I picked up Mike Stackpole’s first book in the Homeland Security Services series, “Perfectly Inivisible,” on my Kindle for a long flight home recently, and I have to say he delivered on a couple of fascinating levels.
The book itself tells the story of a world where the World Trade Center was actually brought down during the 1993 attack, and shows us an alternate history where we would have gone to war with Al Qaida in the middle of the Clinton Presidency, but he then ups the ante by having terrorists attack the 1996 Democratic National Convention, giving us a Newt Gingrich presidency. It’s a terrifying prospect and one I never wanted to think about.
The story according to Amazon:
Miracle Dunn has just joined the elite Homeland Security Services. On her first day she catches two cases. The first is a seemingly simple murder of a drug company employee. The second is a twelve year old murder discovered because of the first; the resolution of which threatens the leadership of one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies.
The world of HSS is one filled with many secrets, and just as many ways of ferreting them out. For Miracle Dunn, the question is how far can someone go to protect people who truly have no clue as to how much danger is lurking out there.
He gave me a group of characters that are well sketched and fascinating, creating a story that moves quickly. The book itself is a lesson for writers to keep things taut.
Then, he gave me a very solid police procedural story that kept me reading, curious to see what would happen next. But he also gave me a fascinating window into an alternate reality I hadn’t ever really considered before. It’s a smart piece and I can’t wait for more in the series.
The book is now available for purchase on Amazon. Picking it up is mandatory.