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The Pendulum Files
CIA operative Dylan Maguire joins forces with psychic spy Vicki Boyd to find out who is bombing merchant vessels bound for the United States from China. Their mission will lead them to Black Sites, the high seas and into covert operations. And when an assassin escapes from prison determined to finish the job he started, they find their personal lives and their missions are about to collide in ways they never could have imagined.
- GenresThriller
322 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 27, 2014
39 people want to read
About the author
P.M. Terrell
22 books241 followersp.m.terrell is the pen name for Patricia McClelland Terrell, the award-winning, internationally acclaimed author of more than 27 books in four genres: contemporary suspense, historical adventure/suspense, computer how-to, and non-fiction.
Before writing full-time, she founded two computer companies in the Washington, DC, Metropolitan Area. Among her clients were the Central Intelligence Agency, the United States Secret Service, the U.S. Information Agency, and the Department of Defense. Her specialties were white-collar computer crime and computer intelligence, themes that carried forward into her contemporary suspense.
She has been a full-time author since 2002. Vicki’s Key was a top five finalist in the 2012 International Book Awards and 2012 USA Book Awards nominee, and The Pendulum Files was a national finalist for the Best Cover of the Year in 2014. The Tempest Murders was one of four finalists in the 2013 International Book Awards, cross-genre category.
Her historical suspense, River Passage, was a 2010 Best Fiction and Drama Winner. It was determined to be so historically accurate that a copy of the book resides at the Nashville Government Metropolitan Archives in Nashville, Tennessee.
Before writing full-time, she founded two computer companies in the Washington, DC, Metropolitan Area. Among her clients were the Central Intelligence Agency, the United States Secret Service, the U.S. Information Agency, and the Department of Defense. Her specialties were white-collar computer crime and computer intelligence, themes that carried forward into her contemporary suspense.
She has been a full-time author since 2002. Vicki’s Key was a top five finalist in the 2012 International Book Awards and 2012 USA Book Awards nominee, and The Pendulum Files was a national finalist for the Best Cover of the Year in 2014. The Tempest Murders was one of four finalists in the 2013 International Book Awards, cross-genre category.
Her historical suspense, River Passage, was a 2010 Best Fiction and Drama Winner. It was determined to be so historically accurate that a copy of the book resides at the Nashville Government Metropolitan Archives in Nashville, Tennessee.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
March 2, 2018
The beginning of The Pendulum Files by P M Terrell slapped me awake!
Dylan’s Song was soooo good, I just had to jump right into The Pendulum Files by P M Terrell and it began with a sense of foreboding and danger that more than met my expectations. Reeled me in, hook, line and sinker.
Each book can stand alone, with recurring characters and occasionally a new one added. They have become my family and I don’t want you to miss anything, so I do recommend beginning at the beginning. I believe, once you start, you won’t want to stop.
I love P M Terrell’s ability to layer plots, with multiple storylines running throughout.
The story will take us back to WWII and the lost riches of the Germans.
A premonition…
Oops, they missed that one and I wonder what will bite them in the ass because of it. OH NO! We take a terrible twist and Vicki becomes a primary target.
Brenda may be a second tier character, but I love her. She is a badass, take no prisoner type of gal, tough as nails. She will not stand still and let HIM take her out. She has her issues, has crossed the line and back again, but no one can accuse her of sitting idly by and letting life happen to her. She would fight on her own terms.
She brought Christopher to life. She is wild, passionate, unpredictable, and there is nothing he won’t do for her.
In Chris’ apartment…Gabucci…Brenda…the balcony…the fall…OMG! I fought along with Christopher…I was terrified for Brenda…OMG…I don’t believe it. P M, what are you doing to them. The author is not afraid to put her characters through the ringer, and make me wonder who will be left standing in the end.
The pendulum haunts Vicki. She is the only one to hear it. What does it mean?
Dylan has some of the craziest, funniest, ridiculous superstitions and insists, “It’s true.” I smile and shake my head at each and every one. Now, that’s some great writing P.
The political machinations read as if they are current events and, of course, there is misconduct, conspiracy, maybe even treason.
Even though the bombing of the ships mystery is solved, the story is far from over. What this family will face in the next dangerous adventure I can only guess, and I am eager to find out. Sooo, I eagerly being reading Cloak and Mirrors.
I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of The Pendulum Files by P M Terrell.
See more at fundinmental
Dylan’s Song was soooo good, I just had to jump right into The Pendulum Files by P M Terrell and it began with a sense of foreboding and danger that more than met my expectations. Reeled me in, hook, line and sinker.
Each book can stand alone, with recurring characters and occasionally a new one added. They have become my family and I don’t want you to miss anything, so I do recommend beginning at the beginning. I believe, once you start, you won’t want to stop.
I love P M Terrell’s ability to layer plots, with multiple storylines running throughout.
The story will take us back to WWII and the lost riches of the Germans.
A premonition…
Oops, they missed that one and I wonder what will bite them in the ass because of it. OH NO! We take a terrible twist and Vicki becomes a primary target.
Brenda may be a second tier character, but I love her. She is a badass, take no prisoner type of gal, tough as nails. She will not stand still and let HIM take her out. She has her issues, has crossed the line and back again, but no one can accuse her of sitting idly by and letting life happen to her. She would fight on her own terms.
She brought Christopher to life. She is wild, passionate, unpredictable, and there is nothing he won’t do for her.
In Chris’ apartment…Gabucci…Brenda…the balcony…the fall…OMG! I fought along with Christopher…I was terrified for Brenda…OMG…I don’t believe it. P M, what are you doing to them. The author is not afraid to put her characters through the ringer, and make me wonder who will be left standing in the end.
The pendulum haunts Vicki. She is the only one to hear it. What does it mean?
Dylan has some of the craziest, funniest, ridiculous superstitions and insists, “It’s true.” I smile and shake my head at each and every one. Now, that’s some great writing P.
The political machinations read as if they are current events and, of course, there is misconduct, conspiracy, maybe even treason.
Even though the bombing of the ships mystery is solved, the story is far from over. What this family will face in the next dangerous adventure I can only guess, and I am eager to find out. Sooo, I eagerly being reading Cloak and Mirrors.
I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of The Pendulum Files by P M Terrell.
See more at fundinmental
March 25, 2014
Awesome book, awesome story. This is book 5 in the Black Swamp Series but the series by no means needs to be read in order (I didn’t). It is such a good read. It starts out with a bang, a real attention grabber. Then it settles down for a bit so that you get involved in the characters lives and get to know them, get a sense of what’s going on and potentially what the mystery is. Then things soon pick up again and you have ships being blown up, people being chased and shot, hidden cameras seeing things they shouldn’t be. You feel like you are a part of this story, of the characters’ lives. It’s really well written, it starts with the CIA trying to solve one mystery only to discover that there are a couple of others ones going on.
I love this series and the real-life people who make it so engaging. It was great to see what was happening with Brenda – I think my favorite character – who is in trouble big time with the authorities. She doesn’t care about the rules just in getting things done, her way. Her sister Vicki works with the CIA so it makes things awkward at times when family loyalty gets in the way of catching the bad guys. Then there’s Chris, a nice political guy, who goes from not breaking rules to breaking many. And then there’s Dylan – who can resist a guy with an Irish brogue? Oh yeah and there’s Sam too, their contact in the CIA, who’s a bit grumpy but quite likeable.
This book can be read on its own but is a great culmination of all the Black Swamp Mystery series. Ms. Terrell is one of my favorite authors as she weaves an interesting and intriguing mystery that includes elements of the psychic world, romance, intrigue, suspense. Well done.
I love this series and the real-life people who make it so engaging. It was great to see what was happening with Brenda – I think my favorite character – who is in trouble big time with the authorities. She doesn’t care about the rules just in getting things done, her way. Her sister Vicki works with the CIA so it makes things awkward at times when family loyalty gets in the way of catching the bad guys. Then there’s Chris, a nice political guy, who goes from not breaking rules to breaking many. And then there’s Dylan – who can resist a guy with an Irish brogue? Oh yeah and there’s Sam too, their contact in the CIA, who’s a bit grumpy but quite likeable.
This book can be read on its own but is a great culmination of all the Black Swamp Mystery series. Ms. Terrell is one of my favorite authors as she weaves an interesting and intriguing mystery that includes elements of the psychic world, romance, intrigue, suspense. Well done.
December 6, 2022
Very good. I've always enjoyed reading her books.
May 10, 2014
Since I received this book in exchange for an honest review, I didn't do my homework so didn't know it was part of a series. I'm definitely someone who generally doesn't like to read a book out of order in a series, but have to admit that this one can almost be read as a standalone with minimal impact to the overall storyline. Yes, there were areas that made me feel like I was missing something in not reading the previous books first, but there was so much going on, you get sucked into the action and given how well it is written, I figured I can always go back and read the other books later. And in order!
The story opens up with Vicki, who is a psychic, dreaming that she and her sister Brenda are being chased and get run off the road, and almost killed. Since her gift doesn't usually manifest while sleeping, she just thinks it is a dream...however, vivid. Vicki lives with her significant other Dylan, the father of her unborn child. Both she and Dylan work for the CIA under Sam, who also raised Vicki after the death of her parents. Her sister Brenda lives with them and is under house arrest. She isn't allowed to use any type of technology nor leave the premises. However, things start to get a little dangerous when an assassin tries to kill her, more than once. At the same time that all of the drama surrounding the attempts on Brenda's life are on-going, Dylan has been tasked with helping Sam locate who is responsible for recent attacks on ships bearing cargo to the US from China. The attacks appear out of nowhere, and everyone and everything are completely destroyed. Law enforcement is stumped, but have captured someone they believe is linked with the attacks and need Dylan's assistance with learning who is behind it all.
Technically, there are two major plot twists. One is the attacks on the ships that Dylan, Sam, and even Vicki are investigating. The second are the attempts to assassinate Vicki. Since she turned in all of her evidence, they cannot figure out why the assassin broke out of prison and is trying to kill her. And he is relentless. I loved all of the action going on throughout the story. And although I had not read the previous books, I came to like these characters. I gave Vicki credit for standing by her sister for as long as she did, especially with the risk to her unborn child. I also gave her credit for bearing with Dylan's over-protective streak. At times I might of lost it with him, sexy Irish brogue or not. Chris was sweet...and could not seem to enforce or remember any of the rules that applied to Brenda's incarceration. And when things really got ugly, he even agreed to help her break a few laws. That's love people. As for the assassin, talk about hard to kill. The man was seriously frightening, and relentless. My one issue....why it took them so long to figure out how he seems to always be one step ahead of them!
Bottom line, this book has tons of action, romance, mystery, and some great characters. If you like mystery/suspense books, you'll like this one. However, I will caution that if you are like me and like to read books in order, you'll probably wish you read this book after the previous ones.
The story opens up with Vicki, who is a psychic, dreaming that she and her sister Brenda are being chased and get run off the road, and almost killed. Since her gift doesn't usually manifest while sleeping, she just thinks it is a dream...however, vivid. Vicki lives with her significant other Dylan, the father of her unborn child. Both she and Dylan work for the CIA under Sam, who also raised Vicki after the death of her parents. Her sister Brenda lives with them and is under house arrest. She isn't allowed to use any type of technology nor leave the premises. However, things start to get a little dangerous when an assassin tries to kill her, more than once. At the same time that all of the drama surrounding the attempts on Brenda's life are on-going, Dylan has been tasked with helping Sam locate who is responsible for recent attacks on ships bearing cargo to the US from China. The attacks appear out of nowhere, and everyone and everything are completely destroyed. Law enforcement is stumped, but have captured someone they believe is linked with the attacks and need Dylan's assistance with learning who is behind it all.
Technically, there are two major plot twists. One is the attacks on the ships that Dylan, Sam, and even Vicki are investigating. The second are the attempts to assassinate Vicki. Since she turned in all of her evidence, they cannot figure out why the assassin broke out of prison and is trying to kill her. And he is relentless. I loved all of the action going on throughout the story. And although I had not read the previous books, I came to like these characters. I gave Vicki credit for standing by her sister for as long as she did, especially with the risk to her unborn child. I also gave her credit for bearing with Dylan's over-protective streak. At times I might of lost it with him, sexy Irish brogue or not. Chris was sweet...and could not seem to enforce or remember any of the rules that applied to Brenda's incarceration. And when things really got ugly, he even agreed to help her break a few laws. That's love people. As for the assassin, talk about hard to kill. The man was seriously frightening, and relentless. My one issue....why it took them so long to figure out how he seems to always be one step ahead of them!
Bottom line, this book has tons of action, romance, mystery, and some great characters. If you like mystery/suspense books, you'll like this one. However, I will caution that if you are like me and like to read books in order, you'll probably wish you read this book after the previous ones.
May 4, 2014
So apparently this is part of a series, but by no means do you have to read them in order because I truthfully didn’t read all of the other novels in this series and still was able to very much enjoy it. The author knows exactly how to get the attention of her readers right from the beginning. The way she writes her plot does not leave her readers just standing still, it definitely makes your mind work and it is in a good way. The whole time I was reading it, I was never bored with the plot, nor the characters (which I will tell a little about in a bit). The flow was continuously and had plenty of action, mystery, and suspense with a little touch of romance, bring in some secrets and you will have yourself a Pandora box. Each of the characters were unique, and was able to bring their own in this story line, to where now I definitely want to read the others in the series. The end was not what I expected but of course an amazing writer will never let you guess the ending of the book and will keep you guessing until they are ready to reveal. Grab your copy today and get comfortable you may be a while, trust me you won’t regret it!
September 2, 2016
Hail, hail, the gang is all back in pm terrell’s The Pendulum Files. Dylan & Vicki, expecting their first child. Chris & Brenda, running as usual because Brenda is always being hunted. Sam, the “boss” of everything who also has a soft spot for all of them. A cohesive working team all in their own rights, taking on the biggest problems they have faced yet. I have loved every book in this series and this one is just as good as the rest. I could happily read about these people forever. Of course it is pm terrell that makes it come together so magically, making us a part of their world. pm is most definitely a master wordsmith, plying her craft so well as to make us fall under her spell and never ever want to come back out. See I have a secret, I am not a big fan of suspense or mysteries and pm has made me a huge fan of her books. That alone speaks of her talent. I highly recommend her books, and this one is a five star read.
Book was given for honest review.
Book was given for honest review.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews