In Wolves’ Clothing

Levin movingly conveys the stomach-churning horrors of child sex trafficking in this effective thriller. Zero Slade works for Operation Emancipation, a globe-trotting group of operatives with intelligence backgrounds, who pose as prospective clients as a way to bust the traffickers and liberate their young captives. After one such mission, while waiting for a flight from Guadalajara, Mexico, to L.A., Zero muses: “Before I joined Operation Emancipation, I was just like the dozens of people fuming at Gate A-11 right now. Flight delays would ruin my day.... Now I can smile and whistle while walking through a pediatric cancer ward.” Zero feels deep empathy for the helpless victims he labors to save at great personal risk. The conflict between a facade of professionalism and heartfelt involvement with the suffering he witnesses reaches a head after he bonds with Sung, a five-year-old girl he rescues in Cambodia. Zero does his best to keep Sung safe, but more perils for the girl lie ahead. Levin provides a window into one of the world’s darkest underbellies, while somehow managing to insert appropriate lighter moments, as when Zero meets a new recruit to OE, a Buddhist former FBI agent. This author deserves a wide audience. [em](BookLife) [/em]