Review – Every Crooked Path

Steven James in his new book, "Every Crooked Path" published by Signet gives us another adventure with Special Agent Patrick Bowers. From the back cover:  Who is the Piper? . . .   Special Agent Patrick Bowers returns in an electrifying prequel to the Bowers Chess series from critically acclaimed, national bestselling novelist Steven James.   A mysterious suicide and a series of abductions draw Patrick into a web of intrigue involving an international conspiracy where no one is who they appear to be and the stakes have never been higher. Soon, Patrick discovers that the secret to stopping the Piper's current crime spree lies in unlocking answers from an eight-year-old cold case—and the only way to do that is by entering the terrifying world of the conspirators himself. Dark, probing, and chilling, Every Crooked Path takes an unflinching look at the world of today's cybercrimes and delves into a parent's worst nightmare as it launches a new chapter of Patrick Bowers thrillers. "Every Crooked Path" takes place after "Opening Moves" so Patrick is still new to this so while he is still his highly efficient self he does makes a few mistakes. Steven James loads his high-octane thriller with so much misinformation and deceit that it takes a lot of concentration just to keep your head above water.  The book races along at lightening speed and all the characters are put their paces trying to solve this crime spree and put all the pieces together. "The Piper" is an amazing character and I didn't figure out who he was so well done. Mr. James warns us in his Author's Note that this book deals with online predators. Mr. James does not lead us into the dark web to not just write about evil to magnify it; no, he writes about evil to show how it can be fought, contained and triumphed over. Child pornography and child sex-trafficking is at an all-time high level but it can be defeated. Do not start this book late at night because it will cost you sleep as you will not want to put it down. This is another really great offering from the pen of Steven James.  If you enjoy a good adventure thriller then this is the book for you!