Review: Final Encounter: A Leine Basso Thriller by DV Berkom

 

Genre: Thriller

Description:

“A former assassin, a disgraced-cop, and a cyber-security expert race to stop a relentless cyber-terrorist determined to sell death and destruction to the highest bidder.

When three performers from a prestigious Seattle nightclub are murdered, former assassin Leine Basso is called in by a close friend to help investigate.

The clues lead her to a wealthy tech mogul with a revolutionary AI program. Despite compelling evidence implicating the billionaire, Leine senses a deeper conspiracy.

Assisted by a cyber-security expert and a disgraced-cop-turned-PI, Leine must navigate a maze of deception and cyber warfare, uncovering a cunning rival with a deadly agenda who is manipulating events from behind the scenes.”

Author:

“DV Berkom is the USA Today bestselling author of action-packed, riveting adventure and crime thrillers. Known for creating resilient, kick-ass female characters and page-turning plots, her love of the genre stems from a lifelong addiction to reading spy novels, action/adventure stories, and thrillers.”

For more, visit Ms Berkom’s website.

Appraisal:

As her bio makes clear, DV Berkom writes books with strong female protagonists. I’ve read a bunch of them, some historical westerns, some modern day and most, if not all fitting the thriller genre and having just what her bio claims, a “kick-ass female” as the protagonist. This book, the fourteenth in this series featuring Leine Basso, continues the streak.

Over the years and through the prior books in the series Leine has evolved, with her situation, goals, and the kind of cases (for lack of a better word) that she becomes involved in. There are definitely situations where what she does is breaking the law, and yet as a reader I may realize this, but I don’t view it as a problem because I can see that she is pushing the limits for the greater good. This particular story has the qualities I’ve come to expect with Leine and those assisting her digging deep to figure out what’s going on. Of course the world is always changing and with that change come new challenges. Some of the recent technological changes the world has been experiencing figure in to the story here, keeping the story and Leine’s skills on the cutting edge. This was a story that had me on the edge of my seat, wondering what would happen next, until the very last page. A heck of a read. Or maybe, like Leine, I should call it a kick-ass read.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

Some adult language.

Format/Typo Issues:

My review is based on an advance reviewer copy, so I can’t gauge the final product in this area.

Rating: ***** Five Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 75-80,000 words