SNOWSTORM IN AUGUST

5 stars out of 5

Of the myriad of co-authors of books with the prolific James Patterson, Marshall Karp is a favorite of mine (the two co-created and co-write the NYPD Red series, on which, as I understand it, Karp will go solo with the upcoming Book 7). So when I had the opportunity to read and review a pre-release copy of this book - which seems to be the first in a series - I couldn't wait to get my hands on it. I was not disappointed; in fact, it's one of the best books of this kind I've read in a while.

More specifically, it's got a unique, intriguing story that launches with a white-out in Central Park. Snow? Not in August. Try cocaine. It lands on unsuspecting people and animals, killing them almost instantly. Say what? Beyond that, it's got a unique, intriguing main character in former NYPD captain Danny Corcoran, who heads up a special clandestine team of specialists formed by the police commissioner.

Danny lost his wife to an accident years earlier, but he's still close to her sister and their father, a soon-to-retire judge. His last day on the bench turns into a nightmare, triggering a war between powerful drug lord Joaquin Alboroto and the city of New York. When an unexpected disaster results in the police commissioner and his special team getting decommissioned, so to speak, Danny is asked to join a team of retired officers - if possible, an even more clandestine bunch funded by a handful of billionaires. Their primary mission? Thwarting Alboroto's plans to bring the city and a list of targets to their knees with no regard for human collateral damage.

But finding Alboroto and learning what deadly tricks he's got up his sleeves isn't going to be a walk in Central Park even after it's been deemed safe once again. It's not likely he's working in a vacuum, either - but there are plenty of bad guys and gals out there, some known and some not, so ferreting out who's allied with whom is a challenge in and of itself (not to mention exceedingly dangerous). The rest of the book is packed with action - some crossing over into "you've got to be kidding me" territory but edge-of-seat exciting nonetheless.

The bottom line? If you've got room in your summer vacation bag for just one more killer/thriller, consider this one. It's a winner in my book!

Snowstorm in August by Marshall Karp (Blackstone Publishing, June 2022); 348 pp.