Rogue Justice

Former Georgia representative Abrams parlays her political knowledge into a complex and highly entertaining thriller in this second pacey adventure featuring 27-year-old D.C. law clerk Avery Keene (after 2021’s While Justice Sleeps). The action picks up after Avery’s testimony regarding the impeachment of President Brandon Stokes has made her a target for the beleaguered politician’s conservative allies. At a judicial conference, she’s approached by Preston Davies, a career clerk for a recently deceased federal judge, who tells Avery that his boss was being blackmailed with a deepfake video, which drove her to suicide. Minutes later, Preston himself is assassinated before Avery’s eyes. Soon, Avery is pulled into a vast, opaque terrorist plot, with no sense of who might be behind it or where it may be leading. Her only clue is a list of the members of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, each of whom may be next in line for elimination. The plot races along, stuffed with genuinely surprising twists, and the scenes set in the Senate chamber and Oval Office have a ring of authenticity often lacking in similar genre fare. Political junkies and thriller fans alike will eagerly anticipate the next installment. Linda Lowenthal, Lowenthal Company. (May)