“What a terrible thing pride is. If it were only my life to be lost, I could almost be grateful, for in posting it I have found it.”

Thank you HarperCollins Publishing for gifting me an advanced copy of L.C. Shaw’s book The Network. L.C. Shaw is the pseudonym of Lynne Constantine, who is the internationally bestselling co-author (along with her sister Valerie) under the name Liv Constantine of The Last Mrs. Parrish and The Last Time I Saw You.

“Late one night, investigative journalist Jack Logan receives a surprise visit from U.S. Senator Malcolm Phillips at his New York apartment. Disheveled and in a panic, the senator swears that he’s about to be murdered and pleads with Jack to protect his wife Taylor, who happens to be the only woman Jack has ever truly loved.

Days later, Phillips is found dead in a hotel room in Micronesia, the apparent victim of an allergy attack. While the nation mourns, Jack and Taylor race to find the one man who knows the truth. As they’re pursued by unknown assailants, their desperate hunt leads them to the Institute, an immense facility shrouded in mystery that has indoctrinated a generation of America’s political and media power players. Led by the enigmatic Damon Crosse, the Institute has its tentacles everywhere—but Taylor unknowingly holds the secret to the one thing that Crosse needs to carry out his plan.”

The Network is described as a fast-paced, pulse-pounding novel and, honestly, I couldn’t agree more. I was hooked from chapter one and was instantly drawn into the corrupt world that Jack Logan had become involved in. While remaining on the edge of my seat, I managed to read all 384 pages in a little under two days. 

I would like to warn any potential readers that this book is FULL of scenes that could be triggering for some: sexual assault, animal abuse, pregnancy loss, child abuse, and rape. There were some moments that I was completely overwhelmed with everything I was reading and had to take a moment to process it all. If you have any questions about these scenes, please feel free to reach out to me!

Be that as it may, if you can move past all of the triggering moments, the book is fascinating. I especially loved how the storyline flipped from the present situation involving Jack to the 1970s involving a mystery woman. It gave me a better look at what was occurring in the chapters involving Jack and Taylor, which kept me reading as I needed to know more about who all of the different characters were. To me, everything played out like an action movie as the character and scene descriptions were so vivid, I could see it all happening in real-time. 

The Network was just the fast-paced, action thriller that I had been wanting to read. Once you start reading this book, you will not be able to stop until the very end. And, even then, you’ll be left wanting more. Keep me mind that this is the first book in the Jack Logan series. I can’t wait to read the next installment!

Thank you HarperCollins Publishing and L.C. Shaw for gifting me an advanced copy of this book. The Network will be published on December 17th. Be sure to order your copy now!