Books 2 and 3 Ryder Creed
Remember back in April when I posted a review for Breaking Creed, Book 1 of the Ryder Creed series? Yes, I got hooked and vowed to listen to all eight in the series. Unfortunately, my library had only these three in audiobook format. I’d read the others if I weren’t quite so stacked up on ebooks in the TBR just waiting for attention. Needless to say, I greatly enjoyed Ryder Creed and the saga of his dog rescue, the great support characters, and the stories incorporating rescues turned service animals. Hey—it could happen and I imagined it so through these entertaining books.
I snapped up Books 2 and 3 and hardly turned off the earbuds except to charge them.
Ryder Creed – An ex-military Afghanistan veteran. He has teamed with Hannah. They rescue and train dogs from their compound in Florida. All breeds, all sizes, different jobs. A few dogs, for instance, Grace, a little Jack Russell Terrier, are multi-service and their expertise is in increasing demand.
Maggie O’Dell, a character from which this series is apparently a spin-off, is a FBI profiler. She’s smart, experienced, and wields her authority with impunity.
Silent Creed Book 2
This time Creed and his dog Bolo have been called to North Carolina to the scene of a horrific mudslide that took out a covert lab and personnel.
Maggie O’Dell continues to play a part. I appreciate that we don’t have an underlying romance thing going on here, although it’s lightly suggested (maybe it was in Book 1), that they might have a brief history. (Now they have a good reciprocal working relationship.)
This novel introduces a new veteran, Jason Seaver, dealing heavily with PTSD as well as a missing arm who settles into the rescue compound ably handled by Hannah, also an appealing and engaging character.
There is intrigue, twists, and a fast pace to the book. The conclusion ends rather abruptly—was that a cliff-hanger? Or no…not sure. 4 stars
Reckless Creed Book 3
Things turn slightly more complex when there are multiple, seemingly unrelated events that culminate in the death, explanatory or not, of several individuals. Each have their own POV ramping up engagement, emotions, and connection and then gradually—with each other.
The plot, though the book was published in 2016, is certainly topical and garners attention immediately. The suspense is palpable, the fear real. The storyline builds tension throughout. Is it terrorism?
There is always some explanation into a dog’s psyche. In this installment, info of disease transmittable from animal to human, some woven in so you don’t realize the information being digested.
Once again, the storyline culminates rather quickly, although this episode does knit in a few loose threads from Book 2, while leaving a couple new threads to chew on for Book 4. 5 stars
I do greatly enjoy the series but perhaps it is not one that you might want to jump into the middle rather than at the beginning with Book 1. I love the obvious affection that Ryder has for his dogs, each handled with respect for their individual abilities. The dogs are well developed and lovable characters. I’d prefer continuing with audiobooks, but it appears my library only has a few more of the series but in digital format.
This series began in 2014 and ended in 2023 with Ryder Creed #8. I’ll be looking for more. Each of the audiobooks was about 7+ hours published by Recorded Books and was narrated by Graham Winton who did a credible job.
If you like suspenseful doggy stories and action thrillers, you may very well appreciate these fun and entertaining books. I downloaded a copy of these audiobooks from my local well-stocked library. These are my honest thoughts.
The Author: ALEX KAVA is a New York Times, USA Today and Amazon bestselling author of twenty novels including the award-winning FBI Profiler Maggie O’Dell series and the critically acclaimed and now award-winning Ryder Creed K-9 Mystery series. Recently LOST CREED won the 2019 Nebraska Book Award. Her novel Stranded was awarded both a Florida Book Award and the Nebraska Book Award. One False Move was chosen for the 2006 One Book One Nebraska and her political thriller, Whitewash, was one of January Magazine’s best thrillers of the year. Published in over thirty-four countries, Kava’s novels have made the bestseller lists in the UK, Australia, Germany, Japan, Italy, and Poland.
“A TRAILBLAZER IN THE K-9 FICTION GENRE, Kava creates a “dynamic between Ryder and his canines that reveals a world rarely shared in fiction and perhaps nowhere presented more effectively than in this series.” —Phil Jason, Florida Weekly
“It’s impossible not to care about and root for the human and canine heroes in Kava’s series.” —Tracie Holtcher, The Radio Pet Lady Network ™
She is a member of the Nebraska Writers Guild and is a founding member of International Thriller Writers. Kava divides her time between Omaha, Nebraska and Pensacola, Florida with her pack of of westies.
©2025 V Williams
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Tracy’s twin sister had been one of Erik’s playthings. Her body was mutilated and buried in a shallow grave. He had hoped to put Tracy in a similar grave but was caught instead. This story exemplifies the problems faced by the police and the judicial system and the horrors that result. 4.5 stars – CE Williams
#11 this week
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