Following her grandfather's funeral, Georgia Parish just wanted to get back to Sydney, Australia, and her life. Fate had other plans. When a crash landing kills a fellow passenger, Georgia finds herself caught up in a deadly mystery. The trail takes her through Australia's extreme climates, Asian gangs, and old acquaintances.

"Dead Heat" is a mystery full of action and suspense, all well written. The characters are engaging, especially Georgia, who is completely human. The plot is well paced, the setting is incredibly lush, and the bad guys are truly evil.

One drawback to this novel is the presence of two climaxes. The first climax seems to provide the answers, and the reader feels all there is left is to wrap up loose ends in the wind down to the last page; yet, there is one more climax before the end. This is a risky technique, and some stories pull it off well. In this case, however, this final action scene is anticlimactic. It is overshadowed by the scene of triumph, much like the ending to the movie "AI."

"Dead Heat" gets three books for the anticlimactic ending to an otherwise outstanding book.

-C.W.

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