I have read several of Craig Thomas's books, it is hard to believe that he could have written this book.It seemed as if Lock's sister, was more than just a sister.Mostly it was boring, especially the last part of the book.

I was so puzzled with Craig Thomas' "A Wild Justice," after getting halfway through it, that I wanted to check Amazon.com to see what others said about it. Having worked in post-Soviet Russia for six years, I'd say Thomas portrays a depressing reality with accuracy. But the book is a snoozer. It's predictable and it jumps around. Maybe the Washington Post Book World thinks "Thomas writes far better than Ludlam." I don't.

First off, I want to say how much I love Craig Thomas's writing, and I just know I'll come back "A Wild Justice", but the book has flaws that won't be helped by a second reading.

THE PLOT: Assassins murder the sister of John Lock, an ex-CIA officer. Lock soon learns that the plot was actually aimed at his rich brother in-law, the corporate head of a company doing business in post-Soviet Siberia. Unbeknownst to him, an executive of the company has already been found murdered in the remote Siberian town of Novy Urengoy, triggering an investigation by the local intel services. Independently, both Lock and the Russian chief Vorontsyev link crimes to Turgenev, who heads the Russian end of the company combining with Lock's in-law, and both make the mistake of alerting their target. While Vorontsyev struggles to keep his officers alive, Lock evades various attempts to kill him while he travels to Novy Urengoy. When the two link up, they consider various underpinnings of Turgenev's plan - smuggled drugs or weapons - eventually hitting on a much darker conspiracy.

THE PROBLEMS: Craig Thomas's writing is normally opaque, but that give's his plots greater depth. Unfortunately. The simple plot of "Justice" just seems undefined - we learn quickly who the bad guy is, and that he must be stopped. While the plot hints at the more earthshaking aspects of Turgenev's plans, it never makes them clear enough to be scary. The plot itself doesn't offer much tension because there is no sense of a deadline that must be made (like, stop Turgenev before the Russian Army arrives, or before a laser sattelite targets the space shuttle). Also, Turgenev remains undefined because he's never given any real henchmen or colleagues like the tag-teams of other Thomas novels (Like Babbington and Winterbach of "Lion's Run"; Serov and Rodin of "Winterhawk"; or Kontarsky and his Soviet bosses in "Firefox"). Lock remains an enigma himself, without that checkered past of characters like Priabin and Mitch Gant. While the plot isn't up to Thomas's previous standards, his belief-suspending plot-twists, unfortunately, are true to form. Are we supposed to believe that Lock, already on the run at home, will risk going to Siberia alone? While most Thomas books rely on recurring characters - Aubrey, Hyde and Priabin - "Justice" brings back only one character: the heroically defiant Vorontsyev who single-handedly halted a Red Army coup in the superior "Snow Falcon", but doesn't hint at his tenacity in this later book.

STILL: "Justice" offers a tight plot, likeable characters and Thomas's trademark prose. Given that Thomas hasn't been writing as many novels these, we'll take what we can get, even a novel that seems only exceedingly superior to anything else being written, as opposed to his usual obscenely-better-than standard. In short, a must for Craig Thomas fans.

Poor character development, limited storyline, countless abandoned opportunities to enrichen the plot or offer a "why" or two, and no ending. NONE. The book simply ends. What a major disappointment! Had I thrown out the book halfway through, I'd have been no worse off.

I think overall the plot in this book is very disaapointing. The description of places that are in the book is very good and really puts a picture in your imagination. The book is not really that good because as the previous reviewer said there is no ending at all and there is hardly a denemous at the end and you have to really be attentive in the story to get the point in the end which i wasnt. The book also is not so thrilling and does not keep you hooked it makes you want to find out maybe if it gets better but it doesnt. Im sorry Lesley-Grant Adamson but this book is a dissapointment.

There is nothing thrilling in this book. What little tension or suspense that exists in the book is generated solely by the fact that all the characters do not behave normally. None of the "terror" would occur if they had simply turned all their information and evidence over to the police. Oh no, that might be too much like gossiping! (Apparently, gossiping is a much worse sin than murder, blackmail, or theft.) Maddy, who is supposedly the heroine of the book, is so idiotic that she should be confined for her own safety. How thrilling when she tries to figure out how to purchase a padlock! But she can't and has to resort to relying on a neighbor's help. Also, I believe the RSPCA should file charges on her. She has a 'beloved' dog; yet, she continually manages to let him run away and never gets too worried. Then, the poor thing disappears for days and she just keeps thinking he'll turn up and only worries about him in brief moments when she's not worrying about her own little self. There's not much of plot or storyline here. Just Maddy's wretching dialogues with herself. Should I? Should I have? Ought I? Oughtn't I? Why? But? Then Ms Grant-Adamson is really sloppy in ending this drivel; there are no real answers in her too-convenient ending. (I will not reveal this, in the off-chance that anyone else wants to read this book.) No answers, just the haunting conclusion that the village will gossip.