Review: Knockout by Catherine Coulter

Author: Catherine Coulter
Copyright: June 2009 (Putnam Adult); 432 pgs.
Series: #13 in FBI Thrillers
Sensuality: Adult references
Mystery sub-genre: Police Procedural
Main Character: FBI Agent Dillon Savich
Setting: Washington DC, Titusville Virginia, and Georgia
Obtained book through: Library Find

The book opens with FBI Agent Dillon Savich as a customer in a bank when it gets robbed. The robbery goes bad and Savich has a hand in killing the leader of the robbery gang. The leader of the “Gang of Four” was a cold-blooded woman whose daughter is injured in the robbery and vows revenge on Savich. The daughter, Lissy, breaks out of the hospital and goes on a killing spree on her way to avenging her mother’s death by taking out Savich.

While Dillion and his wife, Sherlock - also an FBI agent, are absorbed in finding Lissy a second plot line comes into play when Dillon is contacted by seven year-old Autumn. She saw the media coverage on Dillon as a hero. Autumn is in desperate need of a hero to save her mother and herself from a rabid cult that will stop at nothing to take Autumn. The cult wants her because she has the ability for mental telepathy and Dillon knows it first hand, since that is exactly how she was able to contact him.

The first time she spoke to him was midnight.

"It’s you, it’s really you. I can see you, Can you see me?"

It was a child’s voice, high, excited, with light bursts of breathing.

He heard her voice at the edge of sleep. At first he didn’t understand, thought maybe it was Sean, but then he saw her – the shape of her small head, then a tangle of long dark brown hair, and he thought, Yes, it’s me. Who are you?

I felt this was a gripping read from the first sentence. Dillon is the main character while a sheriff in Virginia, Ethan, gets sucked into the drama as he attempts to protect Autumn and her mother. The two story plots are juggled well and keep the tension cranked up. Lissy proves to be a psycho-path and clearly she and Dillon are headed for a showdown at some point. The cult members after Autumn seem unstoppable and I could not have guessed where that ride would end.

Dillon is a grand hero type while Ethan demonstrates he is pretty heroic too. Dillon’s parental side shows a good bit in this installment as he often thinks of his son Sean. The paranormal obsessed cult is done convincingly I felt, but I can understand if you are looking for strictly a police story that this aspect may not be your cup-of-tea.

Ethan is well developed and you often commiserate with him as he comes to deal with Autumn’s situation and her talents. Autumn’s character is wonderfully portrayed and I became quite fond of her character.

There are good twists and turns in the story and you will find yourself rooting for Dillon and Ethan as they jointly and separately move through the events. There are some good twists and tension is maintained believably. The ending was satisfying and wrapped up nicely.

Knockout is a suspenseful ride and I recommend it.

For your convenience, you may purchase your copy here.

Until next Monday, I wish you many mysterious moments.