Read if you like:
💨 Fast Paced Thrillers
💣 Terroist Plots
#️⃣ Multiple POV
🙏🏼 Discussions on race, religion, discrimination & much more

Overall, this is a fast paced thriller propelled by the changes in POV, mystery, and short chapters.

This book definitely feels heavy with its subject matter and the story opening with a mall bombing in America carried out by a character we were getting her reluctant pov before her death, before bouncing to several POV for the after math.

For those of us that lived through different terror attacks this book definitely is a heavy read, especially with the discussion of racism and religion.

My one struggle with this book was that the author clearly wrote America/americans from a perspective of someone that doesn’t really understand many of the nuances of America and often used wrong words/phrasings that pull me as American out of the story.

Thanks so much to the publisher for my ARC in exchange for my review!

This book opens with a bang, almost literally. To call Hunted fast-paced is doing it a disservice: This book is utterly furious in its pacing, relentless as time itself as it inexorably works for the antagonists in this book and against the protagonists.

The story engages you immediately, hooking you with a tension and terror-fueled scene that unfolds in a busy Los Angeles mall. After that the hits just keep on coming as we bounce from a female POC FBI agent who loves her work but faces discrimination at every turn, two parents of two different potential terrorists who are trying to get to their kids before the cops do, and one of those potential terrorists as he struggles with the ethics and morals of what he’s doing and where it’s all leading.

It’s eloquently written, with a lot of genuine emotion that’s sometimes lacking in thrillers. The plot is incredibly executed and the story is incredibly relevant to current times. There’s compassion here for everyone except the people who don’t deserve any of it: The actual terrorists.

It’s a terrific, compulsive, page-turning read.

I was provided a copy of this title by NetGalley, the Novel Suspects Insider’s Club, and the author. All thoughts, opinions, views, and ideas expressed herein are mine and mine alone. Thank you.

File Under: 5 Star Review/Conspiracy Thriller/Crime Thriller/Political Thriller/Suspense Thriller

Powerful thriller!

Abir Mukherjee has served up a fast paced thriller exploring many of the challenges of our society today. Racism, religious tensions, the everyday working class feeling disenfranchised, refugees in despair, ideological conservatism on the rise, Government organizations gone rogue. Citizens feeling their dreams and hope lost, the rise of populist demigods “peddling simple answers to complex situations.”
It takes talent to roll all those factors into your storytelling. Mukherjee does it with ease.
I was disturbed and yet enthralled by the determination of FBI agent Sheyra Mistry as she defied bosses and protocols in her hunt for terrorists who were multi racial, multi religious, and angry. Their actions are being steered by an unknown enemy with contacts at the highest levels.
What follows is a complex, gut wrenching chase that serendipitously is helped by the stubbornness and brilliance of Agent Mistry.
I found the author’s notes extremely enlightening.
Brilliant and heart stopping. I couldn’t put it down. I was enthralled and read into the wee small hours!

A Mullholland ARC via NetGalley.
Many thanks to the author and publisher.
Please note: Quotes taken from an advanced reading copy maybe subject to change
(Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.)

"Your enemy doesn't travel by dinghy. He travels by jet."

I was really drawn to the synopsis of this book, and it sounds like it would be incredibly compelling and thought-provoking, but for me it never quite got there.

I struggled with the different perspectives, as it didn't feel like they were fully-fleshed out characters. It doesn't feel like they get to have complete arcs and it also feels like the book is trying to do too much, I think it would have benefitted from a tighter focus. I didn't have the anxious feeling that I look for when reading a thriller. I can see what this book was trying to do, but it felt a bit chaotic and choppy.

With Shreya, we get a bit of her backstory and it helps to sympathize with her. She feels like the most fleshed out character in the book. She has this history with her ex-husband and daughter that has been broken by her commitment to her job. She's trying to find that balance, but gets completely sucked into this case. I honestly think that I would have enjoyed this book more if it focused on Shreya.

Miriam's group was a bit frustrating as it felt like their actual motives were never clear, even though you can infer it from the text. The parts with Sajid felt tedious and almost a bit unrealistic as he leaves behind his wife and other child to go off searching for Aliyah. The process isn't compelling, and I really struggled with his chapters. I realize a parent will do whatever they can to help their child, but it's implied that she's now part of a cult and that requires delicate actions and deprogramming,

Ultimately, this is not the best thriller I've read this year. I think it just feels incomplete,

Hunted begins with a bloody bombing in a Los Angeles mall. FBI agent Shreya Mistry identifies a young Muslim woman as the bomber. She is part of a group calling the Sons of the Caliphate. They are claiming responsibility, for the bombing and are threatening future attacks. This is all occurring along side a tight presidential race between a right-wing ideologue and the country’s Democratic vice president. This new conflict could spark a resurgence of Islamist terrorism and effect the political outcome. Shreya uncovers the bomber’s connection to a small town outside of Portland, Oregon and teams up with fellow FBI agent Susan Kramer. Together they discover another potential bomber on the loose: Aliyah Khan, a young British woman radicalized by her sister’s death during a political protest.
While the characters can get confusing, the cast is diverse, and well-portrayed as they conduct clever investigative work, at breakneck speed.
This is a pulse pounding thriller in a all to familiar scenario.

Many thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

I love AM's Sam Wyndham historical mystery series, and appreciate the author's desire to try something new & contemporary. This is a decent, quick-paced thriller.

Overall, 3.5 out of 5 stars.

The pros: twisty, unexpected plot. Quick pace. Good character development.

The cons: some stilted dialogue. Very UK perspective of U.S.; feels like author has only visited the American locations via Google, which occasionally took this reader out of the story (i.e. you can't get $90 out of an ATM that only dispenses 20s... )

A decent, if not completely successful, first attempt at a modern day thriller with two parallel plots involving terrorism and family. I appreciated the thoughtful author's note at the end.

This is a story about every day people who become radicalized and an FBI agent trying to stop terrorist attacks. There are a lot of POVs and I would find myself feeling like I was pulled in too many directions - I would've liked this better getting close to just 1 or 2 characters stories.

It was heavy action, blockbuster vibes. Not a ton of mystery/psychological suspense but you do get a twist reveal. Overall okay, just felt kinda like a crime show like NCIS and that's not my favorite vibe.

Thank you to the publisher for granting me access to an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The book was good! I couldn’t put it down. It had my attention from the very first page. I was completely hooked. I couldn’t put it down until I read the very last page

Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy of Hunted.

Without summarizing the plot, I can say that the characters were fully fleshed out and people who we cared about who moved the story rapidly forward. Three groups of people, radicalized young people, their parents and the FBI all racing to circumvent a catastrophic event.

There were a few quirks of character I wish were better explained. Did the FBI agent have a diagnosed mental problem? How did Greg's mom afford her quest to find him? How was she so skilled in subterfuge and driving? A few too many unexplained background things for me.

Still 4 stars. Worth reading.

Two parents of different children risk everything to run to the aid of them after they've been accused of terrorism. Have the kids been sucked into a cult, or are they participating of their own volition? Twists aplenty will keep readers guessing. Great for fans of thrillers.

I went into this hating it. I don’t know if it’s because as an American who was a child during 9/11 I have a sour taste in my mouth for terrorism, or because it was very slow to take off, but I am so glad I stuck with this to the end.

The scariest part of this entire premise is I can 💯% see this happening in the near future. The government is so far gone, and pulling this country into a bottomless chasm.

The idea of a cult like group working to reset it, and two parents doing everything in their power to find their children that get caught in the middle is very real.

The one thing I have to say is the ending is rather abrupt.
And the chapters all end on a sudden note too. And it gave me mental whiplash. I would have appreciated smoother transitions.

Thanks to Net Galley and the author for the opportunity to read this in exchange for an honest opinion.

4 ⭐️

In London, the police storm Heathrow Airport to bring in a father for questioning about his missing daughter. In Florida, a mother makes a connection between her son and the bomber, fearing he has been radicalized. And in Oregon, an unknown organization’s conspiracy to bring America to its knees unfolds…

This was not what I was expecting at all but I did really enjoy it. Well plotted and very tense.

Hunted was a great thriller novel, it had a great concept and worked with this type of book. It had a strong plot with great characters. I enjoyed getting to read this and enjoyed how Abir Mukherjee wrote this.

Thank you to NetGalley and Mullholland Books Publisher for the opportunity to read and review an advanced copy of this book.

I immediately fell under the spell of this book, mesmerized by its haunting whispers of trees. Shreya Mistry, the fearless FBI agent, became my trusted confidante, drawing me into her thrilling quest for truth. As we raced across continents, I felt my heart pounding in sync with hers, my mind whirling with theories and suspects. The rain-soaked streets echoed my own turmoil, as if the skies themselves were conspiring with the author to keep me turning the pages. This book wrapped itself around my soul, a seductive embrace that left me breathless and craving more. If you're ready to surrender to a thriller that will own you, body and mind, then join me in this addictive adventure.

I am probably not the best reader for this book, since I'm not generally fond of thrillers, and this is very much a thriller, complete with car chases, shootouts, and breakneck flights from powerful enemies.

The story involves three parents. Two have children who have become enmeshed in a shadowy group that is responsible for a deadly bombing that was set off by a young Muslim woman who realizes, as she tries to flee, she has been lied to. The parents, one a headstrong American woman looking for her veteran son, the other a Bangladeshi asylum seeker long settled in Britain whose young daughter has disappeared, apparently to join a terrorist cell. The third parent is a driven FBI agent who is in trouble for following her instincts against orders, who can't find the time to talk to her daughter until the unthinkable happens. The two children who have been caught up in the secret cell are beginning to have doubts and find themselves up against powerful foes. All of this unfolds against the backdrop of a looming presidential election between an establishment woman candidate, estranged from the common people, and a loudmouthed populist with an enthusiastic following. Sounds very familiar.

Those who enjoy political thrillers with lots of action and twists and turns will probably love it. I ... didn't, but it's partly because it's not my kind of book and partly because I dislike plots that rely on extraordinarily competent secret organizations that can anticipate every move and have the skill sets of super heroes (or villains). (It kind of felt like an evocation of the so-called "deep state" which in reality is just a large bureaucracy full of civil servants doing their best but without the power or, in many cases, the skills, to set national agendas or accomplish their goals. I also don't like blaming everything on "polarization" as if there are two equally extreme factions vying for power, but that's a rant for another venue...)

I did find most of the characters nicely developed as real human beings who I cared about, and the pacing is just as breakneck as a thriller should be. I'm sure it will hit the spot with many readers.