The Armchair Book Review

It's been awhile since I've reviewed a book for you and I just finished a fast-paced, heart-pounding thriller that I'd like to tell you about.

It's called, "Criminal Enterprise" by Owen Laukkanen. It is actually the second in the series featuring FBI Special Agent Carla Windermere and Minnesota state investigator Kirk Stevens, but you can read it without reading the first book, "The Professionals". But if you are like me, and I'm sure you will be, not too soon after finishing "Criminal Enterprise", you will be scrambling to read the first book. So I will go out on a limb here, and without even READING the first book say, GO AHEAD. If you are one of those people who really want to read books in order, DO IT. The first book got rave reviews, too.

Okay, back to "Criminal Enterprise." Let's meet Carter Tomlin. He looks like he has it all. Pretty wife, two kids, high-paying accountant job, big house, fancy cars, and even a dog named Snickers. But in reality, Carter isn't doing too well. He lost his job. He can't make his bills; he has a high mortgage. His wife, Becca, is forced to go back to work. Resentment builds.

Carter has opened his own business trying to make ends meet. He gets a few measly accounts, but nothing that will pay the overwhelming stack of bills. One day he walks into a bank to try to get a loan to tide him over until he gets another job. While he's waiting for the bank manager, he realizes that there is no way the bank manager is going to loan him money.

On the spur of the moment, Carter decides that he will rob the bank. He goes to the local Walmart, buys some cheap disguise, comes back, hands the note to the teller, and walks out with a handful of cash.

Easy Peasy.

As a reader, we can almost feel sorry for Carter, and cheer him on at this point. Who hasn't felt desperate in this economy? Who doesn't need a little cash?

But then Carter gets a little cocky. He's not happy with just one bank. He robs another. And another. With each robbery, Carter's personality changes. He becomes more powerful and less human. He teams up with his secretary and they start pulling off bigger robberies using guns.

In the meantime, Windemere is hot on Carter's trail, while Stevens has actually become friends with Carter because their daughters play on the same basketball team in high school. Windemere and Stevens were partners in the first novel; now they work for two different agencies but are still friends.

I have to admit, this Carter Tomlin has one big set of cajones! This is one thriller that you won't want to put down.