Author: Janet Litherland

ISBN: 978-0-7414-8345-4 Pages: 187, $13.95, Publication Date: Spring 2013, Soft Cover, Fiction, Published by Infinity Publishing

Grabbing attention from the opening pages of any novel is very difficult. Mastering that technique is critical and Janet Litherland does it with style in “Worth Dying For.” “A bullet whistled past Hannah Rosse’s ear as she crossed the living room of her home. It knocked a framed photo off the mantle, and sent it crashing to the floor.”

This is how you keep the reader going from the top of the page to the bottom! What is going to happen next? Curiosity abounds and readers are compelled to move on.

The character development is excellent and introduction to this former CIA agent is swift. Agency respect for Hannah continues because of her training as a skillful agent. However, she is living in a small town and appears as a sedate widow even though she took up residence 30 years previously.

The story revolves around spies, murder, intrigue, and all the elements, which make up a thriller. Newbies to the CIA call upon this aged hero to do their groundwork and discover members of a foreign sleeper cell in her small community. She is asked to look at her friends in a new light and invade their privacy by gathering information proving either they are spies or not! What this means is Hannah must interact with a male acquaintance, get closer to him, and delve into his real motives for involvement in the community.

Litherland keeps it clean in this book, but there is romantic involvement between Hannah and her suspect. Keeping close contact with her handlers at the agency via a secure phone adds to the impact of secrecy. In all, detail of how the CIA roots out the bad guys is very realistic.

Another interesting background note is the discussion of Hannah living in Germany and the Nazi killing of her parents. Careful planning which resulted in her living in the Netherlands and then England spared her from certain extermination. Her living in these different places gave her language skills that the CIA acknowledged when they trained her to spy for them. Mastering skills to do combat, shoot, and observe became ingrained in her so that even after a hiatus of 30 years she could still be on the job!

Janet Litherland is an excellent storyteller. However, the main drawback is the book could have been longer. With all the character development, foundation for action that is more extensive, so that another 100 or so pages would have been in order. A sequel using many of the same characters can resolve this. Stylistic writing, descriptive dialogue, and action sequences drive this author to be recognized. She has written several other books, but this by far, is one her most outstanding.

“Worth Dying For” is a five star book and you do not have to take the fatal plunge just buy it to enjoy!

Clark Isaacs is an accomplished book critic who is published in local newspapers and national book review lists. He is a member of the faculty of Mohave Community College in Kingman, Arizona. Visit Clark Isaacs at http://clarkisaacs.ning.com   ©CIsaacs 2013

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