Review: The Kill Circle by David Freed

Title: The Kill Circle by David Freed
Cordell Logan Mystery Series Book Six
Publisher: Permanent Press
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery, Suspense
Length: 280 pages
Book Rating: B+

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by the Author

Summary:

When retired senior CIA analyst Rico Perris plunges off a cliff in his vintage Porsche while speeding through the mountains of Colorado late one snowy night, the local sheriff rules it an accident. CIA officials, however, suspect otherwise. Their suspicions are soon heightened after two other former intelligence analysts turn up dead under questionable circumstances. All three victims were once assigned to the same top-secret project an internal review of the CIA’s long-rumored involvement in the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Now, with a Congressional mandate about to go into effect compelling the CIA to release long-secret files relating to the assassination, there is growing concern that a shrewd and ruthless killer is on the loose, one who will stop at nothing to prevent the public from discovering the truth of what happened that tragic day in Dallas in November, 1963.

Veteran pilot, aspiring Buddhist and ex-government assassin Cordell Logan has little interest in helping his former comrade-in-arms, Buzz, who still works in the intelligence community, investigate what looks increasingly like a vexing conspiracy. Content to operate his small civilian flight school in the swanky seaside resort of Rancho Bonita, California, Logan would just as soon be left alone that is, until Buzz introduces him to Layne Sterling, a brilliant and beautiful CIA agent assigned to the case. Logan is instantly drawn to her. Working together while pretending to ignore their simmering mutual attraction, they soon find themselves caught up in a high-stakes, high-altitude cat-and-mouse game, one that in the end could destroy them both.

Fast-paced, brimming with action and humor, The Kill Circle is a page-turner of the first order, the sixth offering in a series of mystery-thrillers that has earned Cordell Logan and author David Freed a legion of loyal readers and critics alike.

Review:

David Freed’s latest release, The Kill Circle, is another clever and riveting installment in the always entertaining Cordell Logan Mystery series.

Cordell finds it surprisingly easy to refuse CIA agent Layne Sterling’s request to help look into the recent death of former CIA analyst Rico Perris.  On the surface, his untimely demise appears to be nothing more than a car accident but considering another retired agent, Joe Zyra, also died recently, the CIA is carefully scrutinizing both deaths. After Logan’s friend and former colleague Buzz reads him the riot act, Cordell reluctantly agrees  to work with Layne. Discovering Perris and Zyra formerly worked on a top secret project about John F. Kennedy’s assassination, Logan cannot help but wonder: is it a coincidence that both men died just as formerly unreleased files about JFK’s death are about to be released?  Cordell and Sterling soon head to Colorado to find out the answer to that very intriguing question.

Logan and Sterling’s investigation begins by interviewing local Sheriff Harlan Weber, who has ruled Rico’s death an accident. On the surface, Weber appears to be a devoted grandfather and stellar lawman, but knowing the sheriff’s somewhat checkered history, Cordell is less than convinced Harlan is squeaky clean.  Cordell strikes out his own to collect evidence and  after he is reunited with Sterling, they quickly find themselves in Weber’s crosshairs as he tries to intimidate them into abandoning their investigation.

Although Logan and Sterling are having difficulty finding definitive evidence of foul play, they do uncover enough puzzling information that convinces them to continue their investigation.  Details provided by Perris’s live-in girlfriend send the crime-fighting duo to Denver where they run up against local law enforcement.  With the clock ticking on the investigation as they fail to find proof that Rico was murdered, Logan doggedly stays on the case after learning some their evidence has gone missing. Returning to Weber’s territory, Cordell tries to remain under the radar as he re-interviews people connected to Rico and he slowly but surely begins untangling the details of this perplexing case.

With a puzzling death to investigate, plenty of action and surprising plot twists,  The Kill Circle is a well-plotted and briskly paced addition to the Cordell Logan Mysteries series.  Logan is a seasoned amateur sleuth with keen instincts, a sharp intellect and an inability to leave a job unfinished.  In this sixth outing, David Freed keeps the series fresh through the introduction new characters and a creative storyline. This fantastic whodunit comes a twist-filled, unexpected conclusion that is impossible to predict.  The novel ends with a tantalizing proposition that will leave readers eagerly awaiting the next installment in the series.

1 Comment

Filed under Contemporary, Cordell Logan Mystery Series, David Freed, Mystery, Permanent Press, Rated B+, Review, Suspense, The Kill Circle

One Response to Review: The Kill Circle by David Freed

  1. Timitra

    Thanks for the review Kathy