Into the Fire

(Decided to rerun this review for you. A must read if you haven't! Loved this book by Ronie Kendig. I'm on a short vacay!)              

Ronie Kendig's Conspiracy of Silence, published by Bethany House, is a contemporary somewhat speculative thriller which introduces Cole "Tox" (aka "Toxic") Russell to those of us who love Mitch Rapp and Scot Harvath types of superheroes.

I'm going to pay Ronie Kendig the highest compliment I can muster. "Tox" Russell now ranks second only to Mitch Rapp on my list of character loves. She captured this warrior's soul, his damage, pain, angst, guilt, frustration, and determination while building his larger than life persona striving to conceal all of it. 

Suffering the consequences of a tragic black-ops foul-up, Tox has been "dead", residing in Africa in a forged friendship with a faith-filled Nigerian man who the "resurrected" Tox describes as his conscience.

Unusual circumstances lead Tox back to the USA where he manages to secret himself away in the presidential suite to wait for his estranged brother Galen who happens to be the POTUS. He also happens to be the man who stole Tox's girlfriend and married her many years ago. Galen is now a widower and Tox feels responsible for his ex's death. Once Tox comes out of the shadows, he cold-cocks his brother and waits for the Secret Service to catch up to him.

Turns out there's a job to do. They need Tox's "skills". He is promised certain things if he will do this, but Tox knows their promises aren't trustworthy. He agrees to the mission if he can pick his team. The team doesn't know Tox is alive and they don't know what happened to make him disappear – and he can't tell them. They're not happy with their perspective, but to a man they show up at the final departure.

This story is a complex imaginative tale that begins at a dig site in the Saudi Arabian desert (come to think of it, where is there not desert in Saudi Arabia?). A flighty, faithless, but spunky Israeli woman and her elderly close associate and faith-filled Dr. Joseph Cathey lead the dig, she hoping to redeem her reputation, and she happens to be Tox's lead man "Ram's" sister with whom Tox once had a relationship of sorts.

Simultaneously, there is an aging grandfather in New York who floats in and out of the present and spends most of his time at his granddaughter's home returning to his memories of his deceased wife.

There are stories of flaming arrows killing people from the inside out, thefts of holy items, Tox's group traipsing to India, Syria, Israel, London, and Spain to piece together a terrible puzzle that has unleashed a new old plague. Tox is at the end of his rope patience-wise while having to solve all the deadly riddles with little real information.

Tack onto all of this he's discovered the beautiful and strangely familiar FBI agent "Kasey" (aka Haven), assigned to the overall team for her specialty in recognizing deception, is more than a familiar face from the past. Their history surfaces and morphs dramatically into the present. Tox struggles in wanting to keep her at a distance but knows he's got to protect her above all else. The difficulty and conflict in their association produces some distraction for him but ultimately proves to be what they both seek.

The story weaves back and forth with all of these parts which at times can be confusing before they begin to tie together, but just because that methodology is not my preference in story development doesn't detract from this well told thriller. Authentic action spurts from the pages as the warrior spirits of Tox's team allow their former loyalties to surround each other. The Nigerian keeps Tox focused and serves as a quiet and strong beacon of faith throughout.

The extended journey to discover the "conspiracy of silence" compels the reader to pay attention and yet the mystery persists. God does His part and the story concludes in hope.

Highly recommend this novel by Ronie Kendig who honors the military and elite forces with her stories and words. A very good thriller with an "in'Tox'icating" protagonist.

Father, please keep Ronie safe from all harm and continue to bless her writing, filling her with more stories to tell. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.