When a man made disaster such as a building collapse occurs, few thoughts are given to the K9 rescue animals and their handlers. These first responders wade into unstable situations and horrible conditions to utilize their unique talents to save lives and aid in rescue and recovery efforts. THAT OTHERS MAY LIVE is book #8 in this outstanding series. It can be read as a stand alone but each book features this team in action, providing insight into their heroic efforts. Of course, the K9s work along side all first responders so we see many of the inetractions that make the overall teams stronger. In this plot line, evidence is uncovered that the building collapse was engineered, causing as much havoc as possible. I've enjoyed every one of these books and look forward to the next one.

Wow this was an intense book. Part showcasing the process of how a search and rescue of a collapsed building works, including how it affects the various members of the team, and part trying to figure out how and why it happened.

While I loved Meg and Hawk, her K9 partner, and how they worked, I also loved the broad story about the team working the collapse. Their closeness and how it affected their personal lives. Of course Hawk is my favorite character, but they are all well developed and likable.

It made me think of 9/11 and all those that selflessly ran towards the buildings. It was an emotional and tension filled read as the team searches for survivors then switches into recovery mode.

I was impressed with the amount of research to understand the process of a collapse and how that translated to having me on the edge of my seat while reading.

Since this is my first read of the series, I definitely need to go back and catch up.

This one is a rollercoaster ride of emotions. Gripping right from the start and doesn't let up. I've come to be invested in these characters over the course of the series. I cried, I felt my heart in my throat, and I smiled.

Thank you Netgalley and Kensington Books for the chance to read an advance copy of That others may live by Sara Driscoll. This is the 8th book in the FBI K-9 series, and it was both a thrilling and heartbreaking story that was pulled from recent headlines. Meg, Hawk and the rest of the FBI's Forensic Canine Unit are called to work after a 12 story condo collapses. With no time they must try and find survivors before the remaining structure collapses.
Who can forget the twin towers on 9/11 or the recent Champlin Towers in Florida? This story brought home the horror and devastation of these two events. I have always enjoyed the bond between Meg and her K-9 Hawk, as well as the other teams. The details are very realistic and well researched.
The story itself could be read as a standalone, but there are references to previous stories and I totally recommend the series.

As a major fan of this series, I thought this book was amazing!

I remember the collapse of those condos in Florida and I was deeply affected by the images and stories that I saw and read from that. This book draws its inspiration from that event.

Meg and her K-9 Hawk are tasked with finding victims when some condos suddenly collapse, not far from where Meg lives with her fiance, Todd. Next door is Meg's sister Cara, who lives with her partner Cord, who is an investigative reporter for the Washington Post.

Whilst Meg and Hawk (and Brian and his K-9 Lacey) try to find victims in the rubble, Todd and his team of firefighters are also trying to recue people, from the inside of the pile.

There are some distressing scenes for everyone involved, but also some wins, when people are rescued from the rubble, against the odds.

Then, Cord find out something that could change the whole focus of the teams......

Great story, I really enjoyed it. My heart was in my mouth several times, for all the main characters.

I love the relationship that Meg has with Todd - he is her rock and he shows it in all sorts of ways.

5 stars from me.

I love mystery featuring K9s and this one is well plotted and gripping. Well rounded characters, solid mystery
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Wedding plans and Christmas preparation take a back seat when Meg and her K-9 Hawk are called in to a local crisis. A twelve-story building with shops and condos has just collapsed and the FBI Human Scent Evidence Team is the first dog team responding. Meg’s fiancé, Todd, a fire LT and paramedic will also be on the scene, as everyone rushes to try to locate and rescue survivors in the dangerous pile of rubble. And why would an established building suddenly collapse? Could it be structural failure or, given its position close to the Capitol, was it deliberate?

Once I started this intense read I couldn’t put it down. I found the focus on Urban SAR interesting, learning about equipment, personnel, organization and both physical and emotional risks for humans and dogs in this setting. Dual perspectives of Meg and Todd made the information a natural part of the story. Driscoll keeps the tension high, but gives the readers respite along with the searchers. While it is the eighth in the series it can stand alone. If you like dogs, action, and a bit of mystery pick this up. Highly recommended.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.

This is an emotional read that follows along as the K-9 teams search for victims of a 12-story building collapse. We get a firsthand look at the day-to-day procedures when a disaster such as this happens from the first response to the days that follow. There is plenty of danger as they search the areas deemed to be "safe".

The main character in this story, Meg Jennings, goes to the reunification center to inform the family and friends of missing persons as to the role of the K-9s. We get a look at the toll on the first responders and the K-9s. The story takes an interesting twist when a reporter starts searching as to reasons why the building might have collapsed and ends up finding that this may not have been a random act. It's obvious from the story that the author has done research not only into procedures for a disaster such as this but also the use of concrete in building construction.

This one was an emotional roller coaster. I went from happy to sad to mad all the way to appalled. This book will give you true insight in to what goes on behind the scenes when tragedy strikes and true heroes have to do their job all while battling the highs and lows. Then the celebrations, as well as disappointments and pure grief.

It is almost Christmas in Washington, D.C. A time when everything should be happy and peaceful. That peace is shattered one cold morning when a 12 story building collapses. It is all hands on deck for what they hope will be more rescue than recovery. Meg and her K-9, Hawk, are one of the first K-9 duos on scene. Meg knows that time is of the essence if anyone can be rescued. There is danger everywhere. This was eerily reminiscent of a tragic day in United States history on a smaller level. Meg has a strong sense of justice and puts aside her personal safety as their teams try to find survivors. Her future husband, Todd, is a firefighter and paramedic and he is working on the other side of this mountain on concrete where his job is even more dangerous. I was gritting my teeth during more than one scene hoping and praying for the best.

More than half of the book is about the rescue and recovery. Some of this language was very technical, but yet, somehow I understood. Sara Driscoll does a great job of explaining how the integrity of the collapsed structure worked, and I could not wait to find out what had caused this collapse. The latter half of the book is about the investigation into the cause which will boil your blood. There was devastation and death everywhere, but every rescue was a victory and helped them get through the day. It was a tragic story that will gut your heart. The fantastic cast of characters mesh together to make this book even more interesting. There were dogs and more dogs everywhere which blessed this dog lover's heart. At the end of the day this was a book that I could not wait to finish because I had to know what happened. This is another winner in the FBI K-9 series.

Thank you to the author, Kensington Books and NetGalley for this ARC. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

A residential building collapses and search and rescue is immediately called in. Meg and her k-9 dog Hunter are a live rescue team and I loved reading about them and the rescue efforts. This is part of a series but I read it as a standalone. If you love getting into the details you will love this book. Not only did the book focus on the rescue but what caused the collapse. A highly enjoyable book!

Meg Jennings, and her K-9 Partner Hawk, are getting ready for their day, when Cody, her sister’s boyfriend, walks in with news that just moments ago a 12 story building collapsed in downtown Washington D.C.
Every search and rescue worker are needed, and as they Meg and Hawk search for survivors, every minute counts.
How and why did the building collapse? Was it an accident? Terrorist? All this going on while they look for survivors.
I love this series, and the as always, the chapter info’s send me down a rabbit hole of research.

That Others May Live by Jen J. Danna writing as Sara Driscoll is the fascinating, suspenseful, and heartbreaking eighth book in the FBI K-9 crime thriller series. The book features Meg Jennings and her Labrador K-9 partner Hawk. They’re civilian employees of the FBI’s Human Scent Response Team.

Meg is preparing for another work day when she gets word of a calamitous scene in downtown Washington, D.C. near the White House. Part of a twelve-story high-end condominium building has collapsed, and the rest of the structure could soon follow. Her betrothed, Todd, is already at work. He’s a firefighter and paramedic and is likely already on site. If anyone is still alive within the rubble, she and Hawk along with the other K-9 teams must find them. Minutes count. But is this a random tragedy or is there a bigger threat?

Meg is compassionate, friendly, wants to help others, and has a keen sense of justice. She also has a fear of heights that she must overcome on some sites. Todd is smart, strong, capable, and pragmatic. While he may feel fear at times, he does the job despite it, and even uses it to keep himself sharp. There’s an array of characters from prior books that help with continuity and a sense of visiting friends. Key among these are her fellow K-9 team members and McCord, an investigative reporter who is Meg’s sister’s boyfriend.

Dynamic characters, unparalleled devastation, and great descriptions drew me in to this heartbreaking and intense story. It has a deeply involved and multi-layered plot and an incredible setting and takes place over the course of the week before Christmas. I was transported to the dangerous scene and felt as if I was living the events alongside the characters. This is an intense novel and reminds readers of the situations these teams and first responders encounter frequently. Their emotional toil is also highlighted as well as how several of them work through it.

The author’s writing style continues to hook me quickly. The prose is well-written and engaging. There are twists and turns and surprises along the way in an intricate plot that kept me anxious. The atmosphere is tense and serious throughout most of the novel and it has more technical details than usual given the nature of this disaster. The author brings strong characters, great plots, wonderful relationships, and excellent pacing to the series. I thought it was an interesting that the author gave a definition of an aspect of high-rise construction at the beginning of each chapter.

Overall, this tense, engaging, and tragic thriller gripped me from the beginning. It was difficult to put down. I’m a fan of the series and looking forward to reading the next book.

Kensington Books and Sara Driscoll provided a complimentary digital ARC of this novel via NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own. The publication date is currently set for November 28, 2023. This review was originally posted at Mystery and Suspense Magazine.

Captivating read that brings so many feels. I love a book that informs as well as entertains and when you have K9's its the cherry on top. I remember the bombing in Oklahoma, and when the buildings came down in Florida. This book puts you there on the ground as you and K9 search for survivors. Intrigue, suspense delivers. Thank you for the arc. I freely volunteer my thoughts and opinions. #ThatOthersMayLive #FBI-K9 #SaraDriscoll #Kensington @NetGalley

Wow! This one will keep you on the edge of your seat. A 12 story building in downtown Washington DC has suddenly collapsed. Between Meg and Hawk, her K-9 gingerly searching through the collapse to Todd, her fiancé, attempting a rescue in the scariest of settings you will learn how incredibly dangerous it is for those who put their lives on the line to try and rescue the victims.

Buildings don’t just collapse so the research began attempting to find out why. Learning all about structural details was absolutely fascinating although it might make me think twice before I stay in a high rise building. Will they manage to figure out if this was done by terrorists or just the result of building deterioration? There seem to be some rumblings about another possibility. Can any conclusions be made?

An early copy was received through Kensington Publishing Group and NetGalley. These impressions are my own and were in no way solicited.

That Others May Live
Sara Driscoll
November 28, 2023


We find Meg Jennings back enjoying a later than usual breakfast. Todd had left for work and Hawk sat quietly next to the table. The front door opened, alerting both. Knowing that Todd was at the firehouse she knew it was either Cara or McCord. Unusual that he let himself in without knocking, he came in with a worried, disturbed look. All was well at his home next door but he had been called by his boss at the paper. A newer apartment complex in the downtown section had collapsed. Nothing appeared in error except the building tumbling down. There was no warning, no scent of gas or explosion, only the noise of cement and terror from the surrounding neighborhood. The people who were still home were trapped underneath the oblivion with no means of escape. Before he could finish the horrific news, Meg and Hawk had pulled on their FBI search gear and were ready to leave. The call came from Craig, her boss as she gave Hawk the command to leave.
That Others May Live will be published by Kensington Books on November 28, 2023. It is part of the FBI K-9 Novel series by Sara Driscoll. I was able to read the ARC of her latest novel via NetGalley. To say that this book is extremely interesting and excellently written is an understatement. In a world where one disaster after another seems to happen, this fictional book has a great plot and storyline but also uses facts to uphold the information it provides. I have enjoyed each one of the series but I could not imagine the amount of research Driscoll must have done to complete this novel. It is one not to miss, not just for the exceptional storyline but for the information she provides to the reader. Don’t miss this one and do enjoy!

Wow. I was absolutely gobsmacked that a book could get most everything correct about USAR task forces, dog teams, and procedural issues within the teams! The architectural and structural details about high rises, concrete, and all the other minutia regarding building a large structure also seemed correct to me. Add in a fabulous story about conspiracy theorists taking their brand of justice into their own hands...and well...I was gobsmacked.

This is the first book I've read by this author and I've already purchased a few others in this series. I hope this depth of detail continues in the books I've purchased.

Excellent writing and the story made sense. That Others May Live is absolutely a standalone and it was hard to put it down. The story was compelling and the sense of urgency that drove the story was perfect.

I was gifted an ARC of this book by the publisher. The review is my own.

Fans of the series should know that this is very different from the preceding installments in both tone and topic and others should know that it will be fine as a standalone, especially for those interested in the details of how urban rescue works. A 12 story condo building in downtown Washington has collapsed, trapping not just those inside but also those on the street below. Meg and her dog Hawk, civilian employees of the FBI are part of the team doing the hard work of trying locate not just survivors but also remains. There are numerous details about the search effort and then one of the team finds a part of a cellphone. The mystery of how and why the condo was brought down, as well as the search for the villain, is compacted into the second half (closer to a third) of the novel. There are fewer personal details in this installment than the others (although Meg's wedding is a topic of conversation). This is more technical and emotional and I learned a bit. I'd note that it was odd that a search and rescue team from Pennsylvania was called in first when Virginia Task Force One in Fairfax, Virginia (just across the river and highly experienced in this work) is mentioned only in passing as "teams from Virginia and Maryland." Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Don't miss the afterword. I'm looking forward to the next one.

That Others May Live describes in great detail how the first responders work a site of a building collapse, and how dangerous it is for them and their dogs. I was fascinated by how the dogs could sniff out people or animals buried in “the pile.” That being said, there was an awful lot of technical detail that, for me, bogged down the story. The author, writing as Sara Driscoll, obviously did an enormous amount of homework on building construction in order to write this book.

The first 70% or so of the book covers the disaster and rescue efforts, and the last part of the book involves figuring out what/who caused the collapse and the manhunt that followed.

I liked the main characters, Meg Jennings and her dog Hawk, and her fiancee firefighter Todd Webb, as well as her sister Cara and her partner Clay McCord, who is an investigative reporter for the Washington Post and plays a large part in the story. Cara has a dog also, but it’s a therapy dog named Saki, not a search-and-rescue dog like Hawk.

This was my introduction to the FBI K-9 series (That Others May Live is book 8) but I felt fine jumping into the series midstream. This can definitely be read as a standalone. The author offers tantalizing bits of backstory throughout the book, referring to previous titles in the series. I might eventually try another book in this series, one that doesn’t rely s much on technical details.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and Kensington Books for the opportunity to read an advance readers copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Great book!

Despite this book being centered around a terrible tragedy and a political theme currently in the news, I enjoyed it a lot. Every time I read a book in this series I learn more about search and rescue teams, particularly those with dogs, and am amazed by the work and dedication these teams perform.

Meg and Hawk are called to help search for survivors after a building collapse, along with their squad members. It’s emotional and brutal work, I didn’t know that the dogs also get depressed when they don’t find live survivors, and sometimes they hide first responders in the pile to keep the dogs spirits up. Amazing!

Lots of action, very fast moving and interesting, highly recommend.

Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book, but my opinions are my own.

Part of a twelve story building in Washington DC collapses. There is a huge pile of rubble, and it isn't clear how secure the parts that remain are. Meg, Hawk, and McCord go to near the building. Meg calls Craig, and he is already at the command post in the Park. When Hawk finds someone, Meg has to figure out how to get to the person, but she finally pulls out a young boy of about 8 or 9. Meanwhile, Web is looking through the part still standing and finds a woman on the edge of the open area have a seizure. He manages to treat her and get her out. However, there are very few rescues of live people, and many of the bodies are not all together.

There are some rumors of folks hearing an explosion, and McCord immediately begins investigating into the structure plans as well as all the rumors, including that there was an accident in the garage the previous week. Soon, the standing part of the building needs to be demolished before it collapses on the workers still trying to find bodies of the missing.

This book is very difficult to put down, and there is a lot of excitement near the end. I thank Netgalley and Kensington Books for the ARC.