Storm Warning by James Byrne

Dez Limerick burst onto the scene in The Gatekeeper and introduced one of the great action heroes and a great new action series. Storm Warning finds Dez kicking around New York and moonlighting as a sous chef and helping the restaurant owner scare off a protection racket.

When the FBI shows up asking for Dez's help, he's quick to say yes. There's a research facility in Canada, the Fuchs Underground Neutrino Collector, that entered lockdown and has gone dark for unknown reasons. 

The site is like a Russian nesting doll. Complete with actual Russians! There's a small Canadian town on top, a Russian-operated mine below, and the neutrino research facility underneath the mine, staffed and funded by an international consortium of public and private interests. The place is next to impossible to penetrate, unless you happen to be a gatekeeper, which Dez is. Gatekeepers can open any gate, keep it open for as long as you need, and close it when you're done. Dez is happy to help, but he becomes determined to do so when he learns that a close friend of his is trapped there. 

A series of Atlantic storms makes getting to the remote Newfoundland site a dicey proposition. You can feel the bitter cold and blowing snow all around you. Once there, the same storms make it impossible to send help. The underground site feels as much like a trap as salvation. 

Dez Limerick is someone who is more inclined to use his mind and his fists than guns. His skills and ability to improvise will be key to getting into the facility and rescuing the occupants. It turns out a private group is very interested in a secret uncovered there.  They are led by dangerously amoral people who want into the facility and don't care who gets hurt in the process. 

The bad guys are almost comically villainous, if it weren't for the fact that they are so incredibly rich they can hire actual skilled mercenaries. Aside from Dez and his friends, there are a few morally grey characters in the middle. Chief among them is Ash, an exceptionally skilled young woman whose background and motivation are a mystery. She is athletic and capable of being deadly, but she is cautious in her actions, fascinated by Dez, and reticent to be known.

Dez is a unique and compelling hero. He is obviously highly trained, experienced, and skilled. His passion lies in playing music, roaming the country, and enjoying himself. While many other protagonists are haunted and brooding, Dez is jovial. His friendliness and humor constantly make you smile. This makes it more exciting when he unleashes his fists and traps on the enemy.

The story is well paced, with the storm-imposed isolation adding a ticking clock element as reinforcements are kept at bay. Several well-timed betrayals continually reshape the stakes and keep the story moving in unexpected directions.

This book is perfect for fans of action who enjoy smart, capable, and likable heroes who are just as likely to make you laugh as make you gasp. This is the fourth book in the series, but James Byrne gives you enough background so you can jump right in. Reading the previous books fills you in on more backstory, and all are worth reading. Storm Warning delivers everything that makes this series special: inventive action, escalating tension, and a hero you'll want to spend time with.

I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher.