Death Never Lies

The federal bureaucrat charged with stopping the importation of dangerous materials vanishes only days before approving a new list of prohibited substances.

Homicide detective turned Homeland Security Agent Greg Kane suspects that the HHS employee may have been killed to keep the new list from going into effect, but he has no idea who's behind the crime, which chemical they are so desperate to import, and what they plan to do with it once they've gotten their hands on it.

After he dives into the case things quickly get complicated for Kane with twists, turns and the tangled relationships that comprise Greg Kane's life.

*May Contain Spoilers*

David Grace pens a crime thriller with focused details in his novel, Death Never Sleeps. Many small occurrences lead readers to the present plot of this book. As a Baltimore Police Officer, Gregory Kane is shot in the head, leaving him angry and blunt. Jason Kane disappears while transporting a criminal to a prison upstate. An importation regulator goes missing while a hit is taken out on a Supreme Court Justice. One loose thread can unravel the entire mystery, if only Kane and his partner can find it. 

Greg Kane is the main character of the book, but not the only important character nor the only character that readers will relate to. After running into gun fire to stop a couple of robbers, Kane is injured as a bullet skips along his brain like a rock thrown perfectly over a pond. Readers immediately know that Kane is brave, courageous, and a little ways off from normal. When he's transferred to Homeland Security, Kane is given a certain amount of leeway because of his history, but he still manages to irritate nearly everyone he comes into contact with. He's more intelligent than most and thinks he is a humorist. No matter, readers will enjoy the upfront officer who doesn't play nice. It's refreshing when a character surprises you and Kane is full of surprises. 

Both Danny Rosewood and Allison Varner are also characters that readers will enjoy. Danny is a desk jockey who does everything he can to look good on paper so one day he'll become a field agent. He's incredibly loyal, voracious for information, and never complains. Allison is the semi-love interest of Kane. Her husband died of cancer two years prior and she won't accept that he's gone. Readers will understand her point of view but won't necessarily agree with some of her decisions. 

The plot is a complete twister of chaos and criminal activity that all fits together rather nicely. Maybe a little too nicely? Or maybe the investigation has a lot of facets? I'm thinking a little bit of both. The main point is that Munroe, a criminal who escaped police a few years prior, has returned and a scientist has disappeared. Kane knows that if he can catch Munroe then a) he will find out what happened to his nephew Jason Kane, who Greg thinks was murdered by the criminal, b) exact his revenge on the dirty cop who aided Mr. Munroe, and c) save the United States from a new drug that's about to go into production. Though there is a lot going on, Grace does a wonderful job in keeping everything direct and understandable for readers. 

Rating: 4/5 Cups