Book ~ "Sweat" (2012) Mark Gilleo

From Partners in Crime ~ When Jake Patrick took a summer internship at his estranged father’s corporation, he anticipated some much-needed extra cash and a couple of free meals from his guilty dad. He would never have guessed that he'd find himself in the center of an international scandal involving a U.S. senator, conspiracy, backroom politics, and murder. Or that his own life would hang in the balance. Or that he’d find help – and much more than that – from a collection of memorable characters operating on all sides of the law. 

Jake’s summer has turned into the most eventful one of his life. Now he just needs to survive it. From the sweatshops of Saipan to the most powerful offices in Washington, "Sweat" rockets through a story of crime and consequences with lightning pacing, a twisting plot, an unforgettable cast of characters, and wry humor. It is another nonstop thriller from one of the most exciting new voices in suspense fiction.

I participated in this virtual book tour and received a copy of this ebook at no charge in exchange for my honest review.

That being said, I enjoyed this book.  I like suspense and this fit the bill.  There was always something going on, it all fit together well and I was buying it.  A few times it got a bit more detailed about how the Senate works than I needed ... as a Canadian, I wasn't that interested, to be honest.  I just wanted to get back to the story so skimmed over it.

I enjoyed the writing style ... it kept me interested.  Occasionally the language got a bit "mature" but I was okay with that.  It's an intriguing story.  We hear about sweatshops but I've never read much about them.  A lot of the focus of this book is on one ... quite enlightening.


The characters I was supposed to like, I did ... like Jake, Kate and Al.  The ones I wasn't supposed to like, I didn't ... like the Changs and Senator Day.  It was interesting to see Jake's interactions with his dad, Peter, after having no contact for so many years.  Jake just spent the last year or so taking care of his mom (who died of cancer just before the book started) and he has no illusions about his dad.  Surprisingly I found myself liking one of the bad guys and was kind of cheering for him.

This is the first book I've read by this author and I'll put him on my "to keep reading" list.