What do you think?
Rate this book
Alpha and Omega
Beautiful environmental graduate student Chesney Barrett previously helped clandestine government agent Travis Weld locate and destroy a drug operation in the Louisiana swamps. Her ability to decipher clues that lead to complex criminal plots, and maneuver her way through dangerous confrontations led Weld to use her again to help track down the owner of a Russian suitcase-sized nuclear bomb and again to locate the scientist offering to sell a deadly new virus.
Chesney is now utilizing her swimming expertise to help the forestry service gather environmental samples from the rivers in the Smoky Mountain National Park. When she finds a dead man obviously killed by a large animal, she hustles downstream to retrieve her boat so she can take the body into the Forestry Service Center. But when she returns, the body is gone. The tracks indicate animals that are not normally in these forests have taken the body and someone is with the animals. None of this makes sense. Who is the dead man? Who is the person who somehow controls the animals? What are they doing in this forest? Trying to answer these questions plunges Chesney into a deadly confrontation that rapidly escalates into a battle for who will control a unique new weapon. This time, it is Chesney who will ask Travis Weld for help.
149 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 11, 2018
1 person is currently reading
1 person want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
February 26, 2019
‘Am I ever going to get out of your Twilight Zone?’
Michigan author Robert W Gallant enjoyed a career as a researcher and high level manager in the technology business, writing articles in scientific journals. He wrote three books on technology that became reference standards in industry and universities and one book on how to be a good manager and leader, before devoting his life to writing suspenseful thrillers that offer unique information about a particular geographic area, culture, and/or technology. His awards include the Martin Luther King Day Award for his contributions to the advancement of minorities and women in business, and helping the Governor of Texas establish a task force of environmental leaders, business leaders, and state agencies to advance environmental excellence and economic growth in the State of Texas.
Gallant’s books to date include five episodes in the adventures of his main characters Travis Weld and Chesney Barrett. In this fifth book ALPHA AND OMEGA Gallant combines mystery, suspense and international intrigue in a manner to which we’ve grown to enjoy being immersed. He opens this novel with a moment with Chesney that brings her fully to life – again: ‘Chesney Barrett Splashed to the surface, gasped in a fresh breath of air, rotated onto her back, and kicked toward the shore; holding the plastic bags of water and mud in her hands. Her face smiled at the uniqueness of these Smoky Mountain streams. Totally different from the murky warm bayous in her Louisiana swamps. These are cold, even in summer, and vary from rock-strewn frothing streams difficult to paddle up; to ribbons of perfect sun-sparkling lightly foaming deeper sections.’
From the we meet the couple as they delve into adventure – ‘Beautiful environmental graduate student Chesney Barrett previously helped clandestine government agent Travis Weld locate and destroy a drug operation in the Louisiana swamps. Her ability to decipher clues that lead to complex criminal plots, and maneuver her way through dangerous confrontations led Weld to use her again to help track down the owner of a Russian suitcase-sized nuclear bomb and again to locate the scientist offering to sell a deadly new virus. Chesney is now utilizing her swimming expertise to help the forestry service gather environmental samples from the rivers in the Smoky Mountain National Park. When she finds a dead man obviously killed by a large animal, she hustles downstream to retrieve her boat so she can take the body into the Forestry Service Center. But when she returns, the body is gone. The tracks indicate animals that are not normally in these forests have taken the body and someone is with the animals. None of this makes sense. Who is the dead man? Who is the person who somehow controls the animals? What are they doing in this forest? Trying to answer these questions plunges Chesney into a deadly confrontation that rapidly escalates into a battle for who will control a unique new weapon. This time, it is Chesney who will ask Travis Weld for help.’
As always the story grows more suspenseful with every page. This is a very strong book.
Michigan author Robert W Gallant enjoyed a career as a researcher and high level manager in the technology business, writing articles in scientific journals. He wrote three books on technology that became reference standards in industry and universities and one book on how to be a good manager and leader, before devoting his life to writing suspenseful thrillers that offer unique information about a particular geographic area, culture, and/or technology. His awards include the Martin Luther King Day Award for his contributions to the advancement of minorities and women in business, and helping the Governor of Texas establish a task force of environmental leaders, business leaders, and state agencies to advance environmental excellence and economic growth in the State of Texas.
Gallant’s books to date include five episodes in the adventures of his main characters Travis Weld and Chesney Barrett. In this fifth book ALPHA AND OMEGA Gallant combines mystery, suspense and international intrigue in a manner to which we’ve grown to enjoy being immersed. He opens this novel with a moment with Chesney that brings her fully to life – again: ‘Chesney Barrett Splashed to the surface, gasped in a fresh breath of air, rotated onto her back, and kicked toward the shore; holding the plastic bags of water and mud in her hands. Her face smiled at the uniqueness of these Smoky Mountain streams. Totally different from the murky warm bayous in her Louisiana swamps. These are cold, even in summer, and vary from rock-strewn frothing streams difficult to paddle up; to ribbons of perfect sun-sparkling lightly foaming deeper sections.’
From the we meet the couple as they delve into adventure – ‘Beautiful environmental graduate student Chesney Barrett previously helped clandestine government agent Travis Weld locate and destroy a drug operation in the Louisiana swamps. Her ability to decipher clues that lead to complex criminal plots, and maneuver her way through dangerous confrontations led Weld to use her again to help track down the owner of a Russian suitcase-sized nuclear bomb and again to locate the scientist offering to sell a deadly new virus. Chesney is now utilizing her swimming expertise to help the forestry service gather environmental samples from the rivers in the Smoky Mountain National Park. When she finds a dead man obviously killed by a large animal, she hustles downstream to retrieve her boat so she can take the body into the Forestry Service Center. But when she returns, the body is gone. The tracks indicate animals that are not normally in these forests have taken the body and someone is with the animals. None of this makes sense. Who is the dead man? Who is the person who somehow controls the animals? What are they doing in this forest? Trying to answer these questions plunges Chesney into a deadly confrontation that rapidly escalates into a battle for who will control a unique new weapon. This time, it is Chesney who will ask Travis Weld for help.’
As always the story grows more suspenseful with every page. This is a very strong book.
February 22, 2019
During her trip to collect samples of the river bed in a national park near Asheville, for her friend Ed in the Forestry Service, Chesney comes across a boat with a dead body in it. Shortly after that she gets tranq’ed and is then found by Ed who was on his way to help her. After mountain lion paw-prints at the scene add to the mystery of it all Chesney decides to call in help from her friend Travis Weld, a secret government agent who she worked with in the past. The two of them start working on the mystery and through the danger, they grow closer in their relationship.
This story was a great action adventure story. There was plenty of mystery and chasing down leads by competent characters. The lead being a female who wasn’t completely dependent upon her male counterpart was a nice change from the usual and she was written in a convincing manner. The only part that distracted me a tad bit was the detail that the author went into. It is always good when the author gives us enough detail that we can paint an accurate picture of what is going on, but when the author gives us too much it can be easy to become overwhelmed with the details and distracted from the story. Other than that, this is certainly a good book to read.
This story was a great action adventure story. There was plenty of mystery and chasing down leads by competent characters. The lead being a female who wasn’t completely dependent upon her male counterpart was a nice change from the usual and she was written in a convincing manner. The only part that distracted me a tad bit was the detail that the author went into. It is always good when the author gives us enough detail that we can paint an accurate picture of what is going on, but when the author gives us too much it can be easy to become overwhelmed with the details and distracted from the story. Other than that, this is certainly a good book to read.
February 22, 2019
Alpha and Omega is one of a series of five novels by Robert W. Gallant featuring Chesney Barrett and Travis Weld. Chesney is an environmental scientist and Travis is a covert government agent. The two have partnered in the past to bring down some nasty characters so when Chesney finds herself in a quandary during a project in the Smokey Mountains, she appeals to Travis for help.
I have not read any of the other books in the series so this was my first exposure to Chesney and Travis. It took some time for me to warm up to Chesney. When a character is written with so few flaws, I have a habit of discounting their legitimacy. I enjoyed the character of Travis right away. The story was brisk and full of action without being too over the top. I know it's fiction but some level of reality is necessary unless the fiction is science fiction or fantasy. Many authors don't write that way but Gallant did it well.
I have not read any of the other books in the series so this was my first exposure to Chesney and Travis. It took some time for me to warm up to Chesney. When a character is written with so few flaws, I have a habit of discounting their legitimacy. I enjoyed the character of Travis right away. The story was brisk and full of action without being too over the top. I know it's fiction but some level of reality is necessary unless the fiction is science fiction or fantasy. Many authors don't write that way but Gallant did it well.
February 25, 2019
Alpha and Omega by Robert W. Gallant is a great story with a strong female lead with Chesney Barrett. Her work takes her to the Smoky Mountains, gathering samples of water in the local streams and waterways. As an accomplished swimmer she has no trouble tackling the sometimes tricky waterways of the mountains. That is, until she finds a body in a boat in the water. When the body and the boat both disappear, the action begins. Mysterious mountain lion paw prints, danger, and her friend Travis Weld, a secret government agent, all make this story riveting and exciting. This a great action story headlined with a strong female character lead that is not overly dependent on a strong male lead. Chesney and Travis work together well, and their relationship is well described and realistically depicted. A solid plot, fast action, and great characters make for a riveting read. Highly recommend if you are looking for suspense and intrigue.
March 1, 2019
A great murder mystery adventure loaded with thrills
Robert Gallant has done an amazing job presenting Alpha and Omega for our reading pleasure. This action story is dripping with suspense and runs a thrill per minute as we follow the journey of Chesney Barnett and Travis Weld trying to solve this Smokey mountain murder mystery while staying alive. Chesney has discovered a body while out on the river in the mountains. Along with the body, a set of tracks that doesn't belong in this country. Chesney enlisted the help of longtime friend Travis Weld and together they run headlong into the unknown while working to solve this murder and find the beast roaming the hills. The story is fun and the characters are developed and relateable. This is a must read for the adventure and thrill seekers.
Robert Gallant has done an amazing job presenting Alpha and Omega for our reading pleasure. This action story is dripping with suspense and runs a thrill per minute as we follow the journey of Chesney Barnett and Travis Weld trying to solve this Smokey mountain murder mystery while staying alive. Chesney has discovered a body while out on the river in the mountains. Along with the body, a set of tracks that doesn't belong in this country. Chesney enlisted the help of longtime friend Travis Weld and together they run headlong into the unknown while working to solve this murder and find the beast roaming the hills. The story is fun and the characters are developed and relateable. This is a must read for the adventure and thrill seekers.
February 25, 2019
Such a cool lead character
I really liked the idea of the book and how everything played out. Chester kinda reminds me of like a mix between Indiana Jones and the Black Widow. She’s a strong character who’s a pro and what she does-throughout the book you can see that. She has a soft side and a genuine sense of doing what is good. The mystery of what happened to the dead man at the beginning reels in the reader with all these super interesting details that unravel bit by bit as you keep going. A VERY cool book.
I really liked the idea of the book and how everything played out. Chester kinda reminds me of like a mix between Indiana Jones and the Black Widow. She’s a strong character who’s a pro and what she does-throughout the book you can see that. She has a soft side and a genuine sense of doing what is good. The mystery of what happened to the dead man at the beginning reels in the reader with all these super interesting details that unravel bit by bit as you keep going. A VERY cool book.
July 14, 2019
"Alpha and Omega" is a good story that has twists and turns - a thriller of a sort. As a whole, the story was well written. We have a solid introduction, a good story throughout, but the conclusion felt a little rushed. The main plot line was wrapped up nicely, but the way the story concluded could have been written a bit better. It felt more like a television season finale ending than a book ending (there is a difference). I did enjoy the characters, and I thought Weld and Chesney were written well as human beings, and the author didn't fall into the hole of writing 2-dimensional characters for either one of them. There were a few instances I did not enjoy, and I believe they could have been written better or at least one of them. The author used the 'r' word more than once. It is frustrating when we hear folks ask the overall public to stop using the word in their vocabulary and repeatedly get ignored for it. The author did use the phrase "mentally disabled," which is better, and he should have used that instead of the 'r' word. Let's just forget about the word. It doesn't help anyone when we use it. The other instance was when Chesney was captured, and just the way the author ended the way the captor searched her was not pleasant. Was it really needed? What was the overall purpose to it. I didn't see the last part of the search tie the story as a whole. I could be wrong. Both instances stuck with me, so my rating for the overall story fell to 3. The story itself is definitely worth 4 stars. It's a good story, and I would recommend it (removing the two instances mentioned above).
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews