Vector (A Joe Rush Novel)

The latest biothriller from James Abel takes Joe Rush from the jungles of Brazil to New York and across the United States in Vector. In Brazil to study malaria, Joe and his partner Eddie Nakamura get talked into poking around to see if they can find anything about terrorists groups planning an attack on the United States or its interests by an old FBI contact. When Eddie goes missing, Joe must track him down and in doing so, stumbles onto a threat far worse than anyone was expecting.

Meanwhile, a homegrown terrorist is back in New York planning the release of modified mosquitoes infected with a newer, deadlier strain of malaria. Joe sets out to rescue Eddie with the help of Brazilian police captain Izabel Santo before heading back to the show more States. Once there he must try to stop the terrorists before their attack can spread in truly devastating fashion.

I’ve read enough poorly executed biothrillers to appreciate a good one like Vector all the more. James Abel (pseudonym for Bob Reiss) takes a terrifying threat, disease carrying mosquitoes, and marries it to a clever and realistic plot. He adds in a strong hero with an interesting support team and an antagonist that you can feel sorry for even as you despise the heinous acts he is perpetrating. Supporting characters Eddie, Izabel, and especially young intern Aya all challenge Joe and offer him different perspectives that ultimately help him choose a course of action.

Abel has a knack for sketching out likeable characters, both major and minor, that help provide an emotional connection to the danger in which he places them. Coupled with a plot that seems realistic enough to be ripped from the headlines and you have a thriller that will have you turning the pages even as you get a little extra chill from the sound of a mosquito buzzing past your ear.

This is the fourth Joe Rush thriller and while there is some backstory to the characters, it reads fine as a standalone story. I’ve been meaning to jump into this series for a while and Vector certainly didn’t disappoint. Highly recommended.

I was fortunate to receive an advance copy of this book. show less

(Read all of my reviews at Ouroboros Freelance.)

If you are not already scared into agoraphobia by the threat of the Zika virus, Lyme disease, and skin cancer, James Abel’s book will make you afraid to leave your house or at least make you clothe yourself from head to toe and top that off with a couple layers of bug spray.

Vector is a chilling exercise that imagines the results of a terror organization’s ability to weaponize an everyday annoyance we barely notice here in the United States. It is terrifying how easy Abel makes it seem to create, distribute and disperse such a weapon.

The book starts with Joe Rush and his partner, Eddie, travelling the Amazon. Except that Eddie is missing, Joe is being followed, his guide is less than show more trustworthy and a large number of malaria-stricken individuals have disappeared from their homes.

Things go terribly wrong for Joe at the same time that events are going awry quietly and steadily in the United States. A terrorist’s threat is delivered, the government is blackmailed, hard decisions are made. (Some of the most terrifying moments in the book stem from the decisions of people in power and the reasoning behind those decisions.)

When the two story lines intersect, the action comes quick and fast.

The pacing of this book is just what you want in a thriller. The science was written in a believable and easy to understand way. And the ending does not disappoint.

I will definitely be going back to read the first in the Joe Rush series, White Plague.

(A review copy of this book was provided by the publisher.) show less

It seems I picked two books about pandemics and this is one. Who knew. It is a fast read and the first one I have read of Abel. The nemesis happens to be the mosquitoes. This was published 2017 and Abel captures the bad behavior of the American public -- in this case gatherings, ignoring mosquitoes habitat, not wearing DEET, clothing that covers and going out at dawn and dusk. Sound familiar. So if you can take the subject matter during this period, go for it.

In Joe Rush I believe I've found a new series to follow. This is a work of fiction, so there were a few impossible to believe aspect to the story. But, overall, this was disturbingly believable. The characters were engaging, both the good and the bad.

Anyone who's read my other reviews might notice this tome took a bit longer to read. This is no reflection on the plot or skill of the author, it was just an inordinately busy couple of weeks. We have here an outstanding tale coupled with very good writing. Enjoy your copy!

Fascinating and exciting thriller that makes me think of a great Robin Cook medical mystery. This tale had me on the edge of my seat - what a fun ride!

Although Joe and Eddie have shifted to private contract work, when a job takes them to Brazil, the FBI asks them to look for possible terrorists camps. However when Eddie goes missing, Joe finds an unexpected terror--mosquitoes altered to carry a resistant strain of malaria. Upon their return to the US, the partners must try to track a killer and stop a massive plague before it is too late.

While this novel is part of a series, you can easily read it as a standalone. Now, I've read quite a few biological thrillers. The best praise I can give for this novel is that it wasn't terrible. There was nothing that I really loved about this novel but it wasn't terrible enough to warrant a bad rating. I had no feelings while reading this book. I didn't get excited, I didn't get attached to any characters... it was just a blah experience for me. This novel is mostly told from Joe's perspective but it does shift to other POVs - including that of a mosquito. Yeah, you read that right. A mosquito. It was weird and I'm not sure if it was really necessary or helpful. I appreciated the amount of research that the author did on malaria; it show more was very thorough and gave reader an indepth knowledge into the disease as well as how mutations work in general. Overall, this novel was okay. It wasn't really memorable but it wasn't the worst thing I've ever read.

Thank you to First to Read program and Penguin Random House for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. show less