Flight In February
Author
Philip Kraske
Publisher
Encompass Editions
4 Review Copies Left
Flight in February is a mix of two stories – a prison-escape adrenalin-throbber and a bitter espionage story. The lead character is the downtrodden U.S. deputy marshal, Henry Scott, who is a kind of Willy Loman with a badge. The escaped convict is Marcus Strenk, and he is no Willy Loman: just witness his story-opening escape from maximum security. Strenk leaves behind a dozen paintings that fall into a connoisseur’s hands and are soon widely acclaimed. The connoisseur uses the publicity to throw a monkey wrench into the hunt for Strenk.
Strenk hides out at the University of Minnesota, living in an old car. He has no money, but through people who owe him favors at the prison, plans to swindle the prison kingpin out of enough money to finance his getaway. Meanwhile, Henry investigates the FBI's unusual interest in Strenk and discovers a cynical anti-narcotics spy operation that Strenk was the key to. (You'll learn some surprising things about the sunnier side of relations between cops and drug barons.) But with his step through the looking-glass of espionage, Henry learns why the FBI must kill Strenk.
Reviews
Book Title: Flight in February
Author: Philip Kraske
Publisher: EyeStorms Books
ISBN: 9780986520303
Reviewed by Michele Tater for Review The Book
“Sometimes even the flight of an angel hits turbulence.”
~Terri Guillements
Set in a town near Stillwater, Minnesota, sits an underground maximum security prison thought to be one place where no one can escape from. Until someone tries. It just happens to Marcus Strenk, a seeming good prisoner, who does what he is told and paints with an eye of an aged artist. Did he really commit suicide or do he pull the ultimate prison break? Or did he burn in the furnace used to burn the waste from the humans who are considered by society as a waste as well. Is he a seasoned drug smuggler who just happen to finally get caught or a wronged man who was part of something bigger than he was? This is for Deputy Marshal Henry Scott to sort through and figure out what exactly is going on. Even though he is given obstacles that he must go around and sometimes through, he is determined to get to bottom of everything.
This the first book I have read from Philip Kraske, but I can say without hesitation, I hope it will not be the last. The novel is so well written you can feel the cold from the winter wind and the cold shoulders that Mr. Scott has to deal with. I think the author is a genius in developing a plot, that many will believe to be a plausible explanation, of how our agencies are run behind our backs. Likeable protagonists, yes I mean more than one. There are several main characters the reader will find themselves rooting for until the very end. By no means is this a how-to-escape-from-prison book or how to survive in Minnesota winter. But it is definitely a novel worthily of reading during the hottest of summers or the coldest of winters. An enthralling, well-crafted novel with an exciting and suspenseful plot. I highly recommend this book; I can not say it clearer than that. I look forward to read more books from this talented writer in the near future.
Reviewed on 11/04/2011 by ReviewTheBook.com Member michele tater
