Wiser Than Serpents (Mission: Russia #3) (Steeple Hill Women's Fiction #62)

An emotional end to this wonderful trilogy! While I started the series with the original editions (In Sheep's Clothing and Sands of Time) I ended up switching to the new rebranded edition for this one. They are the same story, but the titles and covers have been updated, and the formatting has been reedited for a smoother read.

I was surprised how quickly I loved this one! And found there were several things I enjoyed about this one that we didn't get to see in the previous two. First, while we meet Preach (David) though Vicktor's chats with this for advice in the first book, until now, we never actually get to meet David, and as the chats are mostly about helping the other characters, we also only get to see him from their POV's and show more opinions. I loved finally getting to meet the highly esteemed friend, and more so get to see him through his own POV and flaws as his humanity finally comes into play, not just the good we see though Roman and Vicktor's high praise when mentioning him.

I also loved Yanna from the start, and found of all of the female characters, she is the I'd mostly likely befriend first. (I saw bits of myself in all of the females, but personality wise, Sarai and Yanna could easily both be my sisters! We share a lot as far as stubbornness and a way of thinking that insists we need to be strong enough to not need to rely on a hero or otherwise in life...) I loved how this one was set up, and while the topic is less that pleasant. I mean stalker/serial killers and political prisoners/removing threats after a political coup aren't pleasant either, this one is something almost taboo to even talk about, and something everyone wants to pretend doesn't exist or will never affect them or anyone they know. The truth is, human trafficking and other forms of smuggling and trafficking are very real problems, and they don't /want/ you to talk about them, because if more people became aware and started looking out for the people around them, and it's much easier to commit a crime right under someone's nose if they aren't even looking or aware anything is going on.

Another point I loved it Roman's friendship with both Yanna and Vicktor is seen a little more in this one, as his role in this one leans a little more on his Cobra experience and solving international crimes, and Victor with his FSB (formerly KGB) skills also plays a more active role as a cop, and less as a love-interest in some ways. We do still see some of what's happened in the year since he was engaged with Gracie, and how that's progressed, but as David and Yanna are the focus, both Vicktor and Roman are a sort of inter-related side-story, but woven together the different added POVs create an interesting dynamic and paint a unique story showing a little of what's happening in the background while the main couple still control the spotlight of the story!

I loved this series as a whole, but have to say this one is probably my favorite of the three stories! It just felt like things had come full-circle in a way, and I love this one from the first page, where as the others took just a chapter or two, this one was an instant draw to want to read more! I also loved the POVs and after meeting the other friends previously, I love how that was used to further add to this one and to give it an extra layer of depth in their friendships and in the story/series overall! show less

A great ending to a really good series. One review called this "a romantic thriller with absorbing characters" and I quite agree. It was a fast action thriller as you cheered on the good guys.

FSB agent Yanna Adrevka discovers her sister has vanished due to a human slavery ring. She sets out to be kidnapped by Taiwan's sex-traffickiing trade so she can rescue her sister. In the process she finds Delta Force captain David Curtiss, in a deep undercover mission, and they will both have their covers blown as they try to escape the seedy underworld. David is determined to send Yanna home, and Yanna is just as determined to flee David and keep searching for her sister. There is quite the romantic tension going on during this time also between show more these two characters. I appreciated David's desire to see Yanna secure her everlasting relationship with the Lord, before declaring his true feelings for her. I also enjoyed catching up on the other characters from books one and two. It all tied together very nicely. show less

Yanna, a Russian operative, is baffled by her sister's decision to emigrate to the US to marry a man she met on the Internet, but she has little choice in the matter. However her worst fears are realized when her sister disappears and Yanna uncovers evidence that she may have been caught up in a human slavery ring. Now Yanna is desperate to find her sister--even if she has to go undercover and use herself as bait. But her friend and U.S. operative David also has the human traffickers on his radar--except he wants to take out the leaders, and his objectives may not mesh with Yanna's goal.
The issue of human trafficking is of interest to me, but I felt this story may have oversensatized it a bit by making it a part of a spy type story. show more Still, it does show how innocent women can be deceived and abducted. This is a quick moving story that highlights an important issue, recommended for fans of social justice and Christian fiction. show less