Title: Vigilante Assassin: An Action Thriller (Jake Wolfe Book 2)
Genre: Currently #36 on Amazon Best Sellers Rank in Kindle Store, Kindle eBooks, Mystery, Thriller & Suspense, Thrillers, Financial
Publisher: Amazon Digital Services LLC
Publication Date: To be released October 27, 2017
Source: Submitted for review by author
Title and Cover: Vigilante Assassin – Silhouette style cover repeated from first book
Lauren Stephens’ husband is not who she thought he was. After she wakes and discovers Gene Stephens has gone missing, Jake Wolfe and his dog Cody are recommended to help find Gene by their security firm.
Lauren was sitting pretty. More money than she ever needed with a generous, loving partner, two beautiful children, successful business, and an exclusive home in the San Francisco hills. Does it get any better than that? Well, maybe so, as unfortunately, she didn’t know as much about Gene as she thought she did and his was a secret that will rock them all to the core.
Jake Wolfe is an ex-Marine (black ops), capable, and deadly when the need arises and he seems to confront that need rather often. He has adopted his Marine buddy’s war dog with a slight case of PTSD and the two of them manage to get into some very tight situations. As bad-ass as he can be, Jake has a soft, naturally protective and honest, honorable side. The protective instinct takes command in the instance of Lauren and her two children when the two youngsters are kidnapped.
Jake’s rep has preceded him, and there are those who would be quite happy to see him disappear as well. The local SFPD would rather not cooperate with the man who tends to go rogue, but he does produce results whether in an unorthodox manner or not. He often relies on Cody, his beautiful, intelligent lab and retriever mix, for senses only he and Cody communicate. Cody is quite happy with his human alpha and his circumstances–his work is well rewarded. Cody is well trained both in verbal and hand signals and can react instantly to human nuance and body language. He keenly watches anyone who approaches his human and Jake is careful to protect his dog in critical circumstances. The partnership works exceedingly well.
This strong, intense character driven plot continues Jake’s relationship to Sarah, a woman veterinarian (introduced in Nolan’s debut novel Dead Lawyers Don’t Lie) and they continue to cultivate a tenuous relationship, though she probably understands Cody better than Jake. Sarah is somewhat off-put by his associations or network and private investigations. Even his ex-Marine buddy Terrell, a SFPD lieutenant and his partner, Beth Cushman, have periodically had to back up and question his motives and methods. Terrell is married to Alicia and he is a by-the-book above board cop. They both love Jake, but are keenly aware that he tends to push the line far too frequently.
Sentences are clipped at times and dialogue can run rather stilted, but the plot flows well and moves into a climax neatly wrapping all lingering questions. You may have gotten some hints of what’s coming between Sarah and Jake. Jake and Cody, however, appear escalated into a promising new height of intrigue and thriller level.
Vigilante Assassin is an entertaining read; a noble effort for a sophomore novel, though definitely pushes unrealistic. The plot keeps your interest and you can’t help but love Cody even if Jake does push a few buttons.
I received this book from the author and appreciated the opportunity to read and review. Recommended for any who enjoy a good mystery, thriller, and suspense and particularly for those who are a sucker for a good anthropomorphic canine story.
Rosepoint Publishing: Four of Five Stars 
The Author: Mark Nolan is the author of Dead Lawyers Don’t Lie and the sophomore release, Vigilante Assassin. He began writing as an entrepreneur who created news stories for businesses that were featured in The Wall Street Journal, National Geographic, Parade, Reader’s Digest, and the Associated Press. Nolan was born in San Francisco and grew up in the Bay Area of California. He has also lived in the Pacific Northwest and Hawaii. He’s raised two children and one very smart retriever. He is currently crafting Jake Wolfe Action Thriller, Book 3 in the series. Subscribe to his newsletter at marknolan.com.” ©2017 Virginia Williams 
Rosepoint Publishing 