The Falcon by Isabella Maldonado
FBI Agent Nina Guerrera #3

Nina and team are in Phoenix looking for a serial kidnapper possibly murdering the young college students he takes. This time the case hits close to home when the last woman taken is very close to Nina.

What I liked:
* Nina: strong, smart, capable, has a difficult backstory, team player, cares deeply, feels she is incapable of loving as others do. She is small but mighty and someone I look forward to watching grow as the series progresses
* Bianca: a young woman important to Nina, difficult backstory, brilliant, hope she is in future books in the series
* Jake/Kent: ex-SEAL, member of Nina’s team, bright, lethal, cares for Nina more than he lets on – eager to see how he and Nina progress in the future
* Breck and Wade: members of the team that I want to know more about
* Perez: police detective in Phoenix and friend of Nina’s family – shows up periodically in the series
* The police procedural aspects of the story
* The plot, pacing, writing, setting, and red herrings
* The tunnel aspect of the story – learned something new
* The tie-in to Egypt and Falconry
* All of it really except

What I didn’t like:
* The kidnapping murderer

Did I enjoy this book? Yes
Would I read more in this series? Definitely

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the ARC – This is my honest review.

5 Stars

The Falcon, by Isabella Maldonado, is a frightening suspense that will keep you on your toes. While there is a bit of a psychological suspense thread, to this book, I don't know that I'd consider it a psychological thriller. I tend to hate those but I really liked this book. It started off a little slow, but not at all uninteresting, until about a quarter of the way through. Then it really picked up the pace. I loved the main character, Special Agent Nina Guerrera. She's smart, honorable and tough. There was a tiny romantic scene that threw me off because she was describing something that many men would actually "like" yet Nina was thinking that it would turn a man off. I think it's human nature to enjoy being or looking like "the hero".
Six women have disappeared from a top tier university. The FBI has sent in Special Agent Nina Guerrera and her team. As each clue is revealed the team realizes that they're looking at a very shrewd assailant.
Then they find the victims and realize that the perpetrator is even more unorthodox and dangerous than they could have ever imagined.

FBI Special Agent Nina Guerrera and her team are called back to Phoenix, shortly after leaving from their last case in the Arizona desert. Investigating the disappearance of several coeds from a high tech university, the discover a serial killer using falconry techniques to control his victims. When someone close to the team is captured, it’s a race against time to find the killer.

The Falcon is my favorite of the series so far as each one gets better than the last. I love the emerging rich backstory revealed about Nina and her team and the caring, family like relationships developing between them, entwining their lives and their families. With some crazy twists and a shocking ending I didn’t see coming, I highly recommend this thriller.

I really like this series! Nina Guerrera is an FBI agent and part of a select group of agents that act as a smaller nimbler version of the Behavior Analysis Unit. Nina is a strong character willing to do whatever it takes (except in her personal life). Nina and her group head to a college where girls are disappearing never to be seen again. Coordinating with campus and Phoenix police they begin to search for their unsub. It takes them in interesting directions - ancient Egypt, falconry. Once they are on to him it's a chase scene like no other, lots of action to keep you turning pages and just enough of her personal life to feel connected to her character.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer publishing for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. (Turns out I forgot after the last book I pre-ordered this one so I also bought it!)

I haven't read the first two in the series, but it can be read as a standalone without being lost. Great action packed psychological thriller. I especially like how Nina and team work well together.

Nina has quickly become one of my favorite FBI agents! Every one of Isabella Maldonado’s books are well thought out and written perfectly. The Falcon was no different. It’s an “on the edge of your seat” page turner from the beginning. The twists and turn kept me guessing until the end. I enjoy reading about the relation between Nina and her family and I’m glad that Bee is still apart of that family.

God I love me an Isabella Maldonado book. There's nothing like a fast-paced FBI procedural to get your blood pumping after a series of romance novels. Adding in the Egyptian elements got my 8 year old Egyptologist self excited, and the elements were well done. I didn't feel as though there was *quite* enough foreshadowing for the unsub reveal, but it was still exciting. And the growing sexual tension between Kent and Guerrera? Chef's kiss. I don't know if there'll be a book 4, but I am SO down.

*Thank you to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review*

The Falcon is the third book in the Nina Guerrera series, but the first I've read. I really liked the book and think it works well as a standalone novel. Nina is an FBI Special Agent assigned to a case in Phoenix, Arizona. Young women are disappearing from a college campus and the FBI has been called in to assist. I love the procedural elements of the book and the way Nina and her core team work together, each using their special skills and knowledge to contribute to the investigation.

Nina is a brave, smart main character who is trying to put past traumas in her life behind her. She doesn't give up even when facing danger or when the case turns personal. The Falcon is a well-written Procedural Thriller that is fast-paced and intense. I especially liked the procedural chapters. However, the chapters describing the predator's methods are disturbing and at times hard to read. However, overall I really liked the book and rated it 4.5 stars. I think fans of Lisa Regan or Jeffery Deaver would enjoy this book by Isabella Maldonado. I know I want to go back and read the book that comes right before this one in the series.

I received this ebook from NetGalley through the courtesy of Thomas and Mercer. An advance copy was provided to me at no cost, but my review is voluntary and unbiased.

I have read none of the previous books in this series but now I will rectify that soon.

When several undergraduate students are missing without a trace, the pressure is building up more and more each day for the special agent Nina Guerrera and her close team.

I didn’t expect this kind of ride at all!

The story starts at full speed and never stops till the last page. So many turns and unpredictable twists that my head was spinning.

The most scary moments were probably the killer’s narrative for me. And to get his part and inner thoughts, it’s always a huge plus for me to enjoy fully a story.

I honestly did not know how this investigation will be solved and if they will catch the real villain.

I enjoyed seeing the friendship and teamwork as well. It helps depict Nina in a very real sense of strong and also emotional character. She has to battle her own demons while trying to find a balance and do better than other think of herself.

Overall, this is a wild ride, one that any pulse racing seekers will definitely enjoy.

🆓📖 Very grateful to the publisher for my review copy

This one is an intense thriller read. It's gripping from the prologue. Once I start I just can't stop.
In this book Special Agent Nina Guerrera and her FBI team are called in to investigate disappearances of undergraduates in an elite university. The more they investigate, the more everything getting creepier, that includes, training, conditioning, manipulation, and Falconry techniques with some egypt's myth. The details is gruesome and sometimes I need to stop because it's just too hard to read, it's really hard to stomach imagining those things the unsub did to the victims. Then the kidnapping became murder, they're not looking for kidnapper anymore, now they're looking a serial killer. The suspense of racing to prevent the next kidnapping and to save the victim before the unsub is off the roof. Love the plot and twist, love when the author keeps me doubting my guess of who's the real unsub.

As for characters. I admire and adore Nina, she's a badass warrior, she's been through a lot of horrible stuff but she come out stronger, she's sharp, smart and loyal and will do anything to protect and help people she cared about and all the victims. Then there's Bianca, this girl really took the center stage, her action in the last few chapters was superb, she's just like Nina, she's Nina's mirror image, she's smart, resourceful, yup another badass woman in this book. Love all Nina's colleagues, they're just a perfect team and love those sweet moments that so heartwarming.

A gripping story with badass women and great team work, definitely highly recommended. If you love tv series like criminal minds, definitely need to check this series out.

I adore the Nina Guerrera mysteries and this one was just as fun! Nina Guerrera was thrust into the spotlight and joined an elite team of FBI agents when a serial killer who barely left her alive at sixteen resurfaced and forced her to find him through a strange series of ciphers. Now, (two books later) Nina and her team are tracking the monster kidnapping and killing college students in Phoenix. As they look into these disappearances, they realize the serial killer is using falconry, behavior psychology, and forced Stockholm Syndrome to manipulate his victims. But can they catch him before he takes someone close to Nina? I love how Isabella Maldonado writes mysteries! Showing the victims and the investigation from the killer's perspective throughout the story makes the plot much more intense and creates an exciting insight into the mystery. I also love how she writes characters that feel so incredibly real. Every character carries past traumas that impact their lives without controlling who they are and how they act. I love that her characters are not shown as weaker because of what they went through, but instead immerge stronger for it, even as they deal with their PTSD. I also feel like I am being tormented with unrequited relationships in my mystery series! I desperately want two of the characters to date, and while I understand why they do not, I am hoping to see them together in future books! I know when I pick up a book from this series, I am going to be unable to put it down! This series is a must-read for anyone who loves dark mysteries!

This third Special Agent Nina Guerrera book has Nina and her team in Arizona hunting a serial killer. This killer is ruthless using aspects of falconry and ancient Egyptian history. His hunting ground is a university.
No CCTV is available, ( it has been tampered with) no witnesses to the abductions, and he puts down poison, so dogs can't be utilized.

Nina has become a more developed character in this book, questions about her past were answered in the previous book, A Different Dawn. Bianca is a great character, love her snark.

The plot lags in places due to the authors intricate descriptions of falconry and Egyptian history. There are a few twists and turns before the villain is revealed. I enjoyed the book, but felt it did not move as quickly as the previous books in the series.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC. The review is my own.

Women on the Arizona Institute of Technology campus are disappearing without a trace. FBI agent Nina Guerrera along with the rest of her elite team arrive on campus to investigate the disappearances and realize there is a serial killer on the loose. Can they stop him before he kidnaps his next victim?

Like the other books in this series, The Falcon is dark, fast-paced, and has plenty of twists and turns in the case. This excellent police procedural also includes the unknown subject's POV so there's insight into the mind of a twisted killer (and, this one is definitely not your garden variety criminal!). Note, the details of this killer's crimes are a tad graphic in parts so this book won't be for everyone; check the trigger warnings.

I also enjoyed seeing how this specialized unit has gelled. Team camaraderie is evident as well as Nina's growth as a team member. It will be interesting to see where the series takes us next.

The Falcon blew me away with its kicka$$ female protagonist, chilling murders, and nail-biting race to stop a serial killer.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for an early digital copy.

🔉Calling all thriller fans! Isabella Maldonado's upcoming book, The Falcon, is available on June 28th. This novel is Maldonado's third in the Nina Guerrera series. The Falcon works well as a standalone, but after reading all three, I can tell you that this is a fantastic series. Her other two books in the series are The Cipher and A Different Dawn.

Synopsis:
Imagine your daughter attending a creme de la creme university where six young female students were recently reported missing. FBI agent Nina Guerrera is called and focuses on following clues to find the women. In a horrific twist, several of the girl's bodies are found mummified in a ritualistic manner. The serial killer is clever and cunning. Nina embarks on a bizarre and intriguing hunt for the suspect. Will she be able to stop him before he murders again?

The Falcon has all the elements of a creepy murder case. Reading each page made me tense. Although I figured out who was responsible for the killings, it did not lessen the book's enjoyment. I recommend all three of the books in this series. A Different Dawn is my favorite, but this is a very close second.

Thank you, NetGalley and Thomas and Mercer (Thomas & Mercer), for allowing me to review this fantastic book. I appreciate your kindness.

The Falcon is a surprising thriller with twists I didn’t see coming. The baddie is using psychological techniques combined with falconry to get his victims. It’s at turns nail biting and fascinating how it all plays out. The killer is one creepy guy.

Nina Guerrera is a great MC that grew up in the foster system so has a stunted emotional growth. I didn’t read the previous books but there is made mention that she was also tortured by a killer in one of the other books and that gives her PTSD at times. I think the author did a great job subtlety reinforcing Nina’s issues at different points in the book.

This is a thriller, an FBI procedural and a book on personal growth. I really liked how Nina was written and I look forward to reading the other books in the series and any future ones. It’s nice to see such a strong female FBI agent character.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I read the first book in this series and while I found it enjoyable, there was also quite a bit that I found lacking as well. I somehow missed the second (although it has since been added to my TBR pile), but was excited to see that there was a third installment in this series.

And honestly? I loved this book! It was nice to see how much the entire cast has grown and developed since the first book (especially Bianca, a young girl that Nina saved five years prior from an abusive situation). I really enjoyed seeing how the team has really come into their own, each utilizing the skills he or she is best at in order to find the culprit in these heinous crimes. Nina has also really come into her own going from someone who uses their past trauma as a shield (although many references are made to it), to someone who can see that they are capable of loving and being loved in return. I think that this revelation will only make her stronger in the future books, and I can't wait to see what happens next!

However, speaking of the crimes that take place, I will admit that some people may find the intimate details of the girls' imprisonment to be gruesome, and some may not be able to stomach the methods used (a take on falconry and how birds of prey are trained is all I can say without giving too much away), but I felt that they were needed so that we could get that deep look inside the twisted mind of the person behind the abductions and murders. I also enjoyed the author's creative use of red herrings to keep the reader guessing as to just who might be behind it all, I will admit that even I was surprised by the earth-shattering reveal at the end.

My one complaint about this story is that the killer's "notes" are too small to read on my kindle paperwhite, so I really would have liked to have had a more detailed mention of what they entailed at the end when everything was wrapping up, but other than that this was a very well-done addition to this series.

If you are a fan of shows like Criminal Minds and CSI, I am sure you will enjoy this story. I will read more from this author!

Isabela Maldonado’s The Cipher was one of my favorite thrillers from 2020 and the Nina Guerrera series has become one of my favorite thriller series. The Falcon is the third book in the series, and it doesn’t disappoint. Isabela Maldonado continues delivering a creepy, action-packed, page-turning crime thriller with in-depth and growing character development.

In this book, FBI Special Agent Nina Guerrera is in Arizona, helping the local law enforcement investigators tackle the mysterious disappearance of college coeds and track down a predator who is using the university campus as its hunting grounds.

The author is a retired police officer, which gives the police procedural aspects of the novel a sense of realism while still delivering a taut thriller that will keep you turning pages.

Excellent book for fans of interesting police procedurals with a creepy serial killer and a strong female lead. Fantastic novel and series.

This was a quick and entertaining read, and I particularly enjoyed Nina’s personal growth in this one. I’m looking forward to her exploring a relationship with Kent.

Thank you to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

The Falcon by Isabella Maldonado is an unputdownable thriller about a game of cat and mouse between an FBI agent and a serial killer. The story revolves around Nina, an FBI agent who is hunting down a serial killer who has kidnapped six female students from a college. Later, their bodies are found dead and preserved like Egyptian mummies. Who could have done this? Can Nina stop the killer before he takes a new victim?

Here is a gripping excerpt from Chapter 1:

"Fairfax County police officer Nina Guerrera's booted feet pounded the pavement as she raced after the shadowy figure fleeing from her. The thirteen-year-old girl she chased was petite - no bigger than Nina - but she was fast.
Nina knew from experience that a blast of adrenaline favored sprints over marathons. All she to do was keep her quarry in sight and wait for fatigue to set in.
Probably coming to the same conclusion, the girl gripped the edge of a metal trash can as she rushed by, tipping it into Nina's path.
Nina timed her footfalls as the can rolled toward her, hurdling over it without slowing her pace.
"I can do this all night, Bianca," she called out. "How about you?""

Overall, The Falcon is a serial killer thriller that will appeal to fans of the Unsub series. One highlight of this book is how it maintained my interest throughout and even increased the tension midway through. Another highlight of this book was the creepy chapters from the serial killer's perspective, which included facsimiles of notes that he was taking on each of the girls that he kidnapped and his disgusting plans for each. If you're intrigued by the excerpt above, or if you're a fan of police procedurals, I highly recommend that you check out this book when it comes out in July!

Special Agent Nina Guerrera is definitely one of my favourite fictional crime buster. She's oh-so-broken but yet oh-so-kick-ass!! And her loyal teammates are just the perfect foil to her solitary warrior outlook. As the mystery to her background was pretty much resolved in the last book, I was curious where the author was going to take Nina next and whether it will be comparably thrilling... no worries there, she's definitely got me engaged and I really can't wait to see Nina develop as a character in future.

I don't want to give too much away but The Falcon was an intriguing mix of Egyptology, psychology, falconry, technology, and so many other interesting bits which made the read really fascinating. There were some images which may be a lot paper in print but I had to skip reading because it was just too small on my basic kindle. Plus, one particular incident which didn't quite make sense to me but as I read an uncorrected proof, this might've been fixed for the final print. Otherwise, this series is becoming one of my favourites and I can't wait for book 4.

My thanks to Thomas & Mercer for ecopy of book via NetGalley in exchange of my honest thoughts