Friday, June 21, 2019

"The Mountain Master of Sha Tin", by Ian Hamilton

Book #12, in the Ava Lee series

Ava is in Shanghai with Pang Fai to visit her ailing friend Xu when a violent triad war breaks out between two feuding gangs vying for control of the Wanchai territory in Hong Kong. Ava steps in to broker a settlement.

This 12th novel does not disappoint. The turf war between the Wings clan who is trying to take back power from Xu, the head of triads, is mixed with cold brutality and provides a fascinating peek into a disturbing world we hear of but hopefully never see. Nothing is subtle with their methods…..

When Xu’s soldiers are kidnapped and the Wings threaten to execute them after sending a box containing six fingers and a twelve hour deadline, Ava is driven to the edge and devises a plan that only death will solve…but who will fall first.

I love Ava Lee she is a female sleuth extraordinaire. In this latest she steps away from recuperating stolen cash and other business ventures to concentrate on being the negotiator between two fearless gangs and help Xu regain full control. The plot is suspenseful and intriguing of course we find lots of violence to make us cringe. Ava is at her best, the challenges she faces are intriguing. The action never ends, move fast and is very captivating, quite a page turner. No worries if you pick up this series here, there is enough backstories to situate the new comers and not too many details to overwhelm the avid fans…..

Once again, Mr. Hamilton has penned a great thriller for our enjoyment and he surely hit the button with this one. . Well-done as usual I love this series.

Many thanks to the publisher House of Anansi Press and to Edelweiss for this ARC

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