The second book in the Salem's Cipher series turned out to be better than the first one for me. Not just because we are getting to know the characters in more depth, but also because most of the action in the second book is centred around the UK and Ireland - more familiar territory to me - and also involves cracking a code based on Stonehenge which, like millions of other people, I have actually visited.

After the first book, where Salem was able to retrieve treasure and locate her kidnapped mother, this second book Seas the abduction of 7-year-old Mercy by The Order, which is the European equivalent of The Hermitage Foundation. Since Salem is agoraphobic and suffers from PTSD, it is only her affection for Mercy that drives her into the kind directions she must take, after initially having thought that she could not settle down and focus on her FBI codebreaker/code-developer job.

Mercy's character is a welcome addition to this storyline, and Bel take something of a backseat. We get to know Salem much better, and although the cipher and code elements are not that appealing in terms of my own personal interests, they are nevertheless well-done.

I read this because I read Salem's Cipher, but this one was somehow deeper in the weeds. I really enjoy Jess Lourey just maybe not this series.