Bruce Burgos is quickly becoming one of my favorite thriller writers. This one is pitch perfect from start to finish with interesting, well-rounded characters and lots of exciting action, plus some laugh-out-loud moments sprinkled in. Totally entertaining. The Nevada high desert country provides quite a unique setting and the title itself has some intriguing 'shades' of meaning. I'll be interested to see in what direction the author takes Porter Beck next.

Many thanks to the author and publisher for providing me with an arc of this new thriller via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and the opinions expressed are my own.

There are undoubtedly a handful of good reasons why so many of us leave our school friends behind, without a backward glance.

But I’m betting the top reason is simply that the past is where such friendships should, most often, remain.

For everyone’s sake.



When author Bruce Borgos begins his latest tale, Shades of Mercy, we find one Porter Beck—the sheriff of a sparsely-populated (but geographically-vast) high-desert Nevada county—the first officer on the scene of the latest in a troubling string of opioid drug-related deaths in his jurisdiction.

Only this time, it really hits home... because the victim? Was none other than one of Beck’s closest friends back in school—the second Musketeer of three.

Gutted, Beck returns to the station... but there’s little in the way of solace, there. Instead, he finds more chaos, because in the constantly water-deprived state of Nevada, it’s always fire season, and a good half-dozen major burns were currently raging.

And then, in the middle of trying to figure out how to apportion inadequate manpower to deal with all of that? Beck and his small team get word that Something Serious has gone down at a local cattle ranch.

Arriving at the Double R Ranch, Beck is surprised to find another (the other, really—the third Musketeer) of his school friends, Jesse Roy, waiting for him... as the new owner of the ranch.

Jesse, he quickly learns, has been the victim of a particularly expensive crime. His prize bull—whose pedigree made the semen worth an ungodly sum of money—was, apparently, targeted and summarily exterminated... in a shocking manner.

That, in itself, would be enough of a crime to raise Beck’s eyebrows, any day.

But, when the Feds—in the form of one of the many alphabet agencies Beck (and probably most other cops) have a longstanding hate/love (emphasis more on the “hate”) relationship with—barge in, summarily commandeering Beck and his tiny, remaining team, it’s all bets off.

Because what the Feds are saying sounds insane, to Beck—that the prize breeding bull was blown to kingdom come by a military drone... which was hacked and taken over by none other than a teenage girl.

And the girl—one Mercy Vaughn—has actually been staying in the area, at a sort of detention center for juveniles.

The kicker? Unbeknownst to the Feds—or to Beck himself, until after the meeting with the Feds—this same young girl sent Beck an anonymous, encrypted email... just before the bull’s demise.

Beck understands enough about the world—and certainly, the federal government—to know that this girl’s life (let alone her reasons for doing whatever she alegedly did), won’t mean squat, since those actions involved national security.

And Beck? Well, he’s not entirely comfortable having yet another person’s death on his plate... nor on his conscience.

So, he does what all good, heroic lawmen do—he aims to stick his nose in, get to the bottom of things, and right all the wrongs that have been (or could potentially be) done... despite strict warnings from the Feds to stay out of pretty much everything.


Before I started reading, I discovered that Shades of Mercy is actually the second book by author Borgos in the Sheriff Porter Beck series... but despite not having read (or even heard of) the earlier work, The Bitter Past, I decided to trust my gut and dive right in.

Good call, as it turned out, because Shades of Mercy is an excellent read, whether or not you’ve read the first book in the series.

For one thing, it stands on its own just fine, with no sense, whatsoever, of “uh-oh, what did I miss?” for the reader. (Honestly, that’s the first thing anyone jumping into a series midstream can/should hope for.)

But beyond that, Shades of Mercy is a compelling tale from the get-go. I was intrigued by the idea of this middle-aged, former military intelligence officer, returning to his childhood home after a long absence, to take over sheriff duties from his elderly (and dementia-sidelined) dad.

(With every year—and all of the people I know or hear about, struggling with dementia and Alzheimer’s—the realities and complexities of this struggle hit home, more and more.)

Borgos also does a nice job portraying the teen hacker, making her into an interesting and sympathetic character. (Granted, things get a little bit convoluted later in the story, but I never lost track of who everyone was or what anyone was doing, so that’s a minor quibble.)

One of my favorite things, actually, was all the rest of the characters, who add depth and color. From Beck’s dad, to his adopted sister, his motley team, other colleagues, and assorted bad guys, sure--there are plenty of people to keep track of... but each is vital to the story that’s being played out.

Bottom line? I enjoyed Shades of Mercy so much that I’ve already put the earlier book on my (endless) TBR list... and when Borgos writes a third book in the series? It’ll have a place very high on that list.

If you’re a fellow thriller/suspense lover, I recommend this one, highly.

~GlamKitty

This powerful sequel to The Bitter Past thrills with its action as it grabs the heart strings. Characters are struggling with their pasts as they gather the strength to meet the terrifying vision of the future which may await if they do not succeed in overcoming the malevolent actors they are facing. Definitely on-the-edge-of-your-seat action as was the previous novel, Shades of Mercy also tenderly holds the characters as they confront the changes they face. HIghly recommended and looking forward to more by Bruce Borgos.

Wow, this man can write! This is only the second in the Porter Beck series and no sign of sophomore slump. In fact this one was even better than the first (and it was marvelous). Porter is the sheriff in a small county in rural Nevada, and has been slowly developing his small force with outstanding officers he trusts (I seem to recall considerable attrition in the first book). The story begins with the death of a childhood friend from opioids, and then another old schoolmate, now an extremely wealthy rancher, is attacked by a military drone controlled by an unknown hacker. Well, that certainly gets everyone's attention, and draws in military and, er, others, in to investigate as well as Beck and his officers. When the most likely suspect turns out to be a teenage girl locked in a computer-free facility, and that girl suddenly disappears, things really get interesting. Of course all the various groups investigating keep falling all over each other and no one is telling the other anything if they can help it. This is a complex and intricate plot going in 40 directions at once and it never lets up. My favorite part of Borgos' stories is how smart everyone is. Beck and his officers, the hacker, some of the other investigators, and even the bad guys. Really, really bad guys, dangerous, smart bad guys. All dancing around each other to stay on top. Fabulous characters and writing. Highly recommended.

The plot and setting of this story is amazing. It adds to the drama and tension that makes the reader want to eagerly turn each page to see what happens next. The characters are awesome and well developed by the author. Each one is individually curated to play a crucial role in the drama that unfolds. Readers will love Beck and Brinley and root for them as they fight for justice. This is a wonderful story.

Now that Porter Beck has returned to Lincoln County in the high desert of Nevada, he's the sheriff, same as his father was. The sheriff's office is equipped with 12 deputies and they cover a large, and usually quiet, area. One of his childhood friends is found to have succumbed to some particularly strong opioids and his other childhood friend is a wildly successful rancher who's been targeted by a hacked military drone. As it turns out, the hacker is local, making it Beck's problem. Beck's investigation leads him to Mercy Vaughn, the sole known hacker in the area.

SHADES OF MERCY is the second book in the Porter Beck series but it can be read as a standalone. I absolutely loved this book, even more than I enjoyed the first one.

SHADES OF MERCY is told in Beck's POV. He's an easily likeable sheriff with a storied background in the military, he's intelligent, a wisecracker, caring, and willing to bend the rules as needed. He's unique as a sheriff in that he suffers from a degenerative eye condition, making him lose his sight over time. I enjoyed catching up with Beck, his family, and the key members of his small team. I am excited to see what's next for Beck in the future after the way this one ended. An honourable mention to Colombo 'Bo', one of the best canine partners a guy could ask for haha - there's one scene in particular that had me chuckling with Beck attempting to train Bo as a seeing eye dog. Once you know Bo, you'll see why this is funny.

This story is fast-paced, intriguing, suspenseful, and loaded with action that kept me turning the pages. The ending was a surprise to me and a perfect way to close off this story, leaving me with no doubt in my mind that I'll be eagerly anticipating book 3!

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher, Minotaur Books, of this advanced digital copy for the opportunity to read this novel in exchange for an honest review! All opinions shared are my own.

Thank you St. Martin’s Press Influencer Program, Minotaur Books @minotaur_books and Bruce Borgos @authorbruceborgos for this free ebook.
“Shades of Mercy” (Porter Beck #2) by Bruce Borgos ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Genre: Thriller. Location: The high desert of Nevada, USA, north of Las Vegas. Time: July, present.

THE SERIES: Porter Beck (blue eyes, grey-brown hair, 40s) was born and raised in Pioche, in the Nevada high desert. He’s fluent in several languages because he served 20 years in Army deep intelligence. Now he's home, and he’s Lincoln County sheriff, doing the same job his father did. Beck’s small department covers 11,000 square miles with a population of only 6000. And now he’s losing his vision due to retinitis pigmentosis, so he’s training his red English lab Bo to help.

THIS BOOK: One of Beck’s childhood friends dies from an illegal opioid. Successful rancher Jesse Roy, another childhood friend, is targeted by a hacked military attack drone. Beck’s investigation leads him to Mercy Vaughn, 16-yr-old computer savant. But she's locked up with no computer access at a secure juvenile detention center. Then a self-driving truck is hacked, and Mercy disappears. All sorts of secret government agents show up, and a Chinese government spy is lurking in the background. Beck, Charlie Blue Horse (Dept. Of Public Safety detective), and Beck’s adopted sister (and sharpshooter) Brinley know time is running out. Meanwhile, the Alien Independence Day gathering is happening near Area 51, drawing in all sorts of crazy characters. And..who is playing a long game?

Author Borgos has written a high desert thriller full of action, colorful details, and diverse characters. His character descriptions are vivid, and also respectful (“a woman of Native American descent.”). Borgos knows his way around the Nevada high desert and it shows in his attention to detail. I really enjoyed it, and it’s 5 stars from me🌵📚💁🏼‍♀️ #bruceborgos #shadesofmercy

This is the second book in this series. It starts a bit slow but then just explodes! It full of edge of your seat action. There are times you’re not sure who is the good or bad guys. Lots of twists and turns.
Looking forward to the next one.

Another set of problems for Sheriff Porter Beck to solve. A hacker is causing trouble but has vanished into thin air. Drug problems percolating too. Any of this stuff connected. Another clever tale as the second story in the series.
#NetGalley #BruceBorgos #StMartinsPress #MinotaurBooks

Shades of Mercy is the second book in the Porter Beck series. If you enjoyed the first book, you will definitely enjoy this one! It’s another intricate mystery following rural police sheriff, Porter Beck, in the Nevada desert. On this adventure, Beck is trying to help the government find a hacker that is creating local havoc, while also on the hunt for a new drug pipeline that is providing opioids to the area. He has a hunch that these two things are related, although he doesn’t know how, but he has learned over the years to trust his instincts. As he unravels the clues, he finds himself in a race against time to find those involved and save the lives of two teenage girls.

I enjoyed the story because I felt invested in the characters after the first book. Personally, I think if you haven’t read the first book, this one would have been a little harder to follow—just because the author doesn’t spend a ton of time introducing the characters and their back stories like in the first book.

Grips you from the beginning and doesn't let go! Action packed, full of twists, and a complex case kept me reading late into the night. This author writes fantastic characters. I love Beck. Brinkley runs a close second. I think this one tops the first book. I sincerely hope this is a long lived series. I can't wait for more!

This book was kind of hard for me to follow, only because it's already part of a series or set of novels I'd never read before. Once I was able to connect dots with certain characters and follow those stories accurately, it quickly turned into a lighter read that I was able to enjoy, especially once the real action began. Federal deceit, cartel, man's best friend; it all allowed for a good, suspenseful read.

Bruce Borgos was a new author for me. His book Shades of Mercy sounded interesting, so I picked it up. Well, what a ride the book was! It started with a police officer dealing with a rancher who lost his prize bull and by the time it finished everyone was completely banged up, with the cartel and the Chinese done in that part of Nevada. The story inbetween with all its twists and turns kept me reading way past my bedtime.

Bruce Borgos’s main character is Porter Beck. He is a sheriff in Nevada in a rural area. His whole team is small but he has ties to all sorts of people, including some interesting characters. Beck grew up in that same small town and took over for his dad. His ability to suss out information and use that information to determine who is who was remarkable.

I liked the addition of Mercy, a teenage hacker. I found myself tricked more than once by all the actions around and with her. I found the addition of both the Chinese and a Mexican Cartel fascinating.

The book was the second book in the series, but I read it as a stand alone with no problem. I felt this book would be a great read for anyone who liked Longmire or Joe Pickett novels, although I feel this book was higher tech than the other two novels. Shades of Mercy by Bruce Borgos was a good read!

I received an ARC through "NetGalley" and I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

The story begins with Beck being called to the home of a childhood friend, Cash, who has died of an overdose. At the same time this was going on, Jesse, another friend of Beck, was having a birthday party for his daughter when something flew out of the sky. The next morning, Beck went to Jesse's ranch to a scene where a prize bull had been murdered. This incident also brought into play the Government, Maddox, because one of their drones had been hacked.

Beck was advised that he was looking for the person responsible for hacking the drone. Later, Beck gets another call advising him of a death of a 2nd victim who died by an overdose. At that scene Beck took a laptop which he brought to Mercy, a resident of a youth detention center, to try and find out how the drugs were ordered. This interaction soon plays a major role in the story because Cho, a Chinese agent, had been searching for this girl a long time.

To learn the importance of Mercy, what Jesse was doing, what other people were working with Beck, why the Chinese were hunting for Mercy and how it all works out in the end, then you need to read this book. The ending is something that you wouldn't expect.

DNF. The "humor" in this one was just cringy. At one point the main character's dad thinks it's hilarious that a special agent is named Ed, because "your name is Special Ed?!" It's not funny.
Not my book. So many better mystery series out there.

This was my first book by this author. It took me a few chapters to understand what was happening and get used to the characters, but once I did, I really enjoyed this book. There's lots of suspense and the story moves pretty quickly. It's the second book in a series, which I didn't realize, but it made sense without reading the first one.

This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
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WHAT'S SHADES OF MERCY ABOUT?
Sheriff Porter Beck's life intersects with a couple of high school buddies for the first time in many years. And both situations should make anyone else from high school leery of running into him.

We open with Beck coming across one of those friends after they'd overdosed. Soon after, a federal investigator recruits Beck to go visit the other one. Jesse Roy has recently moved back to the area, and is renovating his father's ranch into something that Beck can't comprehend—it's just too large, too gaudy, for this area. Cattle ranching is going really well for Jesse (too well?). The night before, something had gone wrong with a test vehicle with the Air Force, and something had fallen on Roy's prize bull, destroying it. The investigator is here to negotiate a settlement—and it's not a little one.

But something about the whole deal sets Beck's B.S.-meter off. He forces the investigator to come clean—someone had hacked an Air Force drone and launched a missile at the cow. It was a targeted hit—but why?

Beck knows if he doesn't help for the search for this hacker (and they know they're local, somehow) and get to the root of the problems soon, his county will be overrun by Intelligence officers from all sorts of government agencies.

Oh, and there are wildfires threatening the county on several sides, and a large group assembling to storm Area 51. Just in case it didn't seem like he had enough going on.

The investigation quickly points at a teenage girl who is serving some time at a teen facility nearby. As hard as it might be to believe. And before he knows it—Beck finds himself dealing with so much more than a hacker.

COMPARING SHADES OF MERCY TO THE BITTER PAST
So, the first book used dual timelines to tell the story—and I was afraid Borgos would try to pull that trick again. I think it could've worked, but eventually, his county is going to run out of people who were doing interesting things several decades ago. This time it's all one timeline (with a little backtracking every now and then, but not much. But we do bounce between a few perspectives, so we still get the advantage of multiple POVs. So he's able to maintain some of the same feel there.

His deputies are back, but some of them aren't really seen due to the fires. There've been some changes since the last book and it's good to see that everything isn't stagnant with this series. We don't get as much time with them all this time, and that's a disappointment. Other characters return, too, most of them made me happy and one was a pleasant surprise. I had a more specific sentence there, but decided to remove the names...

The big change is the focus—The Bitter Past is all about the past—what it does in the present, how it can change so much about your life when you learn new things about your own past. Also, the weapons and conflicts of the past.

This one is very present and future-focused. It's also good to see that Borgos isn't stuck in one frame of mind.

SO, WHAT DID I THINK ABOUT SHADES OF MERCY?
I'm having a hard time talking about this book without saying too much about the content.

In what—I think—was a very nice bit of story-telling is that there were a few things that should make the attentive reader pause and wonder if Borgos is being sloppy. I'm going to try to be vague here, but I'm thinking of some parts of the timelines before the novel started—and some things that happened during the novel that we don't see first-hand, but see the effects of. I was too invested in the stories to spend time on these myself—I basically shrugged and moved on (not that I noticed everything I should've, either). I'm going to give you credit for being perceptive and thoughtful enough to catch these things—then I'm going to reassure you: trust Borgos. Everything gets tied up, everything makes sense, I can't tell you how often in the last pages I said "Oh, sure—that makes sense," (I also said "I probably should've caught that" about most of those items). It's really a nice and tidy book.

I'm worried that my last paragraph makes the whole thing seem like a mess. Au contraire. This is a tight thriller—it's only on a few points that it I was mistaken that he'd left things dangling. The rest of the book is as tightly written as you could hope (which I should've realized described the rest, too). There's a little slowness for a chapter or two, just to bring us back into this world, reintroduce the character, and catch us up on Beck's life—then we're off to the races from the moment that Beck is brought to his old friend's ranch.

The conclusion was just great—exactly what this book (and character) needed.

This book bodes well for the rest of the series that follows—yes, I'd like a "smaller" crime. One that didn't involve multiple state and federal agencies, for one. Just a matter of Beck and his guys analyzing a crime scene and then figuring out who in their small community could've done it. It'd just be more believable than all the federal and military types wanding around all the time. But the way Borgos is dealing with the latter, I'm not sure I care.

There's enough humor and heart here to take the edge off of things—the tension gets cut, the characters are made more endearing, and the reader can catch their breath before diving into more tension and action.

I wasn't as wow-ed with this book as I was the first—but I was still impressed, and this book makes me more sure what the following books will be like than I was with The Bitter Past. And it promises to be a very good series. I'm repeating myself, so it's time to wrap this up. Either with Shades of Mercy or The Bitter Past, you want to get on board this series here at the beginning.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from St. Martin's Press via NetGalley—thanks to both for this.

I loved this book. The characters were solid with backstories that added to the overall plot. The plot was clever and full of technology that kept me on my toes. The writing was tight and propelled the story forward page after page; no filler, which I love. I honestly can’t rave about this book enough. It was excellent.

My review is voluntary and all comments and opinions are my own.

Love, love, love this! I read Bruce's first Porter Beck book last year and said it reminded of Longmire and should be a TV series. Now that I've read this second book, Porter has left Longmire in the dust and I would still love a TV series, but I've moved on to a Porter Beck franchise with each book being made into a major motion picture. I think that might be the only way to do these books and characters justice! Porter is an awesome and smart character, but what makes these books so great are of course the stories, with murder and intrigue, but all of the other characters too. They are all full of life with very different personalities that shine through that just makes these books - (chef's kiss). And Bruce - if a movie or series happens, please retain as much creative control as possible because it's your writing that makes these books great & I'd like for them to be as faithful to the books as possible.

Thank you to St Martin's Press | Minotaur Books for providing an eARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

This second Beck thriller’s setting and the onset of Beck’s night blindness are once again stand-out features. I enjoyed details like the amount of land owned by the government, the coding of a wildfire map, and the existence of Alien Independence Day. Hacking drones, unmanned vehicles and other cyber crimes are a current topic. The nonstop action includes plenty of violence including graphic cattle carnage. The bad guys are identified early on, so it’s a matter of how long it will take Beck to put together the evidence.

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