Brandon Webb

Former Navy Seal Finn shows up in Iceland in pursuit of three of his former team members who are in Reykjavik on a covert op. Finn's unit was part of a massacre of civilians in Yemen. A massacre which Finn is blamed for but he has incomplete memories of the night it happened and is unsure if he played any part in it. While Finn is in pursuit of answers, another ex-Seal is in pursuit of Finn, whom he has been contracted to kill. On the night Finn arrives in Reykjavik, a young woman runs show more barefoot through the city and is found frozen in a pond with a message in lipstick written on her body.
Finn is desperate for answers that the covert ops team may hold about what happened in Yemen, but he also finds himself drawn to the mystery of the drowned girl. A no-nonsense police detective, Krista Kristjansdottir is investigating and finds herself working with Finn, even as she is unsure if she should trust him or arrest him. The intertwined plots, as Finn is both pursuing and being pursued on top of trying to figure out the mystery of the frozen girl's death work together brilliantly.

The promise that Webb & Mann showed in Finn's series debut, Steel Fear is fully realized in Cold Fear. The action is intense, the atmosphere draws you in, and the characters are incredible. Not only is Finn a fascinating lead character, with faulty memory and self-doubts, but the surrounding characters are fleshed out in a way that makes them worthy as either allies or adversaries and sometimes both. The suspense is sustained from beginning to end. Webb & Mann throw in surprises all along the way, but every answer feels earned and the climax is both exciting and satisfying.

Finn is an outstanding lead character and I would read an entire book just about Kristan Kristjansdottir. Two books in and I am a fan of this series and will put future installments at the top of my list. This is a treat for thriller and suspense fans and one of the best books I've read this year.

I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher. show less

It’s hard to imagine an aircraft carrier in the middle of the ocean feeling claustrophobic, but that’s exactly what it becomes when there’s a serial killer on board in Steel Fear by Brandon Webb and John David Mann.

Navy SEAL Finn is hitching a ride home on the USS Abraham Lincoln. His observation skills, honed by years as a sniper, alert him to the poor morale and weak leadership aboard ship. When crew members start to go missing in apparent suicides, it slowly becomes clear that there show more is a killer on board. Finn is the obvious suspect and maybe the best hope for unmasking the killer. He is still haunted by a mission gone wrong as well as some gaps in his memory that he can’t account for. Staying alive just got a lot more difficult, especially with a crew edging into terror.

Webb and Mann do an excellent job creating an atmosphere of unease. While Finn restlessly prowls the length and breadth of this floating ship the size of a small city, we familiarize ourselves with the ship along with him. Webb and Mann’s ability to vividly describe the scene lends suspense as you picture both the cramped spaces and the vast ocean around and beneath them.

The characters come to life, conveying the stress of their long deployment, their individual obstacles, the effect of lingering poor morale, and the fear that breeds from being trapped on board with a killer. Finn’s uncanny observations give him unique insight while his memory gaps cast doubt in both himself and the reader. The scenes involving young helicopter pilot Monica Halsey and Command Master Chief Jackson are excellent. Jackson in particular is a standout. As both the ship’s morale officer and the one in charge of the investigation into the deaths his instincts and upbringing add dimension and flavor to a tense story. Plenty of characters you love to hate round out the excellent cast.

Steel Fear builds to a suspenseful and thrilling climax that will have you flipping the pages as the story rushes to its end. This is an exciting fiction debut and I’m very much looking forward to more from Webb and Mann.

I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher. show less

Review of uncorrected ebook file

Navy SEAL sniper Finn boards the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, hitching a ride home from the Persian Gulf. He’s not at all sure why he’s going home, he doesn’t remember what happened on his team’s last mission, and he fears his disgrace is the result of something gone terribly wrong in Mukalla. But Finn tries to set those concerns aside as he comes to realize that something is terribly wrong aboard the carrier. Morale is low; the ship’s show more captain is week and ineffectual. As Finn wanders the decks, he sees the furtive meetings, the stealthy interactions, the unexplained.

And then people begin to disappear. Suicides? Or something much more sinister?

Investigation into the purported suicides reveals the presence of a killer aboard ship and suspicion immediately falls on the ship’s newcomer . . . Finn. Can the troubled SEAL prove his innocence? And can he identify the killer?

Set within the confines of an aircraft carrier deployed to the Persian Gulf, the strong sense of place [and the accurately detailed description of life aboard the carrier] keeps the reader involved in this absorbing quasi-locked room tale of military service. The well-defined, believable characters, the undercurrent of apprehension, the constantly-building suspense, and the unexpected twists and turns of the plot all combine to create a can’t-put-it-down, edge-of-your-seat thriller. Detailed and action-packed, readers are sure to try to suss out the identity of the killer as the story unfolds and will find it difficult to set this one aside before turning the final page.

While the main mystery . . . the killer aboard ship . . . is resolved, some questions remain, presumably saved for resolution in the next book(s) in the series. This delightful circumstance leaves readers happily anticipating more adventures with the enigmatic lone wolf Navy SEAL.

Highly recommended.

I received a free copy of this eBook from Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine / Bantam and NetGalley
#Steel Fear #NetGalley show less

I sometimes despair that I will never again find a book so compelling that it is painful to put down. Then along comes Steel Fear, an intriguing book layered mystery within mystery and took a firm grip on my attention it still hasn’t relinquished.

Finn, a Navy Seal, was detached from his squad in the middle east and ordered back to the United States. He is told he will brief the higher echelon on a mission that ended tragically. But something is going on. Why did the Navy order him to show more travel aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, an aircraft carrier due to depart the middle east and spend weeks in transit? Why not just fly him to the U.S.?

Effectively, Finn is being held incommunicado. He is refused permission to use the ship’s communication system to contact his former squad or the Navy officials who ordered his return. He was promised a replacement sat phone, but it never arrived. His former commanding officer and squad members do not return his telephone calls and email messages. However, he does receive a coded message that warns him he is the target of an investigation.

Two officers go overboard soon after Finn boards the Lincoln. Both leave suicide notes, but the Command Master Chief is suspicious. He concludes the Navy is delaying Finn’s return to the U. S. to give his superiors time to decide what to do with him. It becomes clear that a serial killer is at work when additional crew members disappear. Finn’s insolent attitude toward the Captain, inability to empathize with others, and lack of affect make him the primary suspect. Even Finn wonders if he could be the killer. He cannot recall his activities during the times the murders occurred, and he experiences periods of disorientation, temporary numbness, and paralysis of his hands. There are numerous reasons to suspect Finn may be a sociopathic serial killer.

But hold on! Webb and Mann don’t make it easy. In addition to Finn, there is reason to suspect at least three other crew members.

Mysteries abound in this tightly-plotted novel, and not all are resolved. Who is responsible for the atrocity that happened during Finn’s last mission? Who killed his commanding officer? Why did the Navy order Finn to return home aboard the Lincoln? Who is the mysterious woman living on Lummi Island, Washington, and what is her relation to Finn? And why did Finn go AWOL? We may learn the answers to these mysteries if Finn appears in another volume. Perhaps not.

In any event, Finn is one of the most interesting characters I have met in quite a while, and I certainly hope he will appear in future novels by Webb and Mann. show less