I had heard about Alex Lukeman's book White Jade prior to having his submission request come to the PRG Review Team. I was also delighted to be challenged to do the story as a Dual Review. To make it even more appealing, the next Dual Review was slated to have a Guest Dueler, for a change of pace for your reading enjoyment. So here I am writing this review, and so is Andrew Valentine, writer of Bitter Things, as my Siskel to his Ebert or the other way around.
When I began White Jade, I could see this was going to take me to places I loved. Murder, foreign intrigue, FBI, CIA, plots and plenty of action.
Elizabeth Harker is in charge of a group called Project. She works within the levels of the FBI and CIA and Homeland Security, with technology at her hands to analyze threats to our country. She is a woman who has a voice to the President.
William Connor was a very rich man who was tortured and killed, his home ransacked, and there was a transfer of 4 million dollars from his accounts to accounts in China. He was a personal friend of the President. Project was asked to look into this.
Elizabeth Harker has contacted Nicholas Carter to come to her office. He is recently back from Afghanistan, dealing with emotional issues from his last mission, and the loss of his fiancé, which has changed his view on life. Upon hearing of the way Connors was killed, `it became personal, and Nick needed personal cause God and country wasn't working for him anymore'
Enter Dr. Selena Connor, attractive, in her thirties, PhD in oriental and ancient language, niece to the deceased. Harker tells her that they feel her Uncle was killed for a book he had acquired in Bhutan. Selena reveals it is a copy of an ancient text about immortality. She has no idea where it is, but after further investigation on her Uncles laptop, a letter to her tells them where the book is possibly hidden.
This is where our story unfolds. Mr Lukeman has done a wonderful job of introducing the reader to all the players. We are in San Francisco, China, and back switching scenery from one part of the globe to the other. The intrigue, the lust for power, the thrill of the hunt, all add to the beauty of the ruins I could see, the fear in the tunnels I could taste, and the miracle of finding artifacts untouched by man for centuries. Yes, it truly was Indiana Jones meets 007.
The story was well described and points well documented. I love a thriller where the good guys are so good and the bad guys are unredeemable. The quest for POWER makes this story come to life and we always pray the good guys win. I do not want to add any more to the story, as **Spoilers** are a no no with my reviews. So with the weather getting cooler, if you had the idea of curling up with a good Mystery/ Thriller, White Jade would be a good bet.
I might also add as I read this story, ideas kept forming in my mind as to who would play the bad guys, of course I had already picked who I envisioned to play Selena and Nick on the Big Screen. Kate Hudson would be a good Selena and Alex O'Louglin from Hawaii Five- O would be a wonderful Nick. How about Kathy Bates for Elizabeth Harker??? Hmmm anyone looking for a great screen play?
Mr Lukeman has graciously sent on to me the next book in this series called The Lance, which I will put on my personal TBR pile and review for you at a later date...
Review by Gloria Lakritz
Senior Reviewer and Review Chair for the Paranormal Romance Guild
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