Red Mist

by Sam Mitani

A drug cartel , North Korean agents, and a mysterious connection to China come together to bring terror to the Los Angeles Auto Show.Undercover intelligence officer Max Koga must rescue a kidnapped FBI agent and keep the L.A. Auto Show from collapsing on thousands of people.

336 pages, Hardcover

Published August 15, 2023

About the author

As the first Asian-American writer at one of the Big Three American automotive publications (Car and Driver, Motor Trend, Road & Track), Sam Mitani established himself as one of the foremost American authorities on Japanese cars. In addition to being the International Editor of Road & Track in its heyday, he has been published in magazines in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Canada and Japan, and in his spare time, authored a couple of travel books on Southeast Asia. Mitani has since entered the fiction market, where his expertise in martial arts and numerous adventures around the world have provided him with a rich source of experiences to tap for his creative projects.

Reviews

[Deborah Murphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this book very much. It is a great read.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an ARC through "Booksprout" and I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

This story introduces Max, a DEA agent, who is Mexico with his team when all of them are attacked and killed with the exception of Max who was captured and in the process of being tortured. Max is rescued by Seals, but is later released by the DEA. Max meets Paul Verdy of Argon Securities where iMax is offered a position and he accepts. For Max there was no time to get familiar with his role because from that day on he was on the move. He 1st got involved with someone who had information on the terrorist group who killed his team, that later led to information about a potential bomb plan.

Max in following up on these items discovered that they were all related and would eventually lead him to the head of the group that captured him and killed his team. Following further he learned of a foreign connection and because of an action that group wound up sending Max to another country where he was once more in the action.

Read along and discover the adventures that Max had as he started his new job and what role Argon provided. If you like a lot of action, you won't be disappointed. This is definitely worth the read, don't miss out!

[Suzanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love that we meet a new range of characters but still have the original protagonist from the previous book. It is a fantastic plot and really enjoyed the twist, turns and swirls. I cannot wait for the end to the trilogy.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Pablo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found Red Mist to be a solid beach read, what I would call the B list, i.e. good, but not in a class with some of the better thriller writers.

The story moves along well enough, a plot that manages to involve Arab terrorists, North Korea, Mexican drug lords, China and more. There's certainly a lot thrown in there. Our hero is likable but not necessarily a character for whom you'll feel empathy. The author both humanizes him with background information and with the story itself. But he also makes him cartoonish in his capabilities. For example, there's a scene where the hero takes shrapnel to the face and a bullet to the shoulder. Does it faze him? Apparently not as he's soon involved in hand-to-hand combat without mention of his injuries, nor does he ever seek medical attention before moving on to the next scene.

There were also a few continuity errors, if you pay too close attention. For example, the hero is hiding in a private plane and raises the steps to the plane. A few paragraphs later, the bad guys are climbing up those same stairs. Not major, but it should've been caught by the editor (I think).

Enjoyable, beach read, something to while away the time without too much thought.