Loved it!! This was a fantastic story and I loved everything about it. The intrigue, mystery, plot, characters. Cannot rate this one highly enough!!

Thanks to Meryl Moss Media, Beaufort Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with a free ARC in return for my honest review.
One of the most important books we all need to read. Reminds me of One Second After in that a terribly important geopolitical issue with foreign affairs ramifications is part of a stellar fiction thriller book. This is the 3rd book of the Red Hotel series and you need not have read the first two in order to understand the plot and characters in this book. The plot reads like todays headlines and features an inept US President, a Russian madman patterned after Vladimir Putin, climate change that will affect the Northern Sea Route in the Arctic, and the power and money at stake in the oil industry. Russia is trying to consolidate their oil exports and does so by ingenious methods using other countries to do their dirty work. There also is an elite assassin killing major oil industry leaders at conferences around the world. Lots can possibly go wrong but our protagonist, Dan Reilly is thrust into action as head of Global Security for a major hotel conglomerate an as such is privy to information that will upend the plans of the Russian President as well as his counterpart here in the US. This is a terribly important book that explains so many different facets of foreign policy, military preparedness, oil politics and more. As I said this book helps explain terribly important and real political issues of the day and is all wrapped up in a pretty goof mystery, 4.5* for me.

Red Chaos picks up just weeks after the events in Red Deception. While those events are referenced I don't think you have to have read book 2 to enjoy this one.

It isn't quite as gripping as book 2 but it is still well worth the read. And I had trouble putting it down to do other things on my to do list.

In this book, more characters question who exactly is Dan Reilly. Is he just a guy who is really good at his job or is being President of the international division of the Kensington Royal Hotel chain just a cover for his work in the intelligence community? Even if he is informally a source for the CIA and State Department, the lines are definitely getting blurred and his boss is taking notice. I kind of like the idea of a spy being a hotel executive.

It was great to be able to pick up this book right after finishing Red Deception. And if you haven't picked up this series yet you are in for a treat as you can read books 1 - 3 back-to-back-to-back.

If you are a fan of Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan series, particularly the early books in the series, then this is a must-read series.

A lot of information is explained that is probably pretty applicable to the real world so not only are you being entertained you also get to learn something. The information is presented in a natural way and it doesn't feel like an info dump.

I can't wait to read more about Dan Reilly saving the world.

The audiobook and ebook are available now but if you want a hardcover copy you will have to wait until February 2023.

My review will be published at Girl Who Reads on Tuesday - https://www.girl-who-reads.com/2022/12/a-must-read-series-for-fans-of.html

Red Chaos, The Red Hotel, Book 3, Edwin Fuller, Gary Grossman, authors
In the publishing world of international intrigue, there are two writers that excel above most others. Fuller and Grossman have captured an audience that awaits eagerly, the next book in the “Red Hotel” series. Their novels are prescient and filled with details that are not extraneous like in so many books today, simply to fill up pages. Their stories are so well-researched that they play out as if they are written in the current news cycle. The books do have romance, sex, violence and foul language, but the use of these themes is never simply to titillate, rather they are crucial to the action exploding on the page. I love this series. It uses well developed characters and current events to paint a very realistic picture of the world we live in and couples that with the awesome, possible consequences of ignoring the warnings to our national security, warnings that we are witnessing everyday around us. Yes, these books are novels, they are fiction, but let’s hope they do not become reality because we fail to see the clues that Dan Reilly trains so hard to recognize, in order to prevent disaster.
Although I read this book slowly at first, trying to make the most of it, trying to make it last, three quarters of the way through I was helpless. There was just no way I could put it down, and I read through the night, until the wee hours of the morning to finish it. It did not disappoint me. If you are on blood pressure meds, make sure you take them. The tension is palpable as Dan Reilly, the President of the International Kensington Royal Hotel Corporation, is horrified to discover that a murder has taken place in their London hotel. The Hotel Group is hosting an oil conference and the possibility of the murder being related to that is growing, as it is discovered that the man murdered was an important guest at the conference. Soon, another murder takes place in Nairobi at one of their hotels, and again, it is an executive attending the oil conference. Reilly anticipates where the next attack will take place, and he flies to the hotel in Beijing to prevent it. Will he be correct and successful? Are the hotels being targeted? Are the executives and leaders of the oil industry and executives of various countries the target? Is Dan Reilly the target? If any of these scenarios are true, who is the villain?
These murders are not occurring in a vacuum. At the same time, oil trade routes are being destroyed around the world. A tanker on the Suez Canal explodes and burns. It drifts and sinks. The Canal will be blocked long-term, until repairs can be made. Is it an accident, or is it sabotage? When there is another shipping accident in the Strait of Hormuz, blocking another oil route, more questions arise. Who is behind these attacks if they turn out not to be accidents? Then an incident at the Panama Canal cuts off traffic there too. Each event seems to point at another guilty country possibly being the culprit, trying to gain control of the lucrative oil market. How far will this go? The USS Hartford was tracking the Russian submarine, the Admiral Kashira, when it suddenly disappeared from Sonar in waters close to New England. Where was it, and why was it hiding? Was there now the possibility of a Russian attack on New England?
In America, the former President Alexander Crowe has stepped down and the Vice President has assumed the office. He must pick a Vice President to replace himself. Will that person, Senator Moakley Davidson, be good for the country or good for the selfish goals of the newly appointed, naïve President Ryan Battaglio who appears arrogant and weak to the enemies of America. He seems to be someone easily played, and so America’s enemies seeking greater power and to remove America from the position of superpower, begin to plot to take advantage of the flaws in the government. Will they be able to compromise the newly appointed President Battaglio? Will those patriots loyal to the former President be able to instruct him and lead him to common sense, informed decisions, or will he throw out all those with experience and install rubber stamp, flunkies?
Havoc reigns around the world as shipping traffic is compromised and comes to a halt with each “accident”. Some economies are doomed to fail as they no longer are able to ship their product, and fingers point at each other with little proof of which country is behind the havoc created. Who stands to gain the most from these disastrous incidents? Is it Russia, China, Iran, North Korea? The list is long. However, those in the know, know that Russia needs money. Russia gets that money from China. China needs oil. They wash each other’s hands. To accomplish this goal of expanding its empire and improving its economy with oil revenue, Russia must control the northern oil shipping route. Which countries would happily join Russia to accomplish this? Is it China? You may be surprised to learn who the complicit culprits are. Will they be the usual suspects?
As Dan Reilly attempts to protect his hotels and their guests, he becomes a target, as well. Why is he a target, you ask? Well, if you read the book, you will discover the reason. You will also learn who wins this fight, that surprisingly causes so much disaster in only a few short weeks, and you will watch an unusual event usher in the unique conclusion, a conclusion that will surely have historic implications. Actually, is there a real winner at the end? Is the door open for Book 4. I sure hope Book 4 is coming.

Review of eBook

Dan Reilly battles in the FBI’s Hogan’s Alley while Igor Kritzler falls to an assassin and Russian President Nicolai Gorshkov is on the verge of standing as the last oil transporter. Gorshkov plans to use an Arctic route after his attacks close other shipping routes.

Dan Reilly, president of the International Kensington Royal Hotel Corporation, becomes more and more concerned as an elusive assassin continues to eliminate oil industry leaders on Kensington Hotel properties. While Gorshkov’s demented plans create bedlam, others seek to keep Reilly from investigating lest he discover their deceitfulness.

Political maneuvering, plots, secrets, and schemes . . . what will Reilly discover as he seeks to stop the assassinations?

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This top-notch thriller, third in the authors’ Red Hotel series, works well as a stand-alone for readers new to the series.

Well-drawn, believable characters, an impressive [although a bit terrifying in its realism] plot, and heart-stopping action all work together to pull the reader into the telling of the tale from the outset. Taking advantage of the precariousness of the current world situation, the unfolding story is frighteningly realistic. Back-office scheming in Washington adds to the realism; the compelling tale is replete with real-world implications.

Suspenseful, electrifying, and alarming, the formidable tale is one readers will find impossible to set aside before turning the final page. Don’t miss this one.

Highly recommended.

I received a free copy of this eBook from Meryl Moss Media Group, Beaufort Books and NetGalley
#RedChaos #NetGalley

I have read the entire series and it keeps getting better. It may seem a little preposterous that there is a high level hotel executive out there preventing World War 3 but it just works. All of the characters work together very well especially Reilly and Matthews. This book was well thought out and the authors kept the story flowing without and major plot holes. I hope they are already working on the next book in the series and how the book ended has me looking forward to the next twist in the series.