This is the second book in the Triple Threat series by Lis Wiehl and April Henry and although I've not read the first book Face of Betrayal I still really enjoyed Hand of Fate. The story revolves around the murder of Jim Fate, a controversial radio talk show host. Jim dies when poisonous gas is released into his studio and the whole of downtown Portland is evacuated. Each of the three main characters - FBI Special Agent Nicole, crime reporter Cassidy and Federal Prosecuter Allison - are caught up in the ensuing panic and affected in very different ways. The 3 of them are going to have to work together to put together the clues and find the murderer.

It's been a while since I read a murder mystery but Hand of Fate had me gripped from the very beginning and I found it almost impossible to put down. Although we don't get to know Jim very well before his death we find out a lot about him through the investigation and although he doesn't come across as a very nice person he certianly didn't deserve to die in the way he did. The panic after the murder was very well written and had me gripped and I loved the fact that I wasn't able to work out who was the murderer - there was a very long list of suspects!

I really liked Nicole, Allison and Cassidy - they all have very distinct personalities and I liked the way the narrative switched between them so you got to see all sides of the story. Although I've not read the first book in the series I still enjoyed this installment but I am definitely planning on reading Face of Betrayal and will continue reading future books in the series. I think it might be better to read the series in order to make it easier to follow their growing friendship. Overall this was a very enjoyable read and I'd recommend to anyone who enjoys reading mysteries and crime novels.

Recieved for review from publisher Thomas Nelson as part of the BookSneeze blogger review program. I was not required to write a positive review & received no payment for reading this book.