Critical Reaction

Todd M. Johnson

 

My Review

 

Todd M. Johnson brings us a spine tingling thriller about a fight against injustice with complications.  The plot flows effortlessly.  I have never read this genre before, so this was quiet an experience and one that I look forward to repeating in the next book by Mr. Johnson.  The first part of the story was difficult to get through as he give us background of the facility, but this was essential as it's all connected.  The strong characters and excellent use of imagery will readily pull the reader in and keep them turning the pages until the end. 

Hanford Nuclear Facility is located in Washington state and during the cold war produced plutonium.  The facility has been shut down for years and employee guards  to protect it from sabotage. The facility assures the employees that all traces of plutonium have been cleaned up. Kieran Mullaney is a young man who works at Hanford and during a routine check finds  a vat full of suspicious material.  Before he can escape unharmed and explosion rocks the night.  Many were injured and killed, but some are people are still missing.  Kieran survives and begins asking questions and investigating, but not getting any answers.  After being stone walled again and again, he feels his only recourse is to hire an attorney and file a lawsuit, but the attorney withdraws when there's only about 2 months prior to the trial. 

 

Kieran reaches out to an old college friend for help.  Emily Hart hasn't seen Kieran since college when he left abruptly to help his family, but feels the case has merit.  As she digs into the case and finding it littered with bribes and cover ups, she thinks this is going to be way over her head.  The only person she knows of with the experience to win this case is her father, Ryan, but they have been estranged for years. 

 

Ryan after hearing about the case wants to advise Emily to not get involved, but knows with their history she is not going to listen.  He agrees to help mostly in hopes that working together might help bridge their relationship.  Suddenly they find things are more complicated than they had ever imagined.  More and more inconsistencies keep coming up and they begin to wonder if this is all a massive cover up. 

 

Will Kieran finally get the answers he's looking for?  Will Emily and Ryan be able to prove that the explosion is the result of negligence?  Will they finally get justice for Kieran and the others that have been affected by the explosion?

 

I have rated this book with 5 out of 5 stars.

I would recommend this book to anyone who loves to read not only a great story, but an edge of your seat thriller.
I was given this book by Bethany House Publishers for an honest review.  

 

Let me introduce you to the author:

Todd M. Johnson has practiced as an attorney for over 30 years, specializing as a trial lawyer. Todd's career experience blends with his passion for writing in his novels published through Bethany House.
A graduate of Princeton University and the University of Minnesota Law School, he also taught for two years as an adjunct professor of International Law, and served as a US diplomat in Hong Kong.
The Deposit Slip, Mr. Johnson's first novel, debuted in 2012. Todd's second novel, Critical Reaction, was released in October 2013