Do Not Mess With Vanessa Michael Munroe

Taylor Stevens broke into the thriller scene in 2011 with The Informationist.  The heroine, Vanessa Michael Munroe, finds information for people in a no-holds-barred manner.  She is hired by a Texas billionaire to find his daughter who disappeared in Africa four years later.  Munroe's unique skill set, such as learning languages at a rapid pace and her extensive weapons and hand-to-hand combat training, make her the perfect solution for this type of problem.    The sequel, The Innocent, found Munroe trying to rescue a girl who had been taken by a cult and later moved to Argentina.

That brings us to the third book in the series, The Doll, which finds Munroe in a vastly different situation.  She has been kidnapped by a human trafficking ring headed by the Doll Maker.  Her mission is to transport the Doll Maker's most precious cargo, a famous young actress who the world is searching for.  Munroe finds herself having to play along because her friends are also in jeopardy.

I really enjoyed this new side to the Vanessa Michael Munro series.  Seeing the heroine as a victim to start the novel really set it on a different course than the other two titles.  Some of her unique skills are utilized more here than in the previous books, specifically her ability to learn languages simply by hearing them a few times.  The banter between herself and the young actress is spot-on for the situation and very believable.  Taylor Stevens has certainly got a good thing going here and I look forward to another Munroe title in the future.

Chris May- Head of Adult Services