In a futuristic setting, this story incorporates sci-fi elements to create an engaging, though not groundbreaking, narrative. As the protagonist becomes entangled in high-stakes conflicts, she poses a threat to numerous influential and self-important individuals. I had the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher, and I am sharing my honest review voluntarily. Good story and characters, definitely gripping!

Not my cup of tea so I’m going to DNF. The writing is very much not my style. It comes off as both bad and pretentious at the same time. I am not able to follow the characters because the writing is so distracting and I have other thrillers I’m more intrigued by. Thanks but no thanks.

This book was so intriguing to me, particularly because it’s intended to be set in the future and the updates in AI and technology were fascinating!

It was a quick read with a lot happening! I foolishly didn’t realize this was a series so I have to go back and read the other!

I enjoy legal/ politics thrillers and this satisfied the brief! At times Ic I struggled with the futuristic elements, but that’s because I felt mind blown at how NOT far fetched they are!

Somehow I missed the debut book in this new series so, as soon as I finished this one I binged with The Last Exit. Jennifer Lu is a detective in the near future and her partner is her implanted bio-computer, Chandler. Science fiction marries a great mystery and I was not disappointed.
Patty Garcia was on the path to become president until a freak accident on a golf course ends her life when she is hit by a golf ball. Jen's superiors call it accidental, case closed but Jen sets out to find answers that will prove it to be otherwise. Chandler adds to the investigation and some of the story is told from his POV. It's great. The mystery grabbed me from the start and Jen and Chandler kept me turning the pages. Themes of climate change and big oil give this a timely feel.
My thanks to the publisher Crooked Lane and NetGalley for giving me an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

Patty died when she was hit with a golf ball on the course not long after the wily attorney won a case against Big Oil. Only Jen, a DC police officer thinks this was murder. Well so does Chandler, the SIM in her brain who has his own strong opinions. This is the most unusual pair of detectives working these days and readers will find that while Chandler is farfetched for the "near future," it makes for a very entertaining read. There are good guys, bad guys, conspiracies, and a few villains in this well crafted murder mystery. While this is the second in a series. it works just fine as a standalone. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. Looking forward to the next one.

The second of the Jen Lu series, The Last Resort by Michael Kaufman is a futuristic detective tale. Set in the climate-devastated world of 2034, D.C. police detective Jen Lu is the first on the scene of a dead golfer. Determined to be an accident, Jen feels differently, and against orders, together with her partner Chandler, a biometric brain implant (SIM) investigates. With no actual indication of a murder, the victim’s presidential announcement and possible confirmation of the petroleum industry cover-up make Jen even more suspicious. A well-flowing engaging tale set in post-climate catastrophe, this intriguing crime-investigating duo makes for a pleasant tale, three and a half stars crime read mystery. With thanks to Crooked Lane Books and the author, for an uncorrected advanced review copy for review purposes. As always, the opinions herein are totally my own and freely given.

The second Jen Lu thriller starts with an accident on a golf course. Star environmental lawyer Patty Garcia is supposedly hit with a golf ball which causes her death. What first looks like a tragic accident soon looks like a murder...to Jen.

Jen finds it suspicious the Garcia would die just after winning a case against Big Energy which could result in trillions for efforts to clean up the environment, and just a day before she announces that she is a candidate for president and thus receives Secret Service protection.

Jen and her bio-computer Chandler begin to investigate and soon turn up a number of suspects. The prime one in her opinion is Garcia's ex-husband James Culpepper whom she divorced because of domestic abuse. Culpepper was an oil executive who lost his job because of the scandal and has reinvented himself as an advocate for "wronged" men. In fact, he was supposedly in the middle of a live podcast when Garcia's accident occurred.

But there are other suspects. Big Oil isn't happy with Garcia's court win and is even less happy when it learns that she may have discovered a document which would indicate that they knew that their products were causing climate change as early as the 1960s which would multiply the amount they have to pay in reparations catastrophically.

As Jen searches for a copy of that report she finds that she's not the only one and finds that anyone who might know about it is on a hit list.

This was an entertaining near-future thriller with interesting characters and a fast-paced plot. I enjoyed the extrapolation of current events to their possible future results. I liked the way Jen and Chandler work together. I enjoyed that some of the story was from Chandler's point of view and had his unique view of human beings.

Set in the near future that has seen the world devastated by climate change, this book features Detective Jen Lu and the sentient bio-computer implanted in her, Chandler. They have a very interesting relationship and brings a freshness to the storyline. I especially like it when we see the plot unfold through Chandler's POV. His observations on human behaviour are astute and at times, humorous too. I enjoy how the pace of the book goes. Jen is fighting against everybody as she investigates a murder that had been ruled an accident. In fact, she's the only one who thinks there is a murder committed. Even Chandler is skeptical, but since he's linked to her, there's nothing he can do but help. This is the second book featuring Jen and Chandler. I haven't read the first one. But this can definitely be read as a standalone, notwithstanding references to events from the first book. Overall, an enjoyable murder mystery/ police procedural story.
**Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for giving an ARC for an honest review!**

Jennifer Lu, a detective in the future who has a "sim" implanted in her brain. His name is Chandler and he narrates much of the story. It is interesting to entertain how a computer would think about a murder case and also, how a computer in a brain might work. He is more empathetic than I think a computer would be in my brain, but that is a good thing.

It is a murder mystery and Jennifer Lu was already well known for solving a previous case (which I plan to read since I did not know there was a previous book). In this book, Detective Lu's superiors have insisted there is no case. Lu isn't sure if she agrees. Chandler chimes in often and sometimes gets turned off because of it.

I have enjoyed reading about a case that was not considered case, and how the bad guys may or may not have gotten away with something.

Set in the future, sci-fi elements are added to an entertaining, but not spectacular, story. When the protagonist gets too close, she becomes a threat to lots of important and self-important people.