Deeper into the new civil war, not as good or as wrenching as the first book. ( )

Disclosure: Won [b: The Hound of Justice|40042605|The Hound of Justice (Janet Watson Chronicles #2)|Claire O'Dell|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1541008195s/40042605.jpg|62043477] by Claire O'Dell in Goodreads giveaway. I normally start a series by reading the first in the series (A Study in Honor) but here I am diving right in... The story definitely carries a bit of a political slant with a touch of bright future glitter thrown in for color. Technology gadgets are well described without being overtly boring being well meshed with personal interactions. ... to be continued

3.5-star read

Dr. Janet Watson returned to Washington D.C. from the new American Civil War filled with anger, PTSD, and without a home or job. She eventually did find a home with Sarah Holmes, a government agent, and a job with the VA. The job situation didn't last very long and ended with Janet and Sarah uncovering some unsavory connections between Adler Industries and the VA. On a happy note, Janet wound up with a new job at Georgetown University Hospital as a surgeon and a new prosthesis. But all is not right in Dr. Janet Watson's world. People are dying in the hospital of unknown causes, her roommate vanishes mysteriously, her grandmother has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's, her deadline to become a practicing surgeon gets pushed back, and she gets roped into doing a presentation at a medical conference where her ex will also be presenting. After Sara disappears, Janet receives a notification from Hudson Realty to vacate the premises, and then receives a mysterious notice from Sara's cousin Micha that Janet should take a leave of absence from her job to help Sara out on a job behind enemy lines. It's bad enough that Sara's disappearance is interfering with Janet's job, but now it's expected that Janet should use her family—her ailing grandmother in the deep South—as an excuse to travel into the New Confederacy. The last adventure Sara became embroiled in involved Nadine Adler, Adler Industries, and ended with Janet being shot. This time, Janet is expected to use her surgical skills (untested skills at that on an unknown subject), behind enemy lines, and she just might be going up against Nadine Adler again along with the Brotherhood of Redemption. Will Janet be able to successfully complete this mission or are Sara and Micha expecting too much from their friend Dr. Watson this time?

I read and thoroughly enjoyed the first book in the Janet Watson Chronicles, A Study in Honor. Sara Holmes is quite unlike the modern Sherlock Holmes characters we've seen in movies and television. She's very intelligent, just like the original fictional Sherlock and somewhat of a recluse, but this Holmes works with the FBI and has an extended family support system by means of her cousins and grandmother. Janet Watson is very similar to Dr. John Watson in that she is a war veteran, a physician, and has an estranged sibling, but the similarities end there. This Dr. Watson and Holmes are strong, Black, females and Dr. Watson is a lesbian. These ladies are residing in a time that is not quite post-apocalyptic but definitely a dystopian world where the United States has experienced a new Civil War and confederate states have successfully seceded from the US and are attempting to stage a coup/assassination of the newly elected president. This Watson and Holmes duo feature a Hudson and Adler, but they are unlike the Hudson and Adler seen in previous iterations of Watson and Holmes' stories. The Hound of Justice made for a nice follow-up to A Study in Honor and was a fast-paced and engaging read. I loved the interaction between Janet Watson and her occupational therapist, her psych therapist, her love interest (a bookstore owner), her colleagues, her family, and, of course, with Holmes and the Holmes family. The Hound of Justice offers mystery, political intrigue, slight romance (although not the overriding theme), self-realization, family angst and drama (on both the part of Watson and even Holmes to a certain extent), along with the overriding theme of friendship and what we're willing to do for the sake of our friends and what is right. Just in case you can't tell, I really enjoyed The Hound of Justice and sincerely hope there will be another installment in the Janet Watson Chronicles because I can't accept that this is where it ends. I strongly encourage you to grab copies of A Study in Honor and The Hound of Justice by Claire O'Dell to read. This is one series you won't want to miss out on. Happy Reading y'all! 📖

I received a copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review. This review originally posted on 08/09/2019 at https://www.thebookdivasreads.com/2019/08/2019-book-236-hound-of-justice-by.html. ( )

I received this book without charge from Goodreads in exchange for an unbiased review.

The events of this book follow closely on the heels of the previous story, A Study in Honor. Dr. Janet Watson is adjusting to her new prosthetic arm, provided to her as a result of her actions in the previous book, and trying to requalify to perform surgery at Georgetown University Hospital. Meanwhile, her roommate, Sara Holmes, is on the trail of Nadine Adler, believed dead - only Homes seems to doubt the evidence. When a bombing in Washington by the New Confederacy during the presidential inauguration misses its main target but causes numerous deaths and injuries, Watson, is pressed back into service. This results in conflicts with hospital personnel, and another mystery; the unexplained deaths of recently discharged patients who appeared to be on their way to recovery. As Watson begins to develop a personal relationship with the owner of a bookstore where she had been browsing on the day of the bombing, Holmes disappears. Then comes the summons - a surgeon is needed across the border, inside the New Confederacy. Is Watson willing to risk her job, her security and possibly her life? The why and for whom make up the last third of the book, with most of the questions tied up but still room for O'Dell (an open pseudonym of Beth Bernobich) to perform trilogy.

Given that this is (probably) a middle book, it suffers from the faults of many middle books in a trilogy. There's a lot of back fill for those who haven't read the first book. Lots of time is spent on actions that don't really move the plot along. Other items, like Watson's presentation at a medical conference, are introduced, then abandoned, and tied up neatly in a few pages in the last chapters. Many new characters are introduced, some of whom will no doubt feature prominently in the next volume. I'm especially looking forward to seeing how O'Dell develops her version of Mycroft Holmes. Since the timing of the book is an unspecified but relatively near-future year (a tunnel is mentioned as having been dug in 2018, and our current president is remembered with less than fond feelings), the political messages seemed at times to outweigh the mystery. O'Dell acknowledges she is writing "the other" and there are times it seems as if she wants to show how much she learned. But the book reads very quickly and held my interest throughout. As a Holmesian, I'm always looking forward to a new take on the characters, and O'Dell has certainly managed to invent a new interpretation that may have legs beyond the first three books. Recommended. ( )