Minutes to Die, by Susan Sleeman

I always appreciate when a follow-up book exceeds its predecessor.  Minutes to Die is Susan Sleeman's second book in her "Homeland Heroes" series.  Minutes to Die is set shortly after Seconds to Live, but focuses on a difference set of main characters.  We see cameos from the characters from the first book, but Sleeman changes the focus to FBI Agent Kiley Dawson and ICE Agent Evan Bowers.  They are working together to prevent an attack on the anniversary of 9/11 that, their intel has said, will kill millions of Americans.

Kiley and Evan have some history they have to work through.  Evan is crazy about her, but Kiley has yet to forgive him for some of his past failures.  Reluctantly, she brings him into the investigation and they work closely throughout the book.  Over time, she grows to appreciate him and forgive him.  My main criticism of Seconds to Live was that he suspense portion of the book took a back seat to the romance.  In Minutes to Die, I was pleased to see that it was the opposite.  Yes, the budding romance is a theme throughout, but it is easily overshadowed by the investigation and tension building up to the anticipated attack.

This is an example that I just thought was funny.  Call me sexist, but I don't see scenes like this written in suspense novels written by a man.

He released her and stepped back.  "As much as I want to kiss you right now, I think it would be a good idea for us to put whatever this is going on between us on the back burner." . . . He knew she needed to succeed so she never had to live with the guilt of failing to stop the most deadly terrorist attack even perpetrated on American soil.

I know it sounds like I'm making fun.  Maybe I am, a little, cynical, un-romantic guy that I am, but seriously I was quite pleased that this passage was not typical of the book as a whole.  Minutes to Die is told in a straightforward way, focussing on Kiley's leadership and giving details of the investigation coming together with the team's various investigative skills and a little bit of luck.  It seems like Sleeman paid more attention to the technical, tactical, and logistical details of the investigation than she did in Seconds to Live--another plus.

Given the improvement of book 2 over book 1, I look forward to the anticipated book 3, to be released next year.  Romance or not, I am sure, like book 1 and 2, will be an enjoyable read. 


Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!