Cornered

Always remember, things you do today will always come back to find you. Regardless on how much you have changed. This is a good book...however, I did find it a little predictable but I contribute that to me being an avid fan of Criminal Minds and Law and Order SVU. I tend to overthink the obvious! If you are a Massey fan, you must add this to your collection!

Those familiar with Brandon Massey's past work will be in for a bit of a surprise when reading CORNERED, his latest effort. Massey has primarily, though not exclusively, focused on the supernatural horror genre in his novels and short stories. CORNERED is horrific and possibly the most frightening book he has published to date. But the horrors one encounters here are very much of this world --- as close to any of us as, literally, a knock on the door. Corey Webb has achieved a hard-fought and well-won piece of the pie. He has overcome a hardscrabble background thanks in part to Louise, his grandmother, who provided him with love, guidance and a home, and the Reverend Otis Trice, who moved him from Detroit to Atlanta and into an environment free from the deadly influence of the street. The largest share of credit, though, has to be given to Webb himself, who invested hours, days and years of sweat equity into bettering himself and his situation. As CORNERED opens, we meet Webb in present time. He is the half-owner of a fabulously successful security company based in Atlanta, and even more importantly is husband to Simone, a smart, loving and attractive psychologist, and father to Jada, a precocious nine-year-old whose congenital deafness is on its way to resolution. However, Webb's secure and hard-won world is threatened with almost immediate collapse when his past street history in Detroit suddenly collides with his present. The past is manifested by Leon Sharpe, a jittery, dangerous character who grew up across the street from Webb and who drew the teenage Webb into the dark shadows of the criminal life, culminating in a disaster that is his darkest shame and secret. Sharpe is accompanied by Billy, an almost silent giant of a man who is a pervert of the vilest sort. But the most frightening thing about Sharpe is that he knows Webb's secret past and wants a very large piece of what Webb has worked so long and so hard for. When Webb makes him an offer that he finds insulting, Sharpe goes berserk and does the unthinkable, kidnapping Webb's family and holding them for ransom, with the brooding, frightening Billy hovering just off to the side. Webb, his unfortunate criminal past notwithstanding, is ill-prepared to function on the playing field that Sharpe has suddenly laid out. Reeling from an unexpected betrayal, and on the run from law enforcement, Webb has to turn to his own considerable inner resources to rescue everything and everyone he holds dear, even as he must confront and conquer his own past. Massey is absolutely pitch-perfect. There are any number of scenes that are unforgettable: Webb's first meeting with Billy, his initial reluctant reunion with Sharpe, and the abduction of Webb's family are but a few. The show stealer, however, is Reverend Otis, a man of deep wisdom and strength of character who appears only briefly and in two separate scenes, yet whose words and deeds resonate throughout the book and even outside of it. It is wor

This story starts out on the edge and keeps you there! This story is about lies, honesty and friendship. It's about your past coming back to haunt you! It's fast paced, easy to read, and hard to put down because you want to know what's happening next! It also has an unexpected twist which catches you off guard! If you love Mr. Massey's other books...you will love this one also!

In Atlanta Corey Webb is the poster boy for living the American dream as he runs a successful business has a beautiful caring wife Simone and an adoring precocious nine years old daughter Jada. His perfect world collapses when he runs into his childhood friend from Detroit Leon Sharpe who is maliciously staring at Jada. On the run from the FBI, Sharpe demands Webb pays for his silence or he will reveal their past associations in Motown. Already on the Ten Most Wanted List, he also threatens Webb's family. Willing to pay the blackmail fee, but not at the cost of his beloved wife and daughter, Webb knows he must find a way to extract his family from Sharpe's deadly entanglement. That initial encounter on the Atlanta streets is a terrific opening to a fast-paced thriller as Webb's roots come back to entangle him in a deadly scenario. Character driven mostly by the lead pair but nicely supported by Webb's family and others, fans will be excited by the hero's compelling ordeal as the code of the street was DON'T EVER TELL. Exciting and fun in spite of the unlikely circumstances and happenstance making plausibility slight, fans will enjoy this fine family crime caper. Harriet Klausner