This is the fifth book in the Catherine Ling series, but I have not read the previous ones and was able to keep up with this one, no problem. This can definitely be read as a stand-alone. Iris Johansen gives us a fast paced, action packed, military read with Vendetta. This read was so much more than I thought it was going to be for sure.

Carl Venable is the head of the CIA terrorism task force and has relentlessly hunted Max Huber. Venable wanted to get to Huber before he could get to his daughter, Rachel Venable. When Carl Venable is deathly wounded, he leaves the task of protecting Rachel to Jude Brandon. Brandon is one of the "Never leave a comrade behind", but realizes that if he is going to be able to carry out his promise to protect Rachel, he has to leave Carl Venable (who has already passed) and make quick plans to get to her. Brandon has other incentive to carry out attacks on Huber, he was the one to kill his own father.

Rachel Venable is a doctor that works as a humanitarian doctor in Guyana. Rachel has an estranged relationship with her father,, Carl Venable. Carl was working for the CIA when there was a terrorist attack where they lived and her mother and brother were killed. Rachel ended up being captured by the Taliban and it took her father 5 months to try and rescue her. While Rachel was in captivity, she was raped and tortured. The report that Carl was getting was that Rachel was being treated well, not the case. Rachel was finally rescued by Hu Chang. Hu Chang was part of the espionage world. He taught Rachel how to concoct potions that would heal and also how to concoct untraceable poisons. Rachel mainly uses her knowledge for meds that could heal. Rachel still has contact with Hu Chang and calls him to throw ideas around about what she is dealing with. Rachel gets conflicted about using her skills to harm rather than heal.

Brandon has to rescue Rachel all the while keeping Huber from carrying out a terrorist attack on San Francisco. Will he be able to carry out both tasks? This is where we meet Catherine Ling and Richard Cameron. They are in San Francisco. Catherine Ling is also a protege of Hu Chang and Rachel Venable's best friend. Richard Cameron uses his mental abilities to create a utopia. Cameron has a complicated relationship with Ling. The physical attraction is there but they have different philosophies. Will they be able to work through this together? We also get some romance from Rachel Venable and Brandon.

Overall, I really enjoyed this read. Although we are back and forth with several plot places, I think that Iris Johansen does a great job at pulling these places together in the end. I had no problem keeping up with what was going on in the story. This is just another action-packed thriller that we have come to expect from Johansen. I can't wait for more!

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for an ARC of this title. All opinions are my own.

Head of CIA task force on terrorism, Carl Venable, in his last dying breath gives Jude Brandon one last request to keep his daughter, Rachel, safe. Max Huber is a terrorist that Venable as well as Brandon has been chasing for years for the deaths that caused the destruction of their families as well as holding and torturing Rachel for months. Huber has a catastrophic plan of destruction planned and Brandon, Rachel and Catherine Ling along with some friends will have to work fast to stop his plan from taking place. Along the way there is a strong attraction growing between Brandon and Rachel.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read the eARC of Vendetta in exchange for an honest review!

In the 5th Catherine Ling thriller, a team of intelligence operatives must work together to locate and bring down the Red Star terorrist group before they wreak havoc on the west coast. I was expecting to see more of Catherine, but she plays a supporting role to Rachel Venable (Carl's daughter) and they make a strong female team. Brandon, Hu Chang, Nate, Monty, and Cameron make up a great supporting cast of characters. I found the characters to be one of the strong points in the book - their relationships and access to international intrigue.

The part that threw me off was how many times she used "jerkily" and "dryly." Those words are good once, maybe twice in a novel but stand out FAR too much to be used that frequently, and I know that Johansen has a fantastic vocabulary to pull from. Speaking of the fantastic - Cameron threw me off as well, where does one supernatural(ish) man fit into the world? He really does not and I feel like it takes away from the books.

The plot itself was another strong point in the novel. I love the deep level of intrigue (see I did the repeating a strong word thing there, and I bet you noticed) between the CIA, Red Star, Nemesis, and the various other groups trying to vie for information and results. The problem was that there was too much talking, sitting around the house, chatting on the veranda.... The background is interesting and important but there is just too much of it, then the action came and went rather quickly. Very awesome and intense action though, another strong point.

Overall I would rate it 3/5 stars and recommend it to Johansen fans. It does work as a stand alone novel but doesn't do Catherine a lot of justice so I wouldn't start with it,

Again, thank you NetGalley and the aforementioned, I really was thrilled to be able to read and review this! The review also appears on my blog at
https://onenursereader.wixsite.com/onereadingnurse-1

An excellent installment in this series. Having already lost one child Eve Duncan will stop at nothing, literally nothing, to save Michael. The machinations of evil are sometimes hard to realize, but far too real. The interwoven characters are well represented and the book is as fresh as if it were the first installment.

Vendetta by Iris Johansen is an action-packed thrilling journey. However for the main characters it's just starting. Their intense deadly cat-and-mouse game with a killer is entertaining to follow. Never a dull moment, especially between the protagonists. They are both experts in their fields and sexy as sin. Attraction develops and blossoms as the danger escalates. I was tossed from one high end death scene to another. I could not predict what would occur next. I kept waiting for one or both characters to be killed at times. The suspense was great. A man with a vendetta is out to catch a killer. Only the killer has plans and that involves catching a particular woman. One that is in the current hands of his protection. But her stubbornness and I-can-do-anything attitude only up the flames in this novel. Iris Johansen held my full-attention from the first page. I cannot say that about most novels. Overall, I recommend this book to action, suspense, and romance lovers. This one story had it all.

Vendetta by Iris Johansen is an action-packed, take no prisoners, thrilling story. The story is unbelievable but such fun to read. It is like a team of James Bond types, American style, out to save the world or at least an American city.

The characters are great, fitting the tall, dark and dangerous mold, including both the guys and the girls. All are tough, smart and ingenious when it comes to stopping the bad guys. Then there is one bad, bad guy who is rotten through and through. All this plus a little romance thrown in makes for an exciting read.

Completely unrealistic but a darn good read. You have terrorists, you have a heroine, you have a damsel in danger, you have a hot man there to protect the damsel and save the world. Rachel and Brandon are a wow couple. No one is safe while while the bad guy Huber is on the loose but you know things are going to work out (the West Coast of the US still stands). This was a standalone for me and I was fine -any loose ends from the earlier books were explained sufficiently. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Escapist fiction for fans of the thriller.

Johansen does what she does best; give her readers another suspenseful, action packed story that will be hard to put down. Especially sweet is bringing together Catherine Ling to work with Carl Venable’s daughter Rachel, a friendship that developed under the guidance of their mentor Hu Chang. Take a dying man’s request for Jude Brandon to find his daughter, throw in a little Cameron for Catherine, bring in Catherine and Rachel’s Hu Chang, add the ever present CIA and of course a wee bit of attraction to the men in the story and there is so much to enjoy. Together the many characters must stop a terrorist, Max Huber, from destroying what seems the world. Whether they are moving through South America or within the U.S. anything can happen at a moment’s notice but its Rachel’s brilliance, determination, and stubbornness that will guide the story from beginning to end.

Thank you Netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was interesting and action packed read. Brandon is a special operative trying to bring down terrorist and needs Rachel to do it. I liked that Rachel is fiercely independent, strong and capable despite the internal scars she carries from being a survivor. She puts her patients before her safety and doesn't whine or make emotional decisions when it's time to fight or run. She honestly gave this novel the human element it desperately needed.
Although the plot was action driven I thought it read to heavy on the description and not enough characterization. Brandon and Rachel many times seemed to be going through the motions rather than really feeling it.
Despite that it was good novel. Definitely recommend.

Another great book by Iris Johansen. You want to keep reading it. Fast paced and exciting. Carl Venerable the head of the CIA task force on terrorisn is killed and his daughter is in danger.. Catherine Long is determined to keep her safe. A great read.

Iris Johansen is one of my favorite authors and her latest book did not disappoint! The book is full of suspense, fighting and tension. I highly recommend this book!

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC of Vendetta. Carl Venable is killed and with his dying breath expresses to Jude Brandon that he wants his daughter, Rachel, protected from the terrorist, Max Huber. Rachel is a physician in Guyana who is being pursued by Max Huber due to a past that they share. Normally, I love a book that is long (416 pages) but unfortunately, this novel was too long and drawn out by about 100 pages or so; thus I ended up skimming through the novel here and there. I have read all the books in this series so i was familiar with past characters such as Catherine Ling, The Guardian - Richard Cameron, and Hu Chang. The book has several suspenseful twists which lead to a threat of massive destruction and death as well as an unexpected ending. Will I continue to read Iris Johansen books? Yes, because her books are usually fast paced and full of suspense along with some romance. Hopefully, the next book won't be as long as this one.

Iris Johansen has added a new book to her rather large collection of mysteries combines with romance.
Vendetta, like Johansen's other books, is a page turner.

Vendetta covers a lot of ground. A terrorist who must be caught or he will blow up the East Coast. He has murdered a CIA operative who then leaves the investigation in the hands of his daughter. Everyone has a vendetta against everyone else which makes it fun to try and figure it out.

In addition to the thrill of international intrigue, Johansen raises some social justice issues. The issue of poverty in Guyana is covered, which is a welcome addition to this thriller.

And no Johansen book would be complete without a little romance. I am no fan of romantic novels but this author slips it in without ever pulling me from the main narrative. I enjoy the strong female characters in these novels and Vendetta does not disappoint.

Want a fast thriller that is quite engrossing? Then Vendetta is for you.

Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read a pre-copy of this novel. This review is completely my own.

Vendetta was a fun, thrilling read that works well as a standalone despite being the fifth book in the Catherine Ling series.

Carl Venable, head of the CIA terrorism task force, has relentlessly hunted Max Huber, head of one of the deadlist terror organizations, for years. When Venable is ambushed while meeting an informant, before dying he asks former Special Forces soldier Jude Brandon to keep his daughter Rachel safe at any cost. When Huber comes after Rachel, Brandon and Venable’s friend Catherine Ling are determined to keep Rachel hidden while they hunt for Huber with renewed force. But as the clock ticks down on Huber’s threatened attack on the city of San Francisco, Rachel and Brandon are in a race to stop Huber while fighting their growing attraction to one another.

When I was initially interested in this book I thought it was a stadalone only to find out later it was the fifth book in the Catherine Ling series. After reading this I was a bit surprised by that as Catherine very much seems like a side character in this book. Yes she does have numerous scenes from her perspective, but the book’s main focus was on Rachel and Brandon’s side of the story. Personally I was a bit disappointed by that as Catherine ended up being my favorite character in the book. She’s a strong, capable woman who is fiercely protective of those she cares about and I admired her quite a bit.

Rachel is where this book started to fall apart for me. She’s incredibly restricted emotionally and while I did understand why after learning her background, it made it hard for me to connect with her character. I also felt that at times she was incredibly stubborn and refused to see reason even when it became clear her way would put more people in danger. Brandon was a good contrast to her character as he was very level-headed and big on coming up with a plan after learning everything he could first. While their characters did complement each other in their different styles, I didn’t understand why there needed to be a romance between them. I likely would have rated this book higher if the romance aspect hadn’t been included which is an odd thing for me to say as a primarily romance reader.

The plot in this book was in my opinion one of the strongest aspects of the book. The race to stop the terrorist cell provided the perfect amount of suspense and Max Huber was a great villain. The book does bounce around between a few plot points, but the author does a good job tying everything back to Huber and his organization. There were a few things that surprised me along the way which was nice as thrillers like this can get a bit formulaic. The final showdown was well done with good pacing and the ending left me intrigued enough to pick up the next book in the series to see how a few threads get tied up.

Ultimately I did enjoy Vendetta despite my issues with Rachel’s character and the romance aspect. I’m looking forward to reading other books in this series in the future as Catherine’s character was one of my favorites.

In a bit of a change for Johansen this novel has more romance than her others. Carl Venable is killed while on a CIA Task force. But before he dies he tells Brandon to take care of his estranged daughter Rachel. That she will also be a target of Max Huber.

The plot continues as it is revealed that indeed Rachel is the target and as in all of Johansen's stories the suspense builds and terrible things happen along the way. However the love story between Brandon and Rachel provides both comic relief as well as the struggle to accept.

As always the story ends well and happy.

This was a slow and thorough read for me. The team of protagonists was large and varied. The plot was full of twists and turns. At times it was so complex it verged on the convoluted yet each time the author brought it back on track. Each of the side trips actually served to accentuate the plot. All in all it was excellent reading with memorable characters and an unforgettable plot. Thanks to Net Galley and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC for an honest review.

I received a free copy from NetGalley. Action packed thriller or love story? A little bit of both. A few of the other author's other characters make appearances or are mentioned in passing. The way the characters talk to each other feels very awkward to me. The plot is interesting. I don't think you need to have read any of her other books to enjoy this one.

This was not my first Iris Johansen book but it was my first book of this series. I read this book as a standalone and it did not feel as if I missed something. I loved the fast paced action as well as the story line. You can't go wrong with an Iris Johansen book. As usual there was the likeable characters and the rest that I did not like at all. Loved some of the twists!!!! I would recommend this book to a lover of fast paced action novels.

A nice change of pace from the Eve Duncan series (which I hadn't realized until this one, had been becoming stale to me) Easily read as a standalone (though having read the prior books will give you some background) this book is labeled as a Catherine Ling book but I didn't really find her to be the focal point so much as the side character who had a large part at times.

We get a peak into Carl Venable, his background, his life, and his daughter in this installment, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I do find that sometimes things drag on a bit, and that I lose nothing by scanning a few pages when things tend to droll on a bit, but nonetheless I remained engaged. My biggest problem? That there are SO many people in her books that seem to have had unbelievable backgrounds and are now just trying to be "normal" Joe's. I don't know how else to explain it, it's just a miss for me. Regardless, well worth picking up, especially for those of you loyal to Iris Johansen, but kind of over Eve Duncan.

Thank you netgalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2388895317

This was a fast-paced thriller with a fantasy feel. Carl Venable enlists Jude Brandon to protect his daughter Rachel from terrorist Max Huber when Brandon attempts to rescue Venable. Unfortunately, he too late. But Venable tells Brandon that his daughter has a secret about Huber that makes her a target.

Rachel Venable is a doctor who is with a humanitarian organization and is currently working in Guyana. She is estranged from her father and has a complicated relationship with him. Venable has been a CIA agent all of Rachel's life which means, to Rachel, that he has always put the needs of the country about the needs of his family.

When Rachel was fifteen, she was captured by the Taliban in the same accident that killed her mother and brother. Venable was responsible for negotiating to get Rachel out of the Taliban's hands. It took him five months. During those months Rachel was being tortured and raped and each time her father was being blamed. In Venable's defense, his informant in the prison was telling him that Rachel was being well-treated.

Rachel was finally gotten out of the prison by Hu Chang, a mysterious figure in the espionage world, who taught her how to heal and how to concoct many untraceable poisons. As a doctor, she is secretly using her talents to concoct medicines that cure.

Brandon rescues Rachel just ahead of Huber's men. He wants to protect Rachel but he also wants to bring down Huber before he can successfully execute a "bigger than 9/11" terrorist event in San Francisco. Huber is responsible for killing Brandon's father and he wants revenge for that too.

Also involved in protecting San Francisco is Catherine Ling who is also a protegee of Hu Chang's and one of Rachel's best friends. Trailing her is Richard Cameron who brings in the paranormal element. Cameron is using his mental abilities to create a utopia. He and Catherine have a complex relationship. They are intensely physically attracted but have very different philosophies.

Besides being a fast-paced thriller this story had tons of emotional intensity. Rachel is so conflicted about her relationship with her father and so conflicted about using her skills as an apothecary to harm as well as heal.

Fans of Johansen's work won't want to miss this story. It is a real page-turner.