May Day

Sam Cable #2

by Scott Bell, Jay S. Bell

Texas Ranger Sam Cable flies to California to extradite Jade Stone, a prisoner accused of the murder of her police detective boyfriend. On the way back, their small plane crashes in a remote area of the Gila National Forest. Sam, Jade, and the injured pilot soon discover that the crash was no accident. The charges against Jade aren’t as simple as they seem. Someone wants to silence her. Sam is on his own, one man against an army. And at his back is a beautiful prisoner who might or might not be a killer.

Genres: Thriller

242 pages, Paperback

First published June 11, 2019

About the author

Scott Bell writes because that way he can daydream and claim it on his taxes. A Certified Fraud Examiner and professional Suburban Man, Scott has a wife, two grown kids, and at least one cat sleeping on his keyboard. (The cat, not the wife and kids. They have their own keyboards to sleep on.)

When he's not writing, Scott fights a relentless battle against weeds, slow drivers, and ever-shrinking pants.

Reviews

[Cath · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is book two of the Sam Cable Mystery series and follows Texas Ranger Sam Cable as he is sent on a recovery trip to pick up a fugitive, Jade Stone, from California. Jade stands accused of murdering a police officer, who was also her boyfriend. She told her lawyer that her boyfriend and his half-brother were involved in something dodgy, but this is ignored as the usual excuse given by a guilty party. Sam is accompanied by another law enforcement officer that acts as the pilot of the small plane which will take them back to Texas to hand over the fugitive.

This is a classic type of cowboy style read. The bad guys are after them and the girl and the Ranger is the only one that can keep them safe. You don’t have to have read the first book in the series, but it would give you the background into Sam and his previous work with a federal agent called Rita. This is the first book I have read in the series and it didn’t leave me needing to read the first book in order to understand what happens in this book. It seems part of Jade’s story is true and her boyfriend’s half-brother, Reeder, is after her and wants to silence her permanently.

The small Cessna that the three are travelling in, ends up crashing in the mountains and Reeder and his men give a false location for the crash, delaying any search and rescue attempts. A helicopter appears soon after the crash, but Sam and Jade are busy trying to pull the pilot out of the wreck, and soon realise that the helicopter and its crew are not there to help save them, but to hunt them down. Having to carry a badly injured pilot, called Bogg, slows their progress and leaves them as easy prey for those tracking them.

The main part of the story continues with Sam and Jade working to evade the bad guys and more being brought in, to silence Jade and any other witnesses. Sam has limited supplies and only his trusty sidearm, so has to find the first bad guy and get the drop on him. When the next swarm of bad guys arrive, Sam and Jade need to find somewhere safe to hole up and make a last stand, if required. Sam is the lawman and Jade is far too attractive for her own good, leaving Sam with feelings he shouldn’t be having, whilst facing danger and death. He is the only man left that can keep Jade safe and he is having second thoughts on her actual guilt for the crime he is taking her in for.

The bad guys are people that should be on the good side, but are now corrupt and following Reeder in his money laundering methods. All following as little soldiers, without question, until far too late. But Jade still has a few surprises in her and has a strength of her own, especially when she decides her own fate. So, a few twists in the story, from each of the main characters, but also a few stereotypes in there for readers as well! A book to be taken as it is and to just enjoy for what it is. I read it straight through, as this is a nice enjoyable and easy read and I look forward to reading the other books in the series. I received an ARC copy of this book from Hidden Gems and I have freely given my own opinion of the book above.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

4* ARC Review - Prisoner Transfer Becomes Survivor
This is the second book I have read by this author through the Hidden Gems ARC program. It is an interesting series and I really enjoy Sam Cable as a character. There is also a cast of colorful secondary characters that make the story interesting. This book starts with a bang and has a great flow of action and adventure. In this story Texas Ranger Sam Cable is sent to California to extradite Jade Stone, a woman accused of killing her Dallas PD boyfriend. She believes there is corruption and therefore they have asked the Texas Rangers to help with her prisoner transfer.
There is action from the beginning of the book and their trip back to Texas takes lots of twists and turns as a simple prisoner transfer becomes a survivors tale. There is a lot of action and suspense while Sam tries to get everyone back safely. Great story and twists until the end.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most entertaining aspects of this book by Scott Bell is the talking to themselves by the characters, some of which absolutely side-splittingly funny. Another item I really enjoyed in this book were the quotes used to start off each chapter, as some were totally relevant to that chapter's activity, and some were simply thoughts to consider. And, the last refreshing and enjoyable part of the book were the characters themeselves, and how the author chose to treat them in terms of both characteristics as well as their actions. Of course, the story itself was a highly intelligent thrill ride of action and adventure. I am definitely looking forward to reading more Sam Cable mysteries by Bell. This is a voluntary review of an Advanced Reader Copy of this book from HIdden Gems Books.

[Rabid Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great second book in the Sam Cable series, it grabs your attention, has great characters, snarky humor and a thrilling, good guy vs bad guy plot. Texas Ranger, Sam Cable, is sent to pick up a prisoner but things are not as simple as it seems and definitely do not go as planned. A plane crash has Sam stranded in a remote area with a badly injured pilot, a beautiful prisoner accused of killing a cop and a group of assailants trying to kill them. I really enjoyed this audiobook, the narration was very well done, and the story was the right mix of intrigue, action, suspense and humour. I loved that Jade Stone was a strong character who was just as capable as Sam when it came to surviving. The humour and chemistry between the two of them was great and I loved the twist in the story at the end. I will look forward to the next book in the series.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author Scott Bell really knows how to grab the reader's attention and not let go. A simple mission for a
Texas Ranger turns into hell on a mountainside, with three characters trying to survive together.
"How that boy could find more trouble than ninety-nine other Rangers was beyond Marshall's comprehension."
"Less than an hour since we'd started, and already I felt like an empty tube of toothpaste, all squeezed out and twisted in a knot."
"Mama Cable drives a 1963 Chevy Stepside powered by a 283 V-8, three on the stick, with Jesus Christ riding shotgun. We call ahead when she gets a notion to go to town so the county cops can clear the road of the innocent." Sam Cable gets his energy and his survival skills from his mother and the Texas Ranger training.

[Jay Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you have read the first book in this series, you will love this one. If you haven't, you are missing a bet on both. Sam Cable is the tall, true, Texas Ranger that every small boy wanted to be. The May Day comes when his airplane is sabotaged by crooked ATF agents who are trying to kill his prisoner to cover up their corruption. The characters are realistic, though somewhat extreme, and the adventure as Sam, his escort, and the prisoner are hunted through the mountains of New Mexico after the airplane crash. The plot is very imaginative and exciting, and the suspense carries on right to the very end. I definitely wanted to read more.

[B B 3682 · Rating 5 out of 5]

April and May too good ones

I think I enjoyed these 2 books more than I could imagine. Scott Bell in my opinion has written two of the best I've read in a while, loved the Texas twang and the way these folk expresses themselves.
I hope He has written June and July I believe they would be great also.

[A Voracious Reader (a.k.a. Carol) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book source ~ ARC. My review is voluntary and honest.

Texas Ranger Sam Cable’s boss has sent him to pick up a prisoner out in California and bring her back to Texas to face charges of murdering her cop boyfriend. So he takes off with his pilot, DPS Trooper Marlon Boggs and away they go. Sam hates flying in the tiny Cessna, but Boggs gets him there easy peasy and in one piece. They pick up their prisoner and head for home. And that’s where things get real interesting.

If you are looking for a smartass hero with stubborn to spare who can think fast on his feet then look no further. This is the story for you! The first couple of chapters set the scene and then it’s non-stop action until the end. What a ride! After reading book 1 April’s Fool, my fingers were itching to open this one because I just knew I was going to love it. Holy shit, was I right! Scott Bell really knows how to put the reader in the shoes of his characters with just the right amount of description to keep the flow fast-moving and not bogging it down. Awesome characters, an interesting world, ass-puckering action, and a mystery to solve are just what I needed to escape the daily grind. Bravo!

[NoNo JoJo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Preface: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

May Day is a novel that isn't intended for me - not for readers of my gender, my age, or my interests. It wasn't any surprise that I didn't find it particularly engaging, as I am far from being the target audience. That being said, it does fit most of the standards of its genre pretty well. It has a tough, bland hero. It has a sexy female sidekick (though Jade actually does get stuff done). It has one-dimensional villains. And it has plenty of shootbangs.

It does bring some new things to the genre, however. For one, most of the novel isn't a mystery. There's no piecing together of who the bad guys are or what they want. It's primarily centered around a plane crash caused by the baddies, and most of the novel revolves around the main characters surviving and shooting the bad guys that come after them, while paper-thin side characters do the actual sleuthing. There's not a lot of tension, since you know Walker Texas Ranger is in no danger, and Jade isn't really either - most of the tension comes from whether the additional sidekick character will survive the whole ordeal. But, as stated, if all you want is shootbangs and gun-talk, this is the book for you.

I do have some complaints, however. As stated, most of the characters are pretty thin. Jade is actually interesting, but we never really find out what happened in the inciting incident that led to her being on the run in the first place. We know she killed a guy, but she never explains the circumstances of that particular scene. The injured guy they drag around with them (I've already forgotten his name) is unconscious most of the book (though he does have some good lines). And of course, our main character is just the typical straight white cowboy hero type. He does have one nice moment where Jade is coming onto him and he turns her down because duty and stuff -- only to immediately change his mind and have sex with her. And, wouldn't you know it, he's the first man to ever make her orgasm. Yeah, it's that kind of book.

Going off of that point, representation in this book is...poor. We start off with a Hispanic character who is just there to act buffoonish in the first chapter. Then we get black-guy-whose-name-I-forgot, who gets hurt and is carried around the rest of the novel. We have a stereotypical Latina sex worker with an atrocious accent. We have a stereotypical black thug with an atrocious accent. We have another Latino villain who curses in Spanish all the time. And our only gay characters are also villains, one of whom gets by far the worst death for no reason. I don't know if any of this was intentional, but it all came off looking pretty bad.

The dialogue/humor in this is kinda crappy, too. The title is even a joke - the story is about a plane that crashes, but it also all takes place in May, get it? One of the main characters name is Jade Stone - and her siblings are Diamond and Gem, hohoho. Injured black partner guy makes consistently terrible jokes throughout (though this was a kinda funny character thing). All the Texan characters constantly spout off awful sayings (my "favorite" being "[character] was leaking blood faster than a vampire humping a porcupine"). It's a little rough to get through.

All that set aside, I will say this again - I'm not the target audience. I did not particularly enjoy this book, although I did not hate it, either. I will probably never think of it again. If you want a cowboy hero shooting the bad guys dead and hanging out with a tough hottie and cracking awful jokes while the actual cops do the actual cop work, you'll enjoy this. Otherwise, give it a pass.

[Leslie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this book free as an ARC reader for review.

Most of the characters feel like caricatures from common “bad-guy” dramas. Jade Stone, however Ridiculous her name is, proves to be the only character who plays outside of her box; but even she is left undeveloped. Time jumps and Coincidences tie all the plot lines up in a neat little bow

[Rebecca Sweeney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick Suspenseful Read

Great characters, just enough technical information, and plenty suspense. Fun read and did not end the way I was expecting.