John Ramsey Miller Side by Side

Side by Side

John Ramsey Miller

Dell, Sept 2005, $6.99, 352 pp.

ISBN 0553583433

Winter Massey used to be a U.S. Marshall until he killed a person and didn't feel a shred of remorse. He knew it was time to get out and is now making a new and happier life with his wife Sean and their infant daughter Olivia. When his old friend Special Agent Alexa Keen tracks him down to help her in a case that she is pursuing without the help of the FBI. Winter is reluctant to assist her until she explains that a woman and her infant son were kidnapped; he agrees to lend a hand.

The kidnapped woman is the daughter of Judge Hailey Fondren, the judge presiding over the case of Ex-Army Colonel Hunter Bryce charged with killing an ATF agent who found the weapons that the accused was planning to sell to the Soviet Mafia. Bryce's criminal allies are using the hostages to extort the judge to pronounce the colonel not guilty. If he fails to free Bryce they will kill his daughter and grandson. Winter searches for the victims but after nearly being blindsided several times, he has to wonder if Alexa is working for the enemy.

SIDE BY SIDE is a fantastic action thriller that starts of at light speed and just keeps accelerating until the shocking and exciting finale. Readers won't know who the real villains are until the author chooses to reveal their allegiances. The characters are well drawn and three dimensional especially the hero so that readers feel they know him and his motivations. John Ramsey Miller writes a strong crime thriller with espionage and military overtones filled with plenty of guts and heart.

Harriet Klausner