Author: Louisa Luna
Publisher/Year: Text Publishing/2020
Publisher Overview
‘Men pretty much have a triangle. Sex, drugs, money,’ she said, drawing a triangle in the air with her finger. ‘Every man who commits a criminal act does it in service to one or more of those three things…Most men, actually, do everything because of them.’
On the outskirts of San Diego, the bodies of two young women are discovered. They are Jane Does: no names, no IDs, no families looking for them. Fearing a human trafficking ring, the police and FBI ask Alice Vega to help find out who the Janes were—and find the other missing women.
Alice Vega has a mind like a steel trap. Along with her partner Cap, she will stop at nothing to find the Janes before it is too late.
Louisa Luna is writing new, smart, insightful, relevant classics of crime fiction. Vega and Cap rightfully join the pantheon of the most memorable partnerships in crime fiction.
Reviewer: Carol Seeley
I absolutely loved Two Girls Down, the first booking the Alice Vega series and then I read The Janes! What a fabulous sequel, another to add to my “Best of 2020 Crime Fiction Reads” list. Suspend your disbelief before boarding a bone-rattling, earthshaking, mind-blowing, action-packed read. Destination: satisfaction guaranteed.
Louisa Luna’s memorable, heroic, female protagonist, Alice Vega is everything (and more) than the average, male, crime fiction good guy. I love this element of Luna’s work – her hero plays by the same standards as her villains – Vega’s tough, smart, and assertive with an aggressive bent. She’s unconstrained by the rules of law enforcement and does as she needs to get results. Fast thinking and fast acting, Vega is compelled to help those who need her the most but she’s not averse to breaking an arm, leg, nose or any other body part to achieve a result.
Her counterpart is the likeable and knowledgeable ex-detective Max Caplan aka Cap. He’s older, thoughtful, calm, and determined. Vega and Caplan make the perfect team – both compassionate and resolute in their endeavours to solve the most heinous crimes.
Luna has crafted a well written crime fiction narrative which subtly discusses contemporary social and political issues: human trafficking, forced prostitution, drug trafficking and the detention of “illegal immigrants”, corruption…to name a few. Luna tackles hard issues, deftly weaving them into this action-packed mystery.
For your next exciting, page-turning, stay-up-all night read, look no further than this thrilling new series; the duo of Vega and Cap will keep you entertained until the very last word.