Blood Trust

In Lustbader's long-winded third McClure-Carson novel (after Last Snow), dyslexic Homeland Security agent Jack McClure sets out to save 23-year-old Alli Carson, whom he rescued in the first book, First Daughter, after she's accused of murdering her boyfriend. Meanwhile, Alli, who's training to be an FBI special ops agent, must escape from the clutches of her villainous uncle, Henry Holt Carson, who has ties to a lengthy list of criminals engaged in dirty deeds ranging from a burgeoning trade in sex slaves to causing the recent financial meltdown in the U.S. The plot twists and turns as various characters turn out to be related to one another and willing to double-cross and kill with abandon. Series fans will find plenty of backstory to savor, but newcomers are advised to start with First Daughter and work, with the emphasis on the word work, their way up to this one. (May)