Nicole Jones aka Tina Adler aka Susan McQueen aka Helene LeBlanc is back. FBI agents are waiting for her at the Cape Cod bike shop where’s she’s been working for the past few months, going by the name Helen White and living off of the grid. She’s asked about a laptop that contains incriminating data about a hit on mobster Tony DeMarco. She’s released but isn’t surprised to find FBI agent Zeke Chapman waiting for her at the house she’s sitting for the summer. She and Zeke have a long history — he knows who she really is and why she’s been on the run all these years. He offers her a way to clean the slate once and for all.
While I normally enjoy this series, this installment drove me nuts. I’m jumping right to the parts that really bugged me. Spoilers follow.
Zeke expects Tina to run, so he plants a GPS in the laptop — which she easily finds and removes. They are both expert hackers well aware of each other’s talents and tendencies — Zeke didn’t think he needed to plant more than one and Tina didn’t think to look for more than one??? And she disconnected the GPS he installed on page 59. She finds the second GPS tracker on page 94 and disables it before leaving the motel. So, how does Zeke find her on page 96? She leaves the motel in a rush, unsure of her destination, and ends up at a Starbucks — where Zeke is already conveniently hiding in the shadows. What???
Zeke also conveniently ends up near the country club later. This isn’t as much of a stretch — Tina expects him to be there and goes looking for him. She doesn’t find him at the club but she sees Tony DeMarco’s henchmen — and they see her. Tina makes a run for it, sprinting for almost four blocks before she looks over her shoulder and tumbles to the sidewalk — and the hand reaching down to pull her up is conveniently Zeke’s. Seriously??? She just happened to stumble within his reach?
And the bad guys — the hackers framing Tina and Zeke. Complaint One: If Amelie is the expert hacker this book makes her out to be, why did she and Ian ever need Tina for the bank job all those years ago? Complaint Two: How does everyone know that Tina and Ian had sex when he found her on Block Island? What did the guy do, post it as a status update on FB? Complaint Three: Was the sloppy code part of Daniel’s cover or just a convenient plot detail to clue Tina in that there were two hackers? Complaint Four: I’m not a techie person, so I never went into this series expecting that I’d understand any hacking details BUT Amelie appears to be some sort of super villain — the hacking described here almost seems like ESP is involved.
Those are my major gripes. Despite them, I enjoy the series, and will probably re-read it from the beginning someday before the next book comes out. And given the cliffhanger ending, I’m sure there will be a next book.
Curious about the first two books in the series? Here are my mini-reviews of them:
Hidden by Karen Olson. Nicole Jones abandoned her old name and her old life years before the book begins. She’s been enjoying a quiet life on Block Island, living off of the grid. When someone from her past finds her, she realizes that she will have to leave and find another place to hide.
What I liked best about this story was Nicole’s reinvention of herself from the girl she used to be. I like the Nicole who gives bike tours and taught herself to paint beautiful landscapes. Her past self, which is revealed as the story progresses, is less interesting. The mystery is so-so.
Shadowed by Karen Olson. Sequel to Hidden. Nicole is now Susan McQueen and she’s living on an island in Quebec, Canada. She’s trying to recreate the life she had on Block Island, living a quiet life, working as an artist. She’s still off the grid but this time around she has not given up her computer. The lure of the online chatrooms and the temptation to reach out to an old accomplice proves to be her undoing this time. Someone else has been lurking in the chatrooms, and they know her well enough to find her, even though she’s using a different name.
Some things are too easy, some things are too hard, but it’s still a light, enjoyable read. Someday I will have to re-read the first book to see if something that happens in this one matches up. Someday.
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