It’s not necessary to read the first book in the Rake Ozenna series. You’ll quickly become involved in this political espionage thriller. Ozenna is very in control and an interesting character, but I really enjoyed Carrie Walker, a trauma surgeon, whose involvement send her to Russia. The plot involved a lot of current political problems and I appreciated that. It sort of reminded me of earlier Tom Clancy books, it was quite technical at times, too technical for me, but then I don’t think I’m the intended audience.

Now that I've finished the book and read the dedication list, I can see that the author consulted extensively. However, his free hand with 'russian' names still did not make sense to me.
I've started this book and thought of giving it up. First, this is the second novel in the series. One had to read the first to understand most of references and relationships in the second book. Second, Russian part of the book was so bad I was waiting for the bears to come out.
However, I decided to persevere and rightly so. This suspense and thriller is breath-catching. Plus, there are no clear division between good and bad, people, events, intentions alike.
By the end of the book I was exhausted from riding husky sleigh, snowmobiles, using all sorts of guns, names dropping and overall head spinning atmosphere of the book.
Man on Edge is the story with more to come.

This is entertaining, if implausible (sorry people!) and it hits a lot of topical themes. Carrie, a trauma surgeon travels to Moscow to recover whatever it is that her uncle Artyom Semenov has that's allegedly world-shaking. Then, she finds herself in deep trouble and can only be rescued by her love interest Major Rake Ozenna of the Alaska National Guard. I missed the first novel so I came in cold for this one but that was ok- Hawksley gives you enough of everyone's back story to understand why they react as they do. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC- it's a page turning thriller that packs a lot into a relatively slim volume.

Watch out Mitch Rapp and Scott Harvath! There is a new action hero on the rise named Rake Ozenna. Rake is a Major in the Alaska National Guard who defeated a Russian attack on Diomede in his first outing. Now in Man on Edge the Russians want revenge for the death of their forces. Russian Colonel Ruslan Yumatov has a plan to disrupt a NATO exercise, place himself in a position of power and lure Rake to Russia.

Doctor Carrie Walker is Rake’s former fiancé whose uncle is an officer in the Russian navy, working on advancements in their submarine technology. He has information to turn over to the West and asks Carrie to travel to Moscow to retrieve it. When her uncle is murdered she reaches out to the only person she can trust - Rake. With the help of Harry Lucas, a former chair of the House Intelligence Committee, Rake is sent to bring back the information, putting him within Yumatov’s reach. It is a race to prevent an assassination and political turmoil.

From Moscow to the frozen border with Norway, this is a story of deception and constant action. WhileYumatov is a constant threat, there is someone else behind the scenes who is pulling the strings. It suggests that there is more to come and Rake will be back. If you are a fan of Brad Thor or Mark Greaney then Humphrey Hawksley should definitely be on your reading list.

A violent, bloody thriller about a high stakes game if revenge, espionage and high level double dealings set in Russia, Norway and Washington. The protagonists, friends from a shared childhood in Little Diomede, an Alaskan outpost of particular interest to Operation Dynamic Freedom, a military exercise seen by the Russians as a provocation, are called on to smuggle critical information across a well-fortified border in time to verify that a planned summit between two great powers is on the level. The information has already proved deadly to the Russian admiral who had it first - now it's up to his niece, an American doctor, to smuggle it out of Moscow and up to Rafe, her lover, to see that she makes it. The novel's elliptical construction makes it seem that the backstory of their relationship has somehow been edited out of the pages or cut for length and pacing, although it seems important to an understanding of the plot.

An average thriller with glimmers of particularly engaging sections. This is an experience author, so he knows how to write a good story, but I suspect this is not his best work. It just wasn't very engaging overall. I'll check out some of his other books.

I really appreciate the review copy!!