Review of INTO PROTECTION

INTO PROTECTION
Terry Chaudhuri
Schiel and Denver Publishing, 2010
ISBN:  978-1-84903-028-1

Ralph Shepard is a good cop, but he becomes obsessed with putting away crime boss, Victor Lazano.  When Ralph gets too close to the evidence that will do just that, Victor has him eliminated and the evidence destroyed.  This leaves Ralph's ten year old son, Derek, an orphan.  Luckily, Derek's best friend, Jimmy Cole, and his family take him in and give him a home.  The two boys become blood brothers and make a pack to see Victor arrested.  Years later, Derek is a detective, and like his father, he becomes obsessed with arresting Victor.  Unfortunately, Victor is as slippery as ever, and it seems that he must have some law enforcement officers on his payroll.  Meanwhile, Jimmy has become an FBI agent, who handles some very secretive cases.

INTO PROTECTION is a gritty, suspenseful, thriller which, also, has a little romance thrown in for good measure.  While the action and suspense kept me reading in anticipation, there are a couple of points, which cause questions.  One of these is the fact that Derek, who is supposedly obsessed with Victor, has no idea who Victor's wife is.  Secondly, I would have liked a more in depth explanation of Jimmy's behavior.  However, these are minor quibbles and didn't detract much from my overall enjoyment of the novel.  The characters are well-developed and the villain is especially slimy, and the ending is shocking and unexpected in some ways.  Needless to say, INTO PROTECTION is an enjoyable read, which I recommend.

NOTE:  I received this book in return for an impartial review.