Crucible

by James Rollins
461 pgs  (Sigma series #14)

In Crucible, James Rollins's latest Sigma Force novel, Gray and Monk return to Monk's house late on Christmas Eve to find the house in disarray, Kat, Monk's wife, comatose from a blow to the head, and Monk's two daughters along with Gray's pregnant companion Seichan missing. With the help of Painter Crowe and their resources at DARPA, they quickly learn that the those responsible are also tied to the deaths of five women in Portugal the same night, women who were the leaders of a network of scientists funding groundbreaking advancements in AI (artificial intelligence) technology.

The Sigma team must simultaneously search for their team's loved ones, make heart-wrenching decisions as the extent of Kat's injury becomes clearer, and stop a group determined to use AI to send the world back to where it was hundreds of years ago.

Crucible is a fun and action-packed read. Rollins delivers what I've come to hope for and expect with his books. I turn off my sense of realism and just go along for the ride. There are definitely a few over-the-top elements to the story, but Rollins has become pretty adept at describing those and incorporating them int his stories in such a way that they almost seem plausible.

★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆