Thomas Ryerson, April's Call

April ' s Call

Thomas Ryerson

Isis Press, May 2008, $24.97

ISBN: 0969742983

In June 2007 twenty-eight year old April Dekoven drives on multilane Highway 64 in Hornerseth with her seven years old daughter Rori in the backseat of the car with her. Divorced for a year, her former spouse Cody Frazer lives with his new girlfriend Amanda, which confuses Rori. However, she has no time to muse as a water bottle is stuck under the gas pedal at the same time a transport truck behind her honks the horn as their lane ends. The trucker almost cuts her off with no place to go. An irate April notices the number 1-800-555-SAFE on the van; perhaps the only clean spot.

Truck driver Terry David Phillips loves being on the road. However, this time his wimpy boss at O.A.S. Environmental, Clark H. Andrews informs him that after six years of driving for them with a zillion complaints about him tries to reason with his driver about taking it easy on others on the road. Instead Terry threatens to call EPA over violations so Clark fires him. He blames April for his troubles and decides to get even.

This is an excellent psychological suspense thriller starring a woman who felt she was doing the right thing only to leave her and her beloved daughter in jeopardy from a psychopath. Mindful of Spielberg's classic Duel, 'April's Call' is a tense tale that will have readers wondering about the price of getting involved. Thomas Ryerson provides a character driven intense tale.

Harriet Klausner