series
Robin
Lehman
Fogdog Press (Trade Paperback)
ISBN-10: 0-9841469-0-3 (0984146903)
ISBN-13: 978-0-9841469-0-1 (9780984146901)
Publication Date: August 2009
List Price: $13.95
Synopsis (from
the publisher): When Energy Secretary Ella Vargas opens the Alaska
Energy Summit in Juneau, she's confident she can sell the
administration's bold new energy plan -- including a nuclear waste
facility in Alaska's interior. "The key word is balance," she declares.
But someone unbalanced is bombing Juneau's landmarks, hoping to scare
off Vargas and her fellow VIPs.
FBI Special Agent Regan Manning, a former Juneau girl, heads up the
team from Quantico who must protect the dignitaries from the growing
mob of angry protestors -- and from each other as their political
agendas collide.
Tension mounts as Regan is forced to confront a string of personal and
professional tests that culminates in the energy secretary's
disappearance. Chastened that it happened on her watch, the agent is
determined to find Vargas, ultimately uncovering a plot that raeches as
high as the White House and as far as the Middle East. When Regan gets
too close for comfort, somebody sets out to silence her.
Review: Robin
Lehman introduces FBI Special Agent Regan Manning in Perseverance, a political thriller
that may be the first of a new series.
Manning and her team from Quantico have been sent to Juneau, Alaska,
the city of Manning's birth, to protect Washington officials and other
VIPs during a three day summit conference. Convened by Energy Secretary
Ella Vargas, the meeting is largely intended as a way to convince
Alaskans that their state is the perfect place for the administration's
bold new energy policy, which includes a newly devised method of
drilling for oil and, oh by the way, a nuclear waste facility. Many
residents have already voiced their negative opinion on the plan, and
protest demonstrations are expected. But the extent of the violence is
not expected. Just after the official plane lands at the airport, a
pipe bomb explodes. The crowd at the airport erupts into a riot just as
another bomb destroys a historic glacier. A third bomb is found, and
defused, on a tram at the top of Mount Roberts, one of Juneau's most
popular scenic attractions. The protestors claim the only way to get
Washington's attention is to be blunt about their cause: America's last
frontier is not the place for nuclear waste.
But Ella Vargas is not to be deterred. She ignores instructions laid
out by Manning, intended to safeguard her, then blames Manning when her
safety is at risk. Later Vargas disappears, and it falls to Manning and
her team to find her. Vargas is soon found in a mining cave, but it
appears she entered voluntarily, but for what purpose?. And when the
stairs into the mine collapse, Manning isn't sure who is to blame. Can
she trust the woman she is sworn to protect?
Perseverance is a
thriller with an interesting premise, one that illustrates the
difficulty of balancing the needs of the country against the needs of
the community. The politics are well handled here, as is the pacing of
the story. Regan Manning is an appealing character, imbued with wit and
charm and the strength to take on her opponents (even if they're
presumably on her side) and survive. Perseverance
works well as a stand-alone novel, but many readers will undoubtedly
like to see more of Regan Manning persevere, as it were, in future
cases.
Special thanks to guest reviewer Betty of The Betz Review for contributing her review of Perseverance and to Fogdog Press for providing a copy of the book for this review.
Review Copyright © 2009 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved
Have you read Perseverance? How would you rate it?
Non-series novels by this author …
Perseverance
Fogdog Press (Trade Paperback), August 2009
ISBN-10: 0-9841469-0-3 (0984146903)
ISBN-13: 978-0-9841469-0-1 (9780984146901)
Omnimystery keywords for Perseverance ...
Location(s) referenced: Juneau, Alaska.
