Vortex by Catherine Coulter

Like other recent books in the series, this one has parallel stories running through it. Dillon and Sherlock aren't actually in the same place or even working on the same case and, actually, aren't in the book as much as usual. But it was still a Coulter FBI Thriller. 

Mia Briscoe is a reporter working on a story related to a mayoral candidate for New York City. In no way did she expect it to lead to the story of a lifetime and the solving of her best friend's murder. But the man is seriously connected and all of a sudden, Mia is under attack. 

Meanwhile, Olivia Hildebrandt is under fire. The CIA operative has been attacked in her own home. She knows it has something to do with her boyfriend's disappearance. They had been on a mission to remove an undercover operative in Iran and now her boyfriend is gone. 

There was also sort of a throwaway story with Sherlock investigating a woman whose second husband has died mysteriously. I guess to reiterate what an awesome investigator she is?

Three and a half stars
Follows Deadlock

This book comes out August 10th, 2021
ARC kindly provided by William Morrow and Custom House and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

Deadlock Catherine Coulter

An old foe rises from the shadows when Marsia Gay decides that she wants revenge on Savich for putting her in jail. She has an intricate plan that includes sending puzzle pieces to him at the FBI. One of the agents in another unit recognizes the puzzle pieces as a small town she used to live in and is immediately borrowed and sent to the town.
Also happening in this book, Rebekah Manvers, wife of a Congressman, is invited to a seance. There, the mystical Zoltan tries to convince her that her grandfather wants her to remember an old poem and dig up a treasure that Rebekah never believed was real.
The book was incredibly twisty and turny with plot points that are just nuts. However, if you've read other books in the FBI series, you know what to expect. You can possibly even predict a large portion of the ending just based on the way characters are described. But that doesn't mean that the book is any less fun.

Three and a half stars
Follows Labyrinth

Followed by Vortex
This book comes out July 28th
ARC kindly provided by Gallery Books and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

Labyrinth by Catherine Coulter

This book starts with a literal bang when Sherlock is t-boned at and intersection. As she is spinning out of control, she hits a man who then disappears. But what was he doing in the intersection in the

first place? Adding to the mystery, Sherlock's head injuries are such that she gets amnesia and can't remember anything about what happened. In fact, she can't remember anything at all.
At the same time, Agent Griffin Hammersmith is taking some time off in Virginia when he hears a psychic scream. A woman is being attacked. But when local law enforcement arrives, they're more interested in covering up than in helping.
Carson is in the store when a man just starts <i>thinking</i> at her. He's ruminating on the death of one of three missing girls. She inadvertently draws attention to herself and wakes up in a basement. Rather than interviewing an eminent scientist, she is now trying to escape with her life.
Griffin has the FBI to throw so throw he does. But the secret that they uncover is big enough that they need both Sherlock and Savich. But the Ss still need to find Justice, the man who Sherlock hit. As a CIA agent, he holds the key to uncovering a major conspiracy.
The two stories are not well connected but it was otherwise a good read.

Three and a half stars
This book came out July 30th
Follows Paradox
Followed by Deadlock
ARC kindly provided by Gallery Books and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

Paradox by Catherine Coulter

The Savich and Sherlock books can be a little uneven for me. But I set my expectations low for the romance on this one (why even include them, they're so glossed over, at this point?) But they're once more drawn into a mystery and that is the more enjoyable part of the story, seeing the two of them work together. This time, it's to thwart someone who seems to be trying to destroy their lives, starting with trying to kidnap their son.
The A story overlaps with a sheriff who happens to witness the murder of the person who sets off the Sherlock/Savich chain of events and the FBI lover of the woman who is murdered. There is also a story about a serial killer that is glossed on.

Four stars
This book comes out July 31st
Followed by Paradox
ARC kindly provided by NetGalley

Insidious by Catherine Coulter

I know some readers will disagree but I was so relieved that this book broke just a bit from the more recent formula. You know, Sherlock and Savich bring in a new investigator who falls in love with someone l, there's paranormal, crazy-pants antics and everyone ends up with an HEA. Some of that happens in "Insidious," but it's not the absolute same well-worn path.
Sherlock and Savich are called in when Venus Rasmussen, famous eighty-year-old billionaire entrepreneur, suspects that she's being poisoned by one of her family members. We get to meet all of the family members, including the black sheep who has some insta-love of his own with Delsey, a character we met in a previous FBI Thriller.
There is, of course, a B story with Special Agent Cam Wittier who is traveling to Los Angeles to help deal with a serial killer who has been slicing the throat of young actresses.
I'm really hoping that we get to see more of Cam Wittier and a bit more of Coulter straying just a bit from the FBI Thriller formula that was starting to get a bit tedious.
Four stars
This book comes out August 9