It’s 2013. Somalia is in chaos. Countries around the world are accepting refugees. The United States has agreed to accept a small number. Larger numbers of Somali refugees have been successfully in the U.S. in the past.
A small group of Somali refugees has assembled in Mogadishu to be resettled in an obscure town in central Texas, a suburb of San Marcos. ISIS also has coopted this group of Muslim Somalis to continue creating chaos in the U.S. This group of Somali Muslims are also Salafists who believe they are the only true Muslims. In Somalia and elsewhere, Salafists often destroy mosques of Muslims who they believe are apostate.
Meanwhile, Yusef Shaito, who we have known with his nickname Joe, has advanced as far as he can in his career with the U.S. Attorney general in Washington, D.C. until someone retires or dies. His next step is to a district office in one of the ninety plus judicial districts. Because of his brilliance and expertise as a hate crime and civil rights crime, the step must be to a large important district.
Yusef becomes the deputy U.S. Attorney for the western district of Texas, headquarters in San Antonio, one of the largest if not the largest in the U.S. in both geographic size and population. His close-knit group of friends in the Washington area are also splintering so Yusef is eager to take on new adventures.
Incensed over being expected to integrate with Muslims at the San Marcos Masjid, the Salafist Somali refugees attempt to set the mosque on fire. Soon an FBI investigation ensues for a hate crime.
At the same time, two local men, anti-Muslim racists, throw a burning Koran into the make-shift mosque of the Somali immigrants. Unexpected events occur leading to another FBI investigation of a hate crime. Unwitting witnesses provide clues leading to apprehension of the perpetrators,
Romance develops as Yusef meets Nisrine, a Muslim-American very recent graduate of medical school with specialty in obstetrics and gynecology. Together, they are involved in the consequences of the tragic aftermath of the burning Koran.
Action moves quickly through hospital scenes and two hate crime trials in two U.S. Federal Courts. One trial moves quickly and routinely; the other involves attorney behavior rarely found in U.S. Federal courts.
In the end, justice is served. Characters proceed in positive directions of their lives.
Heath Daniels is semi-retired from a successful academic career as a professor and researcher in international business issues, writing and speaking professionally.
He has lived in many countries and traveled to many other countries world-wide.
These locations exposed him to many cultures and situations in which he developed appreciation, respect, and empathy for all persons everywhere, their cultures and traditions.
His travels have inspired his fiction writing.
As indicated in the Afterword to Three Kisses, at New Year going from 2005 to 2006, thoughts and inspirations came into his mind and would not stop until he sat at the computer and started writing.
Thus started a parallel career of being an academic living and working in various locations and writing action international intrigue novels under a pseudonym.
Now that he has mostly retired from academia, he has continued through four novels with a fifth still developing in his head.
He grew up in a small city that would be considered the heartland of the US. During his academic career in the US, he lived in what would be viewed as a semi-rural area.
While moving around the world, he lived in big cities, small towns, and in between.
Upon semi-retirement. He moved back to his original home town which is now a larger, urban, cosmopolitan city that still has heartland roots.
He continues to travel whenever possible, most recently returning from a four-week visit to southeast Asia.
Almost all locations in his books are places where he has lived or visited for a long enough time to be able to bring them to life through the books.
All characters are fictionalized depictions of actual people with whom he has interacted, not always under pleasant circumstances.
His novels feature current events, adventure, and intrigue that are designed to entertain, as well as inform and foster acceptance, tolerance, and respect.
Many events that were written as fiction actually occurred later, as explained in the afterwords of the books published so far.
Justice is a book about social justice and is the third book in its series. The story is a stand-alone and takes place during the height of the ISIS scare of 2014-2015. The premise is about the Island experience in America. You get to understand the social and political sides of being a Muslim and wanting to be successful at the same time. I enjoyed the book because the author had based the characters on people he knew but did not necessarily use them directly into the story. The literature is written well, and the book is enjoyable to read.
We are certainly living in a world where the perceptions and understanding of race and religion have changed. Not all bad, but it is affecting adults and youth at the same time. The embodied message is clear, not to group beliefs or ideals in one place as everyone is different and principles are unique to their own.
I recommend this book to those who like to read religion and culture
11/25/13, Mogadishu, Somalia refugee camp. Qasim Abdikarim waited to be airlifted to the U.S. for resettlement. An Arab man kind of gave him the pros/cons of immigration to the US. 12/25/2013, Abandoned gasoline station/garage. Redwood, TX. Somali refugee’s: Qasim Abdikarim (self-designated imam); Raqe Shire; Yasir Farhan; & Zaid Rahim had finally arrived in the US. The community was mostly Hispanic & they weren’t real keen on the Somalian’s.
9/29/14, San Marcos, TX. Cracker Barrel restaurant. Sammy Lee Jones (50+, excavation/building demolition), Wesley Stokes (50+, excavation/building demolition) & their family members were enjoying lunch after attending Pastor Bobby Ray Estes Sunday services at the Church of the Prince of Peace. 10/30/14, Washington DC, Yusef “Yusey” Shaito (30+, Joe, Arab-American Muslim, TX Western Judicial District of Texas Sr. staff AG) was telling Roger Chen (40+, former supervisor, U.S. AG attorney, Washington, DC) goodbye. Yusef told Dr./Professor Omar Abu Deeb (30+, Yusef’s BFF, roommate, U of NC, Muslim imam) goodbye & wished him well.
What is the future for Bradley “Brad” Spencer (30+, U of NC; grad student, Jason’s gay partner) & Jason Henderson (30+, freelance furniture designer, Brad’s gay partner, Greensboro, NC)? FBI SA Dwight Higginbotham (Austin, TX) had just received a urgent case. A mysterious Arabic religious book had been turned over by the San Marcos PD. 6/22/15, Redwood, TX. Guadalupe County Sheriff’s department reported an apparent firebombing aimed at the Somali immigrants who run a small fruit/vegetable stand. 6/23/15, San Antonio, TX. Central Texas Medical Center transferred Nisrine Maktabi (wife) to the University Medical Center.
9/11/15, Jennifer Throckmorton (35+, Anglo-American, San Antonio AG staff attorney) & Thad Cochran (35+, Anglo-American, San Antonio AG staff attorney) went to see Yusef Shaito (Muslim, hate crime specialist). All rise. The District Court of County is now in session, Judge Oscar Ramirez (50+, US federal, San Antonio, TX). The bailiff announced the case of the U.S. vs. Jones and Stokes. Prosecution: Thad Cochran; Cassandra Blake (San Antonio, TX, U.S. AG attorney, Texas Southern U, Thurgood Marshall Law School, Yusef Shaito, Defense: Cecil Rainwater (attorney, San Antonio, TX); Wesley Stokes (construction worker, San Marcos, TX).
How will the case turn out? Is their romance in the air for Nisrine & Yusef “Yusey” Shaito? What about Yusef & Dr./Professor Omar Abu Deeb who haven’t seen each other for 6 yrs.? Some of the pictures were kind of cheesy: motels, restaurants. I felt going into the future 9/11/2035 did not fit the story c0ntent at all.
I do not receive any type of compensation for reading & reviewing free books from publishers & authors. Therefore, I am under no obligation to write a positive review, only an honest one.
Warning: This book contains extremely graphic adult content, violence (racial/religious), or expletive language &/or uncensored sexually explicit material (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual (LGBTQIA)) which is only suitable for mature readers. It may be offensive or have potential adverse psychological effects on the reader.
A very awesome book cover, great font & writing style. A fairly well written legal thriller book. It wasn’t always very easy for me to read/follow from start/finish, but never a dull moment. There were no grammar/typo errors, nor any repetitive or out of line sequence sentences. Lots of exciting scenarios, with several twists/turns & a huge set of unique characters, settings, etc. to keep track of. This could also make another great legal thriller movie, or better yet a mini TV series. A lot of potential but for now I will only rate it at 4/5 stars.
Thank you for the free author (s); ITO Press; Goodreads; MakingConnections; Making Connections discussion group talk; ARR; Author; Word book. Tony Parsons MSW (Washburn)
(Won this book on Goodreads). This story was hard to get into at first. The language (which I understand is a part of the story) was very hard to read. I hate the words that were used and it made we want to stop reading. The underlying story of these friends was great to read. Even in all the hate they still rose above and prospered. The end was sort of weird, I wasn't expecting to see the future. However, it was nice to see everyone's connections.
Considering the time we currently find ourselves in, Justice is the perfect page turner for those that enjoy the politically themed thriller. The author is so in tune with the social times we are now in. I do recommend this for the more mature readers as some may find it a bit graphic. Right now our country finds itself in a very chaotic time and Mr. Daniels has the unique ability weaving that chaos into an amazing story. One thing I enjoy about this author is his ability to make you feel like you know the characters yourself. I also enjoyed the fact that so many points of view are given so it's not just one person's story. A great read to be sure.
Mr. Heath Daniels is one of my favorite authors who skillfully presents a thoughtful picture of our times—addressing deeply concerning societal and political issues. Justice: A Novel is aptly named. Mr. Daniels artistic skill and mastery of the novel art form give his writing a life that makes the reader want to live with the characters and be involved in their struggles. It is a delicate delve into their personal lives and justice. It is complex and makes a reader work, especially in the beginning—but well worth the effort. The complexity is justified and makes this book a suspenseful page turner. There is mature content which is necessary to the plot development. The pictures in Justice: A Novel help bring the book to life. Highly recommend and waiting for a new release from this talented author.
I've been gearing towards more political suspense books as of late, and this one, in my opinion, fits into that genre. We live in a world full of chaos at any given moment and the author takes a peek into some of that chaos. It's filled with multiple POV's that embrace a sometimes scary reality. Whether its religious views, the easily intertwined terroristic movements, sometimes peaceful integration of others or the angry tones of those who choose to be against bringing in foreigners for a positive reason, this book is filled with so much that it kept me involved and I finished it within hours. A super good read!
I have to say, I wasn't planning to like this book as much as I did. My intention was to give it as a gift to my Texas-crazy brother and sister in law. But it looked interesting, so I took a peek, and I was hooked. Without giving any spoilers, I will say there were a few kicks to the stomach. But I remained fascinated and read the whole thing rather quickly. I did give it 4 stars instead of 5 because all the Texas information got pretty old. But really I should have expected that.
This story takes a look at different Muslims in the US and how they are perceived and portrayed. That you cannot group belief into one set of ideals as each have their own unique beliefs. Ideals sometimes are less than perfect as things can quickly spiral out of control.
Justice is what we all desire as it can take on many forms.
Well written novel; well researched and very few errors. Not my favorite genre and not one I would read again, but for those who like reading about social justice and equality, this is a good read for you.
This was difficult for me to read, so consequently I did not finish. Just not my kind of book. Sorry Heath. I will try to revisit at a later time to read. Thank you for the gift.