Book Reviews

Book Blurb

When B. J. Vinson, confidential investigator, learns his young friend, Jazz Penrod, has disappeared and has not been heard from in a month, he discovers some ominous emails. Jazz has been corresponding with a “Juan” through a dating site, and that single clue draws BJ and his significant other, Paul Barton, into the brutal but lucrative world of human trafficking.

 

Their trail leads to a mysterious Albuquerquean known only as Silver Wings, who protects the Bulgarian cartel that moves people—mostly the young and vulnerable—around the state to be sold into modern-day slavery, sexual and otherwise. Can BJ and Paul locate and expose Silver Wings without putting Jazz’s life in jeopardy? Hell, can they do so without putting themselves at risk? People start dying as BJ, Paul, and Henry Secatero, Jazz's Navajo half-brother, get too close. To find the answer, bring down the ring, and save Jazz, they’ll need to locate the place where human trafficking ties into the Navajo Nation and the gay underground.

 

Book Review

“A confidential investigator must sprinkle himself with patience dust every morning to put up with the long hours of doing nothing when on a stakeout or shuffling through mountains of data to find one small nugget of meaningful info.” — B.J. Vinson, Abaddon’s Locusts

Each of the volumes in this series has combined an intriguing crime/murder mystery with some great characters, plenty of suspense, wonderful local details focused on New Mexico, and so many twists that I was never sure what the author was going to surprise me with next – in the best possible way. This fifth volume is no exception, though its theme (human trafficking) is a lot darker and grittier than what happened in previous books. I do recommend reading these books in order, by the way, because a lot of the back history and the characters’ growth is a very enjoyable part of the series arc, and I don’t think you’d want to miss that. I know I wouldn’t!

The fearless B.J. Vinson – confidential investigator of some renown – once again faces the darker side of human nature when one of his occasional sources and helpers, a young man by the name of Jazz (from book two), suddenly vanishes without a trace. His half brother, Henry, is a mixed-blood Navajo and comes to BJ for help. Henry soon pulls everyone into figuring out what happened, finding Jazz, and bringing to justice the people who want to sell Jazz to the highest bidder. BJ knows in theory how human trafficking works, but actually confronting some of the bast*rds who lure in and abuse the victims, including underage children, is quite a different matter.

Paul, BJ’s lover of several years, takes a much more active role in this case. Partly because he likes Jazz and wants to help, but also because he is now an investigative reporter and he smells a story that he might be able to sell. Paul and BJ have become wonderfully domestic, their love is stronger than ever, and I really liked the way they trust each other and work together. Yes, BJ is probably overprotective, but who can blame him when Paul puts himself out there as bait to flush out the man who they think has Jazz under his control.

As ever, the quality of the writing is high, all the well-loved quirky and eccentric characters from previous volumes are back, and the realism of the story held my attention. Jazz’s point of view while he was imprisoned was included, and those scenes were not easy to read, because I knew that the brutality that he encounters is real. Watching him deal with enforced drug dependency and what that did to his mind and way of thinking was well done, but hard for me to deal with.

If you like gritty, realistic mysteries set in today’s world, if unusual characters with diverse talents, backgrounds, and connections coming together to help find one of their own are your thing, and if you’re looking for a slightly dark read filled with a hunt for clues, more than one twist, and a much-deserved yet hard-earned safe ending for the good guys, then you will probably like this novel. Bring on the next one – it’s called ‘The Voxlightner Scandal’ and sounds as good as any of the first five books!

 

 

 

 

DISCLAIMER: Books reviewed on this site were usually provided at no cost by the publisher or author. This book has been provided by DSP Publications for the purpose of a review.

Additional Information

Format	ebook and print
Length	Novel, 290 pages/96137 words
Heat Level
Publication Date	22-January-2019
Price	$6.99 ebook, $16.99 paperback
Buy Link	https://www.dsppublications.com/books/abaddons-locusts-by-don-travis-486-b