K Falls

Venus Diamond #5

by Skye Kathleen Moody, Skye Moody

WILDCRAFTERS: When eco-terrorists blow up a series of dams crossing the Columbia River, US Fish & Wildlife undercover agent Venus Diamond attempts to find out what happened to her friend and fellow eco-cop Louie Song, believed drowned during the massive explosion at the Priest Rapids Dam. A dead salmon sent to Venus suggests the reason behind the series of dam blasts, and simple logic maps the deadly path that lies ahead, including the potential eco-disaster that could come with blowing up the grandest of them all, Grand Coulee Dam. Joining the activist group “Dambusters", with headquarters in Kettle Falls near the US-Canada border, Venus is plunged into the dark, violent world of environmental militants in the deadliest case of her career, as she races to uncover the chilling secret behind the eco-terror moving steadily up the Columbia River before it’s too late.


“There’s plenty of suspense here…and while Moody winds up the story nicely, she has the confidence to leave some questions unanswered.”
~ Publishers Weekly (K Falls)

Genres: Mystery

352 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 1, 2001

Reviews

[Karen Gregory · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm very disappointed in this book. Salmon are a huge part of my life and I was excited about this book. It didn't hit the spot for me.

[Rosina Lippi · Rating 1 out of 5]

I appreciate a good, well structured mystery, but there are a few things that stop me cold. First, this book is peppered with factual errors. Neither Venus Diamond, a Fish & Wildlife Agen (our heroine), nor the author, who is reported to live in the Northwest where she sets her novels, know much at all about salmon, their environment, predators, or their life cycle.

If you have a character who is a fish and wildlife agent, it's a good idea to do some research about fish and wildlife. There's a truism for you.

The book might have worked better for me if not for the blundering of Venus Diamond in her area of expertise (and who names a character Venus Diamond? Impossible to take seriously), whole thing comes across as swollen and rather full of itself.

In an effort to give this author a fair chance, I read two other of her books -- Medusa (giant jellyfish, Russian mobsters, missing children) and The Good Diamond. The Good Diamond goes into the international diamond cartel and the issue of blood diamonds. I would have found this interesting, but given earlier experiences I am hesitant to put any faith in the facts as presented.

[Sandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Getting soooo interesting! lol Venus is always in the middle of something and this time she ends up in Eastern Washington, undercover, trying to keep all the dams on the Colombia River from being blown up by people that want to let the fish through. What I find interesting about Ms. Moody's series is that she not only tells a fun, serious mystery, but she brings forth the issues we face now about our impact on our environment and what we are doing to the planet and the wild life. Every story is great and all her books are going on to my "keeper" shelf. Next I'm reading Medusa, the next book in the series.

[Janice · Rating 4 out of 5]

Skye Kathleen Moody's "Venus Diamond" series takes place in the northwest, Washington and Oregon mostly. Venus is an agent with the National Fish and Wildlife agency. In this book she is working to prevent a home-grown terrorist group from blowing up damns along the Columbia River. These are very enjoyable books that also shed some light on environmental issues, and Venus's personal life keeps getting more complicated as well.

[Melissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Would have been better but at least twice mentioned that beaver eat salmon which they do not!