Acceptable Risk

Eason (Collateral Damage) continues the Danger Never Sleeps series with this excellent military thriller. When Army journalist Sarah Denning is kidnapped in Kabul with 13 other women, it appears their captors intend to make them Taliban wives. Sarah’s father, Lt. Gen. Lewis Denning, receives the SOS Sarah manages to get out on her satellite phone and deploys former Army Ranger (and Sarah’s one-time crush) Gavin Black and his black ops team to extract her. Sarah is freed but injured during the operation, and after having PTSD-related nightmares, her father has her medically discharged from the Army. Unbeknownst to Sarah, her father also employs Gavin to provide security for her. Then they get word Dustin, the youngest Denning sibling, has committed suicide. Gavin, Sarah, and her older brother, Caden, an FBI agent, begin to piece together connections between military personnel with PTSD attempting suicide at a much higher than usual rate, linking the deaths to a single VA hospital. Though faith elements are slim, Eason’s blend of intrigue, betrayal, greed, and power creates a fast-paced narrative that holds tight until the very end. This is Eason’s most entertaining, suspense-filled drama yet. (Aug.)